New Unionism – A Panel Conversation hosted by the Wellington Socialist Society

There is a cultural understanding that trade unions are male-dominated and the preserve of workers in manufacturing or other physically intensive occupations. However, today nothing could be further from the truth, women make up around 60 percent of all union members in New Zealand. Our predominantly female public sector is our most unionised workforce – including healthcare, care work, and education – making up around 60 percent of all unionists in the country.

Recently we have been seeing new efforts to organise and advocate for workers in traditionally non-unionised sectors. These include hospitality workers, musicians, and independent contractors such as Uber drivers and strippers. The panel will discuss the challenges for unionists currently working in this space and explore the opportunities – for individual sectors and for the union movement as a whole – presented by ‘organising the unorganised’.

For this panel, we are joined by Amber Clausner, organiser for E Tu Musicians’ Union & aged care workers, and Margot Embargot from Fired Up Stilettos to dive deeper into the phenomenon of new unionism.

Amber Clausner is an artist and unionist originally from the UK. She has been based in Te Whanganui-a-tara for 7 years where she is currently a campaign organiser for E tū. Primarily she works with care and support workers, on a campaign to ensure pay equity for workers, safe staffing ratios and changes to the governments funding model in the care sector. However, she also has had the privilege since the beginning of 2024 to revitalise the Musicians’ Union which comes under the E tū umbrella.

Margot Embargot is a member of Fired Up Stilettos. Formed in 2023 by a group of women and non-binary adult entertainers who were fired from Calendar Girls Wellington after they stood-up for their conditions as independent contractors, FUS has publicly exposed, through media and campaigning, that the injustice experienced by adult entertainment workers is systemic to the adult entertainment industry in Aotearoa.

The conversation will be chaired by Sabina Rizos-Shaw, a Trade Unionist based in Poneke and co-convenor of Unions Wellington, the Wellington local affiliates council for the Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi.

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Event Proceedings:
6:00 pm – Doors Open
6:30 pm – Introductions
6:40 pm – Conversation between panelists and host
7:20 pm – Intermission
7:30 pm – Panel Q&A

For those unable to attend we will have a live stream on the Wellington Socialist Society Facebook page.

Drinks and food will be available to order from the bar. As always we are thankful to Bedlam & Squalor for hosting us.