Sharon Graham may want to improve working life in Britain, but she is used to sacrificing her own weekends. “Normally on a Saturday, if I’m not on a picket line then I’m focusing on negotiations. But I have a 13-year-old son, who is also quite demanding and has learned how to use leverage!”
The general secretary of Unite – Britain’s second largest union and the Labour Party’s biggest financial backer – says that she has overseen 951 disputes, involving 180,000 workers and resulting in £400m of pay rises, since she was elected in 2021. In the past year, Unite has gained 23,900 members.
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