The ADCU warmly welcomes the IWGB’s decision to end their year-long legal battle against our union and its officers in their personal capacity. As the ADCU continues to gain strength and membership to stand in power behind workers in their important struggles, it is important that every union keep its focus where it belongs: on ensuring workers have a voice with their employers.
The IWGB Executive Committee’s recently dropped High Court case against us was an unnecessary distraction at this time; nevertheless, there are a few points that merit public response. The 'passing off' and breach of membership contract case brought by the IWGB Executive Committee against us had important Article 11 implications for the right of trade unionists to organise freely, so the ADCU defended it vigorously and successfully. Unions should never resort to commercial law to claim ownership of organising good will, nor should they seek to victimise volunteer elected reps with breach of contract claims. The only winners in such cases are the lawyers who were paid tens of thousands of pounds that the IWGB's Executive Committee might have better spent on fighting for their own members and not against other workers.
We have referred the IWGB Executive Committee's continuous malicious allegations and our detailed response to each to the Certification Officer now on three separate occasions as they arose:
· on February 6, 2020 in a letter prepared by Hodge Jones Allen,
· on March 18, 2020 in a letter prepared on behalf of the departing branch national executive committee and
· on March 26, 2021.
We also reported our concerns to the IWGB’s own Independent Auditor on August 4, 2020. As such, we felt we were duty bound to refer the allegations each time to the correct authority for appropriate investigation and that is exactly what we did.
In the spirit of transparency and accountability, we are prepared to provide copies of our letters to the Certification Officer and of our High Court defence (subject to legal clearance) to any legitimately interested party. We do not think it is helpful to openly publish this material as it is not our intention to cause undue damage or distress to the IWGB at a critical time when it needs to be concentrating on supporting its members. At the same time, we do wish to offer every assurance possible of our own integrity. If you have a legitimate interest in receiving any of these documents, please email us at office@adcu.org.uk.
The IWGB Executive Committee also makes false complaints of harassment but it is self-evident from the IWGB's statement itself and from the series of failed legal challenges we have had to endure that the harassment is by the IWGB Executive Committee. This has taken a terrible toll over a long period of time on all those of us who were maliciously targeted by the IWGB’s Executive Committee and especially so for our families and vulnerable ones close to us. The IWGB Executive Committee targeted precarious workers with a financially crippling High Court action that might have seen us and our families homeless and destitute had they been successful in their collective bid.
In February 2020, the United Private Hire Drivers (UPHD) branch executive voted unanimously to disaffiliate from the IWGB and resume independent status, now operating as ADCU. They also passed a 9-0 vote of no confidence in Dr. Jason Moyer-Lee as IWGB General Secretary. The collective decision of the branch to leave the IWGB was a difficult one and was not taken lightly. It came after many months of consideration and was taken in the best interests of our members. We needed to build the appropriate support structures to sustainably meet the needs of our members over the longer term. We want to balance not only our collective, hard charging, campaigning goals but also the important servicing needs of individual members who face very real problems every day at work.
The frothy model of independent trade unionism in Britain today is exciting, creative, and energetic. However, too often we have seen inexperienced union executives and staff, themselves protected, in their chase for headlines put vulnerable workers at risk but then leave them to fend for themselves when things go terribly wrong. We are aiming for a better, fairer and more responsible balance for our members. We also want a more stable, collective form of trade unionism that seeks greater harmony and solidarity with the wider trade union movement.
Today, our union is strong, successful, and growing fast but there is still so much to do to protect workers in the gig economy despite our recent victory over Uber at the Supreme Court. We have not nor will not allow ourselves to be distracted from our mission.
To close, we would like to take this opportunity to express our solidarity with the rank-and-file members of the IWGB. Your struggle is still our struggle and we are on your side always.
ADCU National Executive Committee
29th March 2021