The Committee has met three times in the last year: May and September 2005 and January 2006. Each meeting was preceded by a Training Session. One result of the discussion and planning held at these meetings is the RMT Women?s Charter, which is a summary of the legal framework of rights for working women, and a statement of our aims for women workers where the RMT is organized. The 2006 Conference sees the launch of the Charter. We hope that it will be taken up and implemented with enthusiasm, not just by women members, but by men too, particularly elected representatives, in line with the principles of justice and equality around which our union is organized.

The May meeting focused on recruitment, with support from our Recruitment & Organising Unit, who supplied us with plentiful resources and materials to do the job. Women non-members often respond more readily to recruitment approaches from other women, and it helps to soften the image of a ?male? industry and union. This is one reason for continuing to campaign for more women representatives, Health & Safety representatives, full-time officers and Council of Executives members.

We also talked of the need for stronger Regional and Branch organization of women members. To date, there is one Regional Advisory Committee, and no Branch Advisory Committees. It may be there is still opposition in some areas to the idea of self-organisation. If so, we need to try to understand why.

We received a report from Janine Booth, one of the RMT?s 2005 delegates to the BTUC Women?s Conference. Our motion on the limitations of flexible working was carried unanimously. The report is very comprehensive, and deserves to be read widely for its overview of the TUC and women?s issues (copy available from Pat Wilkinson, p.wilkinson@rmt.org.uk) We asked that this report be tabled to the Council of Executives. This does not seem to have happened yet.

Concern was raised that the women?s political school, agreed two years ago, has still not taken place. There was also criticism at the lack of detail in the Equal Rights Sub-Committee report (which should detail action taken on our Conference decisions). A request that NWAC members attend a meeting of the ERSC, to discuss this was turned down, and a letter was sent instead. It?s important that we have confidence that the decisions we take are going to be acted on ? otherwise the whole exercise in women?s organization becomes tokenistic.

We re-affirmed our opposition to any change in the laws relating to abortion, and asked the TUC to organise a campaign in defence of abortion rights. We also welcomed the new RMT Education Centre and asked that provision of a cr?e be a high priority.

The Equal Rights Sub-Committee?s report to the September meeting suggested that our complaints had been taken on board! It was comprehensive and was circulated in advance. If delegates to any of the union?s body are to do a decent job, it is essential that documents are received in advance, so that the proper preparation can be carried out.

The training session looked at the RMT Women?s Charter. This presented a huge task, and delegates shared out the work of compiling different sections, with Janine Booth taking overall responsibility for compiling the final draft.

A motion was sent to the BTUC 2006 Women?s Conference, calling for an annual demonstration on International Women?s Day to be organized by the TUC. The first, in 2007, to focus on: repeal of the anti-union laws; defence of women?s pensions; ending low pay and closing the gender pay gap; defence and extension of abortion rights; better child-care and family-friendly working; solidarity with women workers against sweat shops

The January meeting was devoted to the finalizing the draft Charter, ready for printing and launching at the Women?s Conference, and to the arrangement of Conference: sorting out the Agenda and arranging the workshops.

The Women?s Charter is proof that women are organizing with confidence in the RMT, backed by a supportive leadership. We must also record our thanks for the hard work of Pat Wilkinson, RMT Equalities Officer, on our behalf.

This is only a stage in our development, and we need to go further. The National Women?s Advisory Committee is not intended as a stopping point for a small group of activists. It is now time to concentrate on organizing and building a layer of activists at Regional and Branch level. We need to encourage more women get involved in their Branch, to stand for election as representatives or Branch officials, and to offer themselves as candidates for official positions at every level of the union.

So, if you?re reading this, and you don?t attend your Branch, or you are aware of vacancies that you could fill ? please lend a hand!

GLEN BURROWS
NATIONAL WOMEN?S ADVISORY COMMITTEE
SOUTH WALES & WEST REGION