Dinner lady’s girl wins fight to lead union
Christina heads biggest workers’ group in the UK
THE daughter of a dinner lady has become the leader of the biggest trade union in the UK.
Scot Christina McAnea, who has represented health and social care workers during the Covid-19 crisis, is the first woman to lead Unison, the public sector workers’ union.
McAnea, who was assistant general secretary at Unison, won 47 per cent of the vote, seeing off three challengers from the left of the Labour movement.
She succeeds Dave Prentis, who is retiring after 20 years as general secretary of the union.
McAnea won by distancing herself from any endorsement from senior Labour figures and by a split in the left- wing votes among candidates who wanted to challenge the union’s financial support for the party. Although she started in teenage politics as a member of the Communist party inspired by a speech from the legendary Clydeside trade union leader Jimmy Reid, McAnea is expected to be favourable to Keir Starmer’s leadership.
During her campaign she sidestepped questions about financial support for Labour and about the union’s stance on Scottish independence with the same answer that “it’s a matter for the members”. Unison is Britain’s and Europe’s biggest public sector union with more than 1.3million members, with 150,000 of those in Scotland.
McAnea grew up in the Drumchapel housing estate in Glasgow and left school at the age of 16 to help bring in a wage for her mother and three siblings.
Her mother worked as a canteen assistant in Maryhill in the city and the family were on free school meals throughout most of her childhood.
In her role as assistant general secretary at Unison, she has been responsible in recent years for collective bargaining, negotiations and equalities strategy, including health and safety, pensions and procurement.
McAnea said: “I’m so grateful to everyone who voted for me and for the trust placed in me.”