“Some 150,000-plus Unite members have been involved in over 900 disputes during the last two years. Our win rate stands at over 80% and this action has put over £400million into the pockets of Unite members. Winning has led to Unite growing its paying membership quarter on quarter for the first time in over a decade. This all proves that workers will join trade unions if given a reason to do so.”
But becoming the first female General Secretary of the Unite union was not made easy for Sharon Graham, as The Guardian reported back in 2021: “The only woman running to be the next leader of the powerful Unite union has revealed that she received “disgraceful” online abuse for refusing to stand aside for two more prominent male rivals.”
Sharon Graham attracted “an unexpected level of grassroots support” but experienced a “rough ride” after refusing to end her campaign. She said troll accounts had mocked up pictures of her as Margaret Thatcher, and she had warned her family that she might lose her job because of the row.“
“Being a woman in the trade union movement, and obviously a woman who has gone up against some of the most hostile of employers, I’m really used to being in difficult situations – so it takes a lot to rock me,” she said. “But I can understand why people don’t run against the establishment. We’re not in a playground picking football teams.”
Unite is the UK Labour Party’s biggest financial backer and is reported to guarantee the party an income of around £1.5m a year. Across the United Kingdom, the political parties which have had female leader’s are the Conservative Party, The Green Party, The Scottish National Party, Plaid Cymru - the party of Wales and the Democratic Unionist Party.
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