Patsy Reilly
Patsy Reilly | |
|---|---|
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| Born | Patricia Reilly 25 December 1952 Eltykan, Daláyk islands |
| Occupation | Trade unionist |
| Known for | Secretary-General of the General Council of Workers' Unions and Associations (1988–2010) |
| Political party | National Party of the Republic |
Patricia Reilly (Gylic transcription: Patrişa Raili; born 25 December 1952), better known as Patsy Reilly (Gylic transcription: Paţi Raili), is a Gylian trade unionist who served as the Secretary-General of the General Council of Workers' Unions and Associations from 1988 to 2010.
The longest-serving and youngest-elected Secretary-General, she represented the moderate faction. Her tenure was marked by extensive institutional change, the restoration of close relations with the federal government, and the successful implementation of major reforms during a time of economic revitalisation, particularly in the fields of ecology, the digital revolution, and flexibilisation of work arrangements.
Known by several nicknames, including "Glitzy Patsy" for her flamboyant lifestyle and "Queen Patsy" for her power within the GCWUA, Patsy was described by The Republic as "the undisputed media star" of Gylian organised labour. She remains one of the most famous, renowned, and influential Gylian trade unionists.
Early life
Patricia Reilly was born on 25 December 1952 in Eltykan, at a time when the Daláyk islands were controlled by a Gylian constitutional monarchist faction supported by Ossoria. Her father was an Ossorian soldier, and her mother was a Gylian local.
Her surname in Ossorian would've been "Ní Raghaile", but her father chose to anglicise it for ease of pronunciation. She was thus named "Patricia Reilly" on her birth certificate.
Since her father spoke Ossorian but her mother didn't, her parents usually talked with each other in English. Patricia thus grew up speaking English as her first language, with a strong Ossorian accent gained from her father.
After the Liberation War, the family moved to Eyþer, the capital of Nerveiík-Iárus-Daláyk. Her parents worked various jobs, including elevator attendants, school bus drivers, and doorpeople. Patricia attended primary and secondary school in Eyþer. She graduated from Anca Déuréy University with a degree in labour law in 1973. While at university, she joined the National Party of the Republic.
She worked a variety of jobs after her graduation, and became active in local trade unions. By this time, she'd started going by the nickname "Patsy".
In 1985, she was elected president of her union, and gained a profile within the General Council of Workers' Unions and Associations.
General Council of Workers' Unions and Associations
Patsy accepted the militant turn of the GCWUA during the wretched decade, but felt that it was no longer justified after the Aén Ďanez government's ouster. She grew vocal in her criticisms of the radical Secretary-General Keie Seura. She accused Keie of taking a needlessly hostile posture towards the Filomena Pinheiro government and mishandling organised labour's participation in the Public Assembly, risking a public backlash.
She received the support of former moderate Secretary-General Ilaria Marchese, and began uniting the moderate faction behind her.
Election
Patsy helped introduce a motion of no confidence at the GCWUA's 1988 convention. The motion led to a bitter fight with Keie at the convention. Keie made personal attacks on Patsy's Ossorian ancestry, only two years after the Ossorian war crisis, and compared her to Róisín Ní Bradáin, accusing her of planning to destroy organised labour through salami slicing tactics. Patsy described the convention as "the most awful experience of my life", and recounted:
"I grit my teeth, swallowed hard, and kept quiet. Inside, I badly wanted to fight back, but outside I kept my composure, confident that people would be just as disgusted by this tirade of abuse as I was. It didn't make it any less horrible to sit there and take it."
Keie lost the motion of no confidence, although Patsy expressed disappointment that the margin wasn't larger. A supplementary election was held, which Patsy won comfortably, benefiting from a significant sympathy vote. She won additional internal elections in 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2005, becoming the longest-serving Secretary-General.
Leadership
Patsy had an unusual profile for an incoming Secretary-General. She was a conservative, and a member of the National Party of the Republic. Her public persona was glamorous and flamboyant, to a degree no previous Secretary-General had been. She capitalised on the broader desire to move past the wretched decade, jokingly promising a "Life of Riley" — an obvious pun on her surname.
Where her moderate mentor Ilaria had relied on painstaking coalition-building and behind-the-scenes strategy to gain respect, Patsy quickly set about consolidating her leadership through charismatic authority. She seized on public interest created by coverage of the rancorous convention to launch a media blitz, embarking on an schedule of media appearances, interviews, and public speeches. This was complemented by an extensive series of private lunches and conferences with political, civic, and economic figures.
Patsy's glamorous appearance, smooth-talking dynamism, and sound bites made her very popular with the public. She admitted that she had more talent as a "media performer" than an organiser, and hired a team of trusted assistants to handle administrative tasks.
Throughout her tenure, any major announcements or decisions were preceded by lengthy private consultations with the radical faction of the GCWUA, and Patsy said that at best she could hope for the radicals' "unenthusiastic tolerance". She was successful in forging sometimes precarious agreements with the radicals, in order to present the GCWUA as a united front to the public.
Political goals
Patsy acknowledged in interviews following her election that she was a conservative and member of the National Party of the Republic, and described her approach to politics as pragmatic. She was a practitioner of syncretic politics who drew on an eclectic array of influences, including Georgism, distributism, market anarchism, and aristerokratia.
She once quipped: "I will gladly help construct a socialist society, just as long as it's not called 'socialist'. We must prioritise the common good over ideology."
She sought allies across the political spectrum, and constructed a diverse coalition behind her in the GCWUA, one of whose major components was the "Róisínist" left.
Internal reforms
Patsy oversaw significant internal reforms of the GCWUA. Many member unions merged, which allowed for stronger representation and increased Patsy's power within the GCWUA. Internal procedures were reformed to streamline union democracy and improve coordination among local unions.
One of the divisions between the radical and moderate wings of the GCWUA was the precise balance between the organising model and the service model. The radicals pushed for greater emphasis on the organising model, and greater decentralisation of the GCWUA in line with anarcho-syndicalism. The moderates, led by Patsy, favoured the service model. Patsy felt that with union enrollment automatic upon beginning employment, and already well-established mechanisms of workers' self-management, the organising model made little sense for Gylias, and it made more sense for unions to focus on providing benefits and services to their members.
Due to her acceptance of the existing economic system and work to restore harmony in collective bargaining, radicals scornfully referred to Patsy's approach as "business unionism".
An era of transformation
Patsy presided over an era of transformation for the Gylian labour movement. The 1990s were a time of economic revitalisation and renewed national optimism. This proved favourable for her goal of restoring the moderation and self-restraint that had marked the GCWUA under Ilaria Marchese, and returning to a largely collaborative collective bargaining process.
She forged a close relationship with the Mathilde Vieira government, and positioned the GCWUA on the frontline of rejuvenating the Gylian consensus. It was particularly important for Patsy that the GCWUA be seen as a leader and partner in the renewal of the economy. As a result, she put herself in the forefront supporting the government's economic reforms, sometimes promoting them more vigorously than the government itself, to impress on the public the influence and importance of organised labour.
Patsy won several major victories and oversaw the successful implementation of major reforms. In line with the government's new ecological concerns, the fishing industry was shut down and replaced by controlled aquaculture, while coal mining and natural gas extraction were shut down and their workers were given priority in retraining programs and job placements, as well as generous early retirement provisions. She worked closely with resource minister Aishwarya Devi on the difficult policy of reducing consumption for sustainability purposes, and encouraging collaborative consumption.
The digital revolution and popularisation of the internet in Gylias also enabled significant victories for the GCWUA in strengthening flexible work arrangements, which created new Gylian practices for the digital era. Remote work became the norm in most industries, legal working time was reduced to 6 hours per day and 4 days per week, and the right to disconnect was added into the Law on Industrial Organisation of 1958. The GCWUA was a pivotal partner in shaping the government's active labour market policies, and won several concessions such as greater responsibility for distributing unemployment assistance.
Patsy attended the Decleyre Summit as a representative of organised labour, and was a powerful supporter of the Social Partnership Program. She campaigned vigorously for it and successfully used her influence to keep the GCWUA on board with the program. She hailed the SPP as a landmark in strengthening and formalising the conscription of wealth. She said that, in a context where Gylian workers already controlled their workplaces as cooperatives,
"…our goal is to reward the well-behaved and punish the misbehavers. If someone has served society with honesty, treated others with fairness, and behaved virtuously at all times, we don't begrudge them their rewards as long as they don't deprive others. If they haven't... may Midir have mercy on them, because the people won't."
Patsy's tenure completed a process of "georgette-ification of the workforce" that had begun under Ilaria Marchese. Her support of shutting down and transforming environmentally damaging industries such as fishing and mining reinforced the predominance of services, and thus the predominance of white-collar workers and pink-collar workers. The process of "coalescing labour and business" had several manifestations, including the emergence of business chic, the petite bourgeoisie-fication of the Gylian workforce, and growth of high-technology industries such as computers, ICT, and biotechnology.
Public image
Patsy maintained a high profile as Secretary-General, regularly appearing in the media. Described by The Republic as "the undisputed media star" of Gylian organised labour, she became Gylias' most famous trade unionist. Her consistent media appearances made her a household name and a public presence, the most well-known Secretary-General since Ilaria.
She was known for wearing Kaede Nakano skirt suits, which gave her a glamorous image and reflected her commitment to "georgette-ification of the workforce".
Patsy famously led a bonne vivante lifestyle, usually funded by gifts from rich Gylians such as Susan Shelley, Molly Hawkins, and Sári Gábor. She lived in a penthouse apartment with a swimming pool, drove a Ferrari Testarossa gifted to her by Susan, and regularly traveled for free on Susan's private jet. She also amassed a large collection of clothes donated to her by Kaede Nakano.
She acquired various colourful sobriquets during her career. These included "Glitzy Patsy" for her flamboyant lifestyle, "Queen Patsy" for her power within the GCWUA, and "Cocktail Patsy" for her habit of privately lunching with renowned Gylians.
Later life
Patsy announced she would not run for re-election in 2010, and stepped down as Secretary-General, succeeded by the radical-supported Sisar Pauţas.
She maintains a lower profile in retirement, concentrating on her family. She still occasionally gives interviews and makes appearances, or publishes articles.
Her autobiography was published in 2020.
Private life
She is married with two children.
She is mainly a practitioner of Ossorian Págánacht.
Legacy
Patsy is considered one of Gylias' most powerful, famous, and influential trade unionists. She was a key partner in the successful transformation of the Gylian economy since the 1990s, particularly the shift towards ecological sustainability, collaborative consumption, and harnessing the digital revolution.
She is also credited with completing the process of "georgette-ification of the workforce", and inaugurating an era of "coalescing labour and business" that left a significant mark on Gylian society, popular culture, and economy.