Listen: People Just Do Something, with striking teacher Nik on trade unionism’s ‘ethical gravy train’
Industrial action has made a comeback over the past couple of years since 2022’s ‘hot strike summer’ rolled on into a winter that saw large-scale public-sector walkouts and a National Strike Day, coordinated by 48 trade unions, during which 6,000 people rallied in Bristol.
But that resurgence, fuelled by the soaring cost of living, came after a long period in which trade unions had been a fading force – arguably since Thatcher broke the back of the miners’ strike in the mid-80s.
To people whose memories – or lives – don’t reach back that far, organised labour can feel like a quaint throwback to a bygone age.
It’s safe to say our People Just Do Something guest this week – striking teacher Nik, a National Education Union rep and Requires Improvement podcast co-host – is not one of them though. Nor for that matter is self-confessed “trade union bureacrat” Isaac Kneebone-Hopkins, who with Priyanka poorly this week does interview duties solo.
Are you scared to admit that you don’t know what a strike is? Unsure of the point of joining a union? Looking for tips on how to rise up and force your bosses to put a microwave in the staff room?
You’ve come to the right place. Settle in for an authentic union bro love-in, as Isaac and Nick (his feet still freezing from standing on picket lines in January) get stuck into some practical tips for setting the world to rights.
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