Unions group gets a new leader for Lancashire

Jay McKenna has been appointed as the Trade Unions Congress' Regional Secretary for the North West.

He takes over the post from Lynn Collins, who is on a second long-term secondment with the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

He will be based in the TUC’s Liverpool office, and will be the union body’s senior representative across the North West.

He acted up as TUC North West Regional Secretary between July 2019 and September 2020 and has now been awarded the position permanently following an external recruitment process.

He joined the TUC in 2012 and has worked as a campaigns officer for the region and as policy officer for the national public services team.

Over the past year Jay has helped developing the TUC’s policy and campaign work on social care and public services.

He said: “It’s a great honour to have been appointed the TUC’s Regional Secretary for the North West.

“I am determined to do all I can to support working people in this region and to help communities thrive. We face huge challenges in the months and years ahead as we recover from this dreadful pandemic.

"But I will relentlessly make the case for high-quality jobs, strong public services and for better living standards for all.

“Everyone in the North West deserves to be treated with dignity at work and to be paid a decent wage.

“I look forward to working closely with unions, employers and politicians on improving skills and training and on securing much-needed investment for our region.”