Career
He was Head of Communications (2010–2011) at Education International, the global union for 30 million education professionals and his appointment between 2006-2009 as the United Kingdom's National Officer for Race Equality at UNISON, Britain's largest public sector workers' union. Pav has additionally worked as a member of the central London division of the Employment Tribunals Service hearing cases of workplace dispute and he has served as an LGB rights advisor to the former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone.
In 2006 Akhtar sought election as President of the National Union of Students running against Gemma Tumelty as an independent candidate. Akhtar was the first Muslim to run for this position, but was defeated, by 27 votes. Akhtar's campaign did not receive the support of the nationally controlled 'Federation of Student Islamic Societies'. Allegedly, this was because of his record as a defender of lesbian and gay human rights After The Guardian newspaper reported that Akhtar is gay, some users of the Muslim Public Affairs Committee forum voiced contempt towards him. Akhtar told PinkNews, “both Islamophobia and homophobia played a part in the election campaign.”
Prior to these events, Akhtar was elected to serve the maximum of two terms (2004–2006) as the NUS' National Black Students' Officer and Anti-Racism Convenor. He simultaneously served the Labour Campaign for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights when elected to the party's national LGBT executive. During this period he ran a number of campaigns to improve representation and equality and he published the NUS Black Students' Handbook.
Among his other roles, Akhtar has worked as a journalist for the Daily Telegraph newspaper; as a development advisor to the UN and UK Government Department for International Development, as well as a civil servant within the Department for Education.
Read more about this topic: Pav Akhtar
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