Sisters in solidarity

Unite Live – Sisters in solidarity  (570 words)

Unite activists gather at TUC Women’s Conference

Unite delegates joined 300 women trade union activists from across the country at the 2025 TUC Women’s Conference this week (5 – 7 March) at Congress House in London.

The annual event featured a packed agenda with over 35 motions discussed covering a wide range of issues including tackling misogyny, sexism, the rise of incel culture and the far right to women’s safety on public transport, the gender pay gap and much more.

Among the many challenges women in work face, this year the Conference also celebrated the opportunities that the Government’s landmark Employment Rights Bill will bring to working women.

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Everyone deserves security at work. But exploitative working practices – like zero-hours contracts – are holding many people back.

“As ever, women workers are bearing the brunt. They are more likely to be concentrated in sectors with endemic levels of insecure work. 

“The Employment Rights Bill will bring forward common sense reforms to deliver more secure jobs for zero-hours contract workers and help bridge the gap in pay and rights between men and women.”

One area that was bought on at least three motions was Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Unite put forward a motion on “Technology, the advance of Artificial Intelligence and coercive control”. This motion accepted that the advancement of AI can bring “undeniable benefits”, but “also introduces new forms of coercive control, particularly affecting women.”

Unite noted that, if misused, AI powered tools could be used for “controlling and monitoring women’s movements, communications, and choices, often without their consent.”

The motion went on to “call on the TUC Women’s Committee to develop a model policy and guidance, specifically addressing the discriminatory workplace impact of new technology and its impact on women workers including employer actions and monitoring.”

Off the conference floor the event was packed full of a variety of fringe events and meetings. There were workshops exploring the issues around Women’s Health and Safety and Women and Leadership in the movement.

Unite held a packed fridge meeting in the TUC Council Chamber focusing on “Zero Tolerance to Sexual Harassment”, and was an opportunity for delegates to discuss collective efforts to prevent sexual harrassment.

The session highlighted Unite initiatives such as Unite’s Get Me Home Safely Campaign. 

EC Member for Women Anglea Duerden opened the session and welcomed everyone before talking about the experiences of sisters going back to the 1970’s – and how they spoke up against sexual harassment.

Anglea said, “You would think that by now this would be an issue of the past, but sadly we are here in 2025 still talking about sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is almost a universal experience for women and girls everywhere.

“Justice and support is going to be even more difficult to access with the rise of far right politics and the election of misogynistic leaders like Trump.”

But Anglea pointed there is hope, saying, “As trade unionists we play a crucial in ending sexual harassment. We must work to strengthen public services and to empower women workers by pushing for the ratification and implementation of ILO Convention 190. 

“Only through united action can we create workplaces and communities free from violence. 

“So sisters, we must raise our voices, support our sisters here and around the globe and keep fighting for a fairer world for women and girls.”

Find out more about Women in Unite and the work the union does campaigning, organising and representing on the issues facing women.

By Keith Hatch