In an era when populism erodes democratic norms and insecurity pervades the modern workplace, the defence of liberal democracy must extend beyond parliaments and ballot boxes. It must reach the factory floor, the classroom, and the hospital wards. The right to organise, to be treated fairly, and to have a voice at work are not socialist luxuries. They are the foundations of a free society, and the current situation demands our immediate attention and action.

More than twenty years ago, Charles Kennedy understood this. In 2002, addressing the Trades Union Congress in Blackpool, he declared:

We Liberal Democrats believe in dialogue. We believe in cooperation with both sides of industry and between both sides of industry. And we believe in the language of cooperation. We reject the language of confrontation.

It was a moment of quiet courage; a Liberal Democrat leader standing before a movement that had long looked elsewhere for political allies, and saying that liberalism and organised labour could, and should, speak the same moral language, rooted in our shared history and values.

Kennedy’s message was simple. Trade unions are healthy for society. The market, though a powerful force of prosperity, requires a balance between worker voice and public accountability. He warned against the creeping belief, imported from across the Atlantic, that “the private sector is always better”. That warning rings louder today than ever, and it is a lesson our friends across the pond are slowly learning, as evidenced by Zohran Mamdani’s recent victory in the New York mayoral election.

Two decades later, Britain finds itself at another crossroads. Labour’s Working Rights Bill seeks to ban exploitative zero-hour contracts, end fire-and-rehire practices, expand day-one employment rights and strengthen collective bargaining. The aims are noble: fair pay, stable work and dignity for all. Yet while Labour presses ahead, the Liberal Democrats risk looking like bystanders in the debate that should define us.

When the Bill reached the House of Lords, our peers voted with Conservative peers against several amendments, including those that widened collective bargaining and tightened restrictions on employer out-puts. Their arguments were not malicious; concerns about proportionality, consultation and the impact on small businesses are legitimate. But politics is not judged only by the text of amendments; it is considered by the moral signal it sends. In voting down measures, however imperfectly aimed at protecting workers, we risked appearing detached from the struggle for fairness that should be our natural home.

This moment should have been an opportunity to stand where Kennedy stood in 2002: alongside workers, not above them. The fight for workplace democracy is not a Labour monopoly, but a liberal necessity. Liberal democracy itself depends on the balance between individual freedom and the collective society that underpins it. When one side of that scale is ignored, both the economy and the polity begin to wobble.

History reminds us that our party’s roots are not hostile to organised labour. The earliest trade unionists were Liberals. It was a Liberal government that introduced old-age pensions and laid the groundwork for welfare reform. William Beveridge, whose ideas shaped the post-war settlement, was a Liberal himself. For Charles Kennedy, the inheritance was clear: the relationship between liberalism and labour was not transactional but philosophical.

Re-engaging with trade unions does not mean surrendering independence or adopting every policy they propose. It means recognising that unions are part of the democratic fabric of Britain. In the modern era of gig work, the old caricature of the union as a relic has crumbled. So often, trade unions are as likely to represent a care worker or delivery driver as a steelworker. If liberalism stands for empowering people in every aspect of life, then the workplace must be part of that vision.

To make this vision a reality, the Liberal Democrats must establish regular dialogue with trade unions at national and regional levels. A standing forum between our parliamentary team and union representatives could identify areas of common ground, such as fair pay, dignity at work, flexible working arrangements, and gender equality.

We must also develop a Liberal Democrat Workplace Democracy Charter. This charter will establish a distinctly liberal framework for modern work, protecting the right to organise, ensuring transparency in corporate governance, expanding worker consultation, and making fair work clauses a condition of public contracts. The charter will not compete with Labour’s programme, but instead offer a liberal route to the same goal, enhancing the diversity of approaches and fostering healthy competition in the pursuit of workplace rights.

None of this means uncritical alignment with Labour. There are areas where we will differ: centralisation, bureaucracy, and a proper balance between flexibility and protection. However, these differences should not lead to disengagement. The Liberal Democrats have a unique role to play in shaping the debate on workplace rights, offering a distinct liberal perspective that enriches the discourse. If we confine ourselves to commentary while others lead the fight for workplace rights, we risk irrelevance. We must be active participants, not passive observers.

Charles Kennedy once said that you would never catch Liberal Democrats calling trade unionists “wreckers”. He was right. The real wreckage would come from ignoring trade unions altogether.

The Working Rights Bill reminds us that the debate over work is also a debate over who we are as a society. We can choose to be spectators, or we can choose to re-enter the conversation that Charles Kennedy began in Blackpool, back in 2002.

It is time for the Liberal Democrats to speak again, as Kennedy did, for cooperation over confrontation, and for workers to be treated as full citizens of a free and decent Britain.

* Jack Meredith is a member of the Welsh Liberal Democrats and an active campaigner and canvasser with Swansea and Gower Liberal Democrats. His writing focuses on democratic reform, social justice, trade unionism, economic democracy, and the institutional foundations of effective government. He has written for the Fabians, Lib Dem Voice, Liberator, Nation Cymru, Bylines Cymru, and Centre Think Tank.