The GMB general trade union with over 560,000 members in various sectors, has decided to affiliate to the Ukraine Solidarity Campaign.

This is welcome decision which is a sign of the strong support that continues in the British trade union movement for the Ukrainian struggle for freedom. GMB has provided extensive assistance to Ukrainian trade unions, donating substantial sums to aid appeals since the full-scale invasion, and has given strong support to USC in a range of campaign initiatives.

GMB POLICY ON UKRAINE :

GMB unequivocally condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. We note that, under Vladimir Putin, the Russian regime represses the rights of trade unionists, and that the rights of trade union members have been suppressed in the occupied territories of Ukraine since 2014.

We express our support for the victims of this military aggression and solidarity with our trade union brothers and sisters across Ukraine; and our support for civil rights in Russia and Belarus, including labour rights, that are denied under Putin and Lukashenko’s regimes.

We call for: the provision of moral and material aid from the UK to Ukraine, including the means of self-defence – the right to which is enshrined under international law; a reconstruction programme that protects the rights of Ukrainian workers; and a peaceful end to the conflict that respects the territorial integrity of Ukraine and can carry the support of the Ukrainian people. (2022 CEC Statement on Ukraine)
We support Ukraine’s right to appeal for, and be provided with, the military equipment and weaponry required to defeat the invasion.

We condemn Western governments for their failure to provide sufficient aid. We support an end to the war that upholds the territorial integrity of Ukraine through an agreement that is supported by Ukrainians, including the Ukrainian labour movement, and a progressive reconstruction programme. We support the cancellation of Ukraine’s debt. (2023:C17)

We resolve that GMB will seek to support Ukrainian people and other migrant workers in the UK who are seeking to protect themselves and their families, including through signposting to appropriate agencies and services, and through support for self-organisation, including in the workplace. (2023:182)

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