Trade unions have a brand problem. For some people trade unions feel distant and old-fashioned, but for others – particularly younger people – they have no perception or understanding of unions at all. Yet the need for collective action has never been greater. Pay is stagnating, job insecurity is rising, and the gig economy keeps expanding.
In the latest episode of The Political Marketing Podcast, I spoke with Declan Seachoy, Head of Social Media and Audience Growth at the Trades Union Congress (TUC), about how the movement is adapting to a new media environment and a new generation of workers.
Declan’s career has taken him from working for Momentum, a grassroots campaign group founded to support Jeremy Corbyn, to Labour HQ to the TUC, a journey through the modern left’s communications ecosystem. Across all of it, he has been tackling the same challenge: how do you make collective politics feel relevant and compelling in a world that celebrates hustle culture and individualism?
The perception problem
Declan was clear that the biggest hurdle for unions is perception.
Many younger people simply do not know what a union does. Others associate them with strikes, conflict, and an older style of politics.
The TUC’s challenge is to shift that frame, from unions as protest groups to unions as everyday problem-solvers.
The messaging now focuses on practical benefits: getting fair pay, better hours, and safer working conditions.
As Declan put it, the task is not to rebrand unions completely but to reframe them, showing that collective action is as relevant to a Deliveroo rider or warehouse worker as it was to a dockyard in the 1970s.
From activism to institutions
Declan’s earlier work at Momentum and the Labour Party was about harnessing grassroots energy online. He said that experience taught him how to build emotional connection, not just awareness.
That same principle now guides his work at the TUC. The goal is not simply to tell people what unions do but to make joining one feel like an act of belonging, part of a modern identity rather than a bureaucratic process.
Whereas party politics often focuses on winning votes, trade union communications are about building sustained relationships. “You’re not trying to convert people overnight,” Declan said. “You’re trying to earn trust over time.”
Recruitment in the attention economy
So what is working? Declan pointed to the TUC’s growing use of short-form video and relatable storytelling.
Rather than abstract talk of “workers’ rights,” the most effective content shows real people winning pay rises or standing up to bad bosses.
It is the kind of social proof that travels well on TikTok and Instagram and helps make union membership feel relevant to people who might never have considered it before.
The key, he said, is keeping the tone conversational, not preachy. “You can’t talk down to people about joining a union. You have to meet them where they are.”
The political context
We also talked about the TUC’s political positioning. While it is closely aligned with Labour, Declan stressed that the TUC’s primary job is to represent working people, not a party.
That matters because today’s union members are politically diverse. A significant number are sympathetic to Reform UK or feel alienated from the Labour Party altogether.
For the TUC, that means talking about shared economic interests rather than tribal loyalty, focusing on fairness, pay, and dignity at work rather than party politics.
The future of organising
Finally, we discussed what trade unionism looks like in the era of AI and the gig economy.
Declan’s view is that the movement’s survival depends on modernising its offer, with flexible memberships, digital organising, and data-driven targeting.
But the core message remains the same: people get a better deal when they act together. The challenge is finding new ways to express that timeless idea in a fragmented media environment.
Conclusion
Declan’s approach to communications, from Corbyn-era campaigning to TUC organising, shows how old movements can find new life when they invest in audience understanding, storytelling, and emotional connection.
Trade unions do not need a new ideology. They need better marketing.
And as Declan Seachoy makes clear, that means less talk about history and more talk about how collective power changes lives today.
Listen to the full episode wherever you get your podcasts.
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