Wales Blog listing
'138' blogs listed
How we build a Wales that works for everyone
As Wales hurtles towards the Senedd election in May, the future political direction of the nation remains as unclear as ever. Read how you can help build a Wales that works for everyone.
Becoming the Change: My Journey as a Women's Rights Advocate
The TUC Cymru Women’s Activist Development Programme has helped me to grow in confidence. It has empowered me to take back, and hold onto, the values I hold dear as they are worthy no matter what others may think of them.
Rebuilding isn’t just about repairing what’s broken – it’s creating something new
We stand at a crossroads. The challenges ahead are real. The cost of living still bites. Public services are strained, and our communities still bear the scars of financial crashes that were created in expensive offices, not in the valleys and coasts of Wales.
Why RCM supports employees to use and learn Welsh
Midwives and women agree that using the Welsh language provides satisfaction, a sense of safety, and more personal connections to the birthing experience.
AI Inequalities: Ethnicity
TUC Cymru is concerned about the risks facing all workers from Artificial Intelligence (AI). We wanted to know more about the risks it poses for specific groups of workers. Therefore, we commissioned Prof Lina Dencik from the Data Justice Lab to produce a report on AI Inequalities at Work. Here she writes about AI’s impact on Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic workers.
Increasing the use of Welsh strengthens UCU Bangor
In 2018 UCU Bangor used very little Welsh. Now they're an inclusive branch where everyone feels welcome.
AI Inequalities: Minority Languages
TUC Cymru is concerned about the risks facing all workers from Artificial Intelligence (AI). We wanted to know more about the risks it poses for specific groups of workers. Therefore, we commissioned Prof Lina Dencik from the Data Justice Lab to produce a report on AI Inequalities at Work. Here she writes about AI’s impact on workers who speak a minority language.
AI Inequalities: Disabilities
TUC Cymru is concerned about the risks facing all workers from Artificial Intelligence (AI). We wanted to know more about the risks it poses for specific groups of workers.
Therefore, we commissioned Prof Lina Dencik from the Data Justice Lab to produce a report on AI Inequalities at Work. Here she writes about AI’s impact on disabled workers.
AI Inequalities: Age
TUC Cymru is concerned about the risks facing all workers from Artificial Intelligence (AI). We wanted to know more about the risks it poses for specific groups of workers.
Therefore, we commissioned Prof Lina Dencik from the Data Justice Lab to produce a report on AI Inequalities at Work. Here she writes about AI’s impact on younger and older workers.
AI Inequalities: Women
TUC Cymru is concerned about the risks facing all workers from Artificial Intelligence (AI). We wanted to know more about the risks it poses for specific groups of workers. Therefore, we commissioned Prof Lina Dencik from the Data Justice Lab to produce a report on AI Inequalities at Work. Here she writes about AI’s impact on women workers.
AI Equalities at Work
Artificial intelligence (AI) creates risks for all workers. When used to manage people it can make work more insecure and less well paid. When used to automate tasks it risks leading to redundancies.
Accelerating the action of women in the Trade Union movement
It’s International Women’s Day! And while it's always a great moment to celebrate the incredible women in our movement, it’s also a reality check. Because here in Wales – and across the UK – women are still getting short-changed. Literally.
A voice for the voiceless
A voice for the voiceless: TUC Cymru’s development programme gives Mahaboob the confidence to stand for Senedd election.
Having taken part in our Black Activist Development Programme, he’s found the confidence and skills to take his advocacy to the next level and to be a “voice for the voiceless”.
How will you get more involved with the trade union movement in 2025?
2024 has been a busy year for trade unionists in Wales but there's much to be optimistic about heading into 2025.
Shirley Newbury is leading change in her workplace.
Shirley is an active member of Unison Cymru/Wales and chairs the Ethnic Network Group of Neath Port Talbot Council. Her commitment to diversity and inclusion is evident in her leadership role in adopting the union's Anti-Racism Charter. Shirley's advocacy for marginalized communities highlights the importance of solidarity and collective action.
Following being part of the Pilot TUC Cymru Black Activist Development Programme, Shirley has lead the move towards change in her workplace and spoke at the launch of the new TUC Cymru Anti0racism in the workplace toolkit on 2 October 2024.
Samia Egeh speaks at TUC Cymru Black History Month Event
Samia openly spoke about her own experiences and feelings on the development of her activism and her thoughts on TUC Cymru’s new Anti-racism in the workplace toolkit at the launch event in the Pierhead, Cardiff on 2 October 2024.
Here is what she had to say.
Dr Mahaboob Basha values his personal development through TUC Cymru
Mahaboob is a delegate on the 2024 Black Activist Development Programme and a passionate activist with Unite.
Here is what he has to say about his development journey so far and the important skills he is developing on the Programme.
Our history informs our present: anti-racism in Wales today
This Black History Month TUC Cymru is launching a brand new anti-racism in the workplace toolkit.
As trade unionists we share values of anti-racism, equity and social justice. It is important to us that we campaign and organise to make our workplaces and community spaces fairer for us all.
25 years of transforming lives through WULF learning and training
This autumn we’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Wales Union Learning Fund. I couldn’t be prouder of everything this fund has achieved.
The need to protect writers due to the growth of artificial intelligence
Manon Eames from the Writers’ Guild tells us about her concerns about the growth of artificial intelligence and its impact on workers and culture.
TUC Cymru Just Transition trip to Germany 2024
This Summer,5 Welsh young trade union activists travelled to Germany to learn about how German trade unions are mobilising young workers around the topic of Just Transition. Ryan, Hazel and Tomos tell us about their experiences.
TUC Cymru Young Activists are inspired by trade unions in Norway
This summer three young workers from Wales travelled to Norway to take part in the LO Norway’s summer patrol. On the patrol young workers visit workplaces and talk to other young workers. They run a survey to map workplace issues and breaches, and find out what young workers know about their rights. Over the past year TUC Cymru has been supporting young workers to create a similar patrol model in Wales called Newid!
Young Welsh delegates James and Shannon tell us what they learnt during their week in Norway this summer.
TUC Cymru at the Rhondda Cynon Taf National Eisteddfod 2024
TUC Cymru’s President, Sian Gale, summarises our three events at the National Eisteddfod on AI, sexual harassment and Welsh language rights.
Wales Union Learning Fund helps probation officers learn about gambling-related harms
Working in partnership with the probation service and NAPO trade union, the Wales Union Learning Fund has funded a pilot for probation workers on Gambling Related Crime, and how to support service users who are problem gamblers.
50 years of TUC Cymru: 50 years of changes from devolution to diversity
As trade unionists gather in Llandudno for TUC Cymru Congress 2024 Shavanah Taj reflects on the last two, and 50, years of our movement.
TUC Cymru 50: Pride and the miners’ strike
In the 2014 award-winning film Pride, Dai Donovan is the warm, good-humoured Welsh miner who meets Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (LGSM) in London and then, back home in Wales, hosts members of the group on his living-room floor. He’s undoubtedly one of the heroes of the film.
50 years of TUC Cymru: Campaigning for equality puts the menopause on the map
How the menopause became one of TUC Cymru's biggest ever workplace equality campaigns.
50 years of TUC Cymru: Wales Union Learning Fund
For 25 years workers in Wales have been able to access training and learning in their workplace thanks to a Welsh Government funded programme called WULF. Find out how his union and Wales Union Learning Fund helped Mark keep his job, and change his life.
50 years of TUC Cymru: A guiding light for Welsh devolution
50 years ago, the union movement in Wales gathered in Aberystwyth to enact a plan that had been years in the making. The outcome of this meeting would reshape the trade union movement in the UK, and be a guiding light for the path of Wales as a nation.
International Workers' Memorial Day: why we remember the dead and fight for the living
This week, workers across Wales and the world will be remembering those who lost their lives due to work
The Welsh Advantage: supporting trade unions on their Welsh language journey
Wales TUC is committed to improving our own Welsh language offering to trade union members. Now we’re starting to support trade unions on their own Welsh language journeys.
Unions should lead the way on devolution
"I’m very pleased to be able to contribute to the discussion prompted by the Devolution and Work Commission report on behalf of PCS, a union with a longstanding commitment to democratic devolution; our main predecessor unions campaigned for an Assembly in the 1997 referendum and we also backed the ‘yes’ campaign in the 2011 referendum on primary law-making powers."
(Darren Williams, PCS National Officer for Wales)
Why do we keep working for free?
Today is Work Your Proper Hours Day – a day the TUC created two decades ago to draw attention to the huge problem of unpaid overtime.
A View from Down Under: Australia's Push on Workers' Rights
In a guest blog post Gareth Hathway details how Australia’s unions and its Labor Government are driving forward fair work by shutting down loopholes in work regulations.
Workers at Welsh ports and airports could lose the right to strike
Hundreds of workers in Wales, working in ports and airports could effectively lose their right to strike, thanks to harsh new regulations introduced by the UK government.
Newid! A programme for young trade unionists launches in Wales
When young trade unionists interviewed young workers in hospitality and retail in Cardiff and Merthyr Tydfil the results were eye-opening.
Fear, optimism and determination: trade unionists respond to artificial intelligence in myriad ways
More and more, artificial intelligence is being used to manage workers and assist with other tasks in workplaces across Wales. But what are the implications? Wales TUC, Connected by Data and Dr Juan Grigera have been speaking with trade unionists to find out about their experiences.
Future of Devolution and Work in Wales Report: Home Truths and Next Steps
Wales TUC General Secretary Shavanah Taj responds to the publication of the Future of Devolution and Work in Wales report.
Wales TUC Black Activist Development Programme is a leadership programme like no other
Wales TUC’s Black Activist Development Programme was launched in March 2023. Tansaim Hussain-Gul is one of 9 participants on the programme and she’s been telling me all about her experiences so far and how this programme is different from other leadership programmes she’s been part of.
How AI is using creatives' work, voices and images
How AI is using creatives' work, voices and images
Poor workplace democracy can hinder innovation and health and safety, union reps say
Poor workplace democracy can hinder innovation and health and safety, union reps say
Dismantling my language barrier through workplace learning
As a child I always felt that the Welsh language was something ‘other’, something different and removed from my life. But recently I’ve realised how much it’s influenced my life and how I’ve always been surrounded by the language, even when I didn’t notice it.
How workers at a further education college are taking the initiative on AI deployment
How workers at a further education college are taking the initiative on AI deployment
Young workers from Wales take on Norwegian Summer Patrol
Young workers from Wales take on Norwegian Summer Patrol
Artificial intelligence is cleverer than you, workers told
New technology is being forced on workers without consent. But trade union members are determined to resist the negative aspects of artificial intelligence.
Investigating how AI is understood and impacting Welsh workers and trade unionists
Wales TUC are looking into how AI is affecting workers across different sectors, and how trade unionists are managing the increasing roll out of data-driven technologies. Is tech threatening your job or terms and conditions?
Becoming a trade union rep just before the Covid-19 pandemic
Becoming a trade union rep just before the Covid-19 pandemic, By Stacey Keane, midwife in Cwm Taf Morganwg and member of the Royal College of Midwives.
Finding confidence and inner strength through my union
Finding confidence and inner strength through my union, by Marjorie Magsino, a nurse at Moriston Hospital and UNISON member
The day everything changed: midwifery during the Covid-19 pandemic
The day everything changed: midwifery during the Covid-19 pandemic, By Suzanne Hardacre, Head of Midwifery in Cardiff during the Covid-19 pandemic and member of the Royal College of Midwives
Social Partnership: a new way forward for Wales
The Social Partnership and Public Procurement Act is a landmark piece of legislation. But what does it mean for you and why is the Act so important?
A Wales where everyone is free to be themselves – why we need to make workplaces inclusive for LGBTQ+ workers
"I believe the new Wales TUC 10 step action plan will help bring about the change we need to see for LGBTQ+ workers in Wales."
Welsh workers remember their colleagues who were killed at work while the UK government plans to remove British laws which make workplaces safe
On 28 April, workers across Wales who lost their lives at work will be remembered in a national ceremony in Cardiff attended by the First Minister.
Meanwhile in Westminster, ministers are planning to trash British safety protections for workers in an ideological attack on standards.
Why we need Fair Funding for Wales
People in Wales are enduring the worst cost of living crisis for a generation. Nisreen Mansour explains what Wales TUC is calling on the UK Government to do to deliver better for Wales.
Where would we be without Trade Union women?
On International Women’s Day Rhianydd Williams highlights some Welsh Trade Union women heroes who inspire her today.
Expanding our Welsh language services on St David’s Day
On 1 March we celebrate all things Welsh – our food, our music, our beautiful landscapes and vibrant cities, our strong trade union tradition and, of course, our language.
This Apprenticeship Week, join a union
As an apprentice, you have the right to join a trade union. Trade unions exist to represent, protect and support their members in the workplace.
For too long apprentices haven’t been treated fairly. Only the trade union movement can protect them properly, celebrating their contribution all year round.
Unions and the World of Work: essential lessons on workplace rights for students across Wales
When the students of today enter the workplaces of tomorrow they need to be armed with the knowledge to keep them safe from exploitation and harm. This is the only way to enable them to have the rewarding careers they deserve.
The next step on our Welsh Language journey: launching our Welsh Language Forum
Earlier this year TUC Cymru launched our ‘Cynnig Cymraeg Welsh Language Offer’ setting out what you can expect to receive in Welsh when communicating with us.
The Welsh Language is an important part of our commitment to equality and diversity. And one of the ways in which we are developing Welsh Language support for our affiliate Unions in Wales is by launching our Welsh Language Forum in 2023.
One year on from the global climate conference in Glasgow, what’s changed in Wales for workers?
One year ago, I was representing Welsh workers at the Cop 26 global climate meeting of world leaders in Glasgow. The meeting agreed a set of targets and actions to tackle global warming.
The president of the conference, Alok Sharma, said it was an “historic agreement which kept the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels in reach.”
But one year on, what is the reality?
Trade unions are changing the way we think about menopause in the workplace
In the past few years trade unions in Wales have helped make some big, and small, improvements in the workplace for women going through the menopause.
Working people are using food banks in Swansea – it's time to demand better
Wales TUC and Swansea trades council are holding a rally at the Volcano Theatre on Swansea High Street on Monday 10 October.
Ahead of the rally Gareth Bromhall, the Secretary of Swansea trades council, writes about the impact the cost-of-living crisis is having on people in Swansea.
Nine in ten of us feel our work has made our mental health worse – we need urgent changes in the workplace
Linsey Imms reveals shocking statistics from our recent mental health survey, and explains what we can do to make life better for all workers in Wales.
“If you don’t fight you will always lose”
New Wales TUC President, Brendan Kelly, tells us about his priorities for the year ahead and why he’ll be marching in London on 18 June.
A stronger social partnership
The Social Partnership and Public Procurement Bill has been published today, opening a new chapter in the relationship between unions, government and employers.
Cynnig Cymraeg: Why we’re committed to communicating bilingually
Our Bilingual Communications Officer explains why we’re pleased to be launching our Cynnig Cymraeg (Welsh Offer).
What makes a good job?
If I asked you what you like about your job, I hope you’d be able to come up with a few things. But if I asked you what you don’t like about your job, would that be a longer list?
Reaching out – combating loneliness when working from home
This week is Mental Health Awareness week and the theme this year is loneliness. Loneliness is a serious issue for people working from home on a regular basis, and it can have a significant impact on wellbeing if not addressed.
Your rights on returning to work after having a baby
This Mothers Day, Wales TUC's Ffion Dean discusses her experiences of becoming a mother, her thoughts about returning to work, and what your rights are after having a baby.
How can the trade union movement raise our voices for action against racial discrimination?
The theme of this year’s UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination was ‘voices for action against racism’. Now that we have raised our voices, what actions can the trade union movement do to make sure that we raise our voices against racism, and that our actions are not performative empty gestures?
Supply teachers in Wales are treated as second class citizens by schools and agencies
At Wales TUC we want to see supply teachers receive the rewards they deserve as dedicated educators. We've raised the issue with Welsh Government and are pushing for an end to the private agency provision of supply teachers.
Break the bias: the role of women in today’s trade union movement
If you were to close your eyes and think of the typical trade unionist, it’s quite possible that you’d imagine a stereotypical image – a white, middle-aged man. It’s true that our movement has many members who look like this, and they are important and valued members. But we are so much more than that.
Reaching younger workers – how to build your branch
HeartUnions week is a great time to reach out to new members, especially younger members. Read our new blog with practical tips on how to build your union branch.
Establishing the first ever train driving apprenticeship for Wales
Emma Penman tells us how ASLEF successfully campaigned for the first ever Train Driver Apprenticeship for Wales
Time for the ‘unsung heroes’ of the school day to be recognised
At the beginning of 2022 teaching assistants are being called into schools again to supervise vulnerable children. Will our hardworking TAs ever get the praise and recognition they deserve?
A moment in time to tame technology
As new technology expands rapidly in the workplace, Unions should take advantage of their relative strength to demand and secure a long term futures of their members.
The importance of tolerance in a divided world
On International Day for Tolerance, Wales TUC's Liam Perry looks at where things are going wrong in the physical and digital world, and what needs to be done to create a more tolerant and respectful society.
COP26 Diary: The Fight for a Just Transition
Wales TUC General Secretary Shavanah Taj reflects on a week as a delegate at COP 26 in Glasgow and on Wales TUC's new research showing how workers can gain from the transition to Net Zero - if their voices are heard.
WULF 2022-25: How union-led learning can tackle Wales's skills challenges
The new round of Wales Union Learning Fund (WULF) projects are ideally positioned to help Wales meet the challenges of the future economy by amplifying the voice of the worker and increasing fairness and individual choice in the adult learning and skills system.
Black History Month in Wales: History, statues and today's battles
As we mark Black History Month, Wales TUC's Billy Mazoya reflects on progress in Wales - and how much more is left to do.
How have unions led the way on the menopause?
Wales TUC's Rhianydd Williams writes about how unions have been at the forefront of securing rights and dignity at work for women going through the menopause.
Wales needs an honest discussion about identity and division
Far too often Welsh civic and political leaders gloss over the real divisions in Wales on key social issues. New research shows that we need a more open and honest discussion.
Covid as an industrial disease: What it would mean for workers in Wales
How classifying Covid as an industrial disease could open up access to greater financial support for workers. But such a move would need support from the UK Government.
Living Wage for care workers in Wales: A start but not enough
This afternoon Welsh Government will make a statement on its plans to introduce a real Living Wage for social care workers. So who will this make the most difference to? And is addressing hourly pay in the sector enough?
Celebrating the Windrush Generation on Windrush Day
On National Windrush Day, Wales TUC Equality Officer Billy Mazoya writes about the history of the Windrush Generation and the impact that they've had on Wales
Labour market enforcement: How Wales can lead on reforming a broken system
Addressing the failings of our labour market enforcement system must be central to building a Fair Work Wales.
Reshaping the Welsh economy - now is the moment
The First Minister should feel emboldened to use the political capital that he’s won to reshape the Welsh economy in a way that provides real results for working people.
Our movement needs to step up for young workers
Our movement needs to grow if we are to continue to be one that can change the world of work. Young workers are essential to this process and trade unions need to address the challenge of increasing union membership amongst young people.
