REAL LIVES Grenfell Tower


“Most members wanted financial support, legal support and counselling and they wanted to get in touch with their local branches, all of which we made happen.” In fact Unite is providing legal support for a number of the families and is applying for ‘core participant’ status in the public inquiry.


Assistant general secretary for legal services Howard Beckett said the families could not hope to compete with the resources government bodies and companies could bring to bear.


“Victims and survivors need answers and action to ensure the horror they experienced will not be inflicted on others ever again. The public inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire will have a major impact on the provision of safe, suitable and affordable housing for decades to come.”


At grassroots level Dave says Camden and West London Unite Community branches – Grenfell Tower is on the border between the two – both provided immediate practical assistance and were a ‘credit to the union’.


Dave, who has been the main point of contact for Unite members affected by the tragedy, heard about the fire early on the Wednesday morning when the first television news coverage was being


broadcast. When he got to the Unite office in Moreland Street, London, he started receiving phone calls about the fire and it quickly became clear that there were Unite members in the tower.


“On the day of the disaster I was ringing members and leaving messages on their phones. I was very aware that I might have been leaving messages for some people who had died. I was ecstatic when anyone rang me back – sometimes a week later.


“I have to admire the bravery of people who ignored official advice and went down so many flights of flights of stairs, protecting their children all the way.”


Firefighters who attended the disaster were also commended for their bravery – although like the residents, many were deeply traumatised by the experience. On hand to help was The Rev William Sharpe, a chaplain with the London Fire Bridge and three of his colleagues, all of whom are members of Unite.


Unite members who lived in the tower work in a variety of sectors, including the hospitality industry, transport, health and local authorities.


“It is a fairly normal cross-section of society,” explains Dave. “There are people in good, well-paid jobs and those who are


struggling. There are people who have bought their flats, some are renting and some are in social housing. The good employers have looked after their workers who have been affected by it. Others haven’t.”


Some residents want to be rehoused near the tower, others want to get as far away as possible from the blackened hulk which dominates the area and remains a horrific reminder of the disaster.


Dave points out that Unite has a legitimate role to play, because it has a duty to help its members. “I am very proud of the way our union has conducted itself.”


And assistant general secretary Steve Turner believed the deaths had been avoidable – as was the trauma being experienced by those who survived, their families and the community.


“It is this which makes this human tragedy an outrage and why it is so important that those responsible are held to account publicly and in the criminal courts for their actions or failures to act in the knowledge of the threats posed.”


Need Grenfell legal representation? Contact Unite-retained law firm, Howe and Co on 020 8840 4688.


“


It is [these avoidable deaths] which makes this human tragedy an outrage and why it is so important that those responsible are held to account


Steve Turner Unite AGS


”


Mark Thomas


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