Last October, thousands of Glasgow council workers sent on a 48-hour strike to demand equal pay. We are delighted to report that a potentially decisive step has been reached in talks with the employer:-
GLASGOW EQUAL PAY UPDATE from Unison Glasgow City Branch:-
- Earlier this week the claimants’ campaign gave Glasgow City Council a revised proposal on a “Take it or Leave it Basis”.
- The proposal kept all the principles that the campaign has been built on: Value Equality inclusion Parity Consistency Clarity Transparency Protection Unity
- The council negotiators agreed to take the proposal to Councillor Aitken with a recommendation. After some further discussion the Leader of the Council agreed to share that proposal with the other parties on the Cross Party Equal Pay Group.
- Although the final, formal decision is made by the City Administration Committee later this month, the council issued the following statement today:
“Glasgow City Council and the equal pay claimant group represented by Action4Equality, UNISON, GMB and UNITE are delighted to confirm that they have reached an agreement in principle to a package of payments to resolve historical claims for unequal pay within the claimant group.
“A report is being prepared for the City Administration Committee to approve the calculations and payment plan in the coming weeks. When the arrangements have been approved we can then start to calculate individual settlement figures.”
- UNISON always takes care to ensure our advice and announcements are accurate and helpful to our members. So, we have to point out that the process is still ongoing. The Council statement is historic and greatly welcome. However, the City Administration meeting is the key day.
- The council statement also helpfully points out the massive volume of complex work to convert this agreement into individual information for each member. That will take months of hard work by all sides. There will be no payments before the summer, at the earliest.
- Although it is a stage in the process, it is a crucial and historic stage. We are grateful to all the campaign partners and the staff and elected members at the council. But the last word goes to the members of the union who’s decisive action created the campaign and changed Glasgow. Equal Pay Now!
Unison Glasgow City Branch Facebook page
Unite welcomes ‘historic’ equal pay deal at Glasgow City Council
GMB: ‘Significant moment’ in Glasgow equal pay claim
NSSN news
Get your trade union branch or trades council to affiliate to the NSSN – it only costs £50. Already affiliated? Please think about renewing it. Also, many of our supporters pay a few pounds a month. You can set up a similar standing order to ‘National Shop Stewards Network’, HSBC – sort code 40-06-41, account number 90143790. Our address is NSSN, PO Box 54498, London E10 9DE
Date for your diaries: 2019 NSSN Conference – 11am-4.30pm Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL – Saturday July 6th. Please use this letter in your union and trades council to help us finance the conference and affiliate to the NSSN
Download the ‘Join the NSSN’ leaflet here
And if you can, come to one of our regional Conferences. If there is not one in your area, get in touch to either assist in organising or have a speaker at one of your meetings or events. Contact Rob or Linda on [email protected]
Follow us on twitter via @NSSN_AntiCuts and Facebook
Union News
RMT
Support the RMT in Manchester against far-right threats – the NSSN stands in full solidarity with striking Northern Rail RMT members who have been faced with threats from the far-right last. We appeal to our local supporters to visit their picket line in solidarity RMT Northern Rail members standing solid again on 45th day in fight for rail safety
Support RMT Northern and South Western Railway strikes – RMT members on Northern Rail and South Western Railway have been taking strike action over the threat Driver Only Operation. Sign the Parliamentary petition to make it a legal requirement to have a second safety critical person on trains
All RMT Arriva Rail North Conductor, Conductor Instructor and Train Driver members had already been instructed to take action as follows, not to book on for on for duty between:
- 00:01 Hours and 23.59 Hours on Saturday 26th January 2019 read more
RMT forced to ballot for fourth time under anti-union laws on SWR as company plays for time and blocks agreement (17 Jan) – RAIL UNION RMT confirmed today that it will be balloting for the fourth time to secure a vote to continue with action in the rail safety dispute on South Western Railway after being forced to renew the mandate under the terms of the latest wave of Tory anti-union laws. The ballot will open on Thursday 24th January and will close on Thursday 7th February 2019 read more
National dispute fund (DOO disputes) – If you would like to donate to the RMT National Dispute Fund which makes payments to support their striking members taking part in National DOO disputes then you can donate via PayPal using the donate button below or make a cheque payable to RMT National Dispute Fund and send it to the address below. Alternatively, you can ring their Freephone helpline on 0800 376 3706 who will be happy to process a credit card payment for you, or, if you would like to pay via internet banking, please email [email protected] for further details. Vicky Thompson, Finance Manager RMT, 39 Chalton Street, London NW1 1JD. Tel: 020-7529-8843 read more
RMT demonstration in Ramsgate Harbour Seaborne Freight – 11am Tuesday January 22 read more
DHL Virgin West Coast contract staff to strike in fight for pay and workplace justice (16 Jan) – RAIL UNION RMT confirmed today that DHL staff providing crucial logistics support on the Virgin West Coast Main Line will strike at the end of this month in a fight for pay and workplace justice. In a ballot that concluded last week RMT members returned a unanimous vote in favour of taking industrial action to demand a decent increase to rates of pay along with genuine improvements to working conditions. Having consulted widely RMT’s National Executive Committee has taken the decision to instruct all members to take strike action by NOT BOOKING ON FOR ANY SHIFTS THAT COMMENCE BETWEEN:-
21:59 hours Wednesday 30th January 2019 and 21:59 hours on Friday 1st February 2019 read more
RMT warns of loss of 1000 cleaning jobs on London Underground and confirms lobby of Parliament – TUBE UNION RMT today warned of a thousand cleaning job losses on London Underground and announced that it will be lobbying Parliament on the 29th of January in support of decent jobs, on decent pay and conditions provided in house and with the cuts axe lifted from above the heads of the cleaning workforce. In 2017 London Underground again outsourced Tube cleaning; this time on a five year contract to Global Corporation ABM read more
ASLEF
Strike action at Barking depots – ASLEF members employed by London Underground at Barking District Line depot and Barking Hammersmith & City Line depot have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action after the company’s failure to address the abrogation of agreements. 85% of members voted for action on a turnout of 67%. Action will take place between 0001 and 2359 on Thursday 10th January and then 0001 and 2359 on Wednesday 23rd January read more
TSSA
TSSA victory on Cross Country managers’ holiday pay shows why all managers should join the union (16 Jan) – TSSA has won an extension of new backdated holiday pay claim for all manager grades at Cross Country rail company not just those covered by our union’s collective bargaining package. Every manager will now have their legal right to holiday pay entitlement respected on the same basis as the company’s other staff. This means that many managers will shortly receive a substantial additional payment read more
Unison
Support the striking Birmingham homecare workers – Please send messages of support and donations to Unison Birmingham branch, 46 The Priory Queensway Birmingham B4 7LR. Email [email protected] Facebook group – https://www.facebook.com/birminghamunison/
Unite
A possible strike by poultry catchers over Christmas Day working will cause disruption to chicken industry (22 Jan) – The chicken industry could face ‘serious disruption’, if specialist poultry catchers in Suffolk go on strike after being told they have to work on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. Unite said that its seven poultry catchers, employed by Hook 2 Sisters at Eye in Suffolk, will start voting tomorrow (Wednesday 23 January) on whether to strike over working on the three public holidays, and being sacked and reemployed on inferior terms and conditions. The ballot closes on Friday 1 February read more
Gatwick Airport facing disruption as guards ballot for action, following decade long pay freeze (21 Jan) – Passengers using Gatwick could face disruption later this year if the workers guarding the airport’s boundary vote for strike action. The guards, who have only recently joined Unite, are employed by the facility management organisation OCS Manned Guarding and are paid £8 an hour, the same rate as they were being paid 12 years ago read more
Durham bus pay dispute: new strike dates announced – Unite, Britain and Ireland’s largest union, is to hold talks with Arriva Durham County Ltd on Thursday (17 January) in a bid to resolve the long-running pay dispute. But at the same time, the union announced a further ten days of strike action by its 650 bus drivers from 00:01 on 27 January until 23:59 on 5 February. The bus drivers, based at Darlington, Durham, Redcar, Stockton and Whitby, are currently on strike for a week in the pay dispute. The strike ends at 23.59 tomorrow (Saturday 12 January). Unite regional officer Bob Bolam said: “We are due to hold talks with the Arriva management on Thursday (17 January) in a bid to settle this dispute. “We will be entering into these talks in a constructive and positive frame of mind. We won’t be commenting further until those negotiations have concluded…” read more Donate to strike fund
Tweet support to @UniteNEYH and send donations via Unite – Fry St, Middlesbrough TS1 1HA
CWU
Northern Ireland Royal Mail strike ballot opens today (Jan 16) – Around 70 Northern Ireland delivery workers begin voting today on possible strike action in support of two colleagues who the union believes have been “disciplined on trumped-up charges.” Bangor Delivery Office postmen Craig Stewart and Jim Magowan were handed two-year suspended dismissals back in September – a penalty that they, their workmates, on an alleged “non-completion” of a duty – but their branch secretary Davy Moffett (Northern Ireland East) insists that the pair followed the proper procedures read more
PCS & United Voices of the World
Joint Jan 22 MoJ & BEIS outsourced workers strike – On 22nd January 2019 receptionists, security guards and cleaners at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), represented by United Voices of the World (UVW), and support staff at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), represented by Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, walked out together on strike demanding the London Living Wage of £10.55 per hour, plus parity of sick pay and annual leave allowance with civil servants. Workers at the MoJ will also be striking for a second day on 23rd January 2019. This is the first co-ordinated strike between a TUC and a non-TUC union and the first coordinated strike between outsourced workers in government departments Facebook event
Please donate to the PCS and UVW strike funds
GMB
Beefeaters strike at Tower of London and Hampton Court Palace (22 Jan) – Beefeaters and other staff working for Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) will be picketing outside the Tower of London and Hampton Court Palace tomorrow (Tuesday 22 January) after discussions between GMB and HRP over pensions ended without an agreement read more
POA
POA union leaders walk out on chief executive (18 Jan) – Prison Officers Association Leaders have walked out on the Chief Executive Michael Spurr in a dispute about how the employer applies disciplinary procedures against staff. At a high-level meeting on Thursday 17th January 2019 the POA took the stance that their members were being victimised, targeted and subject to biased and unfair disciplinary charges. The POA have decided not to engage with the employer until they are satisfied that the disciplinary procedures will be followed and not abused read more
USDAW
Please sign Usdaw’s Time for Better Pay petition on the government’s petition website. This is part of the Usdaw’s campaign to force the issues of low pay and job security onto the agenda of parliament and our employers – https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/234531
NEU, NAHT and ASCL
Consultation of Members on School Funding – 82,487 teachers taking part in the National Education Union’s consultation of members have given a ringing endorsement of the School Cuts campaign read more
UCU
Strike dates announced at 16 English colleges in pay row (15 Jan) – members at 16 English colleges will be taking two days’ strike action at the end of January in their fight for fair pay. The strikes are part of a second wave of action after UCU members at six colleges took action in November. The dispute centres on the failure of college bosses to make a decent pay offer to staff who have seen the value of their pay decline by 25% over the last decade. The pay gap between teachers in colleges and schools currently stands at £7,000. UCU said low pay was bad for staff, students and colleges, while around two-thirds of college heads said pay is a major obstacle for them when it comes to attracting staff. The union said further strikes were planned if the colleges refused to make a decent offer and that they could not hide behind government cuts if they wanted to avoid further disruption. UCU said colleges should follow the lead of the Capital City College Group which recently agreed a 5% pay deal for its 1,700 staff read more
Strike ballot at 143 universities – Around 70,000 UCU members in 143 UK universities are being balloted for strike action in a row over pay and conditions. The ballot opens on Tuesday 15 January and closes on Friday 22 February. The dispute rests on universities’ failure to improve on the 2% pay offer made at pay talks last May. UCU said that offer from the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) did nothing to address the falling value of higher education pay, which has declined in real terms by 21% since 2009 read more
EIS
Strong Support for College Strike from Lecturers Across Scotland (17 Jan) – Members of the EIS-FELA showed strong support for the day of strike action right across Scotland. Picket lines were operational at college campuses across the country, as lecturers continued their campaign for a fair cost of living pay increase. Scotland’s FE Lecturers have not received a cost of living pay increase since April 2016. Lecturers voted in favour of taking strike action last month, with 90% of those voting backing the action read more
INMO (Ireland)
Nurses and midwives first strike on January 30th – Ireland’s nurses and midwives will go on strike for 24 hours on January 30th, it was announced. The union is legally required to give one week’s notice, but has given three to allow for safety planning. Should the dispute go unresolved, there will be further 24-hour strikes on 5th and 7th of February, and then the 12th, 13th and 14th. The strike will see INMO members withdraw their labour for 24 hours, providing only lifesaving care and emergency response teams. The dispute centres on safe staffing in the public health service. The HSE has not been able to recruit and retain enough nurses and midwives on current wages. The number of staff nurses fell by 1,754 (6%) between 2008 and 2018, despite an ageing, growing population making the health service busier. This would be only the second national strike in the INMO’s hundred-year history read more
Psychiatric Nurses Association (Ireland)
Ambulance staff strike – The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) said today (Friday 18th January) that the refusal of the HSE to respond to invitations from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) to talks to find a resolution to the dispute on the right of 500 PNA ambulance personnel to be members of the union is irresponsible, and a flagrant abdication of HSE’s responsibility to engage in resolving this legitimate dispute. PNA ambulance personnel members will hold a one-day national strike on next Tuesday (Jan 22nd .) in pursuit of their demand to be members of, and represented by, the union of their choice read more
BECTU
Read the latest about the Picturehouse dispute on Brixton Ritzy Facebook Page and those of Hackney, Crouch End, Central, Dulwich East and Duke of York Brighton
Donate to the Picturehouse Cinema strike fund: https://www.crowdpac.co.uk/campaigns/250/picturehousestrike
NUJ
NUJ demands lifting of death threat to Belfast journalist (18 Jan) – The NUJ has strongly condemned a death threat to a journalist working in Northern Ireland. The threat was reported to a meeting of the union’s national executive council (NEC) today read more
IWGB
Nearly 1000 Minicab drivers protest with vehicles outside TfL against “tax on the poor” (14 Jan) – Almost 1000 minicab drivers converged outside Transport for London’s (TfL) headquarters on Blackfriars Road in protest to the announcement last month of regressive congestion charges for minicabs to be introduced in April. The protest, called by the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain’s (IWGB) United Private Hire Drivers branch (UPHD) went on today from 10:00 – 12:30, with hundreds of stationary minicabs blocking large part of the Cut, Union Street and Blackfriars Road. Protesters assembled outside TFL’s Palestra House office and marched up to Blackfriars Bridge. The drivers vow to repeat the protest every Monday read more
Bristol Couriers Network
Deliveroo gig economy workers strike – Bristol Deliveroo workers went on strike at 6pm on Friday 18th January. About 150 gathered in College Green in the centre with their bikes and scooters and began the strike by switching off their apps. I spoke to one of them, a guy who told me he had worked for Deliveroo for three years. He told me that Deliveroo currently pay £4 per drop, and only about 10p extra per mile. As Deliveroo has expanded the area it covers the distances have increased but the basic pay hasn’t, so their pay has effectively been cut. Staff are also angry that waiting times outside restaurants aren’t paid, they are expected to get there early to receive food while it’s still hot, increasing the waiting times. Deliveroo also frequently change the rate per distance but don’t inform the drivers, they want more transparency from the company. Their main demands are £5 per drop, paid waiting times of £10 per hour, and £1 extra per mile. The strikers gave out leaflets in English on one side and Portuguese on the other, and a Brazilian driver spoke to the rally. Mervyn Rees, the Bristol City Council Labour mayor also spoke in support of the strikers and said he would contact Deliveroo to urge them to become a ‘living wage employer’, like the council. He forgot to mention the thousands made redundant by his administration. Staff are planning further strikes to push for their demands.
By Domenico Hill – NSSN Bristol
Bristol Couriers Network Facebook group
Other news
Solidarity with the People of Turkey (SPOT) 2019 annual conference ‘Turkey: Fighting for democracy under authoritarian rule’ – Saturday, 9 February 2019 from 11:00-17:00 at National Education Union, Mabledon Place, Hamilton House, WC1H 9BD London Facebook event
Poetry on the Picket Line – Saturday, 26 January 2019 from 19:30-23:30 at The Betsey Trotwood, 56 Farringdon Road, EC1R3 London – We’ve been gigging on picket lines and we’re indoors to launch our new anthology. Poetry from Janine Booth, Matt Abbott, Nadia Drews, The Repeat Beat Poet, Chip Grim, Lilly Driscoll, Tim Wells, Tim Kiely, Mark Coverdale and David Turner. The book will be available on the night for £5. T-shirts a tenner. All proceeds to strike funds. No door pressure but we’ll be passing the hat. You’ve guessed it: for strike funds Facebook event
Blacklisting & Victimisation
Blacklist Support Group financial appeal: the Blacklist support group is desperately short of funds, to continue the incredible work we need more finance, would you please consider making a donation, raise it at your branches and trade councils. Please make cheques payable to Joint sites committee and send to 70 Darnay Rise Chelmsford Essex CM1 4XA. Please forward onto your contacts many thanks Steve Kelly (JSC Treasurer)
Blacklisted t-shirts available at: https://shop.hopenothate.org.uk/component/hikashop/product/78-blacklisted-t-shirt
Book: http://newint.org/books/politics/blacklisted-secret-war/
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNcgrNs6pB8
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/blacklistSG/
Blog: www.hazards.org/blacklistblog
International
Urgent appeal: Four anti-fascists face prison sentence in Russia read more
Diary
2019
July
6 NSSN Conference Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL
CONTACT US
PHONE 07952 283 558
EMAIL mailto:[email protected]
TWITTER – https://twitter.com/NSSN_AntiCuts
FACEBOOK NSSN GROUP or STOP The CUTS Likes page
ADDRESS NSSN, PO Box 54498, London E10 9DE
