Zack Polanski, leader of the Green Party. (Image: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
A Unite the Union audit of workplace culture within the Green Party has warned that staff pay is “considerably below market rates” and raised concerns about HR and operations capacity, in details published on 10 June 2026.
The Unite workplace culture report covered October 2025 to June 2026 and said “salaries remain considerably below market rates for comparable roles in the campaigning and political sectors”.
It also criticised a “continued lack of sufficient HR, operations and change-management capacity”, describing it as a “structural problem”. Unite warned the capacity gap “delays work, weakens employment processes, leaves managers without enough support, and creates legal risk where consultation, documentation, or consistency of process is inadequate.”
Unite’s audit included a survey of party staff members. The union’s research found 47% of Green Party staff were struggling financially and 46% believed they were underpaid. It also found 30% were unsure whether they wanted to stay in their job, while 14% intended to leave.
A Green Party spokesperson said: “The Green Party is committed to high levels of staff welfare and to constantly improving working conditions. The uptick in our income on the back of massively increased membership is enabling the party to address many of the resourcing issues identified in the Unite report. The Green Party believes in working together with all staff to build on its recent success and a culture where everyone is happy and motivated.”
Polling and the ‘workers’ party’ row
The Unite findings surfaced amid increasingly fragmented views on which political party best represents working people.
YouGov polling published on 10 June put Reform on 16% and Labour on 15% when Britons were asked who best represents working people. The Greens were on 9%, the Conservatives on 7% and the Liberal Democrats on 5%.
Greens, unions and public profile
The Green Party of England and Wales has seen a significant rise in prominence in recent years, especially following recent local government gains and increasing visibility in Westminster politics, including Zack Polanski’s media profile and comments about being “othered”.
Polanski appeared in the news earlier this week, as he addressed the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, criticising supermarkets for selling low-cost vegetables.