A mass meeting of West Virginia teachers during the recent strike action| Image: AFT – West Virginia

Video: what is rank-and-file trade unionism?

Trade unions are essential to workers struggling to improve their conditions. But the leaderships of large trade unions don’t have the same interests as their workers. Too often, a reliance on union bosses leads ordinary workers to defeat, as leaders cancel or dial down militant action and preserve a state of peace with management.

In this video, rs21’s Ian Allinson looks at the alternative to the union bureaucracy – a vital, self-reliant politics of the rank-and-file membership.