TUC Equality Audit 2022

The main way in which unions provide services specifically aimed at particular strands of members is through websites. Just under half of unions responding provide website services in each case for women, for BME members, for disabled members and for LGBT+ members. Just 22 per cent provide web services specifically for age-related groups.

Unions were asked if they monitor their general service provision (excluding trade union training – see page 36) to see if it delivers equality of access. Overall, 44 per cent of unions do so, including five large unions (83 per cent), six medium unions (43 per cent) and seven small unions (33 per cent).

An important equality-related service provided by unions is taking discrimination cases to tribunal. All unions were asked if they monitor the number of cases they take to tribunal under each of the discrimination jurisdictions.

Around half of unions said they monitor the cases taken to tribunal, rather more than in 2018. Slightly higher proportions monitored race and pregnancy and maternity discrimination cases (56 per cent in each case) than for other protected characteristics: sex (51 per cent), disability (54 per cent), sexual orientation (51 per cent), religion/belief (46 per cent), gender reassignment (49 per cent), age (51 per cent) and marriage and civil partnership (41 per cent).

In terms of what the monitoring shows, the GMB reported that the abolition of tribunal fees in 2017 has led to a marked increase in claimants wishing to pursue employment tribunal claims over the past four years, particularly in relation to discrimination claims as these fell into the higher fee bracket.

Its figures for discrimination cases between 2020 and 2021 reveal a big increase under all jurisdictions except marriage and civil partnership, and particularly for disability, where the number rose from 103 to 165 in that period.

The GMB ascribed some of the rise in disability discrimination cases to the impacts of the pandemic, often around reasonable adjustments, health and safety concerns related to those at higher risk of Covid-19 and mental distress caused by the pandemic.

It also reported a rise in equal pay claims, which it says arose partly because of gender pay gap legislation, as well as high-profile equal pay decisions against supermarkets and in the case of Samira Ahmed against the BBC.

The GMB also said that, since the heavier publicity around the Black Lives Matter campaigns of mid-2020, it has seen an increase in members wishing to pursue race discrimination claims.

Prospect and the NUJ also reported an increase in race discrimination claims over the past four years, the NUJ referring particularly to pandemic-related dismissal claims on the part of protected groups and claims over Long Covid.

The CWU and Usdaw referred to changes in tribunal processes since the last audit, including the shift to online applications and tribunal hearings conducted by video or telephone conference. Usdaw reported that this has meant problems with unreliable internet connections and not being able to conduct hearings in person. The union also notes “the significant increase in time before hearings are being listed which leads claimants to have to wait too long for justice and appropriate compensation”.

Three-quarters of unions responding to the main questionnaire provide their paid officials with education or training in taking discrimination cases, while two-thirds provide it to lay representatives.

Trade union training

Around a third of unions take steps to encourage participation in education and training courses by members of the equality groups. 34 per cent do so to encourage women, 37 per cent to encourage BME members, 32 per cent for disabled members and 32 per cent for LGBT+ members. However, only 22 per cent have acted to ensure age diversity. These figures are virtually unchanged since 2018.

Many unions do this by promoting training courses through their equality groups. The SoR does this, as well as through its student groups, and these groups also help the union to explore ways to improve accessibility. The union has recently employed a learning technologist to assist with this work.

Other examples include the NEU, which provides accessible venues for in-person courses, a transcription service for digital courses and BSL upon request, while Unite advertises that it provides a childcare allowance, crèche provision and support for carers/personal assistants at its national women’s week course.

A new question for the 2022 audit asked about the use and equality impact of online courses. Three quarters of unions (31) have increased their online education or training offer to members in the last four years, including during the pandemic. This included all six large unions, 86 per cent of medium unions and 62 per cent of small unions.

Some of them noted a change in the diversity of course participants as a result. Among those, the most common comment was that more women had participated in online training, while two noted more disabled people taking part and the CWU said participation by young members as well as by women had increased. The EIS reported that it now has “an active BAME network, and disabled members who had previously been reluctant to be further engaged in union activity [who] … meet virtually to work on various projects, as well as a new national disabled members network that involves participants from remote highland and island communities”.

Unions completing the main questionnaire were asked if they conduct monitoring of attendance by particular groups at union courses. This occurs in only a minority of unions and the proportions of unions who conduct monitoring are lower than in 2018 for every strand.

Campaigns and communications

There is an increasing awareness that unions must consider diverse audiences in their campaigns and communications. Most of the unions completing the main questionnaire (82 per cent) say they take some action to ensure that their materials indicate a diverse membership or audience and that language is accessible and does not cause offence to particular groups.

A smaller proportion (45 per cent) help or encourage their branches to take these issues into account in their materials. The EIS facilitated the production of locally produced campaign materials in Polish and Hindi and NASUWT in 2019 provided its local associations/branches with guidance for hosting meetings and events to ensure they are inclusive and avoid barriers to participation from specific groups based on gender, ethnicity, disability access and faith.

61 per cent of all unions participating in the audit take some measures to ensure materials are accessible to people with visual or hearing impairments; 49 per cent provide materials in different languages where appropriate; and 29 per cent monitor the impact of campaigns on the diversity of their memberships.

Technology has afforded more opportunities to ensure information is accessible by a wider variety of groups in recent years. Several unions referred to ensuring their accessibility options reach the latest standards for their websites and other online offerings.

UNISON has undertaken an accessibility audit of its website to ensure that all of its campaign pages are fully accessible, with its Covid-19 pages the first to be so, and Unite has added sophisticated accessibility tools to its website (see box).

For some years many unions have been providing materials in other languages, and the GMB has now added a translation tool to its website.

In a sign that unions’ equality agendas are becoming increasingly sophisticated, just over half (54 per cent) have launched campaigns or policy initiatives in the last four years that have consciously sought to link two or more equality strands. In 2018, 42 per cent of unions had done this.

For example, the NASUWT’s ongoing anti-racism campaign and strategy has addressed the intersection of racism and other forms of oppression such as sexism, misogynoir (prejudice against Black women) and ostracism on the grounds of faith and religious belief. In addition, its sexual harassment campaign specifically addresses intersectional types of harassment such as those that affect Black women, LBT women and young and disabled women.

Usdaw took new steps in its longstanding national mental health campaign after a survey of members’ experiences of working through the pandemic showed that the mental health of young workers was being particularly badly affected. The campaign group worked with the National Young Workers’ Committee and the National Equalities Advisory Group to run an awareness-raising campaign.