Yorkshire Needs a Pay Rise – Organising Young Workers on the TUC Winter Patrol

As the cost of living crisis digs deep into the pockets of working people, the TUC are supporting young workers to organise in their workplace to improve pay, terms and conditions. Teaming up with Norwegian trade unionists, the Baker’s union and Unite, young workers are coming together for the TUC Winter Patrol to engage workers across the poorly paid and precarious hospitality industry.

The TUC Winter Patrol follows in the footsteps of a forty-year programme started in Norway where young trade unionists every year run a Summer Patrol doorstepping businesses to canvass first-time workers about their pay, terms and conditions. The Patrol informs and encourages young workers to join a union, organise in their workplace, and the Norwegian LO (their TUC) uses the information to spotlight poor employment practice putting public pressure on employers to do better. 

Earlier this year young UK trade union delegates through the TUC Yorkshire & the Humber travelled to Norway to learn and participate in the Summer Patrol. On the patrol we spoke to many young workers, one of whom was in their early twenties and in the third year of their apprenticeship at a Silicon plant. Their workplace has 99% union membership density and the apprentice earned the equivalent of £48,000 per annum. The average UK salary is £31,285 per annum.

Young workers in the UK are most likely to be in insecure work, in low paid jobs and without opportunities to progress at work than any other age group. The TUC Winter Patrol is one of many ways young workers in Yorkshire are fighting to improve their working conditions, terms and pay.

From the 23rd – 26th November the TUC Winter Patrol will be in Leeds, Sheffield and Bradford providing training for the next generation of union organisers who will have organising conversations with young workers across the hospitality industry. We’ll identify key issues and work to empower workers to join a union, get active, build their union and win demands to improve their pay, benefits and their workplace.