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Hello and welcome to a new series of political thinking, a conversation with rather than an

interrogation of someone who shapes our political thinking about what has shaped theirs.

My guess this week is the leader of Britain's second largest trade union, Sharon Graham,

who replaced the rather better known, Len McCluskey.

We're talking at a time when there are strikes in the health service, strikes on the railway,

strikes in schools, strikes in the civil service.

For years there's been talk of a new winter of discontent and let's be honest, it has

been largely that talk.

Now though trade unions do have a mandate from their members, they seem to have the backing

of large sections of the public to have a fight over the standard of their members living.

Sharon Graham, welcome to political thinking.

Thank you.

You've been a trade unionist, all of your adult life, an activist, all of your adult life.

Have you ever seen a more important year for trade unionism than this one?

Well I think it's definitely important and actually I think you're just hearing in your

intro then, I think that actually it is a moment but it's one that's been brewing

for a number of years.

For ten years you've had people in the public and the private sector, basically not getting

pay rises.

And what's different between now and then is that what they're able to do then was maybe

just get by, you know, just pull those two ends together to get by.

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