FDA delegation attends TUC Young Workers’ Conference 2026

This year’s FDA delegation for the TUC Young Workers’ Conference in Brighton included Daniel Marshall (lead delegate), Natasha Bloomfield, George Cammack, Zaine Mansuralli, Aqsa Bibi, Sheldon Allen, and Alex McCann.

The FDA moved two motions at the conference, the first of which was Motion 14, ‘Young carers’. This highlighted the challenges facing young carers in the workplace, based on an FDA carers’ survey which showed that young carers often face greater difficulties in being believed around their caring responsibilities than older workers. The motion called on the TUC Young Workers Committee to help union reps to better support young carers in the workplace.

The second of the FDA’s motions was Motion 24, ‘Improving understanding of workplace pensions’, calling on the committee to promote pensions literacy, particularly among the groups that are most likely to withdraw from pensions schemes, and to defend pensions as an essential part of workers’ compensation.

Both the FDA’s motions were passed by conference.

FDA delegates also spoke to a number of motions, with delegate Natasha Bloomfield seconding Motion 20, ‘Tax justice for young workers’ from PCS. Bloomfield referenced the findings of the FDA’s Funding the Nation report, which highlighted that a targeted investment in HMRC compliance and customer service in HMRC could close the ‘tax gap’ and return £11.3 billion in tax revenue to the Treasury, providing better public services.

Delegates spoke in opposition to Motions 27 ‘Reform of the TUC’, and Motion 28 ‘Increasing the term of the TUC Young Workers Committee’, both of which fell.

Lead delegate Daniel Marshall, who moved the union’s motion on young carers, said:

“The TUC Young Workers is always a great opportunity to discuss the big issues facing young people in the workplace and to meet with trade unionists from across the country and across a range of different sectors. I’d really encourage anyone interested in attending in future to do so!”

Fellow delegate Aqsa Bibi reflected on her experience as a first-time delegate, saying:

“It was my first time going to a TUC conference and I had no idea what to expect but it turned out to be really interesting. I felt privileged to be in a room with such passionate people discussing important topics. I would definitely go again and recommend it to anyone else considering it too!”

The conference is part of a series of equalities conference ran by the TUC, which also includes the Women’s Conference, Black Workers’ Conference, Disabled Workers’ Conference, and LGBT+ Workers Conference.