A union boss accused of bullying and harassing women has provoked fury after writing to every Labour MP insisting they are ‘building a better workplace’.
GMB general secretary Gary Smith – whose union’s 500,000 members include Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer – also sent yesterday’s email to all Labour peers after a Daily Mail investigation revealed ex-officials had described it as a ‘vipers’ nest… riddled with sexism’.
The message, co-signed by GMB national president Barbara Plant, claimed allegations in Monday’s front-page Mail report were ‘simply not true’.
But angry former officials have accused Mr Smith of trying to ‘gloss over’ the union’s ‘widespread misogyny’ rather than tackling it.
One GMB worker, who wished not to be named, told the Mail: ‘It’s a shameless response.
‘Instead of urgently addressing the toxic situation facing women staff and reps at the union, he is trying to spin it to appear that he and the GMB are the victims.
‘The Prime Minister should be leading calls for an investigation of his union.’
Mr Smith’s email to Labour parliamentarians said: ‘We are writing regarding a story in today’s Daily Mail.
GMB’s General secretary Gary Smith sent an email to all Labour peers after a Daily Mail investigation revealed ex-officials had described it as ‘riddled with sexism’
Mr Smith endorsed Sir Keir (pictured) during the election
‘This paper has repeatedly criticised the new Labour Government and it seems that our union is now a subject of its campaign.
‘We remain committed to continually working with our staff and independent experts to build a better workplace.’
It yesterday emerged that 29 former GMB staff were given ‘termination’ payouts totalling more than £846,000 over two years.
Mr Smith, who endorsed Sir Keir during the election, was allowed to run for general secretary despite four counts of bullying and harassment against a female union rep being upheld in their entirety by an internal investigation in 2020.
The GMB – which donates more than £1 million to Labour every year – says it ‘categorically denies’ claims of a bullying culture, adding: ‘We now have clear, comprehensive and transparent procedures to fully investigate and effectively deal with any allegation of bullying, sexism or harassment.’