In 1998 the Maritime Union of Australia turned around its fortunes in the legendary Patrick Stevedores dispute by focusing its attention on positive publicity for the first time in its history. Public perceptions of dockers as lazy louts were reversed by media images of community pickets, and publicity messages targeted to appeal to typical Australian sympathies.

Eight years later the MUA is working to bring its rank and file members to the forefront of its communications, as representative speakers at events and on film. At the same time it has joined other Australian unions in contributing funds to a national TV media campaign being conducted by the national centre ACTU against the proposed reforms of the vehemently anti-union Howard government. These and many other examples of effective communication strategies were discussed at a meeting of communications experts from ITF-affiliated unions in London in January. The delegates agreed to form a global network in order to facilitate their role in helping to foster cooperation between the unions in their organising and campaigning efforts.

Two delegates agreed to generate joint editorial on their experiences of the logistics giant UPS in their two countries. Delegates from unions representing Ryanair workers swapped information and tactics on their publicity campaigns to expose the shabby treatment of its employees. The ITF used the information it has received from affiliates about the conduct of this employer, along with its own “Ryan-be-fair”website, to generate widespread press coverage, which culminated in a damning TV expose.

Effective internal communications between union departments and especially between memberships, activists, staff and officers are just as crucial as external publicity in the pursuit of organising and other campaign successes. They also equip unions to share their information, ideas and understanding with one another.

Unions need to organise, and the work to educate and inform potential union members is largely in the hands of communicators. As the organising arena becomes more global in its reach – with workers in many countries often now working for one employer – this communications work must also become more globally based.

Participants at the recent meeting recognised the increasingly crucial challenge they face in engaging rank and file members, and potential members, with the common causes of workers in many different countries.

The ITF is actively encouraging affiliates to include journalists, press officers and web managers in their Congress delegations, in order to help publicise the crucial decisions that will be taken there and the issues debated.

These staff can also join the communications network by emailing details of their role and union to Sarah Finke, head of communications at the ITF (finke_sarah@itf.org.uk).