Column: Grant On Trade Unions, Workers & More
[Opinion column written by BPSU General Secretary Kevin Grant]
“They don’t want to see us unite All they want us to do is keep on fussing and fighting…” — “Top Rankin”, Bob Marley
When viewed through a trade union lens, Bob Marley’s lyrics speak to the forces that benefit from division and weaken collective strength. Traditionally, “they” may represent external pressures — employers, anti-union movements, economic systems, or policies that seek to reduce worker solidarity. Yet one of the most unfortunate realities facing unions today is not always external opposition; it is internal disengagement.
Too often, “we” become the obstacle to unity.
Practices that fail to reflect the ethics, principles, and collective values of trade unionism can create division within union environments and weaken the ability of workers to advocate effectively for themselves and one another. At a time of unprecedented workplace change, unions cannot afford internal fragmentation. Instead, they must recommit to engagement, empowerment, and evolution.
The Urgency of Reconnection
Apathy continues to challenge Public Service Unions across many sectors. Declining participation, reduced member involvement, and weakened engagement threaten the collective power upon which unions were built. The need to reconnect with members must become a strategic priority, particularly when considering the challenges confronting workers today: rapid advances in artificial intelligence, union-busting efforts, changing labour markets, workforce restructuring, and mass redundancies. Trade unions were founded on collective action, solidarity, and representation. To preserve those foundations, unions must actively engage their membership and rebuild confidence in collective action.
Operating under the 2026–2029 leadership theme: Members at the Heart: Engage, Empower, Evolve, the incoming BPSU Executive has recognized the need to reunite, reinvigorate, and repurpose the mission of the organization. A central component of this vision is direct engagement; making in-person visits across bargaining units and divisions to reconnect with members and reinforce the importance of participation and shared ownership of the union’s future. This initiative offers a practical framework that all unions can consider in strengthening their connection with workers.
Engage: Rebuilding Participation Through Inclusion
Public Service Union memberships represent a broad range of professional experience, expertise, and lived realities. These strengths are often underutilized. Meaningful engagement begins with recognizing members not simply as recipients of union services but as active contributors to the union’s success.
By embracing diversity, unions create inclusive and representative organizations capable of protecting workers across all backgrounds, particularly vulnerable groups, including ethnic minority workers, women, and emerging generations entering the workforce. Diversity strengthens bargaining power because it ensures that issues of equality, inclusion, and discrimination are addressed with credibility and understanding.
When unions actively engage diverse membership voices, collective bargaining becomes more effective and representative. A diverse union is a powerful union; one that transforms individual vulnerabilities into collective strength and ensures that no worker is left behind.
Empower: Building Capacity and Collective Influence
Empowerment requires deliberate action. There are several strategies unions can incorporate to strengthen their effectiveness and influence among members and within the broader labour market.
Organize and Educate: Workers become empowered when they are organized into cohesive groups capable of negotiating collectively. Effective organizing includes educating workers about their rights, amplifying their voices, and fostering solidarity.
Strengthen Collective Bargaining: Consistent and effective collective bargaining agreements improve wages, benefits, working conditions, job security, and broader employment protections.
Advocate Beyond the Workplace: Modern unions must advocate not only within bargaining units but also at national and international levels. This includes promoting pro-labour legislation, advancing workplace protections, and supporting broader social justice initiatives.
Build Resilience for Global Challenges: Unions must maintain and rebuild their power while operating under economic, political, and technological pressures. Defending democratic space and strengthening internal capacity are essential to long-term sustainability.
Deepen Community Engagement: Union influence extends beyond the workplace. Community engagement fosters solidarity, strengthens civic participation, and helps communities understand how economic decisions affect everyday lives.
Empowered unions create empowered workers, and empowered workers create stronger societies.
Evolve: Adapting to Secure the Future
The evolution of unions is no longer optional; it is necessary.
Changes in workforce demographics, shifting economic conditions, evolving employment structures, and the increasing integration of artificial intelligence into workplaces all signal that traditional approaches must adapt.
Technology is transforming how people work, communicate, and organize. To meet these realities, governments, employers, and unions must commit to frank dialogue, meaningful consultation, and collaborative problem-solving.
Unions must also adopt new strategic approaches that inspire participation, motivate membership, and prepare workers for emerging challenges. Innovation does not mean abandoning union principles; rather, it means applying those principles in ways that remain effective in a changing world.
To meet the challenges ahead, unions must grow, unions must adapt, unions must evolve
Conclusion
When unions truly commit to engaging, empowering, and evolving, they become more than organizations—they become movements.
There is strength in numbers, but numbers alone are not enough. Strength comes from connected members, shared purpose, and collective action.
When workers unite with intention and conviction, they create something powerful; a force capable of influencing workplaces, communities, and society itself.
A fire that is powerful and forceful.
A fire so strong that no water can control.
Onward and Upward Together.
- Kevin Grant, BPSU General Secretary
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