2. Stereotypes and Bias
the “obstinate perception” of young people as individualistic and dismissive of
unionisation “is likely to turn unto a self-fulfilling prophecy affecting union
efforts with regard to youth recruitment and representation”
Kurt Vandaele (2013, p.383)
3. Research Project: Youth Activism
in Trade Unions
• Self-directed research investigating decreasing youth membership
and activism in trade unions – an internal or external issue.
• Documenting initiatives in Ireland and abroad to increase youth
membership and mobilise young workers.
– Youth TU Membership: 4% (15-19) - 16% (20-25)
• Generation X and Y – inherently adverse to collective tradition,
young people today more individualistic and work-shy?
• What issues are important to young people?
• What can trade unions do?
4. Research
Methodology
• Desk Research
• Interviews:
– 7 trade union officials heading union youth structures
– 5 trade union and non-union activists
– 1 ICTU official working on internships
• Ran a panel discussion on ‘Decent Work’ issues in Ireland at
the USI Student Congress (11 participants)
• Attended meetings of Young Workers Network, We’re Not
Leaving and Third Level Workplace Watch.
• Ran a focus group for interns (4 participants)
• Attended Youth Connect Awards and meetings
• Attended Youth and Women’s Committee meetings
6. Where do young people
work?
• Invisible, marginalised,
scattered, disempowered
– USI Congress and Focus
Group on Interns.
• Concentrated in
unemployment, precarious
and non-standard work, part-
time contracts and temporary
work.
• Forced Emigration – 94% of
young people do not want to
leave Ireland to find work.
• 42.1% in EU are in temporary
jobs and 31.1% working part-
time (mostly involuntarily)
7. Return to an Organising
Model
• Young people’s position in the
labour market – vulnerable,
unemployed, non-standard.
• Pride in their union – from
‘insurance policy’ to ‘original
democratic movement for
social good’
• Lockout 1913
• Youth orientated recruitment
strategies
• Clientalism and the ‘vicious
cycle’
• Community and local concerns
& ‘whole life organising’
8. Reaching Out
• Imperative to catch and
‘rust on’ early
• ‘Pale, male and stale’
• Online and attractive
• Inclusive new strategies:
INTO LGBTQ, Young
Worker’s Network, May
Day and Night Fest 2014,
Youth Connect Programme.
• ‘Like attracts Like’
• No ‘Gimmicks’ - Real
opportunity for youth
engagement
10. Youth Structures within
Unions
• Acknowledge external pressures and adapt
e.g. staff moratorium
• Adequate and consistent resource stream
• Meaningful participation
• Radical/Inactive
• Agenda-setting: Reserved seats on decision-
making bodies.
• Transformational approach – reshaping and
revitalisation of union interests, agenda, goals
and strategies
11. Other Themes
• Difficulty in mobilising young people:
– High activity in non-political arenas
– Exhaustion and mental health
– Deep distrust
• Lack of knowledge about trade unionism
• Bureaucracy
• Masculinist environment:
– Microcosm of the political arena (17% women)
– Machismo – exclusionary and exhausting
– Lack of Family Leave policies
12. There is no ‘Union
Sundown’
Untapped Power: Recognise “youth issues” as the core
concern of all = adapt to a changing workforce
The most effective means of revitalising the union
movement:
Real power, consistent resources, voice and autonomy to
youth structures within a vibrant, organising model of
trade unionism
13. Acknowledging the
Young Worker’s Voice in
Trade Unions
“I do not think, sir, you have any right to
command me, merely because you are older
than I, or because you have seen more of the
world than I have; your claim to superiority
depends on the use you have made of your
time and experience.”
Jane Eyre (Bronte 1847, p.141)
Interviewees noted that both young people and unions are negatively portrayed in common media discourse yet there was a negative view of young people even within the trade union movement. Interviewees noted that young people’s instances of apathy and lack of activism are portrayed as a generational shift towards individualism and selfishness, whilst protest and anger at inequality is a sign of young people’s propensity to anarchist destruction.
Independent News and Media and many others as we in this room know are no friend of unions. Therefore unions must have a critical eye in seeing this negative portrayal of young people, or risk alienating the future lifeblood of the union movement.
Explain the picture on the screen.
Original aim was to research methods of youth engagement in practice in Irish TU and abroad. However, as I was researching this I found that the reasons given for young people not being ‘active’ was often attributed to their being individualistic and adverse to collective tradition. Being an activist myself and having many activist comrades I found this a little suspect. Knowing that unions are the best way forward for not only better workplace but a better society for young people I was interested in investigating the story of declining membership. Is it an internal issue or the climate within which we operate.
I wanted to ask young people themselves what they thought were young people’s reasons for not joining unions in Ireland and what in their opinion would be the best way of doing this. You cannot ask how to attract young people without knowing why you are not doing so.
Say the latest figures. Also Republic of Ireland figures, but anecdotally I’ve met comrades and friends from the North who have said similar things are happening, this issue was also discussed at the Carlingford summer school
DISCLAIMER – what I am presenting here are the voices of 15 interviewees, they represent as wide a scope of views as was possible to collect over 6 weeks in the ICTU. The issues raised were far more broad and multi-layered than can be presented in one 5,000 word report, let alone a 10 minute presentation. This is but an attempt to acknowledge and present the voices of some young union and non-union activists in order to spur interest in further research.
- Explain drawing
- Supply side constraints such as lack of information, legislative constraints with regards to going into business premises account for 100% of the differential between youth and older membership.
- Explain stylised factor – presents unions with new challenges – be positive. TU have always had to adapt to changes – this is the problem for our time
Supply-side constraints
- Unions must realise that the days of the 40 hour week and job for life are just gone for people now. Young people no longer expect this.
- YWN and NYCI studies show that young people do not want to emigrate and the vast majority of emigrants want to return home.
- Myths and stereotypes that suit politicians who are presiding over a country of forced emigration for young people. 1987 Brian Lenihan and the ‘happy emigrant’
I as a young person need union leaders to come out and advocate on our behalf. We our leadership to do this. Need you to bat for us as workers in the labour movement.
Tom Healy – very silent on emigration
High youth unemployment is particularly difficult for revitalising unions as unions historically “assure above all the defence of the most active segments of the waged workforce”.
Perceived ‘clientalism’ during the boom and ‘era of social partnership’ was heavily criticised by interviewees as removing the “teeth” of unions, particularly as it has been claimed that “[d]uring the period of partnership union density in the private sector more than halved (D’Art and Turner 2011, p.157).
Unions were deemed by interviewees to have short-sightedly prioritised the needs and wants of present members over the future of the movement resulting in differential pay scales and benefits for older and younger workers. However, it must be understood that unions were implementing the democratic desires of their members. One interviewee noted that as a result of this commitment to democracy trade unions suffer from a “vicious circle” whereby, in seeking to protect the interests of present members and accepting differential pay scales for new (often younger entrants); unions erode their attractiveness to potential members.
This perception of ‘yellow-packing’ leaves a big problem for union leaders of the future.
Organising model must be adopted – be seen to be organising around young people’s issues. Members are more than armchair consumers and this interaction must be encouraged - whole life organising campaigning. Not just bread and butter TU issues but that which affects the whole life.
Young people should be targeted with separate messaging, be tactical.
Be aware or what unions are up against - If unions are not spreading the word and the messages then no-one is. IBEC everywhere – political messages
Young people engage in a free flowing activism, excessive tracking of success, monitoring and evaluating a social movement essentially constricts if not throttles it so bureaucracy and long meetings a problem.
Question is HOW TO TURN People from armchair activists into a movement. Easy access to information. Turnouts now generated by facebook.
Infighting a massive issue.
Young people are expensive to recruit, but then why wouldn’t you resource your future?
It’s not strategic planning to ignore the importance of attracting young people into the movement. Short-sighted and bad leadership. Investment in youth structures is simply smart capital expenditure.
Overall, the clearest reason why the movement must mainstream youth issues is that they are the issues of the future workforce – not confined to just young people. If you don’t deal with the precarity if work now you’re putting the future of the unions a risk.
If you don’t make that intervention into agenda-setting - YP won’t get in there
Masculinism and trade union meetings very boring and exclusionary
Despite the erosion of institutional supports and finance due to the expansion of neoliberalist ideology (Lynch, 2012, p.92) unions still have great strength and power, the issue is if they are willing and able to ensure that power into the future by adapting to what is a changing workforce, or remain blind to change by falling for the neoliberalist representation of young people as agents of their own destruction.
People need to reframe thinking from ‘youth issue’ to ‘the future’
