Community groups are key to organising

Unions have been told to link up with community and other groups in order to reach more workers.

Ken Zinn, head of the Centre for Strategic Research at US union federation the AFL-CIO, told the TUC's conference Organising Unions, Organising Communities last month: "To be successful in organising more workers, and build power for our members, unions must form alliances with community, religious, women's and other organisations with common aims."

Bronwyn McKenna, director of organising and membership at UNISON public services union, said it can be hard for unions to work with faith groups, but added: "For coalitions to succeed, we have to build them around the issues and values that we share, with an agreement to leave the rest at the door of the meeting room."