The GMB union is confronting serious new allegations of bullying and hostile behaviour, levelled by the female leader of a rival Labour-affiliated union. Maryam Eslamdoust, General Secretary of the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA), has claimed senior GMB officials attempted to force her from her role, causing her significant stress and health impacts.
Allegations of Hostility and Gender Bias
Eslamdoust, who is also the former mayor of Camden council and the TSSA's first female leader, suggested the conduct she faced was gendered. She asserted that a male union leader would not have been subjected to the same treatment. The dispute centres on the GMB's role in representing TSSA staff in internal industrial disputes against their own union's management.
Detailing a specific incident from September, Eslamdoust described a meeting where a senior GMB official allegedly shouted at her and her assistant general secretary, Maria Fawcett, wagged his finger in their faces, and threatened to damage their reputations. The official has since been banned from entering TSSA premises.
A Clash of Cultures and Priorities
The GMB defends its actions, stating it is duty-bound to protect its members. It points to a recent staff survey within the TSSA which it says revealed "horrifying" levels of stress, with 90% of staff describing the environment as "psychologically unsafe." The GMB, one of the Labour Party's largest donors with over 550,000 members, has itself been working to reform its culture since a 2020 independent report found it to be "institutionally sexist."
However, Eslamdoust questions the GMB's moral authority on workplace culture. She notes the union has not fully implemented recommendations from its own Monaghan report into misogyny. She also suggests the GMB's aggressive stance is a precursor to an attempted takeover of the smaller 18,000-member TSSA, a claim the GMB denies, citing a previously abandoned merger process.
Leadership Under Fire and Personal Cost
The TSSA leader has directly questioned the fitness of GMB General Secretary Gary Smith to lead, implying he tacitly condones the behaviour of officials on the ground. Smith is currently battling for re-election, with the nominations process underway.
Eslamdoust, who took over the TSSA in 2023 following the dismissal of her predecessor, Manuel Cortes, spoke of the profound personal cost. "I routinely work from eight in the morning to 11 o'clock at night, if not longer, and that's just simply to manage the union, protect my union's reputation and defend myself from constant interference and aggression by the GMB," she stated.
The conflict escalated after Eslamdoust made a formal complaint about the GMB official's conduct. In response, GMB London regional secretary Warren Kenny sent an email she labelled "appalling," which questioned her decision to raise a complaint and advised her to focus on resolving staff concerns instead.
A GMB spokesperson reiterated the union's commitment to its members, stating: "GMB is duty bound to protect members from this kind of workplace environment – no matter who the employer is." The allegations mark a significant and public rift between two prominent unions within the Labour movement.
