The last week has seen a devastating series of closures and large-scale redundancies particularly in the steel industry from SSI, Tata and Caparo but also Crown Packaging in Wales while JCB workers are bracing themselves for an announcement on job losses. The NSSN calls on the unions involved to bring together shop stewards in all the affected companies to discuss a national strategy of action including industrial action, occupations alongside the demand of nationalising to stop the jobs slaughter.
As workers ask what can be done, a JCB worker has sent us this article that calls for these vital industrial plants to be nationalised to save jobs and communities:-
“The steel industry is “in crisis” and needs “life-saving surgery”, Gareth Stace the director of UK steel has warned. Tata Steel has announced 1,200 job cuts at sites in Scunthorpe and Lanarkshire. This follows the closure of SSI’s plant in Redcar, Teesside where 2,200 jobs have been lost.
It is estimated that for every sacked steelworker another seven jobs will go in the supply and service industries and it is not just steelworkers who are losing their jobs. Construction equipment companies Caterpillar and JCB have already shed hundreds of agency workers and are now making redundancies from their full time workforce. 500 staff workers at JCB will go in the next few days and shop floor redundancies are set to follow. This April JCB announced its second best annual profit margin in its 70 year history of over £300m.
Caterpillar employs over 100,000 worldwide and has announced it will cut its workforce by 10,000 it wants to close 20 manufacturing facilities over the next three years and is not ruling out the closure of its Desford plant in Leicester with the loss of 1,500 jobs. Crown Packaging (ex-Metal Box) in Wales is also threatened with job losses.
Gareth Stace appeals to Tory business Secretary Sajid Javid to honour promises he has made to address some of the challenges facing the industry yet the response from Mr Javid was “there is no straightforward solution to complex global challenges” facing the industry.
In other words let global capitalism run its course in determining the livelihoods of thousands of skilled workers. This crisis is a result of the continuing economic catastrophe caused by the billionaire bankers, speculators and spivs. We will not pay for this with our jobs.
The trade unions cannot allow this to happen and in the first instance should immediately convene a national joint conference of all the unions involved. This should be led by the shop stewards from the various plants to plan a united fight back against these redundancies. The unions should be demanding the opening up of company accounts to inspection by the workforce and oppose all jobs losses. Private and public workers need to unite to fight the jobs slaughter.
New Labour leader Jeremy Corby has re-popularised the idea of Nationalisation through his election campaign, raising the idea of re-nationalising the rail industry although he would do this on a gradual basis as the various franchises came up for renewal. We call for immediate re-nationalisation of these industries and any other company threatening redundancies. This should be on the basis of genuine democratic workers control and management.
In 1971 Rolls-Royce in Derby went bust. Then workers took to the streets with demonstrations. Such was the anger that the Tory Heath government was forced to nationalise it in 24 hours.”
More info on following union websites: Community Unite GMB
NSSN / Kill the Bill news
Trade Union Co-ordinating Group (TUCG) statement on the Trade Union Bill
The Trade Union Bill is a fundamental attack on our right to organise and strike in the face of ongoing austerity. The Tories know the trade unions are the last line of defence for millions of working people. The bill is yet another attempt to limit our ability to collectively resist the ongoing attacks on our standard of living and our public services. It is also an assault on one of our most basic civil liberties, the right to withdraw our Labour. The Tories elected by only 24% of the electorate, are imposing balloting thresholds that few MPs have met in their own election. We support the TUC view that extra criteria required for “essential” public service workers, is outside international labour law Read full statement
TUC lobby of Parliament November 2nd – 1pm to 2:30pm Central Hall, Westminster www.tuc.org.uk/events/lobby-and-rally-protect-right-strike
NSSN public meetings – “How can we fight the Tories’ anti-union laws?”
Thursday October 22nd – Southampton NSSN public meeting ‘Stop the cuts, defend union rights!’ confirmed speaker Rob Williams NSSN – 7.30pm Parkes Building, Avenue campus Southampton University Highfield Road
Tuesday 3 November:-
Manchester, 7pm, at the Britons Protection, 50 Great Bridgewater Street, M1 5LE.
Liverpool, 7.30pm, at the Casa Club, 29 Hope Street, Liverpool, L1 9BQ.
Rob Williams NSSN chair was interviewed live on BBC’s Daily Politics at TUC Congress watch here at about 30 minutes
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. Affiliation letter here
Download the ‘Join the NSSN’ leaflet here
And if you can, come to one of our regional Conferences. If there is not one in your area, get in touch to either assist in organising or have a speaker at one of your meetings or events. Contact Rob or Linda on [email protected]
Union News
CWU
Reinstate sacked Royal Mail rep John Vasey now! – John Vasey, a CWU postal rep in Wakefield, West Yorkshire has been sacked on what his work colleagues recognise as stitched up charges. The NSSN calls on all our supporters and affiliates to support John’s campaign for reinstatement and his union the CWU:-
Messages of protest to Jon Millidge, Royal Mail Group HR Director, c/o Tallents House, South Gyle Crescent, Edinburgh, EH12 9PB.
(Copies to Paul Clays, CWU Regional Secretary, 6 Concept Court, Kettlestring Lane, Clifton Moor, YORK, YO30 4XF – e-mail: [email protected])
Please sign the petition and like Reinstate John Vasey on Facebook
Above-inflation pay hike for Crown workers (Oct 20) – Thousands of hard-working Crown Post Office staff will receive an end-of-month pay boost after they voted 98 per cent in favour of a pay deal negotiated between the CWU and the company. Basic pay increases by 1.9 per cent, which is fully backdated to April 1st 2015, and the deal also includes a separate Crown Transformation cash pay-out read more
RMT
Northern Rail and TransPennine Express rail franchises protest October 22nd – 12.30pm County Hall Preston more details
RMT confirms driver strike vote on Piccadilly Line (20 Oct) – RMT confirms driver strike vote on Piccadilly Line over comprehensive breakdown in industrial relations. TUBE UNION RMT confirmed today that train operators across the Piccadilly Line have voted overwhelmingly for both strike action and action short of a strike over a comprehensive breakdown in industrial relations combining a range of issues. Over 70% voted to strike with an even larger majority for action short. The result will now be considered by the union’s executive read more
RMT Continues with City Link Campaign (20 Oct) – RMT Continues with City Link Campaign as Directors Face Criminal Charges Next Month. ON THE 5th and 6th November, three directors of logistics firm City Link – including the CEO and finance director- will come before the courts in Coventry over their failure to consult their workers in advance of the collapse of the company on Christmas Day 2014. If convicted, they face fines and the prospect of being struck off from working as directors elsewhere read more
Freightliner Strike Action Halted as Union Reaches Agreement (20 Oct) – Following fresh negotiations between RMT and Freightliner an improved offer that meets union members’ aspirations has been accepted by the RMT Executive. As a result all strike action scheduled for late this week is cancelled and the dispute is resolved read more
RMT calls 48 hour strike action on ARRIVA Trains Wales (15 Oct) – rates of pay & conditions of service 2015 read more
PCS
Fight goes on in Welsh museums (16 Oct) – PCS members at Amgueddfa Cymru/National Museum Wales are planning further industrial action in their ongoing campaign over weekend working payments. A fresh round of strikes will start on Tuesday 20 October after museum management refused any solution to the dispute that didn’t involve scrapping anti-social hours payments for the lowest paid staff read more
PCS members celebrate win in anti-privatisation campaign (15 Oct) – The National Compliance and Enforcement Service will remain within HMCTS and retain responsibility for collecting court fines. The announcement that the sale of the service was no longer the “best option” for Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS), comes after a five year campaign by PCS against the privatisation plans read more
Unite
Tractor workers reject pay offer in high-cost Basildon (20 Oct) – The management at New Holland Tractor Ltd in Basildon, Essex has been urged to get around the negotiating table, after the workforce overwhelmingly rejected an improved pay offer. The 460-strong hourly paid production workforce – members of Unite, the country’s largest union – will start a 36-hour strike starting at 11.45 on Thursday (22 October) until midnight on Friday. There has already been three days of strike action at the Cranes Farm Road site read more
Construction workers protest at Stobart Energy site in Widnes (20 Oct) – About 50 construction workers will stage a further protest (Wednesday 20 October) outside Stobart Energy site in Widnes, Merseyside over pay and attempts to undercut the national agreement for the construction industry. The National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry (NAECI) has been in existence for many years and sets terms and conditions for constructions workers, as well as employee welfare, and health and safety on construction projects read more
Northumbrian Water Group workers take industrial action to save their final salary pensions (20 Oct) – Water supplies in the north east of England face possible disruption with call-outs for leaks delayed as workers start industrial action at Northumbrian Water Group today (Tuesday 20 October) at the prospect of losing their final salary pension scheme read more
Energy staff in ‘collecting Smart meters from supermarkets’ dispute suspend week-long strike (19 Oct) – EDF Energy workers carrying out Smart meter installations have suspended their week-long strike, due to have started today (Monday 19 October), after the company made ‘a major concession’, Unite, the country’s largest union, said. About 70 staff at EDF headquarters at Bexleyhealth, Kent and Canning Town, east London were due to strike from 00.01 today (Monday 19 October) until 23.59 on Friday (23 October). The strike has now been suspended for talks to take place between EDF management and Unite on Thursday (22 October), under the auspices of the conciliation service Acas. The dispute is multi-layered, including a proposal that could see them collecting their smart meters from supermarkets and petrol stations, and could affect nearly 500 staff across London, and southern and western England read more
Deadly asbestos ignored for ten years by management at Manchester’s Christie hospital, says Unite (16 Oct) – More than 20 workers have been exposed to asbestos after the Christie Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester failed to deal with the cancer causing substance – putting staff, patients and visitors at risk. It was revealed in a report by Asbestos Contracting Limited (ACL) in August 2015 that the hospital’s trust has known about the presence of asbestos for over 10 years. Despite this, the trust continued to issue jobs to workers in areas of the hospital known to management to be contaminated. Concerns were raised in a second report by Unite, the country’s largest union, representing the affected workers – but no action was taken by the trust read more
GMB
United Utilities Possible Pensions Dispute (Oct 19) – GMB National Water Forum in Sheffield to discuss prospect of second dispute as United Utilities propose closure of defined benefit pension scheme read more
GMB Protest Over Police Intimidation (Oct 15) – GMB Protest At Redcar And Cleveland Police Station On Mon 19th Oct Over Police Intimidation Of Protester At Wilton SITA Construction Site. PC Daniel Demoily instructed innocent member to attend police station on Monday to receive a police caution for his part in a protest which took place approximately eight weeks ago says GMB read more
Junior Doctors / BMA
The NSSN sends solidarity to the Junior Doctors who are fighting the Tories’ imposition of a new contract. We appeal to all our supporters to support their demonstrations and protests. Over 20,000 marched in London last Saturday with many others demonstrating in Belfast and Nottingham. For latest news and protests follow #JuniorContract and #NotFairNotSafe on twitter. Latest updates on BMA website here
Oct 24 – Newcastle 1pm
Oct 28 – Leeds 7pm City Centre
Nov 18 – Dundee 4pm City Square
Unison
UNISON secures employment tribunal win for careers advisers (Oct 19) – UNISON has won a hard fought victory for workers in the careers service against Prospects Limited. Prospects Limited took over the delivery of the National Careers Services contract in the West of England from Careers South West. But, the company refused to accept that careers advisers working for Careers South West should transfer to them, arguing that their service was a digital service and so the jobs weren’t the same
Glasgow local council Trade Unions representing 24,000 workers in the city call for a No Cuts budget. Defend Glasgow Services – No Cuts
Joint Trade Union Lobby of Glasgow City Council – Thursday 29 October, 12.30pm, City Chambers supported by all local authority trade unions Unison, GMB, Unite, EIS, UCATT
Glasgow City Council has made spending cuts of £250m since 2010 including huge cuts in learning disability and mental health services, home care support, supported education for children, community work, cleansing, library services, frontline office support and grants to voluntary organisations. At least 4,000 council jobs have been lost. Voluntary organisations providing care services in the city have cut hundreds of jobs due to reductions in funding from the council. In the last five years charges for many council services have gone up or been introduced for the first time. These charges often hit the poorest families most. The council has stated it intends to make further cuts of £103m in 2016 and 2017 and has raised the possibility of another 3,000 job cuts, this is over 10% of the remaining workforce. This will be a disaster for vital services in the city and hit future employment opportunities for our young people
BFAWU
Watch BFAWU videos!! What’s on the menu at the Chancellor’s bakery? Work? Under 25? You need to see this That awkward moment when you’re paid less because you’re 19
Reports of Fast Food Rights protests on Youth Fight for Jobs and Fast Food Rights websites – Please send details of any local actions to [email protected] / [email protected]
FBU
EDM 513 | Ask your MP to stop cuts to the fire and rescue service (Oct 19) – A motion has been submitted in the House of Commons calling for the government to ensure the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review does not make further cuts to the fire and rescue service. Since 2010 nearly 7,000 firefighter jobs have been lost – equivalent to one in eight – with fire stations, engines and equipment also cut. Early Day Motion 513: Fire service – Reductions in Services, has been submitted by Ian Mearns MP and so far has been signed by 19 others. The Fire Brigades Union is calling for members and supporters to begin lobbying their MPs to sign and support the motion read more
Video | Biggest fire cuts in Leicestershire history (Oct 15) – The fire and rescue service in Leicestershire is facing the biggest cuts in its history that will see firefighters struggle to their job effectively and safely read more
NUT
Alfreton Art College strike (20 Oct) – (Report by NSSN supporter) There were around 30 teachers/ parents and local councillors outside the Alfreton Art College in Derbyshire on the picket line this morning from 7am to 9am. Local media were attendance as support grows in the town and the college for the NUT to save T&Cs/ Jobs at the Art College. I was informed that 18- 20 Teaching Assistants are about to receive their P45’s from the college and then offered new roles at lower rates of pay – come the end of the year. Present the college has temporarily recruited agency staff for today – under the guise of training. Those training staff were ushered onto the college premises by a back entrance. Furtherr strikes are planned for Thursday 5th Nov, Tues 10th and Thurs 12th Nov. ACAS approached the NUT in offering their services with a proposed date set for 6th November, so far the College Management have rebuffed ACAS offer
NUT Lobby of Supply Agencies on Wednesday 28 October 2015 – The NUT is organising a lobby of supply agencies in the October 2015 half term. The lobby will highlight the unacceptable pay and pensions position facing supply teachers as well as the role that agencies play in driving down pay, while taking huge sums in commission and paying their own senior employees huge salaries. The day will begin with a meeting at NUT HQ at 11.30am after which we will move off in groups to lobby various agencies HQs in Central London read more
UCU
UCU members vote for strike action in pay dispute – UCU members in further education will be taking strike action on Tuesday 10 November in a row over pay. The union’s further education committee met on Saturday to consider a ballot result heavily in favour of walk-outs. Three-quarters (74%) of UCU members who voted back strike action after the employers rejected the joint trade unions’ pay claim of £1 an hour extra for staff. The unions also asked the employers to commit to the living wage as a minimum level of pay read more
Open University strike ballot opens as academic body rejects job loss plans (15 Oct) – Staff at the Open University are being balloted for strike action in an increasingly bitter row over job losses and the closure of regional offices. The ballot opens today and closes on Thursday 5 November read more
NUJ
Nikkei’s first day owning the FT could be hit by industrial action over pensions “robbery” (19 Oct) – FT journalists have warned of rebellion “from the top of the organisation down” if Nikkei allows Financial Times managers to plunder £4m a year from their pensions to pay rent on their landmark building on the Thames. They have also reacted with anger to claims by the FT press office that it is “categorically untrue” that there will be cost savings from pensions read more
NUJ Pay Day Saturday 31 October – After years of pay freezes in the industry the NUJ is holding an event to discuss how to negotiate and campaign for better wages and fair working practices for staff and freelances as job titles change and the clickbait culture starts to bite. This UK event is part of our programme of events for non-Delegate Meeting years and all members are welcome read more
IWGB
Gophr it! Courier company pays Living Wage after union campaign – Gophr has become the first courier company in the UK to guarantee riders the London Living Wage plus reasonable costs following a campaign by the Independent Worker’s Union of Great Britain (IWGB) read more
Other News
Sheffield for Democracy & Sheffield People’s Assembly –
Public meeting on DEVOLUTION – POWERHOUSE or POORHOUSE?
7pm Wednesday 21st October
Central United Reformed Church, Norfolk St / Chapel Walk, Sheffield S1 2JB
Speakers from Sheffield Labour Group, Sheffield for Democracy, Manchester Unlock Democracy
Chair: Pete Davies, Regional Officer, GMB
We are concerned that new political & financial structures are being created & empowered to agree devolution deals with central government, away from public scrutiny & local accountability. Is this not just a vehicle for further outsourcing & privatisation of public services, and further fragmentation of the NHS in line with central government’s agendas? We need to understand what is currently happening, and how to challenge it to achieve a genuine devolution
Blacklisting & Victimisation
Buy the book ‘Blacklisted: The Secret War between Big Business and Union Activists’ Author: Dave Smith and Phil Chamberlain. Blacklisted tells the controversial story of the illegal strategies that transnational construction companies used to keep union activists away from work. See the official trailer from ReelNews
Blacklist Support Group financial appeal: the Blacklist support group is desperately short of funds, to continue the incredible work in 2015 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)
Blacklist Support Group – 19th October 2015
- High Court latest
The blacklisting firms have admitted ‘vicarious liability’ for the role of their managers in blacklisting. But they still refuse to admit that their conspiracy caused the workers they targeted any financial loss. So we are still full steam ahead for a 10 week conspiracy trial at the High Court next May. The next pre-hearing will take place on 7th-8th December. Blacklist Support Group will be organising a public meeting on the evening of Monday 7th December (venue tba)
https://usilive.org/no-sports-cars-just-yet-where-now-for-blacklisted-workers/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06fp8tj/look-north-east-yorkshire-and-lincolnshire-08102015
http://socialistworker.co.uk/art/41464/Victory+as+blacklisting+firms+run+up+the+white+flag
http://www.wigantoday.net/news/local/targeted-workers-could-be-in-line-for-damages-1-7507265
http://www.durabilityanddesign.com/news/?fuseaction=view&id=13889
- Trade Union Bill
The Trade Union Bill which intends to restrict the freedoms of trade unions is currently in the committee stage and a number of organisations have given evidence highlighting how it breaches international law. Blacklist Support Group gave evidence alongside Amnesty International and the human rights organisation Liberty.
https://youtu.be/WvOnlsGWQj0 (this is the punchline)
http://parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/6b437a7a-ff4c-4ef1-a2a2-07fb6de07227 (full evidence starts around 15:03)
http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-9375-50-and-you-wouldnt-be-here
Monday 2nd November TUC Demo & Mass lobby of Westminster parliament 12:30 onwards
There are 100s of Trade Union Bill meetings taking place around the country – we encourage all supporters to attend and join the campaign to Kill The Bill. Cambridge Trades Council who are hosting TU Bill 21st October. 7pm – 9pm at Keynes Hall, University of Cambridge.
- Ongoing issues
BAM win £170 million rail upgrade in Scotland
http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/news/bam-deliver-%C2%A3170m-aberdeen-inverness-rail-upgrade
Pay The Rate in Teesside – police target protesters
http://www.gmb.org.uk/newsroom/gmb-protest-over-police-intimidation
Carillion in Liverpool
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/incoming/over-100-people-down-blacklisting-10234416
http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2015/09/08/liverpool-launches-construction-charter/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p033c5dk (BBC Radio 1:54:30)
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/second-blacklist-protest-held-royal-10231733
- Blacklisting & Art currently wowing audiences in Peckham and New York
Ragged Trousered Philanthropists in Peckham – Dave Smith will be speaking about blacklisting on Tuesday 20th October
https://www.facebook.com/ragged.trousered.philanthropists
United We Stand – story of the Shrewsbury Pickets in Peckham – multiple celebrity nights from 2-14 November
http://www.townsendproductions.org.uk/home
Mark Thomas brings his award winning human rights show to New York. Blacklisted by the construction giants, spied on by BAE systems and placed on the Met Police domestic extremism database. Spread the word to our US comrades. If any NY unions or journos want to contact Mark while he is in the US, get in touch to arrange.
http://www.59e59.org/moreinfo.php?showid=223
- Charlie Pottins R.I.P.
The funeral of our comrade and friend, Charlie Pottins will take place at 1pm on WEDNESDAY 21st OCTOBER, at Northwood Cemetery, Chestnut Avenue, Northwood, HA6 1DE. Charlie was an active trade unionists and a stood shoulder to shoulder with blacklisted workers over many years on protests, picket lines and in court.
Nearest tube: Northwood Hills (Metropolitan Line)
- Future dates for the diary
Wed 4th November (6pm) – Blacklisted book event in Holyrood parliament
Saturday 7th November – Socialism 2015, Institute of Education (blacklisting will be covered in the ‘Big Brother is watching you’ workshop.
http://socialism2015.socialistparty.org.uk/
Saturday 14th November – Unite the Resistance – Defend Our Unions conference (Blackisting & Teesside #PayTheRate covered).
http://uniteresist.org/2015/08/unite-the-resistance-conference-2015/
Carillion apologises for blacklisting – then chases blacklisted worker for legal costs
Troubled construction giant Carillion has been branded hypocrites after they claimed thousands of pounds of legal costs from a blacklisted worker only days after issuing an unreserved apology in the High Court.
Carillion is one of the eight multinational building contractors that recently issued “a full and unreserved apology” for their role in blacklisting of union members in the construction industry, claiming to “recognise and regret the impact it had on employment opportunities for those workers affected and for any distress and anxiety it caused to them and their families”. The statement even went as far as stating “ever since the closure of The Consulting Association in 2009, we have been focused on trying to do the right thing by affected workers”.
Yet only days after the apology, lawyers Clarks Legal acting on behalf of Carillion submitted a claim for £3,500 worth of legal costs against blacklisted worker Dave Smith. The legal costs relate to a submission made by Carillion arguing that Smith should not be allowed to have his blacklisting claim heard in the UK Supreme Court and include charges of £600 for one hour’s work from John Bowers QC.
Smith’s legal test-case generated considerable publicity after the company admitted that their senior managers had supplied information to the notorious Consulting Association blacklist about the engineer because of his trade union activities after he had raised concerns about health and safety on a number of their projects. The original employment tribunal was even told the name of the senior manager who provided the information: John Ball, former head of industrial relations for Carillion based at their Wolverhampton head office. Ball had previously held the same role for Tarmac in the very same office before the company name change and in his official capacity was one of the founding members of the Consulting Association. Yet Smith still lost his test-case because as an agency worker he was not protected by UK employment law, which only covers direct employees. Smith requested to have his case heard at the Supreme Court but this was refused and Carillion is claiming their legal costs for sending a written submission on this issue. Carillion have previously claimed £7,500 from the blacklisted agency worker after the Court of Appeal hearing.
Declan Owens, solicitor representing Dave Smith commented:
“The legal team were surprised that Carillion pursued Dave Smith for the costs of the Supreme Court application. Nevertheless, they have always been aware of the restrictive interpretation of the British courts when they consider the nature of the employment relationship between agency workers and employers. Therefore, they are confident that an application to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg alleging a failure of the UK government to uphold Mr Smith’s right to privacy and his freedom of association under Articles 8 and 11 European Convention on Human Rights will succeed and vindicate him for the injustice he has suffered through blacklisting by Carillion”.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Carillion have posted a carefully worded section on their website that specifically names Mr. Smith and accuses him of be involved in “unlawful” activities (although absolutely no evidence is presented for this and no action was taken by either the police or Carillion at the time).
Dave Smith commented:
“How much is a blacklisting apology from Carillion worth?
They have admitted their guilt to the High Court for their involvement in blacklisting in general. They have told an employment tribunal which of their managers added information to my blacklist file. They continue to make completely unsubstantiated accusations about me using all the resources available to them as a multinational corporation.
I am an ex-construction worker who tried to improve safety on building sites but was forced to leave the industry because of their managers’ active involvement in blacklisting. Their apology isn’t worth the paper it is printed on. I hope public authorities around the world ban them and the other blacklisting wretches from all public contracts for their human right violations.
Carillion claim to want to do the right thing. Over the years, these people have sacked me, blacklisted me, fought me in the courts and bad mouthed me on their corporate website all because I tried to improve safety for my fellow workers. But now I have to pay over 3 grand for the privilege. That’s some apology! I have no intention of paying a penny towards the legal costs of these money grabbing hypocrites. If they want their blood money, they will have to come after it”
Notes:
In the test-case Smith v Carillion (JM) Ltd, Dave Smith was represented by John Hendy QC, David Renton (counsel) and Declan Owens (solicitor) via the Free Representation Unit (photo attached).
The next hearings for the High Court blacklisting group litigation is December 7-8th 2015. The full trial is still scheduled to last 10 weeks starting in May 2016.
In recent weeks, there have been major protests disrupting city centre rush hour traffic against Carillion in Liverpool due to claims of ongoing blacklisting at the Royal Liverpool Hospital.
Dave Smith is the secretary of the Blacklist Support Group, author of the book Blacklisted: the secret war between big business and union activists. Last week he gave evidence to MPs at the committee stage of the Trade Union Bill warning about the possibility of a state sponsored blacklist, alongside Amnesty International and Liberty.
Blacklisted book http://newint.org/books/politics/blacklisted-secret-war/
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlCa8yQmZ70
Blog: www.hazards.org/blacklistblog
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/blacklistSG/
International (also see Labourstart)
Culumbia: ‘Oil Justice Now!’ – public meeting this Thursday Oct 22 where Colombian trades unionist speaks about how an oil company organised his abduction and torture leaflet 6pm Institute of Education London
Diary (see & use false economy)
October
29 Defend Glasgow Services – No Cuts. Joint Trade Union Lobby of Glasgow City Council 12.30pm, City Chambers
November
2 TUC lobby of Parliament November 2nd – 1pm to 2:30pm Central Hall, Westminster www.tuc.org.uk/events/lobby-and-rally-protect-right-strike
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
