GFTU BGCM Minutes 2017
Thank you very much once again for inviting Leeds Beckett University to join all
of the organisations up here on your board to work with you and both Phil and I
hope that today will make the start of a long and productive relationship to
deliver lasting change to your members through the power of education. Phil
and I are here today and are willing to talk to anybody about some of the
opportunities that there might be out there to support you in the most important
and great work that you do every day as trade unionists. Thank you so much
indeed. (Applause)
THE PRESIDENT: Does anybody want to make any comment or speak in this
session or have any questions? This is quite an important aspect of our work
at the moment. We are seeking to build these partnerships, because there is
obvious benefit to both the GFTU and its affiliates, but also, I think, to the
organisations that we are in partnership with, because we bring a wealth of
experience, including educational experience, to the table whereas, of course,
universities are key and critical in terms of learning paths and so on. This is
actually quite an important aspect of our activity, but I suppose if we spring it on
you it is a bit much to expect you to----
BRO OSHOR WILLIAMS (PFA): Obviously in my capacity as a member of the
Executive Committee I have been involved in a number of the discussions
regarding education, trade union education specifically but also the wider
education that emerges out of that. From our point of view, certainly from our
association, we recognise the fact that more or less right at this very point in
time every year, bearing in mind that at any given time we probably have
around 4,000 current members, if you work it out with four tiers of English
football, there are normally about 600 who will be out of contract. Most of
those will be those that have completed an apprenticeship. They have
probably left school, gone into the elite arena at the age of 16 and are leaving
at 18. People used to say, “Get yourself a trade. It is a very, very precarious
profession”. What we are finding is that many of those young people when they
have completed their apprenticeship are really starting a couple of years
behind their peers in terms of trying to progress in terms of either employment
or education. Many of our young members who are disengaged tend to now
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