Tributes to union man who fought for rights at JLR
TRIBUTES have been paid to a Jaguar Lane Rover union convener who died two days before Christmas.
Mick Graham, 53, worked to represent workers’ rights at the car giant’s Solihull plant.
He died suddenly on December 23.
Friend Councillor Steve Evans said Mr Graham died in hospital after a short illness.
Cllr Evans, who is a City of Wolverhampton Council cabinet member and served alongside Mr Graham as deputy union convenor, said: “Mick was my friend, my brother, my family other. He really was a wonderful man who thought of others before himself.
“These roles are never easy but I do know every difficult decision Mick took was always for the greater good, the betterment of the plant and ultimately to protect all the union members’ jobs.”
Mr Graham had been the trade union convenor at the Lode Lane factory since 2016. He worked for Jaguar Land Rover for 33 years, joining the company in April 1989.
He was known as an outspoken defender of workers’ rights and appeared at industrial tribunals alongside employees. In 2018, when JLR stopped production for a week due to uncertainties around Brexit, Mr Graham supported the move. He said: “We had to make some plans to protect the business as best we could and we started talking about this in January.
“We knew we had to take reactive action to mitigate the potential effect of a bad Brexit or no-deal Brexit.
“Suppliers need notice to get their parts across to us. It was a prudent thing to do.”
Mr Graham was instrumental in a mammoth effort by Unite union workers at JLR Solihull in raising £50,000 for five charities during the pandemic.
Thousands of branch members stepped up to support the charities – with £20,000 going to SIFA Fireside and £20,000 to the St Basil’s Youth Hub.
Mr Graham is survived by children Joe and Josh and his fiancée Kate, who also works at the factory.