NSSN 419: Happy New Year – get the Tories out in 2019!

The NSSN sends solidarity greetings to our supporters and affiliates as we enter 2019. Let’s make this the year that we get rid of this Tory Government.

Saturday 12th January – Britain is Broken – General Election Now! Demonstration in London hosted by The People’s Assembly against Austerity Facebook event

NSSN and 'Poetry on the Picket Line' on IWGB demo
NSSN and ‘Poetry on the Picket Line’ on IWGB demo

 

NSSN news

Get your trade union branch or trades council to affiliate to the NSSN – it only costs £50. Already affiliated? Please think about renewing it. Also, many of our supporters pay a few pounds a month. You can set up a similar standing order to ‘National Shop Stewards Network’, HSBC – sort code 40-06-41, account number 90143790. Our address is NSSN, PO Box 54498, London E10 9DE

Date for your diaries: 2019 NSSN Conference – 11am-4.30pm Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL – Saturday July 6th

Download the ‘Join the NSSN’ leaflet here

And if you can, come to one of our regional Conferences. If there is not one in your area, get in touch to either assist in organising or have a speaker at one of your meetings or events. Contact Rob or Linda on [email protected]

Follow us on twitter via @NSSN_AntiCuts and Facebook

 

 

 

Union News

RMT

RMT renews nationalisation call as new research finds Scottish Government’s decision to delay public ownership will cost passengers the equivalent of an 11% fare cut (3 Jan) – As Scotrail passengers face another New Year’s Fare hike, new research by RMT has found that the decision by the Scottish Government to delay returning the Scotrail Franchise to public ownership by three years will cost £37million, the equivalent of an 11% fare cut read more

Support RMT Northern and South Western Railway‎ strikes – RMT members on Northern Rail and South Western Railway‎ have been taking strike action over the threat Driver Only Operation. Sign the Parliamentary petition to make it a legal requirement to have a second safety critical person on trains

southern-rail-oct18

All RMT Arriva Rail North Conductor, Conductor Instructor and Train Driver members had already been instructed to take action as follows, not to book on for on for duty between:

  • 00:01 Hours and 23.59 Hours on Saturday 5th January 2019
  • 00:01 Hours and 23.59 Hours on Saturday 12th January 2019
  • 00:01 Hours and 23.59 Hours on Saturday 19th January 2019
  • 00:01 Hours and 23.59 Hours on Saturday 26th January 2019 read more

National dispute fund (DOO disputes) – If you would like to donate to the RMT National Dispute Fund which makes payments to support their striking members taking part in National DOO disputes then you can donate via PayPal using the donate button below or make a cheque payable to RMT National Dispute Fund and send it to the address below. Alternatively, you can ring their Freephone helpline on 0800 376 3706 who will be happy to process a credit card payment for you, or, if you would like to pay via internet banking, please email [email protected] for further details. Vicky Thompson, Finance Manager RMT, 39 Chalton Street, London NW1 1JD. Tel: 020-7529-8843 read more

Rail workers in Edinburgh striking today for workplace dignity and justice (24 Dec) – RMT  Rail Gourmet members based at the Edinburgh Depot are taking  strike action today – Monday 24th December – in a fight for workplace justice following a comprehensive breakdown in industrial relations. The staff work on the inter-city LNER contract read more

RMT suspends Boxing Day strike action on Bakerloo Line after significant progress in negotiations (20 Dec) – Other action still remains on and all CSA, CSS and CSM members in Charing Cross, Elephant & Castle, Oxford Circus and Piccadilly Circus Areas are instructed to take strike action by not booking on for any shifts that commence between:

  • 22:29 hours on Sunday 13th January and 22:29 hours on Monday 14th January 2019 read more

 

ASLEF

Strike action at Barking depots – ASLEF members employed by London Underground at Barking District Line depot and Barking Hammersmith & City Line depot have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action after the company’s failure to address the abrogation of agreements. 85% of members voted for action on a turnout of 67%. Action will take place between 0001 and 2359 on Thursday 10th January and then 0001 and 2359 on Wednesday 23rd January read more

 

Unison

Support the Glasgow Equal Pay strikers – More than 8,000 union members – overwhelmingly low paid women – took strike action this November, with 10,000 marching to a rally outside the city hall on the first day of the strike read more

Strike fund donations to:

UNITY Trust

Sort code 60 83 01 A/c Number 20275789

Drew Rigden Treasurer UNISON Glasgow City Branch

84 Bell Street, Glasgow, G1 1LQTel: 0141-552-7069

read more from Glasgow City Unison Facebook page

Support the striking Birmingham homecare workers – Please send messages of support and donations to Unison Birmingham branch, 46 The Priory Queensway Birmingham  B4 7LR. Email [email protected]    Facebook group – https://www.facebook.com/birminghamunison/

 

Unite

Unite brands Birmingham bin strike report a ‘waste of money’ (21 Dec) – Britain and Ireland’s largest union, Unite branded a review for Birmingham city council of its handling of 2017’s bin dispute a ‘waste of taxpayers’ money’ that was being used to ‘cover the backs’ of unelected council officials. Responding to the review by the law firm VMV, Unite assistant general secretary Howard Beckett said: “The only independent review that mattered was the High Court action Unite was forced to take when the officers of the council issued the workforce with 30 days redundancy notice. “The council, of course, lost the interim hearing, Unite successfully preserved the jobs of those who had been issued with redundancy notices and the behaviour of the officers was openly criticised by the High Court judge. “The people of Birmingham will be shocked that money is being spent on reports that, once again, try to persuade people that it should be unelected officers who run Birmingham city council and not the elected representatives read more   Birmingham refuse workers to take industrial action in ‘blacklisting payments’ row

Richard Beddows Unite Birmingham bins convenor speaking at NSSN TUC Rally with chair PCS President Janice Godrich
Richard Beddows Unite Birmingham bins convenor speaking at 2017 NSSN TUC Rally

650 Durham bus drivers to strike for a week in January, after rejecting pay offer (20 Dec) – About 650 bus drivers in the north east will strike for a week from 6 January after they rejected a revised pay offer by a large majority, Unite, Britain and Ireland’s largest union, announced today (Thursday 20 December). The drivers, based at Darlington, Durham, Redcar, Stockton and Whitby, voted by 72 per cent to 28 per cent to reject the pay offer that was made last weekend when a week’s strike due to have started on 16 December was suspended. Following today’s rejection, the strike will now start at 00.01 on Sunday 6 January and end at 23.59 on Saturday 12 January read more

Cleaners strike at Luton Airport will go ahead over Christmas (20 Dec) – The week-long strike by workers at Luton Airport employed by Sasse will get underway from 6:30am Friday 21 December until Friday 28 December 6:29am. Unite regional officer, Jeff Hodge said: “Cleaners at Luton have been forced to take strike action over Christmas because Luton Airport and Sasse refuse to pay workers a wage that they can live on” read more

 

PCS & United Voices of the World

Joint Jan 22 MoJ & BEIS outsourced workers strike – On 22nd January 2019 receptionists, security guards and cleaners at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), represented by United Voices of the World (UVW), and support staff at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), represented by Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, will walk out together on strike demanding the London Living Wage of £10.55 per hour, plus parity of sick pay and annual leave allowance with civil servants. Workers at the MoJ will also strike for a second day on 23rd January 2019. This will be the first co-ordinated strike between a TUC and a non-TUC union and the first coordinated strike between outsourced workers in government departments Facebook event

Please donate to the PCS and UVW strike funds

 

PCS

PCS strikes at Historic Royal Palaces suspended to allow for talks (27 Dec) – Strikes by PCS over proposed changes to staff pensions at Historic Royal Palaces tomorrow (28 December) and 2 January have been suspended. The planned 3-hour walkouts have been suspended due to negotiations being opened between the trade union side and the independent charity. We would like to thank everyone for their support so far, including during our walkouts last week read more

 

GMB

GMB Score THIRD Court Win Against Uber (Dec 19) – fresh blow to gig economy as gmb union celebrate court of appeal Uber ruling. GMB Union celebrates ‘early Christmas present’ as Court upholds ruling that Uber drivers entitled to employment rights. GMB, the union for professional drivers, hailed a ‘hat trick’ of legal wins for Uber drivers after the Court of Appeal upheld a ruling that they should be classified as workers read more

 

IWGB

IWGB defeats Uber at the Court of Appeal (19 Dec) – The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) has defeated Uber at the Court of Appeal, in a landmark decision over the employment rights of its drivers. The Court of Appeal today upheld the previous decisions by the Employment Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal, which ruled that Uber had unlawfully classified Uber drivers as independent contractors rather than workers, denying them basic rights such as a guaranteed minimum wage and holiday pay. The IWGB is backing the two lead claimants Yaseen Aslam and James Farrar on the case. They are being represented by solicitors Paul Jennings and Rachel Mathieson from Bates Wells Braithwaite, and barristers Jason Galbraith-Marten QC and Sheryn Omeri. GMB is backing additional claimants, represented by solicitors from Leigh Day and barrister Tom Linden QC read more

 

CWU

70.3% endorse Christmas Eve agreement (Dec 21) – Crown office members of the CWU have voted in agreement to resolve the Christmas Eve trade dispute. Following an Acas-brokered agreement with the Post Office, union members voted 70.3% for and 29.7% against on a 51.3% turnout read more

 

FBU

Fire incidents on the rise as firefighter numbers are drastically cut, says Fire Brigades Union (2 Jan) – Firefighters are expected to do more with less, putting public safety at risk, says Fire Brigades Union. In response to a question from Shadow Fire Minister Karen Lee, the Minister (Nick Hurd) stated that attendance at fire incidents is decreasing, yet Home Office figures reveal that fire incidents in England increased by 3% in the last year to just under 170,000 – the highest level since 2013-14 read more

Firefighters win major pension legal case against government (20 Dec) – the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has won a landmark ruling in its dispute with the government over changes made to firefighters’ pensions in 2015. The long and bitter industrial dispute, which included strike action, means that firefighters on the new scheme will have to be put back on the previous pension scheme read more

 

NEU, NAHT and ASCL

Teaching unions start indicative ballot on pay and funding: ‘Hands up because enough is enough!’ – Following the Government’s failure to address the school and college funding crisis in the recent Budget, the National Education Union (NEU), along with NAHT and ASCL, are taking the unprecedented step of simultaneously consulting with their respective members on what steps to take next read more

 

EIS

College Lecturers Back Strike Action Over Pay – College lecturers have voted overwhelmingly to strike over pay, in a ballot organised by EIS-FELA. The move to strike action follows on from protracted discussions on a pay offer, and comes as a result of the failure of college management to offer a fair cost of living pay increase to Further Education lecturers. Turnout in the ballot was 52%, with 90% of those voting backing the move to strike action. Both the turnout and the vote in favour of strike action are well above the highly restrictive thresholds set by the UK Government in its anti-trade union legislation, the Trade Union Act, which came into force last year read more

 

UCU

New year strike threat at 16 English colleges in row over pay (19 Dec) – Sixteen colleges in England face strike action in the new year in an ongoing row over pay. UCU members at ten colleges have voted for industrial action and can join colleagues at six colleges who took action in November in the next wave of strikes. Overall, 89% of UCU members backed strike action. However, only members in ten colleges will be able to join the action because anti-trade union laws require a turnout of 50% for the ballot to stand read more

 

BECTU

Read the latest about the Picturehouse dispute on Brixton Ritzy Facebook Page and those of Hackney, Crouch End, Central, Dulwich East and Duke of York Brighton

Donate to the Picturehouse Cinema strike fund: https://www.crowdpac.co.uk/campaigns/250/picturehousestrike

 

NUJ

NUJ newspaper journalists on strike in Cumbria (20 Dec) – As NUJ members walked out on strike today, Thursday 20 December, they have received remarkable cross-party political support and a loud and public appreciation of their work and local quality journalism in Cumbria. Pickets started just after 7am in Workington and Carlisle today, and NUJ organiser Andy Smith was interviewed live on Sky News TV. The newspapers affected by the strike are the Carlisle News and Star, the Cumberland News, the Workington Times and Star and the Whitehaven News read more

 

Mandate (Ireland)

WE WON: Mandate’s General Secretary explains the new secure hour contract legislation won by members (21 Dec) – Mandate’s General Secretary John Douglas explains the new secure hour contract legislation entitled the ‘Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2017’. He explains where the Bill came from; what benefits workers will obtain from it; how they can enforce their entitlements; and what workers should do next, starting with joining their trade union read more

Tesco Carrick-on-Shannon workers to join Sligo workers on strike this weekend as dispute escalates (20 Dec) – Mandate Trade Union members in Tesco Carrick-on-Shannon will be joining their Tesco Sligo colleagues on strike this week as the company continues their refusal to abide by collective agreements. The Sligo workers have already been on strike for two days (Thursday 6th & Friday, 14th December) and will continue their dispute tomorrow tomorrow, Friday, 21st December. On Saturday (22nd December), the Carrick-on-Shannon store will join the Sligo strikers and will participate in their first full day of industrial action read more

 

IWW

Mass Sackings at Deliveroo – What can I do about it? (22 Dec) – During the week leading up to Christmas 2018 Deliveroo took it upon themselves to sack (or ‘terminate’ in RooSpeak) hundreds of couriers, sending out identical emails alleging fraud on the part of the sacked couriers. No notice was given, and no opportunity for appeal. When challenged to give specific evidence of these fraud allegations Deliveroo has so far flat out refused. We can only speculate on why Deliveroo would choose to make such an audacious attack on their workforce, so close to Christmas. Perhaps it was a cynical ploy to increase staff turnover, weakening our collective power, or perhaps a bug in their terminator algorithm caused some overzealous culling read more

 

United Voices of the World

Cleaners win pay rise to £9 per hour at the Ministry of Justice! (13 Dec) – After months of fighting, strikes and mass unionising of all outsourced staff at the MoJ, they are finally starting to crack! It has been confirmed today by the MoJ’s contractor OCS, that as of January 2019 cleaners will be paid £9 per hour, £1.13 more than the minimum wage which they are currently earning, and the same rate as their colleagues, the security guards. UVW welcomes this news, but given it falls well short of the London Living Wage, which is currently £10.55 per hour, the cleaners have not been deterred in their fight and will return to strike in the new year, alongside their colleagues the security guards and the receptionists…BREAKING NEWS: Ministry of Justice receptionists, security guards and cleaners have just voted to kick off 2019 with a 48 hour strike between 21-23 January over the MoJ’s continued refusal to pay them the London Living Wage or provide them with equality of T&Cs with civil servants.

Please donate to our strike fund www.uvwunion.org.uk/current-campaigns read more

 

 

Other news

Solidarity with the People of Turkey (SPOT) 2019 annual conference ‘Turkey: Fighting for democracy under authoritarian rule’ – Saturday, 9 February 2019 from 11:00-17:00 at National Education Union, Mabledon Place, Hamilton House, WC1H 9BD London Facebook event

 

 

Blacklisting & Victimisation

Blacklist Support Group financial appeal: the Blacklist support group is desperately short of funds, to continue the incredible work we need more finance, would you please consider making a donation, raise it at your branches and trade councils. Please make cheques payable to Joint sites committee and send to 70 Darnay Rise Chelmsford Essex CM1 4XA. Please forward onto your contacts many thanks Steve Kelly (JSC Treasurer)

Blacklisted t-shirts available at: https://shop.hopenothate.org.uk/component/hikashop/product/78-blacklisted-t-shirt

Book: http://newint.org/books/politics/blacklisted-secret-war/

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNcgrNs6pB8

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/blacklistSG/

Blog: www.hazards.org/blacklistblog

 

 

 

International

 

USA: ‘We are not robots’: Amazon warehouse employees push to unionize read more in the Guardian

Workers’ anger growing against right wing Dutch government read more

 

 

Diary

 

2019

July

6 NSSN Conference Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL

 

CONTACT US

PHONE 07952 283 558

EMAIL mailto:[email protected]

 

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ADDRESS NSSN, PO Box 54498, London E10 9DE