John Leach for RMT General Secretary

John Leach is standing to be RMT’s next General Secretary. He is RMT’s London Transport Regional Organiser and a former National Executive member (twice) and National President.

As General Secretary,  John will work with RMT members to build an effective democratic union for all members, that wins for workers.

When we fight effectively, we win. In the current Covid crisis, with its impact on health and on transport funding, our strength and solidarity is more important than ever.

John leads disputes from the front, on the picket line, in the negotiating room, and in the media.

In campaigns led by John, RMT has won:
• inflation-plus, no-strings pay rises
• guarantees of no compulsory redundancies, from London Underground for the last twenty years to Sodexo canteens just this week
• better pensions for engineering and maintenance workers
• the return to direct employment of contracted-out electricians, cleaners, train maintenance and engineering staff
• shorter working hours without loss of pay for thousands of staff
• reinstatement of many unjustly-sacked workers

A democratic union is one that encourages everyone to bring their ideas forward and debates them constructively.
• John listens, he puts forward strategies, he encourages discussion and he can change his mind. Once a democratic decision is made, he carries it out.
• John conducts himself as a principled trade unionist; he has not been and will not be part of any undemocratic manoeuvring or personal hostilities.
• John is the candidate who can unite this union.

A democratic union is also an organising union.
John has built RMT’s membership in traditional areas like the railway and newer areas like cable cars and have delivered training and support for reps and branches.

John will ensure that RMT is a union for all its members.
• John is supported in this election by reps from all sectors and all areas of our union – because we know him and have seen him stand alongside us in the battles we have faced.
• John fights with and for all transport workers, including the most exploited. John led the union in winning full sick and isolation pay for outsourced cleaners on Transport for London during the Covid pandemic.
• John has given equalities issues greater priority, and is committed to taking radical steps to increase diverse representation in our union and empower under-involved groups.

John has the experience, the ideas, the ability and the commitment to unite and lead a union that takes on the employers and the government and wins for all its members.

We work together, we win together.