As well as co-ordinating and teaching on the College’s ILTUS MA Ian works part-time for the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU). He has a significant degree of experience in the development and delivery of trade union and labour education programmes working for trade unions in the UK and internationally. He is also vice-chair of the College’s observation of teaching and learning (OTL) group and is responsible for the maintenance of the OTL programme, in liaison with the Principal and Quality Officer, and the provision of support to members of the OTL group

He provides the project management function for the GFTU. He is currently managing a project (2009-11) funded by the Union Modernisation Fund (UMF) on vulnerable workers. The project will be run in partnership with Thompsons Solicitors and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.  

Ian provides research, technical assistance, consultancy and training to trade union activists and officials across a wide range of occupational sectors. Some recent examples of his work includes:  

1. The delivery of a three day workshop (18-21 July 2009, Istanbul) to the UNICEF Global Staff Association. The theme of the workshop was Buillding Global Unions: Leadership & Renewal  

The event was provided under the umbrella of the unique partnership between the GFTU, Ruskin College and CCISUA (Co-ordinating Committee for International Staff Unions and Associations) a federation for the staff unions of UN agencies.  

2. Organised with Unions21 and Co-operatives UK an event to explore and discuss the current and future relationship between the co-operative and trade union movements. The agenda for the event can be seen at:  

http://www.unions21.org.uk/node/80

3. Contributed to the 2009 annual conference of the UK Society for Co-operative Studies at Ruskin College 5-6 September 2009. The conference theme: Building a Co-operative Economy: Opportunities and Challenges. The event details can be seen at:  

http://www3.uwic.ac.uk/English/management/RandE/circ/Documents/UKSCS Annual Conference 2009.pdf

4. Conducted overall evaluation of the GFTU’s 2007-2009 project to provide pensions education to trade union members. This project was funded by the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) under its Pensions Education Fund (PEF). His research outcomes contributed to the DWP’s overall evaluation of the Pensions Education Fund. The DWP’s final report is at:  

http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2009-2010/rrep581.pdf

The GFTU’s End of Initiative Report is at:

www.gftu.org/download/at/10 

5. In July 2010 the UK government’s Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) produced a summary report of research undertaken by Sue Ledwith and Ian Manborde at Ruskin College on the Union Modernisation Fund (UMF) project of the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) on diversity and trade union leadership.  

You can obtain a copy of the report by going to: http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/employment-matters/docs/g/10-1091-umf-2-gftu-ruskin-college 

6. In July 2010 delivered a paper evaluating trade union organising strategies for vulnerable workers in the north east of England to the 2010 Annual Conference of the British Universities Industrial Relations Association (BUIRA) with colleagues from Northumbria University, Ian Fitzgerald and John Stirling.
See a copy of the paper here

7. In 2011 Ian will be managing a £100,000 European transnational project which has been funded under the Social Dialogue programme of the European Commission. For further information: http://www.gftu.org/content/8/142/ 

8. During 2011-12 he will be managing a project funded by the European Commission which is designed to support the employment, health and welfare needs of older workers who face employment vulnerability. The project involves partners in Italy, Finland, Greece and the UK. Further details are here: http://www.gftu.org/content/3/1/13/article/76/ 

9. Between 2011 and 2013 he will be managing a project funded under the European Commission’s Leonardo lifelong learning strand. The project brings together European partners from the Netherlands, France, Bulgaria and France and will supports the Commission’s policy priorities around mobility, transfer of accreditation and improvement in vocational training and education (VET) standards. The project will oversee the transfer of VET training materials to European partners alongside the recognition of qualifications in each partner country and to mirror standards in the European qualifications framework (EQF). There is more background information about Leonardo Transfer of Innovations (ToI) projects here: http://www.leonardo.org.uk/page.asp?section=00010001001900030001§ionTitle=Transfer+of+Innovation 

 

 

  

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