TUC Cymru Young Activists are inspired by trade unions in Norway
Young Welsh delegates James and Shannon tell us what they learnt during their week in Norway this summer.
Strong support from employers
“One of the things that really impressed me during the week was how well known LO’s summer patrol actually is. On all of the days, we had multiple members of the public approach the group and they instantly knew that we were there on summer patrol. All of them had a quick chat with us and encouraged LO to keep up the good work.
This is what I think we need to bring to Newid! We need to work on advertising the programme, and informing the local businesses about why we are there a couple of weeks before the actual patrols.
During the first TUC Cymru session last July, we focused almost solely on retail and hospitality. LO view no workplace as off limits (with the exception of building sites for health and safety reasons).
We attended retail and hospitality workplaces, but we also attended more obscure workplaces such as council offices, police stations and even Sandefjord football club’s stadium. When we carry out the next Newid! patrols, I think that we should look at casting a “wider net” in terms of the types of workplaces that we visit.
I would like to thank TUC Cymru for giving me the opportunity to take part in this exchange, and to thank Unite Wales for facilitating my attendance. I’d also like to thank LO for their fantastic hospitality during our trip” – James Archer, Unite the Union.
Excitement for trade unions in Norway
“All in all the country, the people, and everyone’s outlook towards unions in Norway is completely lovely to see. To have that in the whole of the UK would be amazing. In Wales, we’re about to start our 2nd year of the Newid! patrol, as opposed to Norway’s 39th. I’d love to see the excitement of the TUC here that people have for the LO there.” - Shannon Walters, Union Cymru.
What is the Young Activist Development Programme?
Our Young Activist Development Programme is an opportunity for young workers to develop their skills, network, and to work on campaigns and initiatives within the trade union movement. This summer, the programme worked in partnership with LO Norway, and FES Germany to offer opportunity for activists to see how trade unions were organising young workers across Europe.
Why visit Norway?
In 2023, a delegation of Welsh young workers from the Young Activist Development Programme attended the LO Norge Summer Patrol. The purpose of the trip was to understand how the Norwegian model was effectively organising young workers within the movement.
The patrols in Norway are an annual activity that have taken place for nearly 40 years. The youth-led programme is organised across every region. It involves young members entering workplaces and interviewing young employees about their rights and duties at work. The survey is anonymous and is used to map out trends of workplace issues, as well as identify any workplace breaches.
Most of the time, this is positive interaction between young people about rights at work that employers welcome.
However, if a breach is identified, LO then pick this up with the relevant union. The scheme is so successful, that most employers know to expect LO during the summer. They even have a phone line that members of the public can call for LO to go to workplaces, if they think that breaches are taking place.
Applying the lessons from our first trip to Norway
Since our first trip, TUC Cymru has been working with the participants of the Development Programme to establish Newid! This is a similar activity to the LO Summer Patrol with a similar structure. Our current focus has been on hospitality and retail. In these sectors there is a large presence of young workers, and low rate of collective bargaining agreements.
As well as talking about rights at work, our activity aims to engage with young workers with issues they may be facing at work. This includes how best to tackle sexual harassment in their sectors, the ways that technology is changing the way they work, and how unions can support young people with lifelong learning.
Next steps for Newid!
The participants of this year’s Norway delegation will now work with TUC Cymru, and those on the Young Activist Development Programme, to shape how we develop our Newid! activity. We will be considering:
Should we be expanding the sectors and workplaces that we visit?
Are there other issues that are important to young workers that we should be talking to them about?
How do we use the social partnership leverages, just as they do in Norway, to use data collected during the patrols to create positive change for young workers in Wales?
These are the things we will be considering going forward – watch this space to see how our Newid! activity unfolds.