Sexism ‘worse than ever’ at GMB as staff in North East threaten to strike
Four years ago a damning report sent shockwaves through the GMB, one of Britain’s biggest trade unions, when it branded the organisation “institutionally sexist”.
For a union that prides itself on representing staff bullied or harassed in their own workplace, it was a shocking and embarrassing revelation.
A new general secretary promised “transformational change” and to take on all the recommendations in the independent report.
But doubts have now been raised over whether that has truly happened.
Employees in the North East said promised reforms had not materialised and have threatened to strike against their own union.
An insider familiar with the talks said action had been suspended for now.
They said the first strikes had been cancelled on the promise Karon Monaghan KC, who originally wrote the report in 2020, would eventually be called back to investigate the Labour-affiliated union.
Issues around the handling, or mishandling, of complaints of harassment and assault seemed to be of particular concern.
There have been protests outside the GMB office
Some women still employed by the union – and some recent former employees – said they still believe sexism is rife and that the Monaghan report had not been implemented in the way they were promised.
One told me “it’s still very toxic” and that the culture is “dysfunctional”. Another said there was “a pattern of abuse” and “it’s worse than ever”.
One former employee said she couldn’t fight for people facing injustice anymore because “how are we meant to fight injustice if we are experiencing it ourselves?”
We spoke to one recently dismissed high-ranking regional secretary in GMB, who we are calling Eleanor, who said she felt bullied into dropping a sexual harassment complaint in 2022.
‘Eleanor’ felt bullied into dropping a sexual harassment complaint
‘Institutional gaslighting’
She said she didn’t feel taken seriously from the start and although she started an employment tribunal case against the union, she later felt pressured into dropping it and signing a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).
“I started to feel like I had suffered abuse and then was abused by the organisation meant to protect me,” said Eleanor.
“Where’s the empathy? Where’s the equality in how they’ve dealt with my case or other women’s cases?
“It’s just institutional gaslighting and someone needs to call it out, but calling it out is a really heavy toll.”
The union categorically denies claims of a culture of bullying or sexism
She was later dismissed for sexual harassment herself and thinks she wasn’t given a fair process of dismissal because she spoke out against the union.
In response to our story, GMB said they categorically deny claims of a culture of bullying or sexism.
They said they have clear, fair and transparent procedures to fully investigate and properly deal with any allegation of bullying or harassment.
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With regards to Eleanor’s case, the GMB insisted her dismissal was unanimously agreed by a disciplinary panel of three women, chaired by an independent, external female employment judge and that her suggestions that she was unfairly treated or previously pressured out of raising a complaint of sexual harassment are untrue.
They said they don’t use NDAs, but that staff leaving the organisation may sign standard settlement agreements similar to those used by virtually every organisation across the public and private sectors.
They are now reviewing her case to investigate whether fair and transparent procedures were properly followed.
Business
Vivergo: How US-UK trade deal could bring about collapse of huge renewable energy plant in Hull
The smell of yeast still hangs in the air at the Vivergo plant in Hull but the machines have fallen quiet.
More than 100 lorries usually pass through here each day, carrying 3,000 tonnes of wheat. It is milled, fermented and distilled. The final product is bioethanol, a renewable fuel that is then blended into E10 petrol.
This is a vast operation. It took several years to build, with considerable investment, but it is on the verge of closing down. Management and staff are holding out for a last-minute reprieve from the government but time is running out.
It’s been a turbulent journey. The plant was already being annihilated by US rivals, losing about £3m a month. Vivergo and Ensus, based in Teesside, blamed regulations that enable US companies to earn double subsidies.
They were pushing for regulatory change but then a killer blow: The US-UK trade deal, which allows 1.4 billion litres of American ethanol into the UK tariff-free (down from 19%).
“We’ve effectively given the whole of the UK market to the US producers,” said Ben Hackett, managing director at Vivergo.
“If we were to have the same support that the US industry has, if we could use genetically modified crops, we wouldn’t need that tariff. We would be able to compete. If we had the same energy costs. We wouldn’t need those tariffs.”
The government has the weekend to come up with a plan that could keep the business running. If it fails, Vivergo will begin issuing redundancy notices to its 160 staff.
Ben Hackett
It’s a devastating prospect for workers, many of them live in Hull and are nervous about alternative opportunities in the area.
Mike Walsh, a logistics manager who has been working at the plant for 14 years, said: “It’s not a great place to be at the moment. It’s a very well paid, very high-skilled role and they’ve (Vivergo) given everybody an opportunity in an area that doesn’t pay that well…. The jobs market isn’t as good as what people would like. So it does impact the local economy.”
He called on the government to “help us, save us, give this industry a future”.
His colleague Claire Wood, lead productions engineer, said: “I moved here after a career in oil and gas for 10 years, partly because I want to be part of the transition to renewable fuels. I can see so much potential here and it’s absolutely devastating to know that this place might be closed very, very shortly and that all that potential just goes away.”
Thousands more could be affected. Haulage companies may have to lay off truck drivers and farmers could also suffer a blow.
Vivergo makes bioethanol using wheat. That wheat is bought from farms from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
Claire Wood
The National Farmers Union has sounded the alarm, saying: “Biofuels are extremely important for the crops sector, and their domestic demand of up to two million tonnes can be very important to balance supply and demand and to produce up to one million tonnes of animal feed as a by-product.”
Another bioproduct is carbon dioxide. The gas can be captured and used to put the fizz in drinks or injected into packaging to preserve food.
If Vivergo and Ensus were to go, Britain would lose as much as 80% of its output of carbon dioxide. Supplies are already tight across Europe, meaning this decision could compound shortages across a range of sectors, from meat-packing to healthcare.
The industry is calling on the government to help. Vivergo says it needs temporary financial support but that the government must create a regulatory and commercial environment in which it can thrive.
It says rules that award double subsidies to companies that use waste product in their bioethanol must be changed. At present, these rules are being used by US companies that make ethanol from Uldr – a by-product of processing corn. They argue this is not a genuine waste product.
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Another option is to grow the market. Industry leaders are calling on ministers to increase the mandated renewable fuel content in petrol from 10% to 15% and for an expansion into aviation fuels. That would allow British companies to carve out a space.
The government has been locked in talks with the company since June.
It said: “We will continue to take proactive steps to address the long-standing challenges it faces and remain committed to a way forward that protects supply chains, jobs and livelihoods.”
However, the time for talking is almost over.
Mr Hackett said he had no idea how the government would respond but he was firm with his stance, saying: “In times of global uncertainty, losing that energy certainty and supply from the UK is a problem.
“I think what they’re missing out on is the future growth agenda. We’re the foundation on which the green industrial strategy can be built. We make bioethanol that today decarbonises transport. Tomorrow it will decarbonise marine. It will decarbonise aviation.”
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