In this interview James Redmond talks to Fórsa Skills Academy head Fiona Dunne about the key role trade union education plays in transforming people’s lives and in reflecting the grassroots values of organised labour.

For Fiona Dunne, who heads up the Fórsa Skills Academy, education is about building a pathway to empowerment for members of the union.

With a career deeply rooted in the trade union movement and experience at the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), Fiona joined Fórsa’s Skills Academy in September 2022. One of her initial challenges was addressing some reluctance among seasoned union members to identify their need for further training.

She explained: “It was interesting when I started here two years ago; there were a lot of people who told me that they were fully trained and didn’t require any further training.

“It was a bit of a challenge. But creating a developmental and supportive pathway ensures we meet the needs of all our workplace representatives where they are at.”

To overcome this, Fiona introduced confidence-building as a central component at every training level, starting with the Level One course.

“A lot of the time, when I open the Level One training, I say to activists and reps, you know a lot of this stuff, it’s a lot of common sense. It’s just putting it in a package.”

Fiona envisions a structured pathway that guides members from initial involvement to senior roles within the union. Beginning with a Fórsa induction, this pathway continues through Level One and Level Two Workplace Representatives’ Training that cover skills in communication, organising, engaging, and empowering members.

“I’m developing a strong pathway for activists and reps to support them on their development journey,” Fiona said.

Looking ahead, she’s also developing a Level Three course for next year, which will explore employment law and industrial relations, among other potential topics. The Skills Academy further supports branch officers with specialised training in time management, communication skills, public speaking, and negotiation skills essential to leadership roles.

The training structure emphasises workplace representatives at the Academy’s core, with additional courses available for branch officers and those advancing into more senior activist positions.

The approach underscores grassroots engagement and union democracy, both critical to effective union representation. “There is a lot more conversation about the benefit of the union,” she noted, observing a shift away from reliance on headquarters and a return to locally based trade unionism. Workplace democracy means that taking action and finding solutions should be as close to work as possible,” she added, explaining that solving issues locally strengthens both responsiveness and union cohesion.

In Level One training, reps learn fundamental union principles, from working with integrity and in solidarity to grievance processes and disciplinary procedures, reinforcing practical knowledge and the union’s collective values.

Fiona recalls that her experience during the pandemic is what inspired the union’s popular live ‘Lunch and Learn’ sessions, which take place on the last Friday of each month and labour tackle topics from digital activism to mental health.

These online sessions keep union members connected and for many can be their first engagement with union activities outside formal meetings. One of the most popular sessions, on CV writing by Fórsa’s HR manager Rebecca Woolf, was huge. “We had 480 registrations for that, which we've never surpassed,” she said.

Although Fiona is the most visible face of the Skills Academy, she is quick to credit her teammates. “I’m ably supported by Judith in Cork, who is the administrator. She’s ‘front of house’ is the way I describe it”.

Judith’s engagement with applicants and logistics allows Fiona to focus on programme development and strategy. Roisin Nolan, another essential team member, works “as our technical back-up,” handling technical tasks such as data management and record-keeping. “She keeps records of attendance, and she does all the techie work for online courses,” Fiona added.

When asked if the Skills Academy continues the long tradition of self-education in the workers’ movement, Fiona highlighted that union-based education has historically offered working people valuable opportunities. Unlike more formal education models, union training doesn’t place too much emphasis on accreditation but rests on a philosophical foundation rooted in collective learning and practical application.

“The principles include things like, you know, it's group oriented. So, it's about working together. It’s about the collective and sharing knowledge,” she explained, underscoring how the lived experiences of workers and reps are valuable assets in union roles.

Through conversations with Fiona and positive feedback from participants, it’s clear that the Skills Academy’s work is more than just training up a roster of robotic union representatives. Instead, the Academy’s education fosters personal and professional growth, as well as community and political engagement. Check out the Skills Academy upcoming courses here.

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