As the labour movement in the UK begins to come to terms with the political, economic and social implications of Brexit, a Conservative government driven still by a market-led ideology and the continuing incursion of globalisation into the workplace (Mason, 2016; O’Grady, 2016), this paper poses the question:
‘How next can the unions and the left successfully reengage with the expectations of the workforce?’
By means of a meta-analysis of the extant literature on the work of the unions in leading the learning agenda in the workplace, and utilising a model based on the radical pedagogy of Paulo Freire, the aims of the paper are to:
· Critically assess the degree to which the learning agenda has enabled unions to link their strategy and purpose nearer to the needs and aspirations of the UK workforce
· Critically assess that praxis through the ‘reflective’ lens of Freire in terms of to what degree this is a ‘dialogic’ relationship between the union and their member
· Offer proposals from the analysis to how this approach could be further developed as a new strategy for the labour movement to reassert their role in championing the needs of the worker.
In last twenty years, the unions have successfully developed a network of union learning representatives (ULRs), trained to give advice and guidance to employees and employers in the areas of training and development and lifelong learning (Stuart et al., 2010b). In part in response to increasing demand for the new and updated skills needed to remain globally competitive (Stuart, 2007). And in relation to this paper, evidence suggests learning partnerships can also reduce conflict on the workplace (Bennett, 2014a).
The focus of Freire’s (1972) critical analysis of contemporary education practice was the emancipation of the people, the oppressed, through educational enlightenment. Freire captures the centrality of hope for a fairer future and a better society, and reminds us of the pedagogic imperatives that can help us realise that hope for ourselves and, crucially, through radical educators, for others. For Freire (1992), the key flaw in conventional education, and for him also its logic in the sense that it helps perpetuate the dominance of oppressor over the oppressed, is both its inequitable and stultifying nature (ibid.).
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Conceptually, the analysis draws on a model previously developed by the author in terms of a radical pedagogic approach to teaching industrial relations in business schools (Bennett, 2014b). Which utilises, for instance, the concepts of:
· Dialogue with students
· Tutor and students as ‘equal knowers’
· Centrality of ‘problem-solving’
· Consciencization of the students
References
Bennett, T. (2014a) "Do union-management learning partnerships reduce workplace conflict?", Employee Relations, Vol. 36 Iss: 1, pp.17 - 32
Bennett, T. (2014b) Pedagogic challenges to the hegemony of neo-liberal business and management teaching, Paper presented at the Paulo Freire and Transformative Education: Changing Lives and Transforming Communities conference April 28th to May 1st 2014 at University of Central Lancashire
Freire, P.(1972) Pedagogy of the oppressed (Penguin Books, London)
Freire, P. (1992) Pedagogy of hope: Reliving pedagogy of the oppressed (Continuum, London)
Mason, P. (2016) A regime of crisis NewStatesman 14th October 2016
O’Grady, F. (2016) Our challenge is to make Brexit work for working people in ‘Working better together’ New Statesman
Stuart, M. (2007), “Introduction: the industrial relations of learning and training: A new consensus or a new politics?”, European Journal of Industrial Relations, Vol 13 No 3, pp. 269-280.
Stuart, M., Cutter, J., Cook, H. and Winterton, J. (2010b), Assessing the impact of union learning and the union learning fund; Union and employer perspectives, CERIC Policy report 4.