Digital Tools for Trade Unions

Published in 2019, this report by Dr Jonnie Penn and Dr Christina Colclough provides an overview of digital tools built for, or by, workers. It provides loads of great examples of organising and campaigning apps and services that can boost your communication, outreach and impact. We divide the tools into custom outreach tools and general outreach tools.

The report is a result of our scanning of digital tools that we believe can boost union outreach to members, particularly young members. Some tools are designed by unions, others not. Some are free to use, others not. Some are hugely successful, while

others have only just begun their journey. The tools we present here give a taste of what is available.

New apps and services are popping up all the time. The ones we present for you in this report are neither conclusive, nor exhaustive. But they are some of the

best, and the most innovative.

At the heart of each tool we profile is the aspiration to harness information to boost impact. We’ve asked each development team to share lessons learned along the way. You’ll find lessons like ‘co-build with users, not just for them’ and ‘scale slowly even if the

world wants you to scale fast.’ Our aim is to shine a light on how pioneering groups have merged digital tools with the spirit of collectivisation.

In what follows, we also outline more than a dozen off-the-shelf digital tools (many of which are free) that you can put to use today to become more organised in planning, making budgets, making presentations, or just staying in touch with members

or your team. We welcome your thoughts, feedback and experiences!

Have a read! This will certainly inspire you.

fwowconnectiveaction_2019_print

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