Great Britain: CWU and GMB unions create their own legal firm

The Communications Workers’ Union (CWU) and the GMB general union have together launched the first ever union legal firm. Called UNIONLINE (meaning also ‘union online’), the firm will provide a comprehensive range of legal service to the 626,000 members of the GMB and the 203,000 members of the CWU.
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The two unions took the initiative as they believed that the now heavily deregulated legal profession allowed for new organisations to come into existence in order offer services in the legal marketplace. Based in Sheffield, UNIONLINE consists of a partnership of approved solicitors firms under the authority of the UNIONLINE monitoring board comprised of GMB and CWU representatives. The acting together by the GMB, the third biggest union, and the CWU, the eighth biggest union, is indicative of

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