Dear Brother/Sister
Out of Order: Police Spying on Trade Unions and Campaigners
Please find below a link to the FBU pamphlet ‘Out of Order: Police Spying on Trade Unions and Campaigners’.
The FBU has core participant status in the Undercover Policing Inquiry and the opening statement made by John Hendy QC on behalf of the FBU and Unite is contained within the pamphlet, it gives a detailed history of the struggle’s unions have previously faced and continue to face.
The following is a quote from the forward to the pamphlet written by the Fire Brigades Union General Secretary Matt Wrack:
‘Trade unions in the UK have long been under attack from employers and the state, including the whole range of laws that restrict our rights and abilities to operate freely and effectively. These legal restrictions are unjust. They reflect the fact that we live in an unequal society where the law favours employers and the rich. But the attacks on trade unionists do not end with such open and public restrictions. There are also more subtle ways by which those in power seek to undermine and weaken our movement. These include spying on and infiltration of trade unions, the blacklisting and victimisation of trade unionists by employers and the police – often colluding with each other – as well as widespread bullying, stymying of promotions and other malpractices.
I suspect that none of us expected to face any of these attacks when we first chose to become involved in our union – or in anti-racist activity or some other campaigning work. Nevertheless, the facts are clear. Such sinister methods have a long history in Britain and have been used against those campaigning for the vote, against racism, for peace and or workers’ rights. Regrettably, there is evidence of these practices hitting firefighters within our fire and rescue service. The FBU is campaigning along with others in the trade union movement to challenge this.’
The pamphlet is available here.
Yours in unity,
Mark Rowe
National Officer
