FDA at TUC Women’s Conference 2026

Delegation of FDA members attended TUC Women’s Conference in Bournemouth.

The conference took place at the Bournemouth International Centre between 4-6 March 2026. The event is part of the TUC’s equality conferences that supplement the work of Congress. It focuses on key workplace issues for women and provides opportunities for union representatives from across the union movement to come together and discuss key issues and shared priorities.

The FDA’s delegation was led by FDA President Margaret Haig, representing our DSIT branch. The delegation also included Marie Knox (Welsh Government), Charlotte Mcleod (CPS), Leila Kelly (GLD), Joanna McCreadie (Redress Scotland), Natasha Bloomfield (Fast Stream), and Tara McGough (FCDO).

The FDA put forward a motion about carers in the workplace, which was composited with similar motions from NEU and BDA. The motion referenced the FDA’s recent survey of carers that found 72% of respondents were female and that the statutory right to unpaid carer’s leave was not made clear in all workplace policies despite changes in legislation, and there remains low awareness of this right.

The motion called for TUC Women’s Committee to: 1) Lead an awareness campaign on the new Carer’s Leave Act so employers and carers are aware of the entitlement to five days unpaid carer’s leave, and rights to request flexible working; 2) Continue to campaign for a new statutory right to paid Carer’s Leave for across all sectors with unpaid caring responsibilities ensuring carers are not forced to choose between income and essential care; 3) Demand flexible working arrangements without career penalties, including job-sharing, remote work options, and predictable scheduling.

The FDA were also involved in a composite motion calling for improved maternity and parental rights that called on the TUC to lobby government to, among other things, reform maternity legislation to ensure it is inclusive, equitable, and reflective of modern family needs, expand eligibility and increase statutory maternity pay to a rate more in-line with the top half of OECD countries, and increase statutory paternity leave and pay, to be more in-line with the top half of EU countries.

Knox, who is also on the union’s Executive Committee, spoke on behalf of the FDA. The speech focused on the 2025 Maternity Action report called “Pushed Into Poverty: The Cost of Living On Maternity Leave”, which found that Statutory Maternity Pay is not sufficient to keep pregnant women and new mothers and their babies healthy and even Occupational Maternity Pay schemes did not keep mothers out of debt.

Speaking after the event, Kelly (who is also an FDA Vice President) said:

“It was a pleasure to spend time with the other members of the FDA Delegation and learn about the vital work they do across the UK and beyond. It is a privilege to hear from women across the trade union movement and to learn from them about how they tackle challenges we all face in the workplace”.

McCreadie, a first time delegate, described her experience at the conference as “inspiring”:

“Many of the speakers were inspiring in their commitment to women’s rights and social justice and their generosity of support for different kinds of change.  The FDA proposed motions and it was great to hear our own speakers advocate for these.  I was especially impressed by the work on the motion to improve the position of unpaid carers at work and the sensitivity with which this was handled. Overall, the conference was a striking example of bringing people together to work for change.  There were many different people in the room, but they were united in the shared cause of achieving equality”.   

For Bloomfield it was an “exciting and empowering experience”:

“Getting to know women across the FDA and the trade union movement, and having the opportunity to share experiences and learn from each other, was so rewarding. It was particularly eye-opening to hear how women across a really diverse range of industries shared such similar stories and struggles. The feeling of coming together to support each other in the movement for equality and workplace rights left me feeling inspired. I was nervous to attend such a big event, but I found that the conference was very welcoming and supportive to newcomers. I’d really recommend attending a TUC conference if you’re interested”.