Fighting for trans rights at work
Eilonwy Awen, PCS Proud national committee trans representative (personal capacity)
31 March marks International Trans Day of Visibility, held annually since 2009. It’s a day to celebrate and normalise trans and gender non-conforming people in all the unique ways we exist.
This event is happening at a time where the fight for LGBTQ+ rights is increasingly urgent. Our rights are under relentless attack internationally by capitalist bosses and their governments, trying to divide working-class people.
The capitalist media narratives that dominate public perception often erase, distort, or commodify our realities.
We have been working within the PCS Wales LGBT+ Network to spearhead an event in Cardiff. We have invited speakers from PCS, Unite, and Unison to speak, with more unions to follow.
Many individual speakers from the trans and broader LGBTQ+ community will be joining us. The event is supported and endorsed by Cardiff Trades Union Council and TUC Cymru, who will be in attendance, providing speakers and equipment.
The trade unions bring together millions of working-class people, who face different kinds of oppression. The hope is that our actions can help form the foundation for a trans trade union network in Wales, and perhaps even the UK.
In my workplace, we will be hosting a stall in the foyer, and I will be hosting an evening event as the trans representative for PCS Proud. I encourage everyone to run their own events for the day.
