Toggle high contrast
Issue date
Mark Serwotka has today (Wednesday) been elected as the new President of the TUC. 
Mark Serwotka

Mark Serwotka has today (Wednesday) been elected as the new President of the TUC.

Mark, who is general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), will serve in the role for a year and preside over the next TUC Congress in Brighton in September 2019. He will also chair the TUC’s general council and executive committee.

Mark started work at 16 in the Department for Health and Social Security (DHSS) as a clerical officer and joined the union on his first day. He served in the benefits service for 21 years, including seven years as a part-time worker to enable him to help look after his 2 children, Imogen and Rhys.

During his two decades as a civil servant he held a wide range of lay elected union positions, including holding responsibilities for Employment Tribunal cases.

He was elected to the post of PCS general secretary in December 2000 – one of only a handful of leaders to have come straight from the shop floor. He was re-elected in 2005, 2009 and 2014.

In 2016, Mark underwent a heart transplant after years of heart failure. As a result of the care and dedication of our wonderful NHS staff, his transplant was successful and he is now in good health. He is a strong advocate of organ donation and supports a change in the law to presumed consent.

As a committed socialist, Mark is passionate about a publicly owned NHS, fair pay at work, and the need for a radical overhaul of the social security system. He is a strong opponent of privatisation.

Speaking after his election as President Mark Serwotka said: “It is an enormous privilege to be elected TUC president. I am grateful to our wonderful NHS staff- without whom I would not be here today. The NHS must be protected and remain publicly owned and free at the point of need.

“As a lifelong trade unionist, my experience representing 180,000 members in the civil service and related areas motivates me every day to fight for fair pay and a just social security system. I also believe that those who can afford it must pay their fair share of tax – enabling better funding of our vital public services.

“I am looking forward to working as TUC president to fight for these issues and to help working people in the workplace and the community.”

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “We are delighted to have Mark as our President for the next year. He’s an exceptional union leader, showing true grit as he came though ill health to continue at the helm of PCS and to champion our NHS as one of the many lives it has saved.

Enable Two-Factor Authentication

To access the admin area, you will need to setup two-factor authentication (TFA).

Setup now