Union launches scheme to prepare members for office

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has launched a new training scheme to help “talented” members prepare for political office.

The programme, called CWU Candidates, is designed to help participants ready themselves to run for various offices, including as Labour candidates in national elections.

However, it is focused on “improving the links between trade unions and their local communities, rather than solely on Parliament and the internal workings of the Labour Party”. Applications for 18 places are open to CWU members who are also Labour Party members.

Last November, the CWU announced it was switching all Labour Party donations other than the basic affiliation fee to other political work (see Labour Research, November 2021, page 7). The new scheme is part of this new political strategy and will “centre around building collectivism in local communities and preparing candidates to put forward a bold and transformative agenda”.

Meanwhile, unions have been praising Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer for his keynote speech last month.

Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the TSSA white collar rail union, said Starmer was “right to firmly put the focus on job security, the growing cost-of-living crisis, public health, and tackling the climate crisis”.

And Paddy Lillis, general secretary of the shop workers’ union Usdaw, said Starmer’s agenda “chimes with the concerns and hopes of our members”.