We headline this week’s NSSN bulletin with two fantastic union victories. The NSSN sends solidarity to both Unite and the GMB.
From Unite website: Unite victory with win of 16.2% pay rise at National Express West Midlands (25 Mar) – Strikes by over 3,100 drivers end after vote to accept improved pay offer.
West Midlands bus strikes have ended after a ballot of more 3,100 National Express drivers resulted in an improved offer being accepted, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today (Saturday).
The offer includes a one-year 16.2 per cent pay increase and improvements to the drivers’ accident pay and hourly rates for working over the Christmas holidays.
National Express has also guaranteed to implement new terms and conditions that were agreed with Unite in November last year, a key sticking point in the dispute.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This is an important win for Unite members. By standing together our members at National Express secured an above inflation pay offer. Unite will leave no stone unturned to defend workers’ pay. This is yet another example of how Unite’s relentless focus on improving jobs, pay and conditions results in real ‘money in the pockets’ of our members.”
More than 200 National Express engineers voted last week to accept a separate pay deal. Unite also ensured that around 250 admin staff will also benefit from this deal.
Unite lead national officer Onay Kasab said: “We congratulate every one of our members for making this stand and winning. Unite will continue to work, through our Bus Combine, to win double digit pay increases for our members.”
From GMB website: Case against ‘GMB Three’ collapses (24 Mar) – A case against three GMB officers accused of wilful obstruction of the highway has collapsed this morning [Friday]. The ‘GMB Three’ were found not guilty following their arrest in May 2022 during a lawful industrial dispute with Biffa in Wealden. The crown put forward no evidence at Brighton Law Courts.
Gary Palmer, GMB Officer and one of the ‘GMB Three’, said: “This was always a political case about the rights of people during a cost of living crisis to win enough money to look after their families. Our members were taking part in lawful industrial action to win a decent pay rise. This was an attempt by the company and the police to restrict the right to protest. Today’s case shows exactly why people who want fight for better pay and conditions at work should join GMB”
Support the CWU and the postal workers – renationalise Royal Mail
There are reports in the media about senior Royal Mail management considering putting the company into administration. This would have catastrophic effects for the 150,000 workers and working-class communities. The CWU and its members have been waging a heroic 11-month fight against management’s offensive. The NSSN sends solidarity to the CWU, the postal workers and Royal Mail staff and we support the CWU’s policy of calling for the re-nationalisation of the company. We will update this bulletin on any developments
This year’s NSSN Conference will be on Saturday 24th June in Conway Hall, London 11am-4.30pm
Sign the TUC petition to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak: Protect the right to strike! – Our right to strike is under attack. Rishi Sunak has just detailed his anti-union legislation and plans to introduce new laws in the coming weeks. It means that when workers democratically vote to strike, they could be forced to work and sacked if they don’t. That’s wrong, unworkable, and almost certainly illegal. These new laws are a direct attack on working people’s fundamental right to strike to defend their pay, terms and conditions
Enough is Enough launches campaign and petition to Defend the #RightToStrike – The right to strike is under threat. New legislation proposed by the Tory government intends to override a workers’ right to withdraw their labour, forcing them to work against their will. The right to strike is a fundamental democratic right. It underpins our ability to win dignity in the workplace and earn a decent standard of living. It is no accident that this right is under attack at the very moment the public is fighting back against the cost-of-living squeeze. This government is determined to force workers to pay the price for a crisis caused by the greed of the elite yet again. We won’t accept it. We, the undersigned, pledge to defend the right to strike and oppose this latest legislation #RightToStrike
Sign your workplace up to save the right to strike (supported by Strike Map, ASLEF – The UK Train Drivers’ Union, Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union – BFAWU, Campaign for Trade Union Freedom, Fire Brigades Union, The Morning Star, NHS Workers Say NO, People’s Assembly and the NSSN) – The government has launched an attack on our rights. Their actions will destroy our fundamental right to strike. We want to encourage workers, union reps and branch officers to sign their workplace up to reject these changes and pledge to fight to protect our right to strike. Add your workplace name to our collective letter action and share it with every one of your co-workers. When we fight as a collective together we win!
Earthquake in Turkey & Syria – union donations
The NSSN sends our solidarity to all those affected by this disaster. Many will have relatives in this country. The NSSN is affiliated to ‘Support the People of Turkey’ who has launched an appeal, including for union branches and trades councils Turkey-Syria Earthquake Solidarity Appeal
Turkey Earthquake: A preliminary report from the ground
FBU makes £10,000 donation to Syria and Turkey earthquake appeal (23 Mar)
Unison: Turkey earthquake solidarity appeal
NUJ: IFJ launches solidarity call to support journalists in Turkey and Syria
NSSN news
This year’s NSSN Conference will be on Saturday 24th June in Conway Hall, London 11am-4.30pm
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. Feel free to use this affiliation letter.
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 Katrine on [email protected]
The NSSN is developing a campaign pack for social care, which we hope to make available in the not-too-distant future for supporters to use in their localities. As part of this, communications officer Dave Gorton is keen to hear from supporters who:
(1) work in social care (either local authority, private or independently provided)
(2) represent social care workers for a trade union
(3) are in need of social care provision themselves or act as an (unpaid/underpaid) carer for a family member
Dave can be contacted in the first instance via [email protected]
Union News
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RMT
RMT launch Railway Work Life and Death project (27 Mar) – RMT today launched a joint health and safety data initiative with the University of Portsmouth, the National Railway Museum (NRM) and the Modern Records Centre at the University of Warwick (MRC). The data provides a fascinating insight into the past health and safety experiences of RMT members, including risk posed by their jobs and any accidents they were involved in read more
RMT slams government for the ‘managed decline of railways (27 Mar) – RMT marked the 60th anniversary today of the publication of Dr Beeching’s disastrous report ‘The Reshaping of British Railways’ by slamming the continued “managed decline” of our railways under an unsustainable and failing privatised model. The report published on March 27 1963 led to the decimation of the UK’s railway network with hundreds of stations and railway lines closed. RMT points out that railway service levels continue to be significantly below pre-Covid levels despite the Rail Industry Association recently highlighting that national rail passenger numbers have reached over 100 per cent of pre-Covid levels for the first time since March 2020 read more
Freeports must not lead to deregulation and attacks on workers’ rights (23 Mar) – Maritime union, RMT has warned that new Freeports must not lead to attacks on working conditions and super exploitation of seafarers in Holyhead, Milford Haven and Port Talbot. The union was reacting to news that two sites in Wales will be gain Freeport status meaning there will be special exemption from tax rates, customs rules and other regulations. Business leaders and the government claim the move will lead to job creation and increased economic activity. But RMT has warned that this must not lead to the exploitation of cheap labour, deregulation and a reduction in safety standards read more
RMT criticises Scottish government for CalMac ferries fiasco (23 Mar) – Ferries union, RMT has criticised the Scottish government for failures in delivering two new CalMac vessels for the Clyde and Hebrides contract. According to the Public Audit Committee report, there has been a profound failure at ministerial and government level in procuring two new ferries to replace ageing ships on CalMac’s lifeline Clyde and Hebrides services. Vessels 801 and 802 remain undelivered nearly eight years after the contract was awarded and are now expected to cost over three times more than orignally budgeted read more
RMT accuse Scottish Government of ‘P&O by the backdoor’ (22 Mar) – Maritime union, RMT accused the Scottish Government of conducting a P&O by the back door in time chartering a catamaran from anti-trade union employer Pentland Ferries to increase resilience on the embattled Clyde and Hebrides network read more
RMT suspends national rail strikes on March 30 and April 1 (22 Mar) – Following further talks between RMT and the Rail Delivery Group today, a proposal was tabled by the RDG which could lead to a resolution to resolve the current national rail dispute through a new offer. The NEC has therefore suspended strike action scheduled for March 30 and April 1. RMT will have further talks with the RDG with a view to securing a new offer on pay, job security and working conditions. The dispute remains on and the union will continue to make preparations for a re-ballot when the current mandates runs out in mid-May read more
Balfour Beatty engineers take strike action after profits boast (17 Mar) – RMT members working in engineering for Balfour Beatty will take strike action tonight in a row over pay. It will be the third 36-hour stoppage after members rejected the company’s 5.5% pay offer from April 2022. Balfour Beatty has just released its latest financial information from last year which shows huge profits and dividends for shareholders…Strike action will begin at 10pm on 17 March and end 9.59am Sunday 19 March read more
Tube strike shuts London Underground (15 Mar) – Over 10,000 RMT members have today shut London Underground in a strike over pensions, job cuts and attacks on working conditions. The job losses planned will affect every aspect of the tube including stations and maintenance, leading to the likelihood of more unstaffed stations and a lowering of safety standards. Workers from across London Underground set up picket lines across most major tube stations, ensuring that London Underground was completely shutdown. RMT joins several unions taking strike action today across the economy on a variety of industrial matters, including better pay, good working conditions and job security. The union wrote to London Mayor Sadiq Khan yesterday outlining how job cuts must be halted and that safety of the travelling public was foremost in tube workers minds read more
ISS workers to take strike action on DLR (23 Feb) – Contracted out staff working for ISS on the Docklands Light Railway will take 48 hours strike action from Friday. Cleaners, security, revenue protection and travel safe staff will walk out after rejecting an insulting pay offer of 1.8%. RMT which represents the workers have highlighted the fact ISS staff on the DLR are underpaid compared to others on TfL performing equivalent roles. On top of poor pay, ISS staff have so far not been told whether they will get access to the free travel facility. This is despite the fact London Mayor Sadiq Khan having already promised all contracted out staff would get free travel across TfL read more
Action called over Jubilee East, South and Centre Cover Group rosters (16 Feb) – defend jobs, pensions and agreements – London Underground – overtime and rest day working ban called. A resolution has been received from your RMT Jubilee South Branch, regarding the imposition of new rosters. The Company has taken no notice of your Reps advice that these rosters are unworkable, and members wish to fight back against the detrimental effect these cuts will have, including on your work/life balance. The National Executive Committee has thanked the Branch for its resolution and taken the decision to instruct:
All Station Grades members (Customer Service Assistants, Customer Service Supervisors, Customer Service Managers) on the Jubilee Centre, East and South Cover Groups (Canada Water Area, Westminster Area, Canary Wharf Area, Stratford Area, West Ham Area, London Bridge Area and Waterloo Area) not to work any overtime or rest day working from 00:01 hours on Sunday 12th March 2023 until 23:59 hours on Saturday 25th March 2023 read more
Reinstate Branch Secretary Jason Moriarty – A new newsletter has been produced as a part of our organising to get Jason Moriarty reinstated. Please download it to learn more. The RMT offers full support and solidarity with our comrade Jason Moriarty following his disclosure to his employer, London Underground, of a disability read more
TUC
TUC slams “appalling decision” to award P&O ferries owner DP World new freeport contract (27 Mar) – The TUC has today (Monday) slammed the decision to award to DP World the contract to co-run the new Thames Estuary freeport. DP World – the owner of P&O ferries – presided over the controversial sacking of 800 seafarers last year. TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “This is an appalling decision. “DP World oversaw the brutal – and illegal – sacking of 800 workers at P&O ferries. Ministers should have stripped the company of all its public contracts and severed commercial ties. “But the government has chosen instead to reward DP World with another bumper deal. This is giving a green light to other rogue employers to act with impunity” read more
TSSA
TSSA warns TfL Pensions Response “threatens dispute” (21 Mar) – Transport union TSSA has reacted with anger and disappointment to the company’s latest response on the Transport for London (TfL) pensions review, warning the removal of the ‘no change’ option threatens an industrial dispute. In the Barber Review – conducted by Sir Brendan Barber in 2021-22 – ‘no change’ was a clear and viable option, maintaining TFL workers’ current pension provision. The pension scheme is performing well and is not in deficit. Other options favoured by the Conservative government include closing the current TfL scheme and replacing it with one which cuts the pension provision for workers read more
Great British Railways a ‘halfway house’ which clings to failed privatisation (21 Mar) – Rail union TSSA has described Great British Railways (GBR) as a ‘halfway house’ which will not bring public ownership to the network, after it was revealed the new body will be headquartered in Derby. The city’s bid to house GBR – which will own and manage rail infrastructure, issue contracts to private firms to run trains, set most fares and timetables, and sell tickets – triumphed over rivals Doncaster, York, Birmingham, Crewe and Newcastle-upon-Tyne. However, the future of GBR has been uncertain for months with the original timetable already significantly delayed read more
Unite
Unite announces consultation on government’s offer to NHS workers in England (27 Mar) – Unite the union has announced the details of the consultative ballot it will hold for its members working in the NHS in England covered by Agenda for Change. From Friday 31 March until Friday 28 April, Unite’s eligible NHS members will be asked to consider the government’s revised pay offer. The government is proposing an additional unconsolidated cash lump sum payment on this year’s pay and a five per cent rise in pay for 2023/24 (full details here). The revised offer emerged through negotiations that followed strike action by Unite members in December, January and February. Unlike other health unions, Unite is making no recommendation on the government’s pay offer stating that it will be the union’s members who will decide whether it should be accepted or rejected read more
Worley offshore workers latest group to join ‘tsunami’ of industrial action (25 Mar) – Emphatic mandate for action as 100 per cent vote yes to strike. Unite the union confirmed that its Worley Services UK members are the latest group of offshore workers to demand a better deal on jobs, pay and conditions in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS). 100 per cent of over 50 workers including pipefitters, riggers, deck crew, platers along with electrical and mechanical technicians voted in support of strike action in a ballot turnout of 75 per cent. Unite members are as part of the dispute demanding a better deal on jobs, pay and conditions including a base rate increase of £7 per hour, and standby payments to be 12-hours full pay. The workers are based on Harbour Energy platforms; Britannia, Jade, Judy and Jasmine read more
BP Petrofac workers latest to support offshore strike (22 Mar) – Emphatic vote for action will see 1,500 workers down tools as strike ‘tsunami’ hits North Sea. Unite the union confirmed that its members on BP Petrofac installations have today (22 March) voted emphatically to support strike action in a fresh dispute involving the offshore contractor as workers demand a better deal on pay. By a massive 95.5 per cent, around 90 workers voted in support of strike action in a ballot turnout of 73.4 per cent. The vote will see the BP Petrofac workers join 1400 others in dispute with their employers meaning 1500 offshore workers across the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) could be on strike within weeks. Unite has warned that oil and gas operators and contractors are set to face a ‘tsunami’ of industrial unrest within weeks as workers demand a better deal on jobs, pay and conditions read more
‘Tsunami’ of industrial action to hit oil and gas operators as 1400 offshore workers set to strike (20 Mar) – Dozens of platforms in UKCS set to be brought to a ‘standstill’ with BP, Shell and Total hit. Unite the union announced today (Monday 20 March) that major oil and gas operators in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) face a ‘tsunami’ of industrial unrest within weeks as around 1400 offshore workers across five companies demand a better deal on jobs, pay and conditions. Unite, whose members will take action at companies enjoying record-busting profits, predicts that platforms and offshore installations will be brought to a ‘standstill’ due to the specialised roles its members undertake. The action will hit major oil and gas operators including BP, CNRI, EnQuest, Harbour, Ithaca, Shell and Total read more
UK facing pig and poultry feed shortages during AB AGRI strikes (24 Mar) – Around mill 150 workers to strike over ‘pay cut’ while AB AGRI rakes in nearly £1bn. Mill workers employed by animal feed and nutritional product manufacturer AB AGRI will strike in April over pay, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today (Friday). Strike action will take place from 1 April to 7 April. Work to rule will be in affect from 8 April to 14 April, before all out indefinite strike action begins on 15 April. The workers, based at mills in Suffolk, Norfork, Oxfordshire, Fife, Devon, Lincolnshire and East and North Yorkshire (see notes to editors for location details), rejected an imposed pay offer of 4.5 per cent. With the real rate of inflation, RPI, running at 13.4 per cent, this is a significant real terms pay cut read more
Guys and St Thomas’ NHS staff deliver resounding vote for strike action over pay (23 Mar) – Crisis loans and second jobs needed for staff to get by. 800 staff poised for strike should government’s pay offer be rejected. More than 800 staff at Guys and St Thomas’ hospital in Central London could take strike action over pay after a successful industrial action ballot, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today (Thursday). The workers, who include nurses, pharmacists, estates staff and medical technicians, returned a ‘resounding’ 92 per cent vote in favour of strike action. Such is the struggle for NHS staff at the hospital to make ends meet, Unite is involved in arranging crisis loans for workers. Strike action by Unite’s NHS members is currently paused as a consultation on the government’s recent offer gets underway read more
Unite starts strike ballot of Allianz engineers for action over pay (23 Mar) – Unite, the union representing Allianz engineer surveyors, has today (Thursday 23 March) launched a strike ballot in a pay dispute. The long serving employees who worked throughout the Covid health pandemic to keep the public safe across hospitals, care homes and construction sites deem the poor pay offer of 2 per cent as a betrayal and completely unacceptable read more
Right to Strike: Unite vows that High Court ruling will not silence workers fighting for fair pay (23 Mar) – Unite examining all options including appeal. Union determined to secure pay increase for mechanical workers. Trade union Unite, which represents workers throughout Ireland, stated today (Thursday) that it is considering an appeal of this morning’s High Court ruling granting mechanical engineering firm Jones Engineering (HA O’Neil) an injunction pending trial to prevent strike action proceeding on 31 March read more
Unite blasts disgraceful Kingspan strikebreaking in effort to avoid fair pay (22 Mar) – Union escalates to round-the-clock pickets at Portadown site to defeat company greed. English workers get four star treatment while Polish workers left with hostels. Unite the union can reveal that Ulster Rugby sponsor Kingspan is flying in strikebreakers in a `disgraceful’ effort to undermine workers taking strike action for fair pay. Workers from Kingspan sites in Williton in Somerset, England and Rokietnica in Poland have been flown over in recent weeks and are now being used in an attempt to continue production onsite read more
Drax Hydro workers vote to accept pay deal to end energy dispute (22 Mar) – Unite secures 8 per cent wage deal plus £1,500 cash sum. Unite the union confirmed today (Wednesday 22 March) that energy workers employed by Drax Hydro Limited have overwhelmingly voted to accept an improved pay offer bringing their dispute with the employer to an end. Around 50 Unite members covering Stonebyres (Lanark), Cruachan (Loch Awe) and Glenlee (Castle Douglas) power stations voted yes to accept the pay offer by 90.5 per cent. The workers are set to receive an 8 per cent wage uplift along with a £1,500 one-off cash payment. The deal involves other benefits including one day’s additional leave for this year, and it will be backdated to October 2022 and run until September 2023 read more
Unite member says he feels fully vindicated in Crossrail “blacklisting” case as open court statement delivered (21 Mar) – A landmark case involving allegations of contemporary “blacklisting” on the flagship Crossrail project has concluded following a statement in open court yesterday (Monday 20 March). Unite member Daniel Collins, an electrician, took a case for blacklisting, breaches of data protection and misuse of private information against construction companies Crossrail, Costain, Skanska, T Clarke and NG Bailey. Mr Collins had the full support of Unite who instructed employment solicitors Thompsons to act on his behalf. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This was a hugely significant case and demonstrates how Unite will back its members to the hilt. Unite is totally focused on defending the jobs, pay and conditions of its members and it will use all avenues available to defend their interests. In February 2015, while working for the Costain/Skanska joint venture at Bond Street, Mr Collins raised serious safety concerns. He was dismissed from the project three days later.” Read more
Pay dispute at Highlands and Islands airports over as deal reached (21 Mar) – Unite confirms wage uplift of up to 7 percent across 11 airports. Unite the union can confirm today (21 March) that the long-running pay dispute involving 120 Unite members across the Highlands and Islands Airport Limited (HIAL) Group is over after a revised pay offer was accepted. The pay dispute involving Unite, which lead to industrial action across all eleven airports that are part of the HIAL Group, is over following the membership accepting a revised pay offer by 93 per cent. The deal reached ensures a basic salary uplift of 7 per cent for those earning up to £44,000, and a 5 per cent increase to shift allowances. Unite represents security staff, baggage handlers, ground crew along with those working in fire and rescue, security and administration read more
Over 300 Dundee City Council workers vote to strike in fight against plans to outsource services (21 Mar) – Huge 95% vote for strike against privatisation – action set to begin in April. Unite the union can reveal today (21 March) that around 320 tradespersons employed by Dundee City Council have voted in favour of strike action in a dispute over plans to outsource services to private contractors. By a huge 95 per cent joiners, plumbers, electricians, labourers and scaffolders have backed strike action. The dispute is centred on Dundee City Council’s plans to outsource public works to private contractors. All-out strike action is set to begin on 4 April for three weeks until 28 April, and then it will be followed by rounds of daily action until 23 June read more
Imperial College strike action over ‘massive pay cut’ stretches into fifth month (21 Mar) – 10.1% pay attack for workers while Imperial has £1.7 billion reserves and paid vice chancellor record salary. More than 200 Imperial College workers, who are members of Unite, the UK’s leading union, will strike on Wednesday (22 March), as industrial action over a pay dispute stretches into its fifth month. The workers are striking over the imposition of a 3.3 per cent pay offer for 2022/23 by London’s Imperial College, which Unite says is a clear 10.1 per cent pay cut when the real rate of inflation, RPI, is running at 13.4 per cent. Imperial College’s latest financial figures shows it brought in an income of over £1.2 billion for 2021/22 and had cash reserves of £1.7 billion. Further, Imperial College is one for the best paying universities for senior leadership staff. Until July 2022, the university employed the UK’s highest paid vice chancellor with an annual pay package worth £714,000, a massive increase of 35.5 per cent on the previous year read more
Sparrows strike action off on BP North Sea platforms after pay deal (21 Mar) – Unite secures three weeks extra leave for 50 offshore workers. Unite the union announced today (Tuesday, 21 March) that offshore workers employed by Sparrows Offshore Services have reached a deal securing an extra three weeks paid leave on BP assets. The union says the deal is equivalent to a 10 per cent rise in pay. Nearly 50 offshore Crane Operatives, Crane Maintainers, Lifting Personnel and Deck Crew secured the extra three weeks paid annual leave from time offshore with no reduction in wages. The Unite members are employed by Sparrows to work on BP’s Andrew, Clair, Clair Ridge, ETAP, Glen Lyon and Mungo installations. The agreement will also implement the 2022 pay rise across all elements of the workers’ wages, terms and conditions. The deal further includes the introduction of overtime at time and a half for hours worked above the normal 12-hour shift. Strike action by Unite members set from 29 March until 7 June across BP platforms will now not take place read more
JW Suckling drivers secure fantastic pay rise but Jet Garage strikes remain on in North West as Hoyer fail to make pay offer (20 Mar) – Unite the union has secured an inflation-busting pay increase for tanker drivers employed on the Phillips 66 contract delivering to Jet Garages and employed by JW Suckling. The deal is worth up to £11,000 a year for the drivers based in Essex, Grangemouth and West London. However, strike action involving Hoyer drivers based in the North West operating from the Bramhall terminal and who work on the same contract is set to take place for a week beginning on March 27, as the company has failed to enter into peace talks. The pay deal brings the annual salaries of Unite members from £43,315 to £54,579 per year. The deal also includes improved overtime rates increasing at least 29%, bonuses increasing by a stunning 47 per cent as well as the introduction of callout read more
Heathrow workers announce Easter airport strike in pay dispute (17 Mar) – Flights using Heathrow Airport will experience severe delays and disruption this Easter as workers take extensive strike action in a dispute over pay. Over 1,400 security guards employed by Heathrow Airports Ltd (HAL) and who are members of Unite, the UK’s leading union, have voted for strike action. The 10 days of strike action will begin on Friday 31 March with the final day of strike action on Sunday 9 April (Easter Sunday). The strike action involves the security guards employed at Terminal Five which is used exclusively by British Airways and Campus security guards who are responsible for checking all cargo that enters the airport read more
Workforce at Queen’s University to take strike action to defend pay and pensions (14 Mar) – Unite the union striking on 16th March, UCU on 15th and 16th March. Both Unite and UCU at QUB are set to take further strike action at Queen’s University as part of their ongoing industrial dispute with management over fair and equitable pay, pensions, and precarious employment practices. The strike action follows ballots held by both Unite and UCU at QUB which provided a strong mandate for industrial action up to and including strike action at Queen’s. The UCU action is to continue on the 20th, 21st and 22nd of March and the union has action short of a strike in force continuously. Unite’s strike action is also set to continue with further strike dates identified in April read more
Lenny Henry told Murphy 4 sackings no laughing matter (14 Mar) – Unite members will hold a protest outside the Pipeline Industries Guild scheduled for 18:30 this evening (Tuesday 14 March) at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London’s Park Lane. The Pipeline Industries Guild is closely associated with the Murphy group of companies, with the group’s CEO John Murphy a past president of the guild, while the guild’s current chair is Andrew Ball, energy sector director with J Murphy and Sons. The protest is part of a campaign to secure the reinstatement of four Unite members, including a shop steward, dismissed by the Murphy group’s Irish subsidiary on what Unite members believe to be spurious grounds read more
Cargotec: Strike sends strong message in ‘bogus TUPE’ dispute (10 Mar) – Company must come to table and negotiate collectively. March 10th: Following a 93% vote for industrial action, Unite members working for cargo handling manufacturer Cargotec in Dundalk took to the picket line today in a move which saw production at the facility closed down. The dispute surrounds what Unite has termed a ‘bogus TUPE’ process which members fear could impact their terms and conditions going forward. Unite is calling on the company to come to the table and negotiate collectively with the workers affected read more
Unite leader hails successful defence of right to strike against legal challenge (9 Mar) – Unite shop stewards defended against legal attack. Mechanical strike going ahead tomorrow (Friday) at H.A. O’Neil and Leo Lynch. March 9th A strike by mechanical workers in HA O’Neil’s and Leo Lynch’s will go ahead tomorrow (Friday 10 March) after trade union Unite fought off an attempt today by HA O’Neil (Jones Engineering) to obtain an injunction restraining Unite members from taking industrial action. Accordingly, official pickets will be placed at HA O’Neil and Leo Lynch sites in Leixlip (Intel) and Grange Castle (Pfizer) tomorrow. The action follows an overwhelming vote for strike action in pursuit of a claim for restoration of the first hour of travel time, which was originally cut as a so-called ‘temporary measure’ following the 2008 financial crash read more
Pay strikes at power grid for London, South East, East England to cause blackout delays (7 Mar) – Around 1,300 workers, responsible for repairing, maintaining and administrating the electricity grid for London and the South East and East of England, have voted to strike. The workers are angry that UKPN have offered an 8.3 per cent pay rise for 2022, when they are normally offered an annual wage increase that meets or exceeds RPI inflation. With RPI currently standing at 13.4 per cent, this is a substantial real terms pay cut. The offer is also conditional on the workers accepted a below RPI inflation pay deal for 2023, meaning their wages spending power would be reduced twice in two years. The deal is not worth around 18 per cent as the company is claiming. Meanwhile, UKPN (owned by Hong Kong based conglomerate CK Group), had an average operating profit margin of over 50 per cent between 2017 and 2021 – almost five times higher than the FTSE-100 average. During that period, the company made a massive £2.4 billion in profits, paid for by energy consumers through standing charges on their bills. Its latest financial report shows UKPN made £264 million up to March 2022, while it’s CEO, Basil Scarsella, was paid an annual salary of £2.3 million read more
Industrial Civil Servants, including Workers in Roads Service, Rivers Agency, Forest Service and Strangford Ferry, vote overwhelmingly for strike action in pursuit of pay increase (7 Mar) – Unite and GMB members employed in the industrial civil service are set to coordinate action with non-industrial civil service workers in NIPSA. Strike ballot occurs alongside existing industrial dispute by roads workers seeking end to productivity pay mechanism. Unite and the GMB have confirmed that in separate ballots of their members employed in the industrial civil service workers [which includes roads service, rivers agency and Strangford ferry] have voted overwhelmingly to take strike action in pursuit of a cost of living pay increase. In Unite the vote for strike action was passed by 91 percent while in GMB the vote for strike action was 77 percent. Both trade unions will now engage with NIPSA which represents non-industrial civil servants, and which announced its own successful strike ballot last week, with a view to taking coordinated strike action across the entire civil service in Northern Ireland read more
Christie Manchester cancer treatment staff join widening NHS pay strikes (1 Mar) – More than 100 staff employed at Manchester’s Christie NHS Foundation Trust and its linked pathology provider, which is a public/private partnership, will strike for 24 hours from 0700hrs on Thursday (2 March) over pay. The workers’ union, Unite, says that more strikes will be scheduled if the government fails to address poor pay and unsafe staffing across the NHS read more
Workers at Newry, Mourne & Down District Council prepare to return to industrial action for fair treatment (27 Feb) – Workers in Newry, Mourne and Down District Council have lost trust and confidence in the NDMDC Chief Executive Marie Ward, and are commencing a new ballot for refreshed industrial action, up to and including strike action, after management at the Council have neglected to honour a deal agreed in 2022. Two meetings of Council staff were held last week in Newry and Downpatrick, hosted by the four trade unions representing workers of all grades – NIPSA, SIPTU, GMB and Unite. Firstly, it was decided to call for a vote of no confidence in the current Chief Executive. This vote was carried unanimously in both venues and must be seen as message to those in a position of influence, that this type of leader who cannot, or will not, honour negotiated agreements is not acceptable to our members or their staff. Secondly, it was decided to carry out a ballot for industrial action, to include both action short of a strike as well as strike action. To give some background, Council workers from all four unions took part in a number of successful industrial action campaigns in 2021 and 2022 read more
Roads Service maintenance workers in Unite commence one week strike action (26 Feb) – Road Workers demand productivity payment be integrated into payscales to remove potential mechanism for pay victimization. More than two hundreds Unite members employed by the Roads Service of Northern Ireland will be joining with colleagues in the GMB in taking strike action for a week commencing Monday 27th February. The industrial action follows a ballot of Unite members which returned a 95.30 percent vote for strike. The workers seek changes to their terms and conditions meaning the integration of a productivity bonus into their payscales. Roads Service workers’ pay is dependent on a productivity-based payment which is subject to the determination of managers. In the recent year roads workers at some hubs have taken strike action over allegations of bullying and harassment and are now seeking to close down a mechanism which potentially leaves them subject to victimization by managers. The strike pickets will be established at 8am on Monday 27 February and will last seven days and affect roads maintenance work across Northern Ireland. Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham pledged her union’s full support for the Roads Service workers read more
Weekend strike action and protests resume over pay dispute at Diageo’s Leven plant (24 Feb) – Unite ‘actively’ exploring legal options amid claims workers could have been unlawfully induced to sign new contracts. Engineering workers based at Diageo’s plant in Leven are set to resume strike action tonight (24 February) and over the weekend in an increasingly bitter pay dispute with the drinks industry giant. The strike action will begin at 19:00 p.m. tonight and conclude on Monday (27 February) morning at 6 a.m. The strike action will directly impact on the engineering support for the bottling plant. Unite believes it is not safe to run the plant without the support its engineering members provide. Unite can also confirm that it will hold another protest on Saturday (25 February) at The Johnnie Walker Experience in Edinburgh from 12 noon to 2.30 p.m. There will be a further protest on Sunday (26 February) outside the bottling plant in Levenfrom 12 noon to 2.30 p.m. The protests are highlighting that some of Unite’s engineering members are set to lose around 6 per cent of their pay when moved to a proposed lower rate of pay read more
Protestors expose Morrisons’ anti-union tactics in Gibraltar (22 Feb) – Supermarket giant sits on millions but flew workers to Gibraltar to deny low-waged workers fair pay. Union stages protest at Morrisons’ Bradford HQ. Campaigners will stage a protest on Friday 24th February at the head office of Morrison’s in Bradford to expose shabby mistreatment and anti-trade union tactics directed against Unite members in Gibraltar. Morrisons’ workers in Gibraltar have been on strike since 30 January in a dispute over a paltry 2.4 per cent pay increase when the retailer’s underlying profits for last year were a massive £828 million. According to Unite, instead of negotiating to end the strike Morrisons wasted money by flying in UK workers to replace the roles of striking workers in Gibraltar – paying them £2 an hour more than workers on the Rock. This pay disparity is one of the main reasons for the dispute. Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham said: “If Morrisons think it can sneak strike-breaking tactics into Gibraltar then, it should think again…” read more
East Lancashire biomedical scientists latest to join NHS pay strikes (21 Feb) – Unite says government is failing the country as NHS strikes spread. Around 70 biomedical scientists at the East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust will strike at Royal Blackburn hospital from 0700 hrs to 1900 hrs on Wednesday (22 February). The workers’ union, Unite, says that more strikes will be scheduled if the government fails to address poor pay and unsafe staffing across the NHS. With more ambulance worker strikes also set for the coming weeks, Unite has again hit out at the prime minister for failing to get into the room to address chronic low pay and unsustainable workloads. These issues are driving a recruitment and retention crisis and devastating the NHS read more
New development in Hestia LIFE dispute. Poverty pay – some movement. – The Leader of Hounslow’s council has responded to pressure brought by Unite and he has finally agreed to speak with us regarding the dispute involving Serco employed Parking Attendants and Hestia LIFE employed support workers. Both groups of workers face poverty pay and anti-union bosses. This follows three separate periods of strike action at Hestia and a campaign aimed at encouraging Hounslow councillors to actively engage with striking workers at Hestia and Serco…Naturally we are pleased that the council leader has now responded to that pressure, but this is just a first step. We, as a trade movement, need to keep up the pressure to ensure that the council follows through on this initiative to ensure a successful end to both disputes which is why Unite have called a protest for next Tuesday 21st February outside the council cabinet meeting. We want that protest to be noisy, enthusiastic and pro-union. Please come along, bring your banners and family members to send a clear message to Hounslow Labour council – Workers need fair pay and decent conditions! read more
Outsourced Harlow housing repair and grounds workers to strike over pay (17 Feb) – Over 300 staff responsible for Harlow council housing stock and cleaning and maintenance of council grounds and buildings will strike over pay in late February. The workers, members of Unite, the UK’s leading union, are employed by HTS, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Harlow district council. HTS’s workforce voted by 87 per cent for strike action over pay being less than workers doing the same jobs at other local authorities. The workers are demanding a cost-of-living payment and for their pay bands to be re-graded, so they are brought up to industry standards. The council’s latest financial report showed it had assets of £63 million on 31 March 2022, an increase of £19 million from the year before. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Harlow council is fooling nobody. It is using HTS to keep these workers on inferior pay, terms and conditions. Harlow council can well afford to give these workers a cost-of-living payment and Unite is determined to ensure that is what happens. Our members’ jobs, pay and conditions are this union’s top priority and the HTS workforce will receive Unite’s full support during these strikes.” The workers will strike on 21, 23 and 28 February during which housing repair and maintenance, street cleaning, grounds maintenance, cleaning and caretaking of council buildings and parks and gardening services will be severely disrupted. More strikes will be scheduled if the dispute is not resolved read more
Airports set to close across the Highlands and Islands as strike action begins at Dundee Airport (16 Feb) – Unite confirms overtime ban across 11 airports in the HIAL Group. Dundee Airport will be closed tomorrow (17 February) due to strike action as part of a pay dispute involving over 120 Unite members across the Highlands and Islands Airport Limited (HIAL) Group. Strike action will begin tomorrow at Dundee Airport, and then resumes on Monday (20 February). There will be a strike demonstration starting from 11 a.m. at Dundee Airport on both days of action in close proximity to the airport entrance. Several days of 24-hour strike action is scheduled across all HIAL’s 11 airports following the action in Dundee. Strike action will take place on 21, 22, and 23 February at the HIAL Group’s other airports: Barra Airport, Benbecula Airport, Campbeltown Airport, Inverness Airport, Islay Airport, Kirkwall Airport, Stornoway Airport, Sumburgh Airport, Tiree Airport, Wick Airport. Due to the scale of Unite’s industrial action the HIAL Group has now informed the public that a number of airports will be fully closed including Barra, Benbecula, Dundee, Stornoway, Sumburgh and Tiree. Kirkwall Airport will operate on a limited basis. The trade union predicts its industrial action will impact the remaining airports differently from mail not getting through to offshore workers not being able to mobilise to installations, and to return home. Unite has further confirmed that its members will take part in a discontinuous overtime ban across all 11 airports starting on 24 February and continuing each day up to and inclusive of 2 March read more
Royal Holloway University strikes intensify over 10% pay cut presented as rise (9 Feb) – Pay strikes will hit Royal Holloway University in February as a dispute over pay intensifies, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today (Thursday). Non-teaching staff, members of Unite, have rejected an imposed pay deal set by the University and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) that amounts to three per cent for most workers. With the real rate of inflation, RPI, at 13.4 per cent, this is a real terms pay cut of 10.4 per cent. Meanwhile, the university’s latest financial report states it is in a strong financial position. It had total reserves of £293 million for the year ending 31 July 2022… The workers, who include cleaners, janitors, estates staff and technicians, will strike on 14, 15, 16, 21, 22 and 23 February in coordination with members of other higher education unions at Royal Holloway. More strikes will be scheduled if the dispute is not resolved read more
Strike action resumes at GSK pharmaceutical plant in Irvine (6 Feb) – Kaefer contractors begin week-long strike in dispute over bonus payments. Members of Unite employed in engineering construction roles at the GSK plant in Irvine will resume strike action today (6 February) in a dispute over bonus payments. Around 40 workers employed by contractor Kaefer Limited will take strike action from 07:30 a.m. on 6 February up to 07:29 a.m. on 13 February. A previous round of strike action took place from 9 to 23 January. The current round of strike action is in addition to an existing discontinuous overtime ban which ends on 2 April. The industrial action will directly impact on the maintenance of the plant. The dispute is based on Unite members seeking a bonus payment of £2.37 an hour, the maximum allowed under the relevant industrial agreement (National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry [NAECI]) read more
Wirral housing workers to strike over deadly asbestos fears (3 Feb) – Workers at social housing landlord Magenta Living are to take extensive strike action over fears that new working practices will expose them to asbestos. The 100 plus workers, who are members Unite, the UK’s leading union, are employed in repairs and maintenance roles for Magenta Living, which manages 13,000 properties mainly covering the Wirral. Magenta Living has imposed a change of policy when dealing with asbestos. Previously, the workforce was trained that when they identified asbestos to stop work. If it required removal, specialist contractors were employed. Under the new policy the workers are expected to work with asbestos read more
University of Leeds strikes intensify over 10% pay cut presented as rise (1 Feb) – More than 200 non-teaching staff striking over nationally imposed UCEA pay deal. Pay strikes will hit the University of Leeds in February as a dispute over pay intensifies, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today (Wednesday). The 200 non-teaching staff, members of Unite, have rejected an imposed pay deal set by the University and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) that amounts to three per cent for most workers. With the real rate of inflation, RPI, at 13.4 per cent, this is a real terms pay cut of 10.4 per cent read more
Reinstate Radek (Radoslaw Worbel) sacked Unite London bus rep at RATP London United Fulwell bus garage – send a message of complaint to [email protected] and a message of support to to Radek via the Unite Bus Combine: [email protected]
CWU
Support the CWU strikes in Royal Mail & Post Office – The CWU has launched a strike fund – please support: Unity Bank, CWU General Fund, 60-83-01 33019822
We support the call of the CWU for Royal Mail and BT to be re-nationalised. Follow the latest news via CWU’s Facebook page, website and Twitter @CWUnews
Post Office ‘9% plus-cash’ deal goes out to ballot next week (24 Mar) – CWU negotiators will be urging a YES vote to the proposed agreement, which lifts basic pay by 9 per cent across the board and provides lump-sum payments ranging from £1.925k to £3k. “This is a fair deal in difficult circumstances and couldn’t have been achieved without the solid and steadfast support of our fantastic members,” said CWU acting deputy general secretary postal Andy Furey today, as he announced the Postal Executive’s endorsement of the negotiators’ agreement. The breakthrough came after lengthy talks between the union and senior Post Office leaders and followed a pause in a series of strikes and other forms of industrial action that began last May read more
Massive Royal Mail re-ballot vote!! – CWU members in Royal Mail Group have delivered the biggest ever return in a major national strike ballot. YES 95.9% TURNOUT 77.3%
CWU to Royal Mail bosses: ‘You picked a fight with the wrong union!’ (17 Feb) – After achieving a higher percentage turnout than any general election since 1992, CWU activists meet in determined mood to discuss the next steps. Following yesterday’s ballot result, it was back to business today, with hundreds of senior field officials and branch officials gathering in Manchester for a national briefing to update on the dispute with Royal Mail and debate ongoing strategy. General secretary Dave Ward opened the event by once again thanking branches and members for their efforts in delivering such a “remarkable result” in the ballot. A hugely impressive 95.9 per cent YES vote and 77.3 per cent turnout – a higher percentage of voters than the last general election and higher than any general election in the past three decades. This was “a victory for the power of ‘we’ over the power of ‘I’. It was a test of our members’ resolve and, after 18 days of strike action and in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis, our members delivered a result that was incredible,” Dave continued, adding that it “would’ve given the whole of TU movement a lift – as well as our members. It’s staggering that, after all that’s happened, our members haven’t shifted an inch in their support for this union…” read more
PCS
You can show your support to the strikes by PCS members by:
- Making donations to the PCS Fighting Fund Levy account, sort code: 60-83-01, account no. 20331490
- Sending solidarity messages to [email protected]
- Signing our petition to tell prime minister Rishi Sunak to intervene and hold meaningful talks to end the strikes.
- Support us on social media with the hashtags: #PCSonStrike #BlameTheGovt
- New E-action in support of PCS national pay and pensions campaign – The E-action calls on MPs to support our demands over pay, pensions, redundancy terms and job security read more
PCS calls all-out strike on 28 April (27 Mar) – More than 130,000 PCS members across the civil service and public sector will strike on 28 April in our latest one-day action alongside a month of walkouts to increase the pressure on the government on pay, pensions and job security. The all-out strike, called by our national executive committee today, taking place on the April payday, alongside a month of action beginning on 3 April to increase the pressure on the government read more
Ofgem strike dates announced (27 Mar) – PCS members working in the delivery and schemes directorate at Ofgem are to take strike action on 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 17 April. It is part of targeted strike action in our national campaign over pay, pensions, job security and redundancy terms. It began in November last year and since then many PCS members have been taking strike action on behalf of the rest of the membership. This has been in addition to the successful 1-day national strikes on 1 February and 15 March by tens of thousands of members across the civil service read more
Flexible Working Hours in Customer Services (27 Mar) – PCS met with senior management to raise grave concerns about ’13-week preferred times’ being demanded in CSG, and the conflict with the agreed FWH approach. PCS and CSG have agreed the importance of adherence to the Pay and Contract Reform agreement read more
IPC Closures update (27 Mar) – Following the IPC closure announcements, PCS has secured some job-security assurances from HMRC, including redeployment of Hayes staff to elsewhere in ISBC. On 22 February 2023, ISBC announced its plan to close its Inland Pre-Clearance (IPC) centres. The Hayes site is due to close on 24 September 2023; and Milton Keynes, pending a lease extension, will close in January 2025. Since the announcement, PCS has made our position clear read more
Period dignity – a victory for PCS members (27 Mar) – On 3 January, DWP sites started to receive free period products for colleagues. Every site within DWP is expected to have the products made available by the end of March. This is a massive victory for PCS members. It’s worth highlighting, that this decision was not made due to the benevolence of the employer, but down to the persistence, unwavering commitment, and hard graft of our members, equality advisory committees, GEC and NEC who wholeheartedly dedicated themselves to this cause read more
Action short of strike to begin at 4 employers (24 Mar) – More than 3,000 PCS members in Defra core, Forestry Commission England, Marine Management Organisation and Rural Payments Agency will take action short of strike action from 11 April as part of our national campaign on pay, pensions and job security read more
Support the DVSA pickets in Scotland and the north (24 Mar) – The last week of the current phase of targeted action by DVSA members comes to an end next week. Over 1500 DVSA members across England, Scotland and Wales have been involved in several waves of targeted strike action since December last year. The current phase comes to an end next week, but more strikes will take place from 5 April read more
Join Home Office all-members’ meeting 12.30pm 27 March (24 Mar) – All members across the PCS Home Office group are invited to an online meeting about the national campaign and strike ballot from 12.30pm to 1.15pm on Monday (27) read more
Members vote to accept HMCTS offer and end the dispute over the Common Platform (21 Mar) – PCS members in HM Courts and Tribunals Service have voted to end the long-running dispute over the Common Platform case management system. This follows an offer, arrived at through intensive negotiations with HMCTS, where a number of significant concessions were achieved read more
Join online members’ meeting 6pm 27 March (21 Mar) – For an update on the next steps in our national campaign join an online members’ meeting at 6pm on Monday (27) read more
PCS members win union recognition for Mitie workers at FCDO in Scotland (21 Mar) – Following a tough battle, the Central Arbitration Committee announced last week that PCS had won our application for statutory recognition for Mitie Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office workers at Abercrombie House in East Kilbride read more
New PCS civil service ballots now open (20 Mar) – Fresh PCS strike ballots haven opened today (20 March) of 124,125 members in 186 employers, across the civil service and public sector so members can continue to fight for fair pay, pensions justice and job security as part of our national campaign. Our current 6-month legal mandate for strike action in 124 groups expires on 6 May, so to continue our industrial action campaign our national executive committee has agreed we need to ballot members again. The new postal ballots run from 20 March until 9 May, so look out for your ballot pack arriving through the post next week and then use your vote and post it in the pre-paid envelope. The levy of members, which supports those taking strategic action, will remain in place for the duration of the dispute. HMRC members will not be balloted this time as they have a strike mandate which runs until 26 August read more
PCS announces fresh wave of strikes (20 Mar) – We have announced a fresh wave of strikes in a significant escalation of our dispute over pay, pensions, redundancy terms and job security, including 5 weeks’ strike action at the Passport Offices in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. More than 1,000 members working in the Passport Offices in Belfast, Durham, Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Newport, Peterborough and Southport will walk out from 3 April to 6 May. The action is likely to have a significant impact on the delivery of passports as the summer approaches. Home Office members in other areas of Northern Ireland will be out on 12, 13 and 14 April. Also on strike next month are National Highways staff in the National Traffic Operations Centre in Quinton, West Midlands from 3-7 April, Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency involving 1500 driving examiners and test centre admin staff on a regional rolling basis from 5-28 April, British Library from 3-16 April and British Museum from 6-12 April read more
Maritime and Coastguard Agency strike dates announced (2 Mar) – Members working for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in the Registry of Shipping and Seamen (RSS) in Cardiff are set to strike on 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 27 March as our national dispute escalates. Our national strike ballot on pay, pensions, jobs and cuts to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme closed in November and we received a positive result for strike action in many areas of the civil service, including MCA. In MCA, 79% of members voted for strike action on a nearly 53% turnout, above the required legal threshold of 50%. Our RSS members do a variety tasks including registering vessels from jetskis to cruise liners under the UK flag , boatmasters’ licences, registering war medals and births and deaths at sea read more
Strike dates announced in Ofsted and DVSA (20 Feb) – The action will impact on driving tests, school inspections and complaints. The strikes form part of our targeted strike action in our national campaign over pay, pensions, job security and redundancy terms. Ofsted members working in the Applications, Regulatory and Contact (ARC) team and Inspection Support Centre will take strike action in March. They will walk out from Monday to Wednesday on every week in March, starting from 6 March… In DVSA, there will be a rolling programme of strike action across the regions throughout March, resulting in a large-scale cancellation of driving tests read more
Prospect
HIAL pay dispute over as Prospect members vote to accept deal (21 Mar) – Members of Prospect working in Fire and Security for Highlands and Islands Airport Limited have voted to accept a revised pay deal for 2022-23 which will end the current dispute read more
GMB
Strike disruption on horizon as Stoke council accused of ‘union busting’ (24 Mar) – GMB Union has today slammed attempts by Conservative-run Stoke City Council to force through attacks on the terms and conditions of low paid workers. Despite good faith attempts on the part of GMB and other staff unions, official documents due to be presented to the Council’s Cabinet reveal the administration’s unwillingness to engage with dispute resolution read more
Tesco, Sainsbury’s & Waitrose food company in fire and rehire shame (23 Mar) – A food company supplying Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose has hit 1,000 workers with a fire and rehire threat. Pilgrims Food Masters, which also supplies Aldi and Morrisons, has told workers they will be sacked and reemployed on worse terms and conditions – including no paid breaks, reduced sick pay and the removal of Diwali holiday pay read more
Amazon pay offer an ‘insult’ say workers (22 Mar) – Amazon workers and GMB members have today slammed the pay rise presented to staff by company management. In the wake of historical strike action at the company’s Coventry fulfilment centre in the Midlands, Amazon have today presented workers with a pay rise averaging between just 1.8 and 2.5 per cent. With inflation rising and and RPI hitting over 12 per cent earlier this year, GMB members have called on the company to urgently sit down and talk pay with their union read more
Croydon Council payroll staff ballot for strike over potentially discriminatory restructure (22 Mar) – Employees and residents should not pay for Croydon’s disastrous financial position, says GMB union
GMB union is to ballot members working at Croydon Council’s payroll department over strike action. The local authority is proposing a departmental restructure in which a quarter of jobs are at risk of being lost. Meanwhile grievances raised by GMB members have been ignored. The union is concerned that not all staff are included in the restructure – with those affected exclusively women from Black and Minority Ethnic backgrounds. Staff have made a number of counter-proposals to save money and protect jobs, which have not been fully considered. They have also submitted numerous grievances which have not been acknowledged by HR. The ballot opens on 27 March and is due to close on 3 April read more
Teesside energy from waste company faces strike (21 Mar) – A Teesside energy from waste company faces strike action over a massive real terms pay cut. Around 100 GMB members at Suez Recycling and Recovery UK, in Haverton Hill, are ready to walk out. Almost 99 per cent reject a pay offer of 6 per cent during a consultative ballot. Workers have seen there real terms pay cut by more than 30 per cent since 2012. A full strike ballot will begin in the coming days read more
Tarmac slashes jobs despite bumper profits (21 Mar) – GMB Union has called on aggregate and building supplies giant Tarmac to step back from forcing through more than 400 redundancies at the company. Union officials have slammed the company’s unwillingness to work with trade unions and ignoring pragmatic proposals put forward by GMB to halt mandatory redundancies. GMB Union have argued that these reckless redundancies are unnecessary as the company in the context of huge company profits read more
Almost 300 Mersey Care workers to strike this week (17 Jan) – Almost 300 health care workers at Mersey Care will take strike action this week over pay. GMB members including nurses, health care assistants, support staff, cleaners and admin staff will walk out for 24 hours from 00:01 to 23.59 on 18 January 2023. Mersey Care workers voted to strike over the Government’s imposed 4 per cent pay award – another massive real terms pay cut read more
Unison
Donate to support striking workers – As UNISON members continue to take strike action, the union is asking for donations to its strike fund
Orchard Day Nursery must be saved, says UNISON (22 Mar) – Staff, parents and children have been treated abominably. The owners of a Merseyside day nursery that closed without warning last weekend – leaving more than 50 staff jobless and the parents of more than 200 youngsters without childcare – must think again, says UNISON today (Wednesday). Orchard Day Nursery in Huyton shut its doors at such short notice that many workers, children and parents only found out about the permanent closure via a notice fixed to the gates, the union says. The nursery has since gone into insolvency. Its owners also operate a number of other nurseries across the north of England. The first some staff and parents knew was when the company sent an email on Saturday, announcing the immediate closure. But many remained unaware until they turned up to work or arrived to drop off their children on Monday morning, says UNISON. The shutdown chaos came just days after workers at the nursery took industrial action last week over pay. The walkout took place after the company refused to pay qualified nursery workers more than the real living wage, which is £10.90 an hour read more
Environment agency workers begin fresh wave of industrial action (17 Mar) – UNISON members working at the agency have seen pay fall since 2011, meaning that staff effectively work one day a week for free. Today thousands of Environment Agency (EA) workers in England will stop weekend attendance at incidents such as floods, water pollution, spills, waste fires and fly-tipping. The industrial action is set to continue for three weeks, with workers refusing to volunteer for ‘on call’ cover between Friday evening and Monday morning. Where there is a threat to life from incidents such as a major flood, officers will step in as emergency ‘life and limb cover’ has been agreed by the union. This new wave of industrial action follows a 12-hour walk out in February, when workers attended pickets outside the Environment Agency’s Marsham Street offices in London. UNISON members working at the agency have seen pay fall since 2011, meaning that staff effectively work one day a week for free read more
Care Quality Commission staff vote to strike over pay, says UNISON (7 Mar) – Overwhelming backing for industrial action. Staff at the Care Quality Commission (CQC) have voted to take strike action over pay, says their union UNISON today (Tuesday). More than 700 workers were balloted by UNISON, including those in the organisation’s health and social care teams and call centres, along with clerical staff and data analysts. CQC staff regulate health and social care bodies across England including hospitals, care homes, GP practices and dental surgeries ensuring the safe delivery of services. Of those who took part in the UNISON vote, 73% opted to strike and 92% for action short of a strike. This means, for example, that staff would only work to their contracts, refusing to do any overtime. UNISON is one of five unions so unhappy at the pay award imposed this year (2022/23) they decided to ask their members to vote for industrial action. The five – UNISON, PCS, Prospect, Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and Unite – all have strike votes that have either already closed or are about to read more
Stop Hackney Council cutting library services read more about the campaign here – Hackney library staff have been taking strike action against cuts
Protest as Hackney Unison chair amongst those handed compulsory redundancies in libraries shake-up (16 Mar) – Council staff staged a protest outside Hackney Town Hall after several library staff, including Hackney Unison Branch Chair Brian Debus, were handed compulsory redundancy notices. The protest by Hackney Unison on Wednesday 15 March was also held to support striking teachers, junior doctors and Tube staff. It followed several days of strike action by Unite and Unison library workers after the council unveiled a shake-up of library services which will see 19 jobs go. Hackney Unison said it was “registering our disgust that three library workers including Hackney Unison Branch Chair Brian Debus are due to be made compulsorily redundant. This despite there being more than enough posts available in the restructured library service.” Read more on Hackney Citizen website
NIPSA
UK Budget March 2023: The Assault on Living Standards and Fightback Continues (22 Mar) – Carmel Gates NIPSA General Secretary: Last week’s Budget, and the fuller data that has emerged since the parliamentary set-piece at Westminster, confirms the lived experience of our members and their families as a result of the decisions and long-term political priorities of those in power. This is not ‘just’ a trade union perspective, it is objective fact. As reported by the Institute of Fiscal Studies, for example, “real disposable household income is still undergoing its largest fall in living memory…set to drop by 3.7% this financial year, and by a further 2% over the next year”. Similarly, the Chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) describe this drop in real household disposable income as “the largest two-year fall in living standards since records began in the 1950s read more
Education Members to Protest EA Conference (22 Mar) – NIPSA Members to protest at the Education Authority’s Inaugural Restorative Practice Conference at Dunadry Hotel, Antrim. NIPSA, the leading public sector union with over 8,000 members working in the Education Sector announces a protest at the Education Authority’s Inaugural Restorative Practice Conference at Dunadry hotel Thursday 23rd March at 9am read more
Joint Trade Unions in Health: Statement to Members (22 Mar) – NIPSA Health Strike: The joint Northern Ireland Trade Union group in Health have agreed the following update regarding the recent pay offer made to NHS England Trade Unions. A revised offer was made to Staff Council Trade Unions by the Secretary of State for Health, Steve Barclay last week. This was for England only however assurances were given to NHS Staff Council TU side that this offer would be funded by new money and as such Barnett consequentials would follow for the Devolved Administrations (DAs). The offer is for settlement of the current dispute over 2022/23 pay and an additional offer for year 2023/24. Click here for the detail of the complete offer. Health is a devolved matter for Northern Ireland. This means that the finance coming from HM Treasury will be placed within the N.I. budget for the Assembly. The Assembly then decides how it is spent. Health trade unions in Northern Ireland have always argued that money allocated for pay should be at least the same as the England only deal. This issue of pay parity was central to the last pay dispute in 2019/2020 read more
Industrial Action: NI Civil Service, NDPBs and ALBs (14 Mar) – This is a reminder of the action taking place this week. Please circulate to all members.
Protest on Budget Day, 15 March – On Spring Budget Day, Wednesday 15 March, there will be a protest from 12.30 – 1.30pm at the office of the Secretary of State, Erskine House, 20-32 Chichester Street, Belfast. Please join the protest.
Strike Action by Museum Members, 17 March – As previously notified, members in the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum in Cultra, will take strike action on 17 March. This will be the first, strategic strike action by NIPSA members in this campaign and we are grateful to our members in that branch. We would ask members to show their full support for them by joining their picket line on the day. The pickets will run from 9.00am to 1.00pm.
Action Short of Strike Action – As notified in my article on 7 March action short of strike action will also commence on Wednesday 15 March read more
Royal College of Nursing
Anti-strike bill: RCN lobbying sees dismissal clause debated in Lords (24 Mar) – We’re working with peers on an amendment that would protect workers from being sacked for taking part in otherwise lawful strike action read more
NHS pay offer in England: voting opens on 28 March (21 Mar) – Eligible members will be asked to vote on whether to accept or reject the UK government’s recent pay offer. Make sure you familiarise yourself with the full offer and know your RCN login details read more
Scottish government warned it must live up to its promises – as RCN members vote to accept the NHS pay offer (20 Mar) – RCN members in Scotland have voted to accept the Scottish government’s NHS pay offer by a narrow majority read more
RCN Wales re-enters negotiations with Welsh government after Health Minister responds to RCN letter (3 Mar) – The Welsh government has agreed to further negotiations, after RCN members overwhelmingly rejected the latest NHS pay offer read more
RCN opens donations to strike fund in response to public desire to support striking staff – We’ve launched a donation page for people to financially help nursing staff on strike read more
Royal College of Midwives
Midwives announce Northern Ireland strike date (24 Mar) – Midwife and maternity support worker (MSW) members of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) working in the HSC in Northern Ireland will take strike action from 8am to 12pm on 3 April. They will also be taking industrial action short of a strike by claiming payment for any overtime worked in the week following strike action. The action will be across all five trusts in Northern Ireland read more
Midwives accept Scottish Government pay offer (20 Mar) – Midwife and maternity support worker members (MSW) of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) have accepted the Scottish Government’s pay offer. The result follows an RCM member consultation which closed today. In a turnout of 44% of eligible RCM members working in the NHS in Scotland, 69% voted to accept the deal, with 31% rejecting it. The offer came following intense negotiations between health unions – including the RCM – and the Scottish Government read more
RCM to recommend members accept England NHS pay offer (16 Mar) – An offer on pay for NHS staff in England has been put on the table by the Westminster Government following negotiations with health unions, including the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) read more
Midwives in Northern Ireland vote yes to industrial action (7 Mar) – In a clear demonstration of their anger and frustration midwife and maternity support worker (MSW) members of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) have voted to taking industrial action over pay in Northern Ireland. In a formal ballot that closed today over nine out of ten (93.9%) voted for industrial action short of a strike, based on a turnout of 55% of eligible RCM members working in the HSC. On the question are you prepared to take industrial action consisting of a strike, nearly 9 out of 10 (89.09%) voted yes…Any decision to take industrial action must be approved by the RCM’s elected Board. The RCM will now look at the result of the ballot and consider the next steps read more
CSP
CSP to open consultation on NHS pay in England (23 Mar) – The CSP has announced the dates of its member consultation over the offer on NHS pay in England read more
Scotland NHS pay offer accepted (21 Mar) – CSP members working in the NHS in Scotland have voted overwhelmingly to accept the pay offer for 2023/24 read more
BMA
Second round of strike dates announced: 11, 12, 13, 14 April – We are holding a 96 hour walk out of all junior doctors in England in order to achieve a full pay restoration. This is our second round of action. This means you should not attend any shifts starting after 6:59am on 11 April. You can then attend any shifts starting from 7am on the 15 April read more
NEU
NEU to consult members on pay offer (27 Mar) – This is an insulting offer from a Government which simply does not value teachers. After days of intensive negotiation, the education unions ASCL, NAHT, NASUWT and NEU have been presented with a pay offer by the education Secretary. This amounts to a £1000 one-off cash payment for the present school year (2022/23) and a 4.3% consolidated pay rise for most teachers for next year (2023/24). The Government claims this is fully funded but NEU analysis suggests that between 2 in 5 (42%) and 3 in 5 (58%) of schools would have to make cuts next year to afford it. Following discussion by the National Executive Committee on Saturday 25 March, the NEU will put this offer to its members, recommending rejection. The ballot opens today and closes on Sunday 2 April read more
NEU Cymru teacher members vote to ACCEPT pay offer (23 Mar) – 73% of NEU teacher members in Wales who responded to the union’s consultation have voted to ACCEPT the pay offer put forward by the Welsh Government, and end the dispute read more
Education unions and Government enter talks (17 Mar) – Joint statement from the Government and unions to move into intensive talks. “The Government and the education trade unions, Association of School and College Leaders, National Association of Head Teachers, NASUWT and National Education Union, have agreed to move into a period of intensive talks. The talks will focus on teacher pay, conditions and workload reduction…” read more
NASUWT
Teachers at Denbighshire school strike over excessive workload (27 Mar) – Members of NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union at Ysgol Brynhyfryd in Rhuthin, Denbighshire will be taking the first of three planned days of strike action tomorrow (Tuesday) over adverse management practices which are affecting teachers’ workload, working conditions and wellbeing. Members at the school are taking action as a result of the failure of the local authority and school governors to act to address serious workload issues. These include an excessive marking and assessment policy that the Union has sought to reasonably amend, but with little result read more
NASUWT comments following OFSTED inspection tragedy (21 Mar) – Commenting following media reporting on the tragic death of headteacher, Ruth Perry, Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary of the NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union, said: “Our sincerest condolences go to Ms Perry’s family, colleagues and friends in these terribly difficult and deeply sad circumstances. Our thoughts also go to the staff, pupils and parents of Caversham Primary School on their loss of a much loved and respected member of their community. No one should be under any doubt about the tremendous pressures faced daily by school leaders and the need to ensure that all education staff are fully and properly supported to provide the very best education to the pupils they serve. This tragic event must now be subject to proper independent scrutiny, where the relevant facts in the period before, during and after the inspection are examined carefully…” read more
Teachers at Swansea school take strike action over inadequate management (20 Mar) – Members of NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union at Clydach Primary School in Swansea will be taking the first of six planned days of strike action tomorrow (Tuesday) over adverse management practices which are affecting teachers’ health and working conditions. Members at the school are taking action as a result of the failure of the local authority and school governors to act to address serious longstanding management failings on the part of the permanent headteacher read more
Joint statement from education unions and government to move into intensive talks (17 Mar) – The Government and the education trade unions, Association of School and College Leaders, National Association of Head Teachers, NASUWT and National Education Union, have agreed to move into a period of intensive talks. The talks will focus on teacher pay, conditions and workload reduction read more
Industrial action at three Wrexham schools over adverse management practices (15 Mar) – Members of NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union are this week starting discontinuous strike action at three schools in Wrexham: Ysgol Clywedog, Darland High and Acton Park Primary School, over adverse management practices affecting workload and working conditions. The NASUWT has been in dispute at Acton Park for nearly a year, with strike action taking place in July 2022. However, lack of progress has forced NASUWT members to ballot again. The NASUWT has been in dispute with Ysgol Clywedog and Darland High since November 2022 over the failure of the school to adhere to Welsh Government andlocal policies, endorsed and recommended by the Wrexham Local Authority and already implemented in other Wrexham schools. At Clywedog and Darland there has also been an element of victimisation of trade union officials read more
NAHT
NAHT comments on pay offer from government (27 Mar) – Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “Formal talks between education unions and the government have now concluded, and an offer has been made. All the unions involved in the talks have received the same offer. NAHT’s national executive committee will be considering the details of this offer this evening. They will then decide on our next steps. We will be making no further comment this evening but will issue a further statement tomorrow.” Read more
NAHT Cymru members reject Welsh government offer (24 Mar) – School leaders in Wales have rejected an offer from the Welsh government in their dispute over pay, workload and funding. Following a 10-day online ballot that closed at noon today, 54.5% of NAHT Cymru members taking part voted to reject the offer. The union says that during extensive talks with members across the nation, it was clear that funding arrangements remained a major concern for school leaders. NAHT Cymru director Laura Doel placed the blame firmly with the employers, citing a lack of transparency as the reason members rejected the deal read more
School leaders respond to statement from Ofsted Chief Inspector on Ruth Perry tragedy (24 Mar) – Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “Ofsted has completely underestimated the strength of feeling amongst educational professionals. The warm words and sympathy they have expressed are welcome, but they are simply not enough. “School leaders want to see tangible actions being taken to reduce the intolerable pressure that the current inspection regime places on everyone in schools, and they want to see those actions now read more
EIS
80% Vote in Favour of Strike Action at Hutchesons Grammar (22 Mar) – In a consultative ballot held by EIS members at Hutchesons’ Grammar School in Glasgow, over 80% of teachers indicated their willingness to take strike action over the school’s proposal to remove them from the Scottish Teacher’s Pension Scheme or be ‘fired and re-hired’ read more
EIS Opens Ballot for Industrial Action at City of Glasgow College (21 Mar) – City of Glasgow College lecturers are now voting on whether to take industrial action over the College’s plans to reduce the number of lecturing staff, reduce the amount of teaching time per student, and burden lecturers with more classes in a bid to reduce costs. An industrial action ballot of EIS Further Education Lecturers’ Association (EIS-FELA) is now open, and runs until 17th April read more
EIS Opens Statutory Industrial Action Ballot for Scotland’s FE Lecturers (20 Mar) – A statutory ballot for industrial action opened across Scotland’s 26 Further Education colleges, as college lecturers seek to secure a fair pay award. Members of the EIS-Further Education Lecturers Association (EIS-FELA) are being balloted following a lack of progress in negotiations at the National Joint Negotiating Committee (NJNC), where college employers have failed to improve on an offer of a 2% salary uplift that was rejected by negotiators before Christmas. The statutory ballot runs from 20th March until 13th April. Members of the EIS-FELA are being asked to indicate a willingness to engage in both strike action and Action Short of Strike (ASOS) read more
INTO
Industrial Action: Phase 4 from 8am Monday 3 April (23 Mar) – The employers have been notified that in addition to the continuous Phase One and Phase Two Action Short of Strike begun on 17 October 2022, 1 November 2022, and Wednesday 4 January 2023; from 3 April 2023, INTO members are instructed to undertake additional, continuous Phase Four action read more
UCU
MPs and peers call for prison education to be renationalised (23 Mar) – MPs and peers from across the political spectrum have condemned the failed privatisation of prison education and called for the service to be brought back into public ownership to support the rehabilitation of prisoners read more
Strikes loom as Sheffield College staff reject derisory pay offer (22 Mar) – Staff at Sheffield College have overwhelmingly voted to reject a derisory 3.5% pay offer for 2023/24. Staff were consulted on the offer in an e-ballot. Turnout was over 50% and more than 81% of those who voted said they would not accept it. Staff have already taken four days of strike action this year over the college’s 2022/23 pay offer of just 2.5% after winning a strike ballot. The union paused strike action to enter into Acas mediated talks with the employer but were only offered an additional £100 one off payment. UCU’s ballot result means it is able to call further action. The college has more than £90m in reserves with over £14m cash in the bank. UCU is demanding a pay rise of 4.5% for 23/24, which would cost the college just £1.6m read more
Employers make offers in university disputes (15 Mar) – University employers today made offers in disputes over pay, working conditions and pensions, UCU confirmed. The offers pave the way for the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) pension to be restored by April 2024, to end the use of involuntary zero-hour contracts in higher education, and to agree new standards, frameworks and principles to tackle other forms of casualised contracts, reduce workloads and close equality pay gaps. 70,000 UCU members are on strike today, tomorrow, and Friday. They are also set to strike Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday next week. Strikes will continue whilst members are asked whether they wish to stand down action to formally consider the offer. The union’s Higher Education Committee meets Friday to decide next steps read more
City College Norwich staff to strike over huge real terms pay cut (6 Mar) – Staff at City College Norwich will strike on Wednesday 15 and Thursday 16 March over a huge real terms pay cut. The announcement comes after an overwhelming 88% of UCU members who voted said yes to strike action in an industrial ballot. Turnout was an incredible 73%. In January City College imposed a pay award so low it ended the college’s accreditation as a Real Living Wage employer. The lowest paid received an increase of just 5.1%, college lecturers were awarded a paltry 4% and other staff only 2.5%. Since 2009 pay for college staff has fallen behind inflation by 35%, which is now 13.4%. UCU is demanding a 14% pay rise to help staff meet the cost-of-living crisis read more
Staff strike at Havant and South Downs College over low pay (21 Feb) – Staff at Havant and South Downs College will strike for two consecutive days tomorrow and Thursday in a dispute over low pay amid the cost-of-living crisis. The strike comes after 76% of UCU members who voted said yes to strike action. The turnout was 53%, surpassing the 50% threshold imposed by Tory anti-trade union laws, despite the ballot only being open for two weeks. The National Education Union (NEU) also balloted members at the college with a similar result. 79% of NEU members voted for strike action with a 58% turnout and will be joining both days of strikes read more
UCU fighting fund: the link is here and donations to the fund are spent on supporting members involved in important disputes.
FBU
FBU makes £10,000 donation to Syria and Turkey earthquake appeal (23 Mar) – The FBU Firefighter 100 Lottery has made a £10,000 donation to the DEC’s Turkey/Syria Earthquake appeal. The Firefighters100 fund, set up and run by the Fire Brigades Union, has made a £10,000 donation to the Syria and Turkey earthquake fund to provide humanitarian assistance to those affected by the disaster. Dozens of UK firefighters – many of them FBU members – have travelled to the affected area in recent weeks with UK International Search and Rescue (UK ISAR) read more
Fire Brigades Union wins campaign to save Cornwall Fire Control centre (22 Mar) – Today, March 22nd, Cornwall Council Cabinet has voted to U-turn on plans to close Cornwall FRS’ Critical Fire Control Centre following a sustained campaign led by firefighters. Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service had announced plans to scrap its entire control operation on money-saving grounds last September. Firefighter control staff handle calls from the public, provide safety guidance and deploy resources during incidents. FBU fire control members responded to the proposed cuts by creating a detailed report highlighting the varied and essential nature of the work that they do. They hosted visits from Cornwall Councillors, demonstrating how their professional skills, adaptability and local knowledge helped ensure successful resolutions to serious incidents. FBU members in other roles around Cornwall attended rallies in numbers outside multiple Council meetings in support, as well as providing witness evidence of the importance of fire control to all aspects of fire and rescue. In response to the Fire Brigades Union’s campaigning, the Neighbourhood Overview Scrutiny Committee (NOSC), a cross-party committee of councillors, unanimously recommended to keep the control centre open 24/7 and improve it with new jobs, IT and funding. Today, Cornwall Council Cabinet decided to uphold this recommendation and reverse plans to shut down the centre read more
FBU responds to serious injury in Derbyshire incident (22 Mar) – Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service has now confirmed that a firefighter has been seriously injured following a road traffic collision yesterday afternoon. Responding to the incident, FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack said: “The Fire Brigades Union is aware of a serious on-duty incident involving one of our members. Our thoughts are with the seriously injured firefighter and her loved ones at this difficult time. We have immediately put in place proper support, and will investigate the incident fully. The Fire Brigades Union is ready to provide whatever assistance is required in the coming period” read more
Merseyside firefighters start action short of strike – Merseyside firefighters, control members and Green Book staff are commencing industrial action in the form of refusing to undertake pre-arranged overtime on Thursday 1st December for a period of up to 6 months read more
BFAWU
Is Covid-19 an industrial injury? (27 Mar) – It has been three years since the UK went into it’s first lockdown due to Covid-19. Sadly many people lost their lives and thousands were infected by the virus. Since the start of the pandemic the Government has reviewed the occupational risks of Covid-19. In November 2022 the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) published a paper relating to this and considered if Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB) could be made available. IIAC considered if there was enough evidence to show if, on the balance of probabilities, it is more likely than not that a case of Covid-19 infection could have been as a result of contact with the virus at work read more
Update from Food and Work Network (7 Mar) – The catalyst for the creation of the Food and Work Network was a membership survey conducted by Unity Consulting Scotland on behalf of the Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU) in 2021. The survey showed clearly the link between low pay, insecure work and food insecurity. Shockingly, it provided stark evidence that a large proportion of the people who grow, produce, assemble, package, distribute and serve our food often cannot afford to purchase the very food produced from within the industry they are part of. The findings were a damning indictment of our wider society and also how food workers are treated and undervalued. In the past few months there have been appalling examples of the poor treatment of food production workers and the abject failure of the law to protect them. Dawnfresh Seafoods and Orchard House Foods have no connection other than the manner in which they closed. Both companies went into administration, both did not pay their workers redundancy and monies they were owed, both passed on their financial obligations to the state and both sets of directors/owners carried on regardless with their other (money making) activities, apparently oblivious to the plight of the workers they had hitherto recently employed read more
Support the campaign to unionise Samworth Brothers – get organised, sign the petition read more
NUJ
NUJ welcomes police back down on naming suspects (27 Mar) – Ethics Council chair, Professor Chris Frost says it is vital that the public should know who has been charged in their name with breaches of the law. The NUJ had protested against draft College of Policing guidance which would have given forces in England and Wales the option of not releasing the names of people charged with offences read more
Two in three people with Long Covid say they are treated unfairly at work (27 Mar) – The majority of respondents said they had experienced unfair treatment at work because of Long Covid – and one in seven lost their jobs because of the condition. The TUC and Long Covid Support Employment Group report revealed that many people with Long Covid said the condition has had an impact on how they are treated at work read more
NUJ to ballot members for industrial action over radical changes at BBC Radio Foyle (24 Mar) – The National Union of Journalists is to ballot for industrial action following a decision of management at BBC Northern Ireland to enforce radical changes to the morning programme schedule at BBC Radio Foyle. In changes announced today, the current two-hour Morning Show on Radio Foyle is to be replaced by a 30-minute programme. The union had been engaged in negotiations on the proposed changes but on Monday management abandoned the process and decided to press ahead with changes, despite consideration progress in the talks. 10 staff based at BBC Radio Foyle remain at risk of redundancy read more
NUJ challenges proposed changes to police guidance which could mean suspects charged with offences are not named (22 Mar) – The NUJ has added its voice to concerns over draft College of Policing guidance which would give forces in England and Wales the option of not releasing the names of people charged with offences read more
BBC journalists strike to defend local news (14 Mar) – NUJ members working across England for BBC Local will begin 24-hour strike action from 11am on 15 March, hitting coverage of the Budget. Journalists in radio, tv, and online will commence action as part of an ongoing dispute over the BBC’s plans to cut local radio. 5.7 million listeners tune in to BBC Local radio stations each week to hear valued content relevant to their communities, but proposals by the broadcaster will cull services and mean only 40 hours of guaranteed weekly programming. NUJ members will head to pickets on Wednesday and Thursday, following the union’s clear mandate from 83 per cent of balloted members, who voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action read more
FDA
FDA Fast Stream members vote to strike (17 Jan) – FDA members in the central Fast Stream have overwhelmingly voted to take strike action over pay. On a turnout of 60%, comfortably surpassing the legal threshold of 50%, 88% backed industrial action in the statutory postal ballot. FDA National Officer for the Fast Stream, Lauren Crowley, stated “our Fast Stream members have been absolutely clear – they will no longer put up with unfair pay. This result highlights the anger that our members are feeling, they are tired of empty promises when it comes to pay reform.” Read more
Equity
Equity calls on North Tyneside Mayor to intervene in Exchange charity eviction as it launches campaign to save theatre (24 Mar) – Yesterday we publicly called on the leader of North Tyneside Council, Mayor Norma Redfearn DBE, to intervene in the pending eviction of the Exchange Arts Theatre Charity from its venue of seven years. In a letter to the mayor sent on Wednesday 22 March, Equity criticised the council’s purely “commercial decision” and added that it “does not represent a real investment in the cultural value to the local community.” The charity has leased the building from the council for the past seven years but are due to be evicted by 17 April following the council’s decision to award the lease to a commercial company. The call comes as we launch a campaign to ‘Save the Exchange,’ with a petition to North Tyneside Council that has already passed 700 signatures read more
Sign and share this petition to reinstate the English National Opera (ENO) funding and lobby your MP to back our industries and their workforce
Community
Community tells STRB teachers’ pay completely unacceptable (21 Mar) – Community has told the School Teachers’ Review Body that a pay increase in September 2023 of 3% for most teachers and leaders in England would be “completely unacceptable” – and criticised the review body process itself. In its latest submission to the STRB, the union said that, on the basis of current inflation predictions, such low rise would result in “yet another significant real-terms pay cut” read more
USDAW
North West TUC 2023: Usdaw calls for protection of retail workers from abuse, threats and violence (24 Mar) – Retail trade union Usdaw has a delegation attending the North West Trades Union Congress (TUC) starting on Saturday 25 March in Warrington. The union is calling for action to protect shopworkers from violence, threats and abuse read more
IWGB
Vodafone’s outsourced migrant cleaners storm Oxford Street store to demand sick pay and a liveable wage (27 Mar) – Migrant workers who clean Vodafone’s head offices assembled at their flagship Oxford Street store for a surprise protest demanding fair pay and proper sick pay. The action came from cleaners represented by the Independent Workers’ union of Great Britain, and marks an escalation in their ongoing campaign against Vodafone’s exploitation of outsourced workers read more
Mandate
Mandate trade union calls for stronger laws to protect retail workers against abuse and assault (22 Mar) – Union says employers need to adopt zero tolerance policies and make customers aware of these policies. The Mandate Trade Union has called on the Government to introduce stronger laws to protect retail workers against abuse and assault. The call was made in light of the RTÉ Prime Time programme last night which highlighted the extent and severity of the problem read more
SIPTU (Ireland)
SIPTU to hold meeting with Cartamundi management over ‘shocking’ closure plan (23 Mar) – SIPTU representatives will hold a formal meeting with the management of Cartamundi in Waterford next week to discuss the proposed closure of the company in August with the loss of 240 jobs read more
Keep Water Public protest calls for referendum on water services in November (22 Mar) – The Keep Water Public Campaign called on the Government to hold a vote on the public ownership of water services, alongside the gender equality referendum in November 2023, at a protest today (Wednesday, 22nd March) outside Leinster House in Dublin read more
SIPTU members protest and deliver letter to Minister demanding action on Rehab redundancies (21 Mar) – SIPTU members formerly employed by Rehab Enterprises protested in Limerick City this afternoon (Tuesday, 21st March) and delivered a letter into the office of Minister of State, Kieran O’Donnell, demanding action to ensure they are paid their outstanding redundancy entitlements read more
Fight blacklisting and victimisation of union reps
Support Lee Fowler – Another blacklisted construction worker sacked after making complaints about safety on site
Solidarity with Lee Fowler, who has been dismissed by the electrical contractor Bilfinger after he raised safety issues at the Cargill’s Refinery site in Merseyside (next to the new Everton football stadium construction project). The experienced and highly qualified electrician made several complaints about unsafe working conditions and helped four co-workers to obtain a pay rise.
Lee Fowler commented after his dismissal: “I got the four lads a 14% pay rise and I raised health and safety concerns about the site. I was involved in a serious accident myself, and the subsequent report found no blame on my part whatsoever. I have repeatedly asked to see the safety documents relating to my accident, and that request has been repeatedly denied. And for that I was dismissed? I have fought for workers’ health and safety for over 30 years: they won’t silence me!”
Lee Fowler is a member of Unite the Union who are representing him. Frank Morris and Tony Seaman, UNITE Executive Council members for construction issued a joint statement: “It is really disappointing that in 2023, we continue to see workers who are prepared to raise genuine concerns about safety being targeted. Despite all that was promised by major contractors in the High Court in 2016, this issue continues to blight our members lives. Blacklisting is one of the reasons that the construction sector has such a horrendous safety record. We cannot stand by and watch union members be repeatedly victimised. Unite will never stop fighting the harassment faced by workers who stand up for their rights. An injury to one is an injury to all”.
Blacklist Support Group posted on their Facebook page: Lee Fowler is a leading member of the Blacklist Support Group – having first been blacklisted after becoming an OILC safety rep in the North Sea in the early 90s.
Construction workers who raise concerns about potential hazards that could affect people on site and the surrounding community should be applauded. The industry has glossy posters that encourage workers to speak out. But time and again, workers who are conscientious about safety get sacked. Get your banners ready, another blacklisting dispute is about to kick off.
Support the ‘Murphy 4’ Campaign to reinstate sacked Unite members read more
Crossrail ‘blacklisting’ case to conclude with open court statement read more
#SPYCops Inquiry exposes state surveillance of workers movement
Blacklisting of workers and union infiltration by Spy Cops a dark stain on the police and ‘no stone must be left unturned’ in learning the full truth (23 Feb) – Unite, the UK’s leading union, is demanding that no stone is left unturned in discovering the full extent of the Special Demonstration Squad’s (Spy Cops) role in blacklisting workers and infiltrating trade unions. In the closing statements to the first tranche of the Mittings Inquiry into Undercover Policing, Dave Barr KC the counsel to the inquiry, for the first time accepted that information on individuals who were spied upon was frequently passed to employers and that spy cops infiltrated unions and spied on their members as part of their cover. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Finally it has been admitted what our members have always said. For decades not only were workers secretly spied upon by undercover police officers, for no good reason, but information was then frequently leaked to employers who used it to blacklist workers. Now the inquiry has finally accepted that blacklisting frequently occurred, no stone must be left unturned in discovering the true scale of blacklisting by the spy cops and reveal who in authority gave the green light for this. Equally there must be complete exposure of the infiltration of trade unions including answers as to why it happened and who considered it acceptable. This is the very minimum that workers and their families, who had the lives destroyed by blacklisting, deserve.” Read more
Builders Crack: The Movie
In the current situation, this long lost film from the 1990s about rank and file union organising in the construction industry is intended to lift the spirits, but also to spark a debate in our movement. Hope the youngsters in this film put a smile on your face.
Watch – Share – Discuss https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VZ-QMA1FMg
Blacklist Support Group
Book: http://newint.org/books/politics/blacklisted-secret-war/
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNcgrNs6pB8
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/blacklist-SG/
Blog: www.hazards.org/blacklistblog
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
Keep an eye out for other Facebook and social media groups and pages that are being created. The Coronavirus Support Group for Workers has been set up on Facebook and is a useful forum and you can catch up on disputes at Strike Map UK. Also, check out Organise Now! – Support for new worker organising.
International
(From NUJ website) Pakistan: journalist accused of incitement in anti-terrorism case (23 Mar) – The National Union of Journalists has joined the International Federation of Journalists in condemning the arrest and detention of Siddique Jan, BOL News Bureau chief read more
Diary
June
24 NSSN national conference 11am-4.30pm Conway Hall, London
July
29 Troublemakers at Work Conference 2023: Friends Meeting House, Manchester – supported by Workers Can Win!, Strike Map and Organise Now!
CONTACT US
PHONE 07952 283 558
EMAIL mailto:[email protected]
TWITTER – https://twitter.com/NSSN_AntiCuts
FACEBOOK NSSN GROUP or STOP The CUTS Likes page
ADDRESS NSSN, PO Box 54498, London E10 9DE
