What you need to know
Every year the TUC hosts equality conferences that supplement the general work of TUC congress. These conferences focus on supporting the advancement of issues that disproportionally impact minority groups. During the pandemic, these events were held virtually, but for 2022 they will be returning to their previous in-person format.
Accord is seeking diverse representation to attend the 2022 series of conferences, and we’re asking members and reps to express their interest.
Here are the dates:
- TUC Women's conference – 9th - 11th March 2022
- TUC Disabled Workers' conference – 22nd - 23rd March 2022
- TUC Young Workers' conference – 2nd - 3rd April 2022
- TUC Black Workers' conference – 6th - 8th May 2022
- TUC LGBT+ conference - 30th June - 1st July 2022
You can register your interest through this form. When you register, we’ll ask you for a bit of information to support your interest, this is so that we can ensure we have a diverse representation at each of the conferences. We’ll confirm our delegation to each conference once we’re able to. There may be opportunity for us to attend virtually, and this will also be confirmed closer to the time.
Once registration has closed, you can keep up to date and find all the documentation related to the conference on our equality site.
Keep up to date Register your interestA note on terminology: You may notice that we refer to Black workers' and not BAME workers', and there are a number of other terms you may hear when we talk about equality and specific groups or communities. We've compiled a brief list of terminology you may hear along with answering some other frequently asked questions about equality matters. Find out more below.
Read our equality FAQsAs well as registering your interest, we're also interested in your ideas for conference motions and we're looking for individuals wanting to take that next step and become more involved through the TUC equality committees. You can find out more about these in the sections below.
More information about conferences
We've collated some useful information about the conferences and the process to help you if you've never attended a union conference before.
The conference process
You may have attended a union conference in the past, such as Accord's own biennial delegate conference. The TUC conferences work in a very similar way, but there are some differences too. So, let's have a look at how the conference process works.
Motions:
- Motions - the TUC start by collating motions for each union (see more about motions in the "all about motions" section.
- Amendments - once all motions are reviewed and collated, the TUC will circulate a preliminary agenda. Once this agenda is available, each union is invited to review and submit amendments. Amendments shouldn't try to change the motion, but can add additional points and sometimes even widen the scope of what is asked for.
- Final agenda - the finalised agenda is circulated ahead of the conference. At each conference, delegates are asked to vote on which motion should be submitted to the TUC congress, forming part of the national campaigning agenda.
Equality committees:
- Each equality conference has a corresponding equality committee who are responsible for advancing the motions once conference has voted and agreed upon them.
- Each union has the ability to nominate one candidate to each of the equality committees. The committees have reserved seats, called 'sections' which allows for diverse and broad representation across different underrepresented groups.
Conference locations
All conferences are being held at TUC Congress House in central London. The only exception to this is the Disabled Workers' conference which will be held at the Bournemouth Internation Convention Centre due to accessibility constraints at TUC Congress House.
If you register your interest, and are submitted to attend as a delegate, we'll ensure you have full details of the location and other information about the event.
All about motions
What is a motion?
A motion gives unions the opportunity to shape the TUC's campaigning agenda for the next year.
They seek changes to the way in which workers are managed, changes to terms and conditions of employment and improvements to their working environment.
They will typically be submitted by groups of members. Either by branches or department teams. Motions must be submitted to Accord HQ by the deadline given. They’ll then be considered by the Standing Orders Committee (SOC), alongside Accord’s president and general secretary.
Those that make it into the agenda will usually be grouped together so that similar issues can be debated collectively, or where they seek conflicting outcomes. Once a motion has been presented to conference, it needs to be seconded by another delegate before a discussion / debate can begin.
Tips for writing motions
- make your motion simple to follow – avoid technical terms & business jargon
- make it easy to understand – keep it clear and simple
- don’t try to explain everything at once – that’s what the supporting speech is for
- ask for an outcome and suggest a solution to the issue
- try not to criticise colleagues in other business areas – they may be at conference, and you may need their support
- there is usually a 200 maximum word count for each motion, but don't focus on this
Give us your ideas for motions
We've taken some examples from the 2021 conferences which will help you to understand what a good motion looks like, how to construct it, and how to present it.
Motion deadlines
Deadlines for motion submissions:
- TUC Women's conference – 1st December 2021
- TUC Disabled Workers' conference – 1st December 2021
- TUC Young Workers' conference – 23rd December 2021
- TUC Black Workers' conference – 3rd February 2022
- TUC LGBT+ conference – 11th February 2022
Equality committees
Each union has the ability to nominate one candidate to each of the equality committees. The committees have reserved seats, called 'sections' which allows for diverse and broad representation across different underrepresented groups
Deadlines for nominations to committee:
- TUC Women's conference – 1st December 2021
- TUC Disabled Workers' conference – 1st December 2021
- TUC Young Workers' conference – 23rd December 2021
- TUC Black Workers' conference – 3rd February 2022
- TUC LGBT+ conference – 11th February 2022
Accord's ED&I Group
The Accord Equality Diversity & Inclusion group’s aim is to maximise our members' potential, regardless of background, and ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect. It’s a place where diversity is celebrated, without prejudice or judgement. It’s a chance to collectively learn from our experiences, and enrich all our lives.
The group get involved in a broad spectrum of events across the year. If you’re interested, why not get involved — email us at [email protected] or register to join online.
