Frances O'Grady
Frances O'Grady
Frances Lorraine O'Gradyis the General Secretary of the British Trades Union Congress, the first woman to hold that position...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionActivist
Date of Birth9 November 1959
Frances O'Grady quotes about
eye cutting focus
Although there's a lot of focus on the Lib Dems, we need to keep our eyes on the far right of the Tories, who I suspect will become increasingly impatient in their appetite for tax cuts, deregulation and shrinking the state even further.
years gdp growth
Britain is a textbook case of how growing inequality leads to economic crisis. The years before the crash were marked by a sharp rise in remortgaging and the growth of 0 percent balance transfer credit cards. By 2008 the UK had the highest ratio of household debt to GDP of any major economy.
college years oxford
Washing dishes as a 17-year-old in an Oxford college and seeing the privileged lifestyles of the undergraduates there convinced me that a system that allowed luxury for the few at the expense of the many needed to be challenged.
downing-street faces alternatives
I'd be happy to have regular face-to-face meetings at Downing Street with David Cameron to argue the case for alternative economic policies.
unions joining individual
I came from a family where joining a union was the expected thing to do. I've always believed that the relationship between an employer and an individual worker is fundamentally unequal.
strong jobs impact
Voting to go on strike is not a decision working people take lightly and is always accompanied by a strong sense of injustice at work. The impact of losing a day's pay is significant, not least for those in the lowest paid jobs who are already on the tightest budgets.
morning jobs real
As long as the number one worry for people, keeping them up at nights, is whether they're going to have a job in the morning, then they are less likely to resist unfair changes, or unfair treatment, or cuts in real pay at work.
voice people giving
A business is good if it gives a decent day's reward for a decent day's work, treats people decently, and gives them a voice at the top.
feminist problem no-problem
I am a feminist and I have no problems being called that.
ideas space giving
I cherish the creation of public space and services, especially health, housing and the comprehensive education system which dared to give so many of us ideas 'above our station.'
attitude people needs
I suspect there are people in all walks of life who need to be dragged into the 21st century in terms of attitudes towards women.
austerity biting evidence hard movement people policies trade union work
Never has a strong, responsible trade union movement been so needed. With austerity policies biting hard and with no evidence that they are working, people at work need the TUC to speak up for them now more than ever.
relevant says section unions work
There is nothing that says unions have a God-given right to be there. We have to work at it and make ourselves relevant to every section of the workforce.
ashes chance economic
From the ashes of a financial crash, there is a chance to create a new economic settlement that is more equal, sustainable and democratic.