The NSSN proudly marched last Saturday in Birmingham with the striking binworkers, their friends, families and supporters. The city’s residents, along with trade union reps and activists from all around the country turned out in large numbers to make it a day to remember with loads of coverage in local and national media.
The Birmingham binworkers were delighted to see that their Unite comrades from the Sheffield Veolia struggle had made the journey down to offer full support.
The rally speakers included Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham, binworker shop stewards and Unite EC member Kathy Smith. One speaker said: “This city wasn’t built by people in suits and ties. It was built with the blood sweat and tears of working class people”.
The workers have been on indefinite strike since March after being threatened with pay cuts of up to £8,000 a year, and are facing brutal strike-breaking measures by the Labour council, backed by Starmer’s Labour government. Solidarity is even more essential as the council effectively threatens to fire and rehire the workers. In her speech, Sharon exposed Starmer’s government for not just maintaining Tory ‘fire and rehire’ but actually making changes to its original proposals to open the door to all councils to use this brutal method of cutting the wages of local authority workers.
Saturday’s demo, on the back of the recent massive vote to extend action, shows that there is huge support for the binworkers, both in Birmingham and throughout the trade union movement.
- Watch Reel News video of the demonstration
- Sounds of Solidarity – Brummies back the Bin Strikes – West Midlands Fire Brigades Union is proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Unite the Union in hosting a special solidarity event for Birmingham Bin workers, their families, and members of the public who wish to show their support. Everyone will be welcome! Date: Friday 26th September; Location: Norton’s Bar, Digbeth; Time: From 6pm ‘til late; Live Music | Family-Friendly Atmosphere
Birmingham bin workers vote to extend strike past Christmas and into spring (2 Sept) – Dispute escalates as government commissioners block deal and government allows fire and rehire. Birmingham residents paying millions in extra costs for agency workers and injunctions.
Long running strikes by Birmingham bin workers over effective fire and rehire pay cuts of up to £8,000 could be extended past Christmas and into spring, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today. The workers have overwhelmingly voted to extend their industrial action mandate to March 2026 over the brutal cuts, which would leave some at risk of losing their homes. Strikes have continued after the government appointed commissioners in Birmingham scuppered a deal that would have ended the dispute. Talks brokered by the conciliation service Acas in May and led by the council’s chief executive Joanne Roney agreed a “ball park” deal which would have ended the dispute. However, Ms Roney latterly advised that she could not get the deal past the commissioners. It is clear therefore that there is no point at this stage having further negotiations with the council. The ball is in the government’s court. It has also been revealed that the cash strapped council is paying millions extra to operate its refuse service during the strikes. In July, Birmingham Live published a freedom of information response that revealed that Birmingham council had already spent £6.5 million on agency workers supplied by the Job and Talent employment agency. In addition, £1.3 million had been spent with the contractor Tom White Waste (wholly owned by Coventry council) to try to undermine the strike. The council has also spent hundreds of thousands on legal injunctions against the striking workers, which again would have been unnecessary if the dispute had been resolved. Costs to council taxpayers will continue to climb the longer the dispute continues. In July, the government amended the Employment Rights act so that councils like Birmingham could legally fire and rehire their workers… The council’s threats to make workers redundant unless they accept the cut in pay is a clear case of fire and rehire. The Labour government had promised to ban fire and rehire but has now effectively reneged on that commitment. Birmingham’s bin workers voted 99.5 per cent in favour of strike action with a turnout of 72 per cent. The workers began intermittent strike action in January and indefinite strike action in Marchread more
Fire and Rehire ban now “burned-out shell”, Unite (7 Sept) – Unite, the UK’s leading union, has described the Labour government’s commitment to ban the practice of fire and rehiring workers, as now nothing more than a “burned out shell”. Unite had already been highly critical of Labour’s decision to allow private sector employers to continue to use fire and rehire, if a company was facing financial issues and cuts to pay and conditions, would reduce those financial difficulties. In July of this year, the government made fresh amendments to its Employment Rights Bill and further weakened the ban on fire and rehire. Under the new provisions local government and public sector employers can fire and rehire workers read more
- Sign petition to support binworkers
- Send a message of support to Unite and the binworkers
- Donate to the strike fund – Unite WM/7186 Branch, account: 20308397, sort code: 608301. Title donation: BCC Strike Donation
- Send a postcard to tell Birmingham Council’s leader to ‘Stop attacking your workers’ at https://supportbinworkers.unitetheunion.postbug.app/
Support the Unite Sheffield Bin Strike
Unite intensifies strike action at Veolia in battle for members pay and conditions (18 Sept) – New ballot approves continuation of indefinite strike action at Sheffield waste company. The fight for workers’ rights, pay and conditions is continuing in Sheffield as workers employed by Veolia on the city council’s refuse contract have overwhelmingly voted to continue their year-long strike in their fight for recognition, pay and conditions. Unite members at the Lumley Street waste depot have voted by 90 per cent to continue their strike action which began in August 2024. Workers are furious that Veolia has continued to deny their basic democratic right to have their union recognised. Additionally, workers are demanding improved pay and conditions – something that has been neglected in recent years. This includes harmonisation of contractual conditions, so that workers doing the same job are not on inferior contracts to workmates, improvements to sick pay and ensuring that pay for 2026 takes inflation fully into account…Unite has submitted a pay claim but Veolia has refused to negotiate read more
Donate to the strike fund – Unite NEYH, 60-83-01 20173962
Sign the Statement of Solidarity
Support the Unison Gloucestershire phlebotomists strike
Read the latest about the strike.
The results of the NHS phlebotomists in Gloucestershire Hospitals industrial action ballot returned a 100% YES vote, with a turnout of 100%.
Picketing and plan of action for week 27:
- Monday 22nd: Joint picket at Cheltenham General Hospital from 07:30 to 12:00.
- Tuesday 23rd: Joint picket at Gloucester Royal Hospital from 07:30 to 12:00.
- Wednesday 24th: Joint picket at Cheltenham General Hospital from 07:30 to 12:00.
- Thursday 25th: Joint picket at Gloucester Royal Hospital from 07:30 to 12:00.
- Friday 26th: Relaxed picket at both sites.
Donate to the strike fund
Please show phlebotomists your support and solidarity by donating to their strike hardship fund:
Make a donation via SumUp
UNISON Gloucestershire DHC Branch 21311
Sort code: 60-83-01
Account number: 20301750
Reference: strikefund
Unite: Incident at Sellafield picket line (17 Sept) – Unite can confirm an incident occurred at the Calder Gate of the Sellafield nuclear site during a lawful and peaceful picket. A vehicle was driven into a group of workers, with one worker requiring hospital treatment. Police have arrested those responsible in connection with the incident. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite utterly condemns the unprovoked attack on our members. The police must use the full force of the law to prosecute those responsible. This incident will not deter our members in continuing with their lawful industrial action and the strikes will go ahead as planned.”
Unite North West regional secretary Ritchie James said: “The incident is both shocking and horrifying to all those who witnessed it. Unite is aware that four individuals have been arrested. Strike action will continue for the rest of the week as planned.” Read more
Unite: Strikes at Sellafield over pay (16 Sept)
NSSN TUC Congress Rally says #NameTheDate for a national demo against Starmer’s austerity
Over 100 trade unionists, including TUC Congress delegates, attended the NSSN Rally on Sunday 7th September to demand that Congress in Brighton voted for motions from the TUC Disabled Workers Conference and Trades Councils Conference that set out a strategy to take on Starmer’s austerity offensive, specifically: “for the TUC to organise a weekend demonstration against Labour austerity as a launchpad for sustained trade union action in defence of workers and young people.”
The NSSN welcome that these motions were passed unanimously by Congress, and it is now official TUC policy to call a national Saturday demonstration. But the NSSN is now calling on union reps and members now to demand that the TUC name the date for this demonstration. As NSSN Chair Rob Williams said in Sunday’s Rally: The TUC should name the date. He called for it to be on Saturday 22nd November – just before the Budget on 26th November. Rob said that the bosses are lobbying Starmer’s Labour Government in their interests, the trade union movement must mobilise to put our demands forward – no to austerity, make the rich pay!
Consider taking this brief model motion to your next union meeting:-
- This union NEC/branch/union branch committee/trades council welcomes the unanimous vote at this year’s TUC Congress for the motions from the TUC Disabled Workers Conference and Trades Councils Conference.
- We fully support the demand in the motions: “for the TUC to organise a weekend demonstration against Labour austerity as a launchpad for sustained trade union action in defence of workers and young people.”
- We welcome that this is now official TUC policy and call on our union NEC to demand that the TUC name the date for such a demonstration.
- We believe that Saturday 22nd November – just before the Budget on 26th November – would be an ideal day for this demonstration to demand no to austerity, make the rich pay!
Watch the videos of the NSSN rally speakers: Steve Gillan POA General Secretary, Sarah Woolley BFAWU General Secretary, Mick Whelan ASLEF General Secretary, Ian Lawrence NAPO General Secretary, Steve Wright FBU General Secretary, Danny Taylor Unite striking binworker from Birmingham & Joel Mayfield Unite striking binworker from Sheffield, Paula Peters DPAC, Matt Webb Brighton & Hove Trades Union Council and Rob Williams NSSN Chair.
Download and distribute our NSSN Workplace Report
Affiliate your union branch/trades council to NSSN (£50).
Renew/donate online (HSBC: 40-06-41, 90143790)
Cheque (NSSN, 16 Warren Rd, London E10 5QA).
Contact us: email – [email protected].
Workers unity against the far-right – The far-right are again trying to whip up racist division by scapegoating refugees and migrants. The NSSN calls for the unions to play a leading role in opposing this offensive, which will only weaken our movement in the interests of the employees. We call on the TUC to implement the policy passed at its 2018 Congress, to launch a campaign of ‘Jobs and homes NOT racism.’
See info on counter-protests on the Stand Up to Racism website.
Unison: Statement on recent rallies and demonstrations
Prospect: Statement on intolerance and the Far Right
NIPSA Calls for Support for Anti-Racist Protests
France – CGT union federation: More than a million people demonstrated on Thursday, September 18, 2025 – With more than a million demonstrators in more than 250 demonstrations, and hundreds of thousands of strikers in the private and public sectors, the united mobilization of Thursday, September 18 is a great success. It sends a clear warning to the government: social anger is growing read more
Italy – USB union: 22 September: millions on strike for Palestine, hundreds of thousands in the squares across Italy – Great success for the strike called by USB to stop the genocide in Palestine: millions of workers are striking across the country, from ports like Genoa and Livorno to schools that have closed up to 70% in some cities, including logistics warehouses, factories, and public administrations. Tens of thousands have taken to the streets, with 100,000 alone in Piazza dei 500 in Rome, with demonstrations still ongoing and set to continue throughout the day read more
The next national central London demo against the assault on Gaza is on Saturday 11th October – 12noon details
From SHAC – Social Housing Action Campaign: Conference to Discuss Forming a National Tenants and Residents Union – 11am – 4pm Saturday 11th October. SHAC is working towards a new, national, democratic tenants’ and residents’ union. Our conference brings together tenants, residents, and housing campaign groups to discuss the creation of a national tenants and residents union. The aim is to form a steering committee that can take the project to the next level. Register here
Union News
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RMT
Strike ballot at First South West after poor pay offer (20 Sept) – Bus workers at First South West in Somerset and Cornwall will be balloted for strike action after the company refused to improve a penny-pinching pay offer. The company has made an offer which would see bus workers hourly pay rise by just 58p an hour. The offer includes no improvements to working conditions and has already been rejected by union members in a previous round of talks. RMT wants to see bus workers move closer to their modest goal of £15 an hour, in line with what other bus companies are paying across the South West. But First South West has so far refused to improve its offer. First South West is part of FirstGroup, whose bus division made £96 million in profit last year, with the group overall reporting profits of £223 million and increasing dividends to shareholders read more
Northern rail contractor staff to stage 48-hour strike over bullying and unfair treatment (18 Sept) – Rail union, RMT has called a 48-hour strike by members working for Carlisle Support Services on the Northern trains’ revenue and gateline contract. The action follows reports of bullying and harassment by managers, including pressuring staff to break the strike, denying extra hours to union members, and forcing redeployments at short notice to remote locations. With no serious offers from the company, RMT members will strike on Tuesday 7 and Wednesday 8 October read more
RMT demonstration against work visa rule changes affecting rail staff (16 Sept) – Rail union, RMT will hold a demonstration on Wednesday against the Home Office’s reckless changes to work visa rules which threaten the jobs and futures of hundreds of rail staff including on London Underground. The Government has stripped whole categories of jobs from the Skilled Worker Visa scheme, including the Rail Travel Assistant role carried out by many RMT members. These changes were rushed through with no consultation, brought in by statutory instrument with almost no parliamentary scrutiny, and imposed within weeks. The union says this has left long-standing Tube staff, many of them younger workers recruited in good faith with the understanding that sponsorship would be available when their current visas expired, facing the loss of their jobs and any right to stay in the UK workforce. RMT warns the policy is short-sighted and will worsen the rail industry’s growing skills crisis, creating needless costs for TfL and leaving gaps in employment across the network. Research by the National Skills Academy for Rail has already highlighted how large sections of the workforce are approaching retirement and how younger roles such as Customer Service Assistants are critical to the future of the industry read more
RMT to ballot Wightlink members after company puts 160 jobs at risk (16 Sept) – Maritime union, RMT confirmed today that it is in dispute with cross-Solent ferry operator Wightlink after the company announced proposals which would put 160 jobs at risk. The company has outlined plans to cut Deck Officer and Port Operator grades, close onboard retail overnight, and reduce crewing levels across vessels. RMT believes these changes will make ships less safe, undermine vital services and heap pressure on loyal staff who have kept services running. Despite being pressed directly, Wightlink management refused to give a commitment to “no compulsory redundancies,” instead suggesting they would “hope” to secure enough volunteers read more
RMT demands Summit with the Mayor to end tube dispute (10 Sept) – RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey has called on Mayor Sadiq Khan to attend a summit with the union to find a resolution urgently to the escalating London Underground dispute. Speaking at TUC Congress in Brighton, Mr Dempsey told delegates from across the 6 million strong trade union movement, “I’ve got a message for the Mayor. Instead of going on social media, instead of the old tired clichés, telling trades unionists to get round the table, you’re the Mayor of London, you’re the Chair of TfL. Stop going on social media, invite us to the meeting, let’s have a discussion, because I want to know what is going on in London.” He warned of more strike action if there was no resolution but pointed out that members did not want to be in this position. Mr Dempsey said: “We take no pleasure in causing disruption but we make no apology for fighting for our members. So if the mayor has any sense, he will reach out to us.” Moving the unanimously backed motion which means the TUC Congress collectively calls on the summit to take place, Mr Dempsey added: “This Congress calls on the mayor, to urgently convene a summit to resolve all these disputes, improve industrial relations, end outsourcing and defend ticket offices.” Read more
RMT explains tube strike to BBC News (6 Sept) – RMT Regional Organiser Jared Wood has appeared on BbC London News to discuss our dispute read more
Tube cleaners threaten strike action over wages and sick pay (4 Sept) – RMT has declared a formal dispute with outsourcing giant ABM after the company failed to improve on its derisory offer to cleaners working on the London Underground cleaning contract. Despite repeated calls for a fair pay settlement, ABM management have refused to go beyond the statutory London Living Wage uplift and have made no offer whatsoever on sick pay, leaving cleaners with no protection when they fall ill. Unless the company comes back to the table with a serious offer, RMT will move to ballot its members across the Underground cleaning contract for strike action. The potential strike comes against the backdrop of Mayor Sadiq Khan previously calling on TfL to assess its ability to bring cleaning services back in-house, improve sick pay and urging the government to fully implement Labour’s “New Deal for Working People,” which pledges the biggest wave of insourcing in a generation read more
Breakdown in industrial relations – Cross Country – Firstly, I would like to congratulate you and your colleagues again for returning a splendid result in the ballot for industrial action. The union’s National Executive Committee has considered the matter and has taken the decision to call on all our Cross Country members to take the following strike action:
- Members are instructed not to book on for any shifts that commence between:
00.01 hours until 23.59 hours on Saturday 23rd August 2025
00.01 hours until 23.59 hours on Monday 25th August 2025
- Additionally, the union’s National Executive Committee has called the following industrial action short of a strike: No electronic scanning of tickets from 00.01 hours on Sunday 24th August 2025 until further notice.
To comply with legal advice the above industrial action short of a strike will be suspended for the duration of the strikes but will commence again immediately after the strike action has concluded. This dispute is about protecting the future of your jobs, the protection of negotiated agreements and the right of your Union to represent you effectively read more
Orkney Ferries seafarers to take industrial action (16 Aug) – Maritime union RMT, will begin industrial action on Orkney Ferries later this month, in a dispute over pay and conditions. From Thursday 28 August, RMT members will take action short of a strike by refusing to work any overtime until further notice. The move comes after the company failed to enter into meaningful negotiations with the union over the 2025 pay settlement. RMT is the largest trade union representing workers at Orkney Ferries and has consistently raised concerns about pay, working conditions and management’s lack of engagement read more
ASLEF
Train drivers to strike on CrossCountry (9 Sept) – Train drivers at CrossCountry will walk out on strike on Friday 3rd October and refuse to work non-contractual overtime from Sunday 21st September over the company’s persistent refusal to adhere to negotiated agreements read more
Rally for striking Hull Trains drivers (29 Aug) – from ASLEF Facebook page: Our solidarity rally started this morning with ASLEF Hull Trains Lead Officer Nigel Roebuck addressing those gathered to show solidarity. we also heard from David Pike, TUC North East, Yorkshire & Humber Regional Secretary, GMB officer Charlotte Brumpton-Childs, BFAWU General Secretary Sarah Wooley, FBU President Ian Murray who also informed us that the FBU have donated £2,000 to the strike fund and NEU Executive Member Hannah Scott.
ASLEF General Secretary Mick Whelan closed the rally
“‘Thank you for coming today to show your support for a driver who has been sacked for doing nothing wrong. He is the victim of a witch hunt. He has a completely clean safety of the line record. The company are liars and have lied throughout this dispute. They think we will go away. Today shows that we are right and they are wrong”.
Thank you for your show of solidarity today don’t forget you can Support our members by telling Hull Trains to stop their attacks on union members via the following link https://actionnetwork.org/letters/write-to-hull-trains
#HullTrainsStrike
TSSA
TSSA demands urgent action over bus driver assaults (24 Sept) – Transport and travel union TSSA is calling for urgent action to protect bus drivers, following a worrying rise in assault across the Transport for London (Tfl) network. The union represents workers in TfL, including bus operations, and is currently running a national campaign to end violence against transport workers. TSSA has described as ‘shocking’ new figures which show there had been over 800 physical assaults and hate crimes on bus drivers in 2024 – a rise of 21 per cent on the previous year. The data, obtained by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) showed some of the worst boroughs included Westminster and Croydon read more
TfL pay talks update (29 July) –
- TfL declines to improve its offer
- All unions present state the offer is unacceptable in its current form
TSSA are representing you as TfL Head Office’s largest trade union in TfL Pay Talks for Pay Bands 1-3. At today’s round of pay talks, TfL’s negotiating team declined to improve their offer of 3.4% for this year. All trade unions present stated that this offer is not acceptable in its current form. TfL asked that all unions provide a written response to the offer by Thursday 31 July – and said that if all unions put the offer to their members and the offer was accepted by 28 August, they would be in a position to implement the deal in the November payroll. TSSA reps do not believe that this offer is yet in a fit state to present to you, our members, based on the results of our consultation with you in preparing our pay claim. There are no further meetings scheduled at this stage read more
TSSA members to commence action short of strike in Translink 30th July read more
Unite
Strikes to hit Birmingham textiles company (24 Sept) – Workers at Johnson Workwear to walk out over real-terms pay cut. Over 50 Birmingham workers at leading workwear supplier, Johnsons, are taking strike action over the company’s latest pay offer. Members of the Unite union, Britain’s leading trade union, are furious at being offered just 2.8 per cent and overwhelmingly rejected this real terms pay cut. With inflation currently at 4.6 per cent, this offer would worsen the cost-of-living crisis where housing, food and utility prices are rising faster than wages. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham: “It is completely unacceptable that a company like Johnson who are making money hand over fist think that they can squeeze our members’ pay…Strikes are taking place on 26 September, 3 October, 10 October and 17 October 2025. There is also a ban on all overtime that came into place on 18 September. Staff on the factory floor currently earn just £12.38 per hour, just 17 per cent an hour above the national minimum wage read more
MABS workers secure nearly 13 per cent pay bump (23 Sept) – 9.25 per cent two-year deal follows 3.5 per cent increase secured in March. Two-year deal includes element backdated to October 2024. Trade union Unite, which represents workers throughout the community and voluntary sector, today said that members working for the Monetary Advice and Budgetary Service (MABS) have voted to accept a 9.25 per cent two-year pay deal. The deal, which includes a 2.5 per cent increase backdated to October 2024, will run until October 2026 and follows a 3.5 per cent increase secured in March of this year, bringing the total pay increase to 12.75 per cent read more
Response failures highlights need to end NI ambulance staffing crisis (22 Sept) – Paramedics are almost into third year of industrial action over unacceptable working conditions. Unite has released responses to a freedom of information (FoI) request on staffing shortfalls and the resulting failure to meet targets for ambulance response times. The figures obtained show that in May there were 135 frontline vacancies in the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS). That number does not include the additional staff assessed as being required to deliver the health department’s clinical response model read more
Linamar workforce votes to accept improved pay deal (22 Sept) – Workers at Linamar’s Belfast site have voted to accept an improved two year pay deal. The light metal manufacturer improved its original pay offer following a strike ballot. Workers will receive a 3.73 per cent uplift in two stages in the first year with a RPI tied payment of between 3 and 4 percent in the second year. The deal also includes provision for an enhanced retirement payment and a reduction in waiting time to access the company’s sick pay read more
Airbus strike action off after new deal agreed (19 Sept) – Industrial action called off after agreement reached with employer. Thousands of Unite members at Airbus have voted to accept a new pay agreement following a recent ballot. The outcome means that industrial action will no longer take place. The agreement, reached after prolonged negotiations between Unite representatives and Airbus management includes enhancements to members pensions read more
Edinburgh airport workers back new pay deal averting strikes (19 Sept) – 100 OCS staff receive boost to jobs, pay and conditions. Over 100 OCS Group workers based at Edinburgh airport have overwhelmingly backed a new pay offer averting strike action this month Scotland’s leading aviation union, revealed today (19 September). A two-year pay deal has been overwhelmingly supported by the OCS workers which represents a significant improvement on previous offers from the company. The workers will receive a 6.1 per cent increase on hourly rates effective from 1 January 2025 alongside a boost to the overtime rate. In 2026, a five per cent increase on hourly rates will run from 1 January alongside improvements to the company sick pay scheme. Unite’s OCS membership had unanimously backed strike action in a ballot with a turnout of over 90 per cent. The workers were scheduled to take part in a series of stoppages during September but action was suspended after the union received an enhanced pay offer from OCS read more
Brighton and Crawley bus bedlam as workers strike over pay (19 Sept) – Workforce furious over derisory pay offer. Over a thousand bus workers are set to bring transport bedlam to Brighton, Hove, Crawley and Gatwick Airport as they strike over a poor pay offer. Unite members at Brighton Bus Company and the Metrobus Crawley company rejected a pay offer of just 3.5 per cent – a real terms pay cut with inflation running at 4.5 per cent in July 2025. Following an overwhelming ballot result where 1300 workers were asked about taking strike action, workers are now due to take strike action on 6 and 15 October read more
Brighton and Crawley bus bedlam as workers strike over pay (19 Sept) – Workforce furious over derisory pay offer. Over a thousand bus workers are set to bring transport bedlam to Brighton, Hove, Crawley and Gatwick Airport as they strike over a poor pay offer. Unite members at Brighton Bus Company and the Metrobus Crawley company rejected a pay offer of just 3.5 per cent – a real terms pay cut with inflation running at 4.5 per cent in July 2025. Following an overwhelming ballot result where 1300 workers were asked about taking strike action, workers are now due to take strike action on 6 and 15 October read more
Workers set to strike at Collins Aerospace, Kilkeel (19 Sept) – Unite members at Collins Aerospace in Kilkeel, County Down a leading manufacturer of aircraft interiors and seating will commence a first one-day strike from midnight on Friday 26 September. Workers at the site are seeking a cost-of-living pay increase maintaining their skills while differential with rises to the minimum wage. Workers have voted overwhelmingly for strike action read more
A9 set for travel disruption as road maintenance workers back industrial action (19 Sept) – Union highlights Inverness based Bear Scotland low pay levels. Unite the union can confirm that major roads including the A9 trunk road from Perth to Inverness are set for travel disruption after maintenance workers overwhelmingly backed industrial action. The dispute centres on low pay for dozens of Bear Scotland workers based in Inverness who are key to the maintenance and safety of major roads in central Scotland and the highlands including the A9, particularly during the imminent bad weather during autumn and winter. Bear Scotland employees have rejected a pay offer which takes the lowest hourly pay band up from £12 an hour to £12.75. The pay offer to other key grades rises by only one pound per hour including the highest grade from £13.25 to £14.25. Unite says that similar maintenance workers at other local companies are paying up to £16.00 per hour read more
Stagecoach Manchester in ‘insulting’ toilet message shame (18 Sept) – Unite has strongly criticised bus firm Stagecoach after it sent a message out to drivers in Manchester telling them that if they need to relieve themselves in a bottle to make sure they take it away with them, while not providing adequate toilet facilities for staff read more
Further disruption to Bristol buses as new strike dates announced (18 Sept) – Bristol will again be brought to a standstill next month as over 600 drivers at First West of England’s City Line have voted to take two weeks of fresh strike action. The drivers, members of Unite, are currently undertaking a four-day strike, the last day of which is tomorrow (19 September), over pay. After talks broke down between First West of England, part of First Bus, and the union, workers from the affected depots, Lawrence Hill and Hengrove, will now be walking out from 1 to 14 October. Given the number of drivers involved and the length of the second wave of strikes, this will be extremely disruptive with many cancellations and delays to services expected read more
Unite delivers wage win for CNOOC offshore workers (18 Sept) – Latest oil and gas industry success worth up to £8,000. Unite the union can confirm that around 130 workers haven overwhelmingly backed a pay deal with offshore operator CNOOC. The basic pay increase is worth 5.5 per cent with further improvements to allowances worth an additional seven per cent. The overall package is equivalent to an uplift amounting up to £8,000 for members working on the Buzzard, Scott, and Golden Eagle platforms depending on their role. The CNOOC workers includes control room operators, supervisors, electricians, technicians, and mechanics. The membership had previously supported strike action after several offers were rejected by the workers… The UK’s leading union is highlighting that successfully negotiated pay deals with offshore operators including Equinor, TotalEnergies, Neo Next (Repsol) and CNOOC has put over £2 million directly into the pockets of offshore workers read more
Strike ballot at ABP meats in Craigavon (18 Sept) – Workers to be balloted after management fails to agree meat packers cost of living pay claim. Unite has notified Anglo Beef Processors UK (ABP) of a forthcoming strike ballot at the company’s Craigavon plant. The ballot will open on Thursday 25 September and closes on Tuesday 13 October. Unite represents more than 150 meat packers, trimmers, distribution, kill line and boning workers on the site. Unite is seeking a cost-of-living pay increase for its members who are paid a piece rate. Management have offered 3.2 per cent to the workforce with a one-off cash payment of £100 – a real-terms pay cut. This offer was overwhelmingly rejected by workers read more
Strike threat at leading defence and aerospace company Leonardo (18 Sept) – housands of workers at sites across the UK (Yeovil, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Luton and Basildon) balloted over poor pay offer. Nearly three thousand workers at leading defence and aerospace company Leonardo could walk out in a dispute over pay, the Unite union announced today. Workers at sites in Yeovil, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Luton and Basildon are being balloted for industrial action after rejecting a pay offer of 3.2 per cent (a real terms pay cut) from the employer. A successful ballot will see workers head to the picket line and factories shutdown. Leonardo is a world-leading manufacturer of defence industry equipment including helicopters, aircraft, aerospace parts, electronics and cybersecurity. Headquartered in Italy it is one of the largest defence companies in the world read more
Minister must end unsafe staffing at NI ambulance control centre, Unite (17 Sept) – Three workers left to answer 999 calls from across the entire region, reporting up to 82 calls on hold. Unite is warning the staffing crisis in Northern Ireland’s ambulance service is pushing workers beyond breaking point. Members working at the Emergency Operations Control Centre in Knockbracken contacted the union to report that for the second night in a row there were only three emergency medical dispatchers on duty along with a supervisor. Control centre staff answer 999 callers from across Northern Ireland and it is meant to have a staffing complement of 10. The workers reported that because of the acute staffing shortage, at one point there were 82 emergency calls on hold read more
JLR supply chain workers being told to apply for universal credit in wake of cyberattack (17 Sept) – Government must set up furlough to save jobs like the one supporting Alexander Dennis bus manufacturing staff. Workers throughout the JLR supply chain are being laid off with reduced or zero pay, with some being advised to sign up for universal credit, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today. In the wake of the cyberattack, Unite said thousands of workers in the JLR supply chain must receive a furlough scheme similar to that announced this week to support staff at bus maker Alexander Dennis read more
Further disruption to Manchester Bee Network bus services as more strikes announced (16 Sept) – Three additional strike dates at Manchester’s Bee Network have been announced by Unite, the UK’s leading union representing workers in passenger transport. Over 2,000 workers involved in the dispute are employed by Stagecoach, Metroline Manchester and First Bus Rochdale – firms which are among those that make up the bus section of the integrated Bee Network. Workers have voted to take additional strike action from 30 September to 2 October on top of walk outs starting this week, after Stagecoach, Metroline and First failed to come back to negotiations with an improved pay offer deemed acceptable to Unite members read more
Further Manchester travel disruption looms as bus and tram network staff ballot for pay strikes (15 Sept) – Transport for Greater Manchester workers in ticketing, passenger assistance and information services could join 2,000 striking bus workers. Around 200 Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) workers are being balloted for industrial action over pay and could join 2,000 bus workers in the city on strike. The workers, who undertake a variety of roles including ticketing, passenger assistance and information services for the bus and tram network, have rejected a 3.2 per cent pay offer. The offer is a real terms pay cut as the current rate of RPI inflation stands at 4.8 per cent read more
Strikes at NEU escalate over ‘botched’ restructure plans (16 Sept) – Lack of meaningful consultation and management intransigence forces strike action by Unite members. Over 400 staff at the National Education Union (NEU) are to strike for three further days this week over a proposed restructure that will have a catastrophic impact on staff workloads read more
Pay strikes at Bournemouth Airport to go ahead (16 Sept) – Strikes will take place at Bournemouth Airport later this month after workers rejected a new pay offer from the employer. Around 80 members of Unite, who work in different areas of the airport including baggage handling, check-in, flight dispatching and plane fuelling were due to walk out in a dispute about pay earlier this month, but this was suspended to allow workers to be balloted on whether to accept a new deal. However, strikes will now take place on 30 September, 1 October, 16 October and 17 October after workers rejected this new offer. Bournemouth Airport is successful and profitable – this year it increased all of its airport charges by five per cent and has also invested over £50 million in expanding the airport due to increased passenger numbers. Yet workers at the airport have struggled to afford essentials following years of low pay and believe that given the cost-of-living crisis the pay offers from the employer equate to a real-terms pay cut read more
Ambulance outsourcing dispute: Unite to ballot for industrial action (14 Sept) – Unite, which represents members working for the National Ambulance Service (NAS), today (Sunday) announced that it will be balloting members nationwide for industrial action following the unilateral decision to outsource inter-hospital ambulance transfers in the Greater Dublin area to a private operator. Earlier this week it emerged that NAS management had initiated a tendering process without consulting the relevant unions. This follows recent proposals, rejected by unions, to reduce minimum paramedic crewing levels in emergency ambulances read more
London International Transport Workers’ Federation staff announce new strike dates to protect jobs (12 Sept) – Additional strike action announced due to lack of movement by management in redundancy negotiations. More than 100 workers at the London-based International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) have announced new strike dates in response to planned redundancies and attacks on collective bargaining. The workers, members of Unite, are striking after the ITF’s management initiated an organisation-wide restructuring that includes cutting a quarter of the workforce this year. In July, the workers voted by 89 per cent for strike action and by 90 per cent for action short of strike action on a turn out of 89 per cent read more
Tarmac strike in Derbyshire suspended as workers vote on new pay offer (11 Sept) – A strike next week at Tarmac’s Alfreton Blocks Plant in Derbyshire has been suspended after the company put forward an improved pay offer. Over 30 Unite members at the plant, who include maintenance workers, quality technicians and fitters who make aerated concrete blocks for construction projects and pack them on the production line, were set to walk out on Monday 15 and Tuesday 16 September then Monday 22 and Tuesday 23 September. They had overwhelmingly voted to reject a pay offer of four per cent, which workers do not believe goes far enough to address years of low pay. However, next week’s strike action has been suspended to allow workers to vote on the new deal…Depending on the outcome of this ballot, the following week’s industrial action could still go ahead read more
Gatwick immigration services workers ballot for strike action over poverty pay (10 Sept) – OCS workers face abuse, physically gruelling shifts assisting UK Border Force staff. Gatwick immigration services workers are being balloted for strike action over poverty pay, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today. The OCS workers, who earn little more than the minimum wage, are demanding a pay rise that reflects the demanding nature of the job and the rising cost of living. The workers provide support to the UK Border Force at the airport’s immigration gates. During gruelling 12-hour shifts, they are not allowed to sit down, face regular abuse from arriving passengers and only receive a half hour paid break…The ballot for industrial action will run until 22 September. Strikes would cause disruption to immigration services at Gatwick read more
James Walker workers in Cockermouth to strike over pay (9 Sept) – Production lines at James Walker and Co will grind to a halt later this month as 250 Unite members at the Cockermouth-based firm will walk out in a dispute about pay. James Walker and Co is a privately owned global industrial business, which supplies high-performance fluid sealing products to virtually every industry sector. Workers have overwhelmingly rejected a below-inflation pay offer of three per cent. James Walker and Co is profitable company with a turnover of £44.9m and a profit of £1.4m after tax. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “James Walker is putting profits before people and Unite will not allow it. A 24-hour walkout at the Cumbrian site will take place from 06:00 on September 22 after 91 per cent of Unite members voted to strike. Workers will also undertake a continuous overtime ban from 19 September read more
Home counties bus chaos as Arriva workers walk out (5 Sept) – Staff at garages in Beds, Bucks and Herts to strike over pay. Over 800 bus drivers, engineers, cleaners and shunters across the South-East of England are taking strike action over derisory pay offers. Members of the Unite union, Britain’s leading transport union, are walking out after their employer, Arriva, failed to make a decent pay offer. They are now set to strike for 16 days across September and October. The dispute covers workers across Arriva the Shires and Arriva Kent Thameside across five depots. These are Luton, Milton Keynes, (both the Arriva The Shires) and Stevenage, Ware and Hemel Hempstead (Arriva Kent Thameside). At the Shires, around 50 routes a day operate out of Milton Keynes and Luton while Kent Thameside operates approximately 30 routes a day out of Hemel Hempstead, Ware and Stevenage…Strikes are to take place on the following dates: Tuesday 23 September – Friday 26 September, Wednesday 1 October – Saturday 4 October, Thursday 9 October – Sunday 12 October, Tuesday 14 October – Friday 17 October read more
Birkenhead, Chorley and Preston bus chaos as Stagecoach drivers strike (5 Sept) – 500 Stagecoach workers walk out over pay disparities. Birkenhead, Chorley and Preston Stagecoach bus services will be severely disrupted during strikes by 500 drivers, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today. The workers are demanding a pay rise that reflects huge disparities between their pay and drivers in the same areas. For example, Arriva drivers in Birkenhead earn £2.69 an hour more than Birkenhead Stagecoach drivers and £2.13 an hour more than Stagecoach drivers in Chorley and Preston…The workers will take strike action from 29 September to 5 October and from 13 October to 19 October. Industrial action will intensify if the dispute is not resolved read more
Unite announces SQA industrial action ballot as pay dispute escalates (5 Sept) – Pay increase five months overdue to hundreds of workers. Unite can confirm today (Friday 5 September) that around 400 members at the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) are being balloted on industrial action in an escalating dispute over pay. The pay dispute centres on the SQA’s pay offer of three per cent for 2025 just as the broader cost of inflation hit 4.8 per cent in July. Unite is highlighting that any pay increase for the workforce is now five months overdue as it was expected to take effect on 1 April. The union held a consultative ballot of its membership on the pay offer which indicated 97 per cent wanted to be balloted on industrial action if no movement was made by the SQA on the pay offer…The ballot on industrial action opens on Friday 5 September and closes on Thursday 25 September read more
Lindsey oil refinery workers rally at Parliament to save plant (3 Sept) – Lindsey oil refinery workers will rally outside of parliament on Wednesday to call for urgent government action to keep the site operational and prevent it from being split off into parts. The site supports 450 directly employed workers plus a further 500 contract jobs and potentially thousands in the supply chain. As well as being vital to North Lincolnshire’s regional economy and local communities, the refinery plays a critical role in the UK’s energy security read more
Altrad offshore contractors to be balloted on strike action (2 Sept) – Oil platforms Magnus and Thistle Alpha owned by EnQuest. Unite the union can confirm an industrial action ballot for Altrad offshore contractors working on the Magnus and Thistle Alpha platforms operated by EnQuest opens today (3 September). The pay dispute is based on Altrad Employment Services Limited reneging on a four per cent wage increase which is due to around 50 workers on the platforms effective from 1 January under the offshore Energy Services Agreement (ESA) read more
Unite accuses the SSPCA of worker ‘neglect’ over real terms pay cut (2 Sept) – Trade union cites years of ‘low pay’ while new executive earns bumper wage
Unite the union can confirm that around 140 members employed by the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) are being balloted over strike action in a dispute over pay. SSPCA workers have emphatically rejected a two year pay offer which amounts to a significant real terms pay cut. In 2025, the offer on average amounts to around 1.6 per cent with some members having their pay frozen. A one-off payment has been tabled worth around two per cent. In 2026, only a two per cent offer has been tabled. The broader cost of inflation has just hit 4.8 per cent in July… The SSPCA has two main workplaces those being its headquarters in Dunfermline and at Cardonald, Glasgow. The ballot opens today (Wednesday 3 September) and closes on 17 September read more
Facilities staff at London mental health centre to strike over pay (29 Aug) – Workers in Newham take to picket line over pay as workplace relations breakdown. Dozens of staff that keep a London mental health facility in a fit and proper state are striking next week over a failure by their employer to pay decent wages. Unite members at the Newham Centre for Mental Health are striking from 1-5 September and from 15-21 September due to their anger over pay and conditions read more. How You Can Support the Newham strike:-
- Donate to the strike fund: https://gofund.me/5a1a59672
- Model Motion: Solidarity with outsourced NHS workers at Newham Centre for Mental Health – Outsourced workers at Newham Centre for Mental Health are on strike demanding NHS equivalent pay, terms and conditions and union recognition. The domestics, chefs, porters, reception and maintenance workers are some of the lowest paid in London’s NHS. Their employer GFM provides “facilities management” services as part of a 30 year Private Finance Initiative contract worth over £213 million. While GFM and their PFI associates extract multi million pound profits from the NHS, the workers who actually run and maintain the hospital are paid poverty wages and denied basic rights like occupational sick pay and unsocial hours payments. GFM’s denial of occupational sick pay not only disadvantages individual workers but undermines hospital safety by driving sick and infectious workers into work. We resolve to support the GFM workers by making a donation of £___ to their strike fund. We demand the NHS is returned to full public ownership with outsourced workers brought back in-house on NHS pay, terms and conditions.We will send a solidarity message to the striking workers and publicise the GFM workers campaign to our members.
- Donations to strike fund can be made by bank transfer to the ELFT Unite branch LE7113/L. Contact [email protected] for details
AW Crewing staff in Lowestoft to strike over pay and conditions (28 Aug) – Workers at AW Crewing are set to take industrial action next month in a dispute around pay and conditions. The almost 30 Unite members make up the crew of the Cefas Endeavour – a government surveying ship based out of the Port of Lowestoft, Suffolk. Workers are employed by the Guernsey and Isle of Man based AW Crewing – both areas which are tax havens – and include the captain and deckhands who facilitate scientists coming on board to do surveys of British waters. This is an extremely skilled role, however these workers are paid less than their counterparts working for the same firm. Cefas Endeavour staff employed by AW Crewing have been offered a 6.5 per cent pay rise but this has been rejected as it still leaves some crew members earning less than their counterparts on other vessels…The Unite members voted 100 per cent for strike action on an 81 per cent turn out. Strikes will take place from 9 to 12 September and would see the Cefas Endeavour being docked with no crew read more
National Grid and Scottish Power shortages of critical transformer oil due to strikes (27 Aug) – Ellesmere Port Electrical Oil Services workers striking over pay. Energy companies including the National Grid and Scottish Power have shortages of critical transformer oil due to pay strikes by Electrical Oil Services workers in Ellesmere Port. Electrical Oil Services, which supplies oil to lubricate, cool and insulate power company transformers, has informed its clients that stock is very low due to ongoing industrial action. Due to the crucial role the striking plant operators perform, stocks began to run out after just a few days of strike action that began last week and which is still underway… The workers took strike action from 18 August to the morning of 25 August, due to an inadequate pay offer. Further strikes began yesterday (26 August) and will last until 1 September. Industrial action will intensify if the dispute is not resolved read more
Pathology staff across London to strike over pay and grading (26 Aug) – Major disruption at multiple hospitals as blood tests to cease. A&E services severely impacted. Pathology staff at laboratories across London are to take strike action over pay and grading it was announced today, severely impacting operations at seven London hospitals. Over 800 Unite members employed by Health Services Laboratory (and sister company The Doctors’ Laboratory) are taking three days of strike action on 3, 4 and 5 September. Staff at the HSL laboratories who conduct blood, skin, and tissue tests for two London healthcare trusts are furious over the lack of transparency in their grading. This means staff are often doing the work of more senior colleagues without being properly paid or doing the same job as other colleagues and being paid different rates. The privatised service, despite being a supplier to the NHS, does not adhere to NHS pay scales and staff earn less money than if they were directly employed by the NHS read more
Turners tanker drivers balloted on strike action in pay dispute (25 Aug) – Grangemouth based drivers deliver fuel for major aviation companies. Unite can confirm that Grangemouth based logistic drivers working for Turners (Soham) Limited are being balloted on strike action in an escalating pay dispute. The logistic drivers work on two contracts which provide fuel services for a number of major aviation companies. Turners has offered a miserly one per cent just as the broader cost of inflation hit 4.8 per cent in July. In its latest after tax profits, Turners recorded £51m for the year ending 2023. The union believes fuel supplies to major aviation companies including Jet 2, easyJet and Emirates operating at Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle airports will be directly impacted if the drivers take industrial action following a successful ballot result read more
Back-to-school chaos as bus strikes hit West London (19 Aug) – Drivers, engineers and controllers to walk out over backdated pay. Parents and pupils heading back-to-school are set to be hit by bus strike chaos as nearly 2,000 workers at London United and London Transit taking strike action on Friday 29 August and Monday 1 September. Members of the Unite, Britain’s leading union, are furious that not all elements of the new pay offer they have received from their employer are being backdated to the pay anniversary date n December. This would mean drivers losing out on hundreds of pounds of back pay after First Bus bought the company earlier this year from RATP. One of the subsidiaries involved, London United, is also attempting to change the pay anniversary of some workers and is refusing to reinstate shift work premiums for others read more
Jones Engineering: OECD finds Unite complaint merits further consideration (19 Aug) – Complaint related to treatment of workers following 2023 dispute. Unite welcomes OECD offer of mediation. August 19th: Unite today welcomed the decision by the Ireland National Contact Point for the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises that a complaint submitted by Unite and the global federation Building and Woodworkers International in respect of Jones Engineering and its American parent company Cathexis merits further consideration. The decision is available here. The complaint centres largely on the treatment of union members by Jones following a 2023 trade dispute surrounding the union’s claim for restoration of the first hour of ‘travel time’ read more
PX Limited strike suspended as workers are balloted on new pay offer (18 Aug) – A 24-hour strike tomorrow (19 August) by Unite members at PX Limited which would have caused disruption to the Sellafield nuclear site in Cumbria has been suspended to allow workers to vote on a new pay offer. Almost 40 workers were set to walk out after previously turning down two unsatisfactory pay offers from PX Limited, citing the fact they are an intrinsic part of processes at Sellafield. However the company has come back to the table with an improved proposal which employees are being balloted on. The affected staff at PX Limited provide critical process steam and electricity to Sellafield. Strike action would have caused disruption to any facilities that rely on this read more
Fawley refinery poverty pay canteen strikes escalate (18 Aug) – Strikes by Fawley oil refinery canteen workers over poverty pay have escalated, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today. The predominantly female workers, employed by catering outsourcer Compass, are paid only slightly more than the minimum wage. They are demanding a pay rise that reflects the rising cost of living and ensures the gap between their wages and the absolute legal minimum does not shrink. London-based Compass Group is the world’s largest catering provider and raked in nearly £1.2 billion in operating profits in the six months to March 2025 – an increase of 11.6 per cent. The workers began strike action in July. The latest round of strike action began today (18 August) and will last until 22 August. Further strikes will take place from 26 to 28 August and from 1 to 5 September. Industrial action will intensify if the dispute is not resolved. The Fawley refinery is operated by multinational Esso read more
Stoke residents face repair delays unless leave problems resolved (14 Aug) – Stoke on Trent council housing residents will face repair and maintenance delays due to industrial action if a dispute over annual leave is not swiftly resolved. Currently, Stoke council office workers receive two days annual leave more than craftworkers at the local authority. In a consultative ballot of over 225 craftworkers, who include joiners, plumbers and electricians, 99 per cent voted in favour of taking industrial action over the disparity…Unite will begin formal industrial action proceedings if the council does not provide annual leave parity in a timely manner read more
Imperial College freshers braced for strike disruption as workers ballot over pay (14 Aug) – Teaching and support staff offered insulting pay offer from UK’s top university with total income of £1.3 billion. Imperial College freshers are facing disruption at the start of the academic year as teaching and non-teaching staff ballot for industrial action over pay. Members of Unite, along with members of other recognised unions, are angry at Imperial’s two per cent imposed pay increase. It is a real terms pay cut given that the latest RPI inflation stands at 4.4 per cent…Unite members are being balloted until 15 September. The staff involved in the industrial action ballots perform a variety of roles from teaching, research and library services to maintenance, administration and student welfare. Industrial action would have a severe impact on services across the university read more
Liverpool University staff halt strike action after hybrid working win (13 Aug) – Unite members at the University of Liverpool have voted to halt planned strike action tomorrow (14 August) and in September after accepting new terms to protect home working. Over 300 workers – professional services staff – took action including striking and holding a rally in June followed by working to contractual hours only (no overtime, no evenings, no weekends) after senior management tried to force through changes to their hybrid working practices without proper consultation with staff or Unite read more
Orkney Ferries workers overtime ban in pay dispute (13 Aug) – Unite claims ferry services will be reduced by industrial action. Unite the union confirmed today that Orkney Ferries workers will take part in industrial action in an escalating dispute over pay. Over 20 outer north and inner isles Orkney Ferries workers represented by Unite will take part in a continuous ban on overtime starting from 00:01 on 28 August. The union claims that due to the ferries relying on the goodwill of workers to take shifts beyond their contracted hours and at short notice that services could be reduced by the industrial action. The latest development in the pay dispute follows Unite’s membership overwhelmingly rejecting a two-year pay offer. Unite members have also reacted angrily to an enhanced ‘recall’ rate given for extra hours worked now being removed by Orkney Ferries read more
Unions lodge notice of first 24-hour strike by workers at Belfast council leisure services (7 Aug) – Joint UNITE-NIPSA press release: Belfast leisure workers are lowest paid in Northern Ireland and are seeking a one pound an hour increase to the current pay offer. Talks ended without management company Greenwich Leisure Limited making any improved pay offer. Unite and NIPSA trade unions have announced a 24-hour strike by leisure staff at facilities operated by Green Leisure Limited in Belfast. 14 leisure centres and two gyms owned by Belfast City Council are operated by the arms-length management company. The strike will commence at 00.01 on Tuesday August 12 and continue until midnight. The industrial action is likely to shut down entirely the operation of several leisure centres, given that more than 200 leisure workers are members of two trade unions. Pay at Belfast leisure centres has fallen behind that of other council leisure facilities in Northern Ireland following the decision to outsource them to Greenwich Leisure Limited. Belfast leisure worker pay is now the lowest in Northern Ireland…The strike follows an overwhelming ballot for industrial action by workers in both unions and represents an escalation from a work-to-rule which came into force on Tuesday 15 July. Labour Relations Agency-mediated negotiations between the trade unions and the employer ended on Wednesday 30 July, after management failed to provide any improved offer read more
Unite hits out at union busting firm supplying coffee chain Starbucks (30 July) – Unite has hit out at the unfair treatment of two shop stewards working at Food Service Logistics, who have been suspended on trumped-up charges. The reps are a senior shop steward and their deputy, who have been falsely accused of being involved in an altercation after being singled out to do work not in their job description and now face disciplinary hearings next week. It comes after these Unite stewards had previously brought numerous grievances against Food Service Logistics including discrimination for trade union activity and behaviour of management towards them and other Unite members. Hemel Hempstead-based Food Service Logistics is a primary supplier to the Starbucks retail network in the south of England, including franchised stores. Starbucks itself has come under fire in recent years after facing accusations of unfair dismissals and union busting in the US read more
Unite ballot shows NHS staff overwhelmingly reject pay deal (29 July) – Unite’s ballot of members in health has demonstrated the strength of feeling among the NHS workforce with 89 per cent of members believe that the pay award (3.6%) is unacceptable and are prepared to take action up to including strike action. The strength of feeling around government cuts was even greater with 95 per cent of members expressing their willingness to take action in order to oppose cuts to the NHS. We are calling on the UK government to meet with us and in order to avoid a strike that is likely to affect a number of Trusts (including Ambulance Trusts) and a number of national organisations such as NHS England and NHS Blood and Transplant. The pay award offered to Agenda for Change NHS staff (i.e. most staff other than doctors) was below RPI and CPIH. It is less than the award for doctors and it is less than that offered through negotiations in Scotland…Unite is committed to resolving this issue and will work with the government to do so, but given the lack of willingness from ministers to date, Unite will progress towards the next formal ballot we are required to carry out in order that we can take action. Our members have witnessed the NHS deteriorate for years and feel duty bound to take a stand to defend it read more
East Coast bus drivers strike ballot over pay (10 July) – 130 drivers reject two-year offer at publicly owned subsidiary of Lothian Buses. Unite has confirmed around 130 drivers employed by East Coast Buses are involved in an industrial action ballot after rejecting a two-year pay offer. The ballot will open today (10 July) and close on 24 July. If workers vote for industrial action then strike action could start in early August potentially impacting on the Edinburgh Festival and the Oasis concert (9 August) at Murrayfield. The East Coast Buses drivers provide services from the city of Edinburgh and the East Lothian coast and mainland. East Coast Buses and Lothian County are both owned by the publicly run Lothian Buses. A separate pay deal has been successfully negotiated by Unite for Lothian County bus drivers which run services across west Edinburgh and West Lothian read more
Unite reject pay award from Welsh NHS and prepare for strikes (2 July) – NHS staff across Wales have voted to take strike action following a poor pay award. Members of Unite, one of the country’s leading health sector unions, have voted in heavy numbers to reject the pay award and indicated they are prepared to take industrial action demanding that the Welsh government make improvements to their pay. Unite members in Wales have voted in large numbers that the pay award is unacceptable. 87 per cent rejected the pay award and said they were prepared to take strike action to try to achieve a better and fairer pay increase. Unite is now calling on the Welsh government to open up pay negotiations with unions. If negotiations on pay do not happen Unite will have no choice but to start the formal industrial action ballot process. Any industrial action will affect a number of services including ambulance services where Unite has particularly high membership read more
Tata Steel: Strike set to escalate tonight as management cancels scheduled talks (26 June)
London Hedin Mercedes mechanics to strike (17 June)
Wigan Alpla UK plastic packaging strikes over fire and rehire disgrace (9 June)
CWU
Sapphire Tech Workers Win Union Recognition in Just Six Months (23 Sept) – In a stunning show of solidarity, the managed services team at Sapphire have won union recognition in just six months without even needing a ballot. From the very beginning, workers built their campaign on conversations, trust, and a shared determination to change the way things were done at Sapphire. Within half a year, they had already secured an overwhelming majority of colleagues in support of union recognition there. The message to management is crystal clear: when workers stand together, recognition isn’t optional, it’s inevitable read more
Support the Tik Tok workers – CWU UTAW branch (UTAW_uk on X/Twitter)
✊ Join us to demand fair redundancy packages for over 300 workers✊
Last week TikTok announced a mass redundancy putting over 300 of its London employees at risk. TikTok employees have known these cuts were coming and were a week away from voting on union recognition. TikTok has timed this to hurt our movement and avoid scrutiny and transparency on a sham redundancy.
? WE’RE DEMANDING A FAIR REDUNDANCY PACKAGE OR REDPLOYMENT FOR ALL
? WE’RE STANDING AGAINST TIKTOK’S UNION BUSTING
? WE’RE CALLING TIKTOK OUT FOR ITS RECKLESS ATTITUDE TO ONLINE SAFETY
Read more about TikTok’s union busting redundancies here
VM02 Capita workers condemn “heartless and destructive” offshoring redundancies (2 Sept) – The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has said that the strength of feeling among VM02 Capita workers is “unprecedented”, after the firm has announced “heartless and destructive” redundancies. Workers in Payment Management on the Capita contract on VM02 were told of new redundancies on 18th August, with management’s justification being operational changes and consistent financial losses. It is expected that the 150 jobs will be offshored to South Africa, which has already seen a steady stream of VM02 jobs over the years. The union has attacked the timing of the redundancies as unacceptable, with the redundancies being announced just 12 days after a separate redundancy consultation, affecting more than 200 workers, was completed. This means that the same workers who had been told they had retained their roles are immediately facing a fresh bout of uncertainty read more
CWU members in Santander need your support. They have faced outsourcing, offshoring and technology is being used to negatively impact our members futures. They are now fighting back with a joint campaign with Advance Union. All CWU members, family members, friends and the wider public can help us by signing and sharing this petition.
Every signature counts – https://cwu.eaction.org.uk/cwuadvancepetition
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]
Met Police members out in force at New Scotland Yard (24 Sept) – Dozens of leaflets were handed out to highlight pay inequality at Met Police outside New Scotland Yard as PCS activists urged colleagues to vote yes in the ballot as part of a week of activities. PCS members are angry over a two-tier system where the London Allowance is only paid to police officers. We are balloting 6,500 members for strike action following the Met Police’s refusal to extend the £1,250 London Allowance to civilian police staff – despite previously agreeing to discuss it during 2024/25 pay talks. Our members support the Met in roles like 999 call handling, intel analysis, HR, IT support, specialist technical support and have roles such as public access officers dealing with reported crime and custody staff. Members have until noon on 9 October to vote in this postal ballot read more
Join mass leafleting of New Scotland Yard (19 Sept) – As PCS members in the Met Police vote in the strike ballot over pay inequality our activists are going to be busy leafletting to urge civilian staff to fight back against the two-tier Met outside New Scotland Yard from 9-9.30am on Tuesday (23). Activists will be out encouraging members, who keep the Met running, to vote yes in the ballot and get their papers back by 9 October. Members are angry over a two-tier system where the London Allowance is only paid to police officers. PCS is balloting 6,500 members for strike action following the Met Police’s refusal to extend the £1,250 London Allowance to civilian police staff – despite previously agreeing to discuss it during 2024/25 pay talks read more
Strike Ballot over Pay in Met Police (17 Sept)
One week left to vote yes in the DWP pay ballot (23 Sept) – It is crucial that our members in the Department for Work and Pensions vote in the pay ballot and send a powerful message to their employer to address chronic low pay. The consultative ballot on the 2025/26 DWP pay offer closes at noon on 30 September. The ballot is online, and you can only vote using the online link sent in the email from the independent balloting service. The email is from [email protected] and was sent out on 9 September read more
DWP must do better on chronic low pay (21 Sept) – PCS members in Department for Work and Pensions have been sent a reminder to vote urging them to cast their ballot and send a message to their employer that it must do better and address chronic low pay. We are running an online consultative ballot on members’ willingness to take action on pay. PCS rejected the DWP’s final pay offer for 2025–26 and has moved to ballot members. The final offer fails to address the serious issue of chronic low pay. Again AAs, AOs and some EOs face the prospect of being on the National Living Wage (NLW) from April 2026 read more
Ballot launched of Border Force Maritime members (19 Sept) – A ballot is underway of PCS members working on patrol boats in the English Channel in a dispute over terms, conditions and frozen allowances. More than 120 Border Force Maritime workers are angry at waiting more than six years for the result of a payment review into allowances for their specialist roles. The ballot on potential strike action runs until 17 October. Our members’ duties include searching for vessels at sea and identifying craft engaged in smuggling or small boats crossings. Although management has given assurances about backdating these allowances to 1 April 2025, it may be months before extra payments are received. Border Force management has failed to fully recognise the demands of our members, who are frustrated by the wait for a fresh formal offer read more
Newry Signs Up to the City of Sanctuary Network (18 Sept) – PCS welcomes the decision by Newry, Mourne and Down District Council to join the City of Sanctuary network. This is a positive step that shows the district is committed to being a place of safety, fairness and dignity for all who live there read more
Ofgem dispute escalated as more strike dates announced (17 Sept) – Hundreds of PCS members working at energy regulator Ofgem’s London, Glasgow and Cardiff offices are striking from 29 September until 3 October in their long-running dispute about pay, jobs, working conditions and industrial relations. The swell of feeling has only grown as the campaign has gone on. The resounding turnout in the ballot (85% voting for strike action on a 65% turnout) has turned into significant recruitment (almost 150 people have joined the branch since the first action was announced) and the exceptional picket lines at all of the offices on last month’s 3-day strike have attracted new members and new activists. More to the point, the pressure has worked. Since the first strike notice went in we have reached a key agreement on pay. This means we have now protected the permanent pay system from the allowances Ofgem wanted to bring in. However, progress has since ground to a halt. Ofgem is still refusing to reach a fair compromise on jobs and industrial relations, and it’s also dragging its feet on the wider pay reforms we need. The latest action marks a significant escalation in the campaign and shows that PCS is determined to back its members read more
- show your support on social media with the hashtags #LightsOut #OfgemStrike #PriceCapStrike
- donate to the strike fund: https://www.pcs.org.uk/donate
DWP members in Lincoln to be balloted for strike action over office closure (15 Sept) – The ballot of members in the Lincoln City Hall Service Centre will run from Wednesday 24 September to noon on Friday 10 October. Over 100 members of staff in Lincoln City Hall Service Centre are at risk of redundancy as a result of the DWP’s decision to close the office. Lincoln’s relatively isolated geographical position means that the majority of the staff working there will be unable to relocate either within the DWP or by moving to another government department without incurring unsustainable travel costs or journey times. PCS has called on the DWP to reverse this cruel decision and allow staff in Lincoln to keep their jobs and remain working for the DWP in Lincoln. The loss of DWP jobs in Lincoln will have a major impact on the community read more
PCS Launches Strike Ballot at the British Library (15 Sept) – PCS is balloting members at the British Library (London branch) for strike action from today until noon on 13 October over the organisation’s failure to offer an above-inflation pay award for a second consecutive year. The trade dispute has arisen after repeated attempts by PCS to secure an above-inflation pay award. Indeed, the union pre-empted pay talks as early as 28 March to no avail read more
Support the MHCLG strikers taking action in London (12 Sept) – PCS members at the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government continue their industrial campaign with targeted action at the department’s London office on Tuesday (16). Our members hope Steve Reed, the new secretary of state, swiftly enters into negotiations to end the dispute over office closures, attendance polices and recruitment strategy. Earlier this month, our MHCLG members supported strike action with busy picket lines in Birmingham, Darlington, Edinburgh, Hemel Hempstead, London, Leeds and Manchester. And workers in Hemel walked out again on Wednesday. The action has now switched to targeted action which sees over 170 staff walk out until 25 September. Support the picket line in London on Tuesday (16) outside MHCLG London’s office in 2 Marsham Street, SW1P 4DF from 8-10:30am. Send messages of support to [email protected] read more
PCS Members at MyCSP Extend Strike Action Over Representation Dispute (12 Sept) – PCS members employed by pension administrator MyCSP have already undertaken 10 weeks of strike action. Now we have formally notified the employer of plans to extend the industrial action by a further six weeks, continuing until 7 November. The ongoing dispute centres on MyCSP management’s refusal to allow PCS to represent staff in discussions ahead of the scheduled TUPE transfer to Capita in December read more
Second 24-hour strike for security staff in the Houses of Parliament (9 Sept) – The members will walk out on Wednesday 10 September for the second time in two weeks. Over 300 PCS members who work at the Palace of Westminster are taking their second 24 hours of strike action from 7am on 10 September to 7am on 11 September. The members are also taking part in an overtime ban and a work-to-rule. The members are angry about their employer’s removal of six days’ annual leave from contracts, pay stagnation, worsening conditions and a widening ethnicity pay gap. They are also disappointed that the employer wrongly claims that they agreed to reduce their annual leave entitlement and refuses to take this grave concern seriously read more
MPs show support for parliamentary security strikers (5 Sept)
Palestine Solidarity Campaign stands with PCS members in Westminster (4 Sept)
Revenue & Customs Pay 2025 (2 Sept) – PCS rejects the pay offer from Revenue and Customs as it falls way short of the union’s pay claim. Revenue & Customs have written to both PCS and ARC unions to confirm that the HMRC pay offer will be implemented in September salaries. PCS has already rejected the offer (equivalent to 3.25% of the pay bill with a further 0.5% for targeting specific issues including low pay), as way below the demands in our national pay claim. The offer also sees members on terms and conditions transferred on moves into R&C having their pay ranges frozen, except for where increases are required due to National Living Wage increases. Over 2,700 members attended branch meetings to discuss the offer with 58% of members either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the offer, compared to only 15% who were either satisfied or very satisfied. PCS will continue to campaign for the pay rises that members deserve following decades of pay restraint under successive governments. Branches across R&C will be holding members’ meetings with speakers from the union’s national executive committee to hear about discussions the union has held with the Cabinet Office on civil service pay and reward strategy as well as to discuss next steps in the campaign read more
PCS industrial action escalated at ONS (7 Aug) – PCS members at the Office For National Statistics have stepped up their long-running dispute over a forced return to workplaces by instigating a zero-office attendance policy and increasing their use of work to rule. More than 1200 members began the escalation with immediate effect on 25 July, while the branch considers next steps in the use of its mandate to use strike action. In a ballot which ended on 31 March, members voted for strike action with 68% of ONS members taking part voting to take strike action while 91% voted to take action short of a strike (ASOS), on a 71% turnout. PCS members have been in dispute with ONS since April 2024 over changes to the hybrid working policies and have since held three statutory ballots on a programme of continuous industrial action involving non-compliance with mandated office attendance targets and working to rule. The PCS ONS Branch has been placing pressure on the interim ONS senior management to engage with us after a growing number of ONS members have reported managers attempting to force attendance based on wafer-thin “business requirements” to undermine our action short of a strike (ASOS) that has restored working autonomy to members read more
IOPC staff vote to pause industrial action after improved offer (4 Aug) – The members at the Independent Office for Police Conduct have been taking action short of a strike in a dispute over office attendance and job cuts. Over 400 members at the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) have been taking action short of a strike since 1 April after management announced the imposition of a change to existing hybrid working arrangements. The IOPC has also seen restructuring which involves job losses read more
Benton Park View strike rally attracts support from across the movement (9 June) – The strike rally at Benton Park View in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne drew support from across the labour and trade union movement. The rally on Friday marked over 5 months of strike action by employer services members on the site in defence of PCS reps Joel, Gordon and Rachel, dismissed by HMRC for trade union activity. Acting branch secretary Angie Foggett thanked members for their selfless support for the 3 reps. Joel and Gordon gave emotional accounts of the impact of the dismissals on their lives and those of their families… PCS HMRC Group will now meet to discuss the next steps in the campaign read more. Take action, show your support and send solidarity messages to the reps and branch, email HMRC group secretary Steve Swainston: [email protected] read more. Members can also support the campaign by donating to the fighting fund. Donations can be made to the PCS account with the reference ‘BPV Strikes’ –
- Account name: PCS Fighting Fund
- Levy account number: 20331490
- Sort code: 60-83-01
Get the PCS Samba Band to your protests and demonstrations – go to their Facebook page and on X/Twitter @PCS_Samba_Band
Prospect
Statement on intolerance and the Far Right (19 Sept) – Prospect is proud to represent members from many nations who have chosen to relocate to the UK. Along with British workers with diverse heritage we represent, everyone benefits from their skills and expertise. Regrettably, we have become aware that some of our members and their families have been subjected to distressing verbal assaults. Prospect believes that all workers deserve to be treated with tolerance and respect. Ill-informed xenophobic and racist insults should have no place in our country. We were appalled by the violence that we saw around the Unite the Kingdom rally in London last weekend. The reprehensible comments of Tommy Robinson, Elon Musk and other speakers are directly contributing to an atmosphere where workers are put at risk. The Far Right is no friend of working people, seeking to divide our communities. Trade unions have a proud tradition of uniting workers, and we will do all we can to support our members right across the country read more
GMB
Justice for the Cammell Laird 37 Campaign – Public Meeting: ‘Jobs not Jail – More than 40 years since the Cammell Laird dispute’. 6pm Tuesday 30th September at The Casa Bar in Liverpool read more about the campaign
GMB wins landmark Sheffield equal pay deal (23 Sept) – GMB Union has secured a historic equal pay agreement with Sheffield City Council, following a claim first raised by the union in September 2023. The deal will see hundreds of women workers finally receive the recognition and compensation they deserve after years of being undervalued and underpaid. Sheffield City Council has committed to overhauling its pay and grading systems, reforming allowances, and embedding equality into its structures. GMB will work to ensure these promises become lasting change read more
School staff give medical help without training (22 Sept) – One in three school staff are giving medical support to children when it is not their responsibility without adequate training, a shock report shows. A survey of almost 10,000 school support staff shows one in three of those who provided medical support for pupils did so without adequate training. Procedures performed by those without adequate training includes catheterisation, rectal medication, tracheostomy care, tube (PEG) feeding, assistance with colostomy bags, refilling oxygen tanks, stoma care, support with seizures and line safety. For those who had received training, a third said it had not been delivered by a health care professional, while just one in ten respondents were aware of having medical support in their job description. Meanwhile 75 per cent or respondents said they did not have a nurse in their school to support pupils’ medical needs. GMB call for an NHS led service with trained nurses in all state funded schools read more
GMB pulls out of NHS PRB (19 Sept) – GMB Union has pulled of the NHS Pay Review Body (PRB) process as health unions write en masse to the Secretary of State today [Friday]. GMB – which represents more than 50,000 NHS staff, around half of which are ambulance workers – was the only major union to engage with the PRB during the 2025/26 pay round. Despite giving the body one last chance to reform, GMB members’ wishes fell on deaf PRB ears. Meanwhile the 14 unions representing staff on ‘Agenda for Change’ contracts within the NHS – including GMB – have written jointly to health secretary Wes Streeting urging him to honour a commitment made last year to tackle the problems in the pay system that are harming staffing and morale. Unions say these talks must now include the pay award for 2026 read more
Mass protest against North Down & Ards leisure privatisation (18 Sept) – A mass protest will take place today [Thursday] against the privatisation of leisure centres in North Down & Ards. Workers, unions and members of the public will gather outside a meeting of the full council to call for leisure services in the borough to be brought back into public hands. North Down and Ards Council will tonight vote on four potential models for the future of leisure services: Hybrid, Outsourced, In-House, and a Local Authority Trading Company (LATC). Unions GMB, NIPSA and Unite strongly advocate for bringing all leisure facilities back under direct council ownership read more
Airedale strike escalates with three new walkouts (18 Sept) – The Airedale Hospital strike is set to escalate as workers announce the dates of three new walkouts. More than 150 staff on site, including porters, domestics, catering and security staff will down tools on 1,2 and 3 October. The affected workers are employed by AGH Solutions (AGHS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Airedale NHS Foundation Trust. Unlike their NHS colleagues, AGHS staff are denied access to standard NHS terms and conditions, including the pension scheme, sick pay, annual leave entitlements and enhanced rates for Sunday working. GMB members at the site also walked from 12 – 16 September read more
North Tyneside council workers to pay for parking (17 Sept) – Thousands of North Tyneside Council workers could be forced to pay to park at work. GMB Union is urging the local authority to scrap the plans – which could see staff stumping up to park at council offices and leisure centres across the borough. Meanwhile councillors are set to trouser a £6,000 pay rise if the increase is nodded through at a vote of the full council meeting tomorrow [Thursday] read more
Newcastle wire rope workers stage further strike (17 Sept) – Almost 100 Newcastle rope workers are set to stage further strikes in a dispute over pay. Staff at Bridon International, in Wallsend, will stage three 24-hour strikes on 18 and 30 of September and 1 October. The dispute centres around a 2.5 per cent pay offer, a figure that represents a real-terms pay cut amid rising living costs and overwhelmingly rejected by staff. Workers are increasingly frustrated over the company’s refusal to return to the negotiating table read more
Hillsborough Law welcome after decades of campaigning (16 Sept) – GMB Union has welcomed the landmark Hillsborough Law being introduced to Parliament on 16 September. If passed, the legislation will force public officials to tell the truth during investigations into major disasters. It will also ensure bereaved families have automatic access to legal aid at inquests and inquiries and introduce criminal sanctions for those who deliberately mislead the public. The Hillsborough Law results from decades of tireless campaigning by families, supporters and organisations – including GMB – who demanded justice after state failures from Hillsborough to Grenfell, the Post Office and Infected Blood scandals, the mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic, nuclear test veterans and many more. Justice campaign conferences – run by GMB’s North West and Irish Region – have highlighted many of the scandals now addressed in the bill, while GMB activists and members have stood shoulder to shoulder with individuals and families seeking truth and accountability read more
Europe’s largest quarry braced for strike action (9 Sept) – ‘Huge disruption’ as workers at Tarmac’s Mountsorrel Quarry down tools later this month. GMB Union has today announced that members at Mountsorrel Quarry in Leicestershire have voted to support strike action. The news comes after workers at the Tarmac operated site rejected a pay offer from company management. 90 per cent of votes supported industrial action, with one hundred workers at the quarry expected to join strike action later this month. Mountsorrel is Europe’s largest quarry, producing aggregate materials for construction, road and rail projects across the UK read more
Bacton Gas Terminal workers begin vote on strike action (4 Sept) – Altrad workers at the Shell Bacton Gas Terminal in Norfolk will today begin voting in an industrial action ballot. At the centre of the dispute is Altrad’s offer of a one-time 4 per cent pay uplift, which falls far short of the two-year deal of 11.3 per cent and 5.5 per cent proposed under the National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry. A recent indicative ballot saw members vote 100 per cent in favour of strike action and if a strike were to go ahead, it would bring work at the site to a halt. Altrad staff at an adjacent site saw their pay increase following another recent GMB dispute. Workers at the Bacton site – who do identical work, including scaffolding, painting, and thermal insulation – are now seeking the same resolution. The ballot closes on Thursday 18th September read more
Derbyshire manufacturer braced for strike action (28 Aug) – Workers refuse to accept a pay packet of pennies, says GMB. GMB Union has today announced that workers at Altrad Belle will begin a week of strike action from Monday 1 September 2025. The news comes after workers rejected a pay offer from company management and voted overwhelmingly to support industrial action. The company, one of the UK’s biggest manufacturers of light equipment for the construction sector, has been slammed for paying skilled workers little more than £12 an hour read more
Bromley parking wardens begin talks in fight against poverty pay (15 Aug) – On Tuesday [19 August] GMB Union will sit down with Apcoa Parking, the private contractor running parking services for Bromley Council. Workers there are currently paid the legal minimum wage of £12.21 per hour – well below the London Living Wage of £13.85 an hour. The talks come while Apcoa is embroiled in ongoing disputes with GMB members in neighbouring Richmond, Wandsworth, and Kingston. In Lambeth, Apcoa workers recently settled their dispute after securing a new rate of £15 per hour read more
Striking Sellafield workers left to urinate in public (14 Aug) – Striking Sellafield workers are being left to urinate in public after the company refused to provide facilities for them. Almost 200 workers have walked out of the Cumbria nuclear facility after overwhelmingly rejecting the 3.5 per cent deal offered by the company. GMB members working for Mitie, have begun their ninth day of strike action today [Thursday]. Not only has Sellafield refused to provide access toilet access to those on the picket line, as yet they haven’t provided GMB with a location to install a Portaloo. The nearest public toilet is several miles away. Mitie’s pay offer would leave these frontline workers, responsible for cleaning, security, landscaping, waste management, postal services, and laundry support the safety and functionality of one of Europe’s most hazardous nuclear facilities, earning little more than £13 per hour read more
Waltham Forest bin workers reject pay deal as strike threat looms (31 July) – Outsourced refuse workers in Waltham Forest have rejected a 2.8% pay offer, sparking the possibility of industrial action. The offer did not apply to those workers recently placed on the London Living Wage, despite them being among the council’s lowest paid employees. Over half the workforce employed by FCC Environment and working on behalf of Waltham Forest Council voted in a ballot, which saw 100% of GMB members reject the pay deal on 100% turnout. A 3.2% pay offer is now on the table – although it still excludes London Living Wage employees and sits below the rate of inflation. GMB will ballot members on the offer. Refuse workers’ frustration with FCC Environment and the council extends beyond pay. Concerns have also been raised over inadequate staff facilities at the waste depot and insufficient supplies of water for workers, particularly in hot weather read more
Hula-Hoops, Pom-Bears and Disco workers begin strike vote (22 July) – Hula-hoops, Pom-Bears and Disco crisps could be in short supply as workers begin voting on strike action, GMB Union has warned. KP Crisps workers at the company’s site in Billingham, County Durham, rejected a pay rise of just 77 pence per hour. The ballot closes on 12 August, with any industrial action likely to take place in September 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
Stop the Council Cuts – Sign the petition: Save our Services – Nottingham City Unison
Dump pay review body for direct NHS salary talks, says UNISON (19 Sept) – Tackling pay and structural issues is the way forward, not another pay review body process. The government must ditch the discredited pay review body and hold direct talks with unions covering the next annual wage rise and deep-seated problems with the outdated salary structure, says UNISON today (Friday). The union says the best way to ensure an efficient wage rise is delivered on time when it’s due in April next year is to cover this in negotiations over much-needed reforms to the Agenda for Change* pay structure. These were promised by ministers in 2024 but have still not formally begun. UNISON will not participate in the 2026/27 NHS pay review body process, set to run over the next few months. The outdated system continually runs late and fails to deliver fair increases for Agenda for Change staff, says the union. This year’s 3.6% rise arrived in pay packets four months late and has already been overtaken by the CPI inflation rate, which currently sits at 3.8%, the union says. A consultation of UNISON members this summer showed deep dissatisfaction with the increase. It found seven in ten (70%) of those who responded said they’d back walkouts if the union were to ballot for strike action over the 2025/26 NHS pay award read more
Ministers must make good on NHS pay-talk promises, say health unions (19 Sept) – Most Agenda for Change unions won’t submit evidence to next NHS pay review body. Health unions are calling on the government to get on with promised direct talks to get wage structures right and deliver pay awards on time, they say today (Friday). The 14 unions representing staff on ‘Agenda for Change’ contracts within the NHS have written jointly to health secretary Wes Streeting urging him to honour a commitment made last year to tackle problems in the pay system that are harming staffing and morale. Given the delay, unions say these talks should now be widened to also include the headline pay award for 2026, which would need to be decided early next year if it is to be paid on time in April, as ministers have committed to do. Unions say staff trust and confidence in the current pay process, involving a time-consuming pay review body (PRB), has hit rock bottom and a more efficient approach is needed for the coming year. That means setting aside the PRB process and focusing efforts on comprehensive talks backed by sufficient investment from ministers to allow a deal to be reached, the unions say. This must be enough to cover the cost of reforming pay bands and an acceptable pay increase read more
Statement on recent rallies and demonstrations (18 Sept) – UNISON’s objectives include fighting for fairness and equality and challenging all forms of discrimination including any form of racism. We have always stood for the rights and equality of all people, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or background read more
Health members win in Liverpool (17 Sept) – Improved terms and conditions for Liverpool Women’s University Hospital staff as soft facilities management are brought back into the NHS. UNISON members at Liverpool Hospitals Health Branch have successfully campaigned to bring 130 soft facilities staff members back in-house at Liverpool Women’s University Hospital at the start of October. This huge win means that members will benefit from enhanced terms and conditions, such as improved pay, annual leave provision and entitlement to the NHS pension. Soft facilities management staff are the backbone of the hospital – they provide essential services such as cleaning, catering, portering, and security read more
County Durham and Darlington healthcare staff set to walk out in pay row, says UNISON (28 Aug) – Hundreds of healthcare assistants employed by County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust have voted to strike in a fair pay dispute, says UNISON today (Thursday). Staff will walk out in the coming weeks unless there’s an improvement in the amount of back pay the trust is prepared to give them, says the union. The NHS workers have been regraded to a higher band of the NHS Agenda for Change salary scale to reflect increasingly complex tasks. But UNISON says they deserve adequate back pay to reflect the extra work they’ve been doing above their pay rate for many years. The trust awarded just seven months’ money but the union says this should be far higher. Despite months of negotiations with the employer to settle the dispute, a fair offer the health workers find acceptable has still not been put forward. In a ballot that closed yesterday, 99.4% of staff said they will walk out unless the employer comes back with a better deal to compensate them for the extra work they’ve done. This is the fifth trust in the north east to be in dispute with staff over wage banding. The other successful campaigns have been at Teesside, South Tyneside and Sunderland, while a dispute in Northumberland is still ongoing read more
Barnsley hospital workers step up campaign for fair pay (28 Aug) – A group of rehabilitation support workers based at Kendray Hospital in Barnsley are demanding to be paid properly for the increasingly complex work they do. The staff, who provide care to patients in the community and are employed by South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Trust, have held a series of protests outside Kendray Hospital, and launched a petition to gain support for their campaign. The union says the workers are carrying out duties – such as performing observations and clinical care tasks – that should be paid at a higher rate read more
Mining museum to spend almost £50k to prolong dispute over 20p pay rise (26 Aug) – An ongoing strike at the National Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield could be settled for a fraction of the cost managers are spending to block a fair pay rise, says UNISON today (Tuesday). The union estimates that by the end of a four-week walkout, bosses will have paid up to five times more than the modest increase low-paid workers want. More than 40 members of staff began their industrial action last week in a dispute over pay, with the strike scheduled to run until at least Sunday 14 September. They include guides who are veterans of the year-long miners’ strike four decades ago. But the museum is choosing to rack up tens of thousands of pounds to bring in private security and make alternative visitor arrangements, when it could resolve the dispute for far less, UNISON says read more
Strike on the cards at Dorset hospitals in outsourcing dispute (12 Aug) – Overwhelming majority of health workers say they want to vote for strike action. Three women holding UNISON placards that say ‘Stop Subcos – Keep the NHS public’. Healthcare staff at three NHS trusts in Dorset say they want to vote for strike action in a row over plans to move 1,700 staff from the NHS to an external company. An overwhelming majority (98%) of members, including porters and cleaners, have backed plans for an industrial action ballot, which is set to open in the coming weeks. Any action could result in widespread disruption across the region read more
Health workers prepared to take strike action over pay, warns UNISON (6 Aug) – Pay consultation must act as a wake-up call for ministers. NHS staff in England are far from happy with this year’s pay rise and many are prepared to take strike action to challenge it, says UNISON today (Wednesday). Seven in ten (70%) of UNISON members who responded to the union’s consultation on the 2025/26 NHS pay award said they’d back walkouts if the union were to ballot for strike action. The result should be a wake-up call for ministers who must commit now to dealing directly with growing anger among health workers, says the union. The government must hold urgent talks to address problems with the outdated NHS salary structure and combine these with negotiations on next year’s wage rise. This is the only way to convince health workers that ministers get the seriousness of the situation, says UNISON. The pay award of 3.6% for NHS workers on ‘Agenda for Change’ contracts barely matches inflation. That’s done nothing to lift staff morale, adds UNISON read more
Pay up Mitie: Striking cleaners demand the pay that they are owed (16 July) – The striking workers, most of whom are women, are experiencing extreme distress as a result of Mitie’s failure to pay them what they’re owed. NHS cleaners employed by private contractor Mitie in East Lancashire are striking to demand the pay that they deserve. So far, the cleaners have taken six days of strike action. They are striking for the whole of this week. Today, the group met with UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea at UNISON Centre in London. The 40 cleaners, contracted by Mitie, are among the lowest-paid staff in the NHS. They have been routinely underpaid for months, due to payroll problems, on top of which they have yet to receive their COVID-19 recovery payments, which were agreed in 2023. The £1,655 COVID-19 recovery lump sum payment was part of the deal agreed by the government and health unions following strikes in the NHS. It was made in an effort to recognise the sustained pressure facing the health service. Tens of thousands of NHS staff have received the payment. However, the hard-working cleaners employed by Mitie, who are essential to maintaining hygiene standards in hospitals, have received nothing read more
Strike fund appeal for Nottingham healthcare workers (7 July) – Donations are being sought for healthcare support workers as their dispute at Nottingham University Hospitals Trust continues read more
NIPSA
NHS Pay in Northern Ireland: Parity Broken Again (22 Sept) – Once again, parity has been broken in relation to Agenda for Change (AfC) pay in Northern Ireland. Despite repeated assurances last year from both the Minister of Health and the Stormont Executive, we now find ourselves falling further behind. From 1 August 2025, pay in England and Wales increased by 3.6% (backdated to 1 April). In Scotland, staff are even further ahead. Here in Northern Ireland, we have been told directly by Minister Mike Nesbitt and the Department’s Permanent Secretary, Mike Farrar, that there is no money in this year’s budget for a pay rise. This is totally unacceptable – and NIPSA has made that abundantly clear. Health workers in Northern Ireland are now among the worst paid across the entire public and private sector. Shockingly, the NHS here is the only public sector employer paying below the Real Living Wage for its lowest-paid staff. Major retailers across Ireland pay more than our health service. For NHS staff to be lagging behind supermarkets is nothing short of a national disgrace. NIPSA’s Health Executive Panel met last week. The view was unanimous – pressure must be put on Government. If there is no progress or response by the end of September, NIPSA will move in line with our sister unions and seek a mandate for action through a ballot of our members. The form of this action will be determined by the Executive Committee. Industrial action is not a decision we ever take lightly – but when Government refuses to value NHS staff, it becomes necessary read more
Unions lodge notice of first 24-hour strike by workers at Belfast council leisure services (7 Aug) – Joint UNITE-NIPSA press release: Belfast leisure workers are lowest paid in Northern Ireland and are seeking a one pound an hour increase to the current pay offer. Talks ended without management company Greenwich Leisure Limited making any improved pay offer. Unite and NIPSA trade unions have announced a 24-hour strike by leisure staff at facilities operated by Green Leisure Limited in Belfast. 14 leisure centres and two gyms owned by Belfast City Council are operated by the arms-length management company. The strike will commence at 00.01 on Tuesday August 12 and continue until midnight. The industrial action is likely to shut down entirely the operation of several leisure centres, given that more than 200 leisure workers are members of two trade unions. Pay at Belfast leisure centres has fallen behind that of other council leisure facilities in Northern Ireland following the decision to outsource them to Greenwich Leisure Limited. Belfast leisure worker pay is now the lowest in Northern Ireland…The strike follows an overwhelming ballot for industrial action by workers in both unions and represents an escalation from a work-to-rule which came into force on Tuesday 15 July. Labour Relations Agency-mediated negotiations between the trade unions and the employer ended on Wednesday 30 July, after management failed to provide any improved offer read more
Royal College of Nursing
NHS pay in England: ‘We need formal negotiations now’ (19 Sept) – Pay reform talks were promised, now they need to happen, health unions say in a joint letter to the Westminster government. The RCN has joined 13 other health unions in calling on the Westminster government to urgently begin promised direct talks on NHS pay reform and future pay awards. In a joint letter to health secretary Wes Streeting MP, unions representing staff on Agenda for Change (AfC) contracts in the NHS in England urge the government to honour the commitment made last year to tackle the problems in the pay system that are harming staffing and morale. For the first time, the majority of unions have also confirmed they will not take part in the NHS Pay Review Body (PRB) process. We will again refuse to submit evidence and have been severely critical of the PRB over recent years read more
RCN Northern Ireland lodges formal dispute over failure to implement pay award (1 Aug) – Absence of a pay award in Northern Ireland will once again push nursing staff out of pay parity with colleagues across the UK 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
RCM
Historic move sees RCM pull out of NHS Pay Review Body process (19 Sept) – In a historic move after two decades the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has announced that it is withdrawing from the NHS Pay Review Body (PRB) process for 2026/27. The decision the trade union says ‘it hasn’t taken lightly’ but one they feel is ‘absolutely necessary’ given lack of progress on NHS pay reform for over a decade which has impacted its hardworking members significantly. The RCM says it believes that direct meaningful negotiations are now the only way forward to truly tackle NHS pay structure reform and headline pay for its members read more
Urgent action needed to address inequalities in maternity outcomes for Black women says RCM (18 Sept) – “Shocking inequalities in outcomes for Black women in maternity care must be addressed urgently”, says the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) following an inquiry and publication of a report by The House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee on Black Maternal Health. The report found systemic failings in leadership, training and ethnicity data collection among some of the issues that are preventing real progress in tackling inequalities in England. Giving evidence to the inquiry in June the RCM also identified that commissioners and providers are not being made accountable for the failure to address deep-rooted racism and bias. These failures must be addressed if outcomes are to improve read more
‘Utterly unfair’ that RCM members in Northern Ireland are still without pay uplift (5 Sept) – The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) in Northern Ireland says it’s pressing the Northern Ireland Executive for progress on an overdue pay award for its members. The RCM has described the delay as ‘utterly unfair’ and ‘completely demoralising’ for hard working midwives and maternity support workers (MSWs). The Health and Social Care (HSC) Trade Unions in Northern Ireland of which the RCM is part of have issued a statement today also calling out the lack of progress and ‘broken commitments’ from the Northern Ireland Executive read more
CSP
CSP withdraws from 2026/27 NHS pay review process (19 Sept) – The CSP has joined other unions in withdrawing from this year’s NHS pay review body (PRB) process for England, Wales and Northern Ireland read more
BMA
GPs in England vote to re-enter dispute with Government (18 Sept) – Patient safety concerns over ‘unlimited’ online consultation requests. GPs in England have voted to re-enter dispute with Government over concerns that unlimited online consultation requests could become a ‘critical patient safety issue’. Members of the BMA GPs committee for England voted in favour of re-entering the dispute owing to ‘a lot of confusion and anger’ about the regulatory changes, which are due to come into effect from 1 October read more
Senior doctors prepared to strike (4 Sept) – Indicative ballot reveals consultants and SAS doctors are willing to take industrial action in struggle to achieve pay restoration read more
GPs discuss next steps in funding dispute (3 Sept) – Roadshow in Scotland sees doctors gather to tackle issues facing the profession read more
‘Greater mutual understanding’ achieved between government and resident doctor leaders (6 Aug) – Meeting between health secretary and RDC leads to further cooperation on bringing strike action to an end and addressing pay claim. Agreement on further negotiations on pay, jobs and working conditions for resident doctors in England has been reached following ‘constructive’ talks between the BMA resident doctors committee and Wes Streeting. A meeting held yesterday between the health secretary and RDC co-chairs Ross Nieuwoudt and Melissa Ryan has seen each side commit to further discussions aimed at meeting doctors’ demands and bringing strike action to an end. The meeting, which has been described by Dr Nieuwoudt and Dr Ryan as ‘constructive’ and ‘informative’, comes following a five-day full walkout by resident doctors in England last month. Following the walkout, the BMA had urged Mr Streeting to ‘reconsider his strategy’ on reaching a solution to the impasse on doctors’ pay and resume talks. Striking a cautious yet optimistic tone on their meeting with the health secretary, Dr Nieuwoudt and Dr Ryan said they felt they had ‘achieved a greater mutual understanding’, and that they were eager to work with the Department of Health in finding a way forward read more
NEU
Whitefields school strike in Waltham Forest – Tuesday 23rd, Wednesday 24th, Thursday 25th – pickets from 7am. Messages of solidarity to
Solving the SEND crisis needs drastic solutions which are not cheap (18 Sept) – Commenting on a new Education Committee report calling for root and branch reform of SEND support in mainstream schools, Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said: “MPs have shown an understanding that the SEND crisis needs drastic solutions which are not cheap. The forthcoming Education White Paper must reflect this and provide radical but essential solutions in its proposals. Families as well as teachers and leaders will welcome the recognition that mainstream schools need additional resources to meet SEND need. Any ‘root and branch’ change to the system has to come from government. It must be more than just increased teacher and support staff CPD. The sector needs a firm commitment to a more understanding and inclusive behaviour and attendance model. We also need reform of the curriculum, assessment and accountability that has inclusion at its core. The NEU has long campaigned for improvements on child poverty and specifically the removal of the two-child benefit cap. This reminder to government to continue its focus on tackling poverty as part of the inclusion agenda must be taken seriously…” read more
New data finds that 7 in 10 schools in England faced budget cuts since 2010 (16 Sept) – 74% of schools in England face cuts, as unions, parents and governors describe a ‘desperate’ situation in schools. New data from the Stop School Cuts coalition finds that 7 in 10 schools in England have experienced cuts to their budgets since 2010, with this totalling £1 million in 1,180 cases. Teaching unions and parents and governors groups have called the situation desperate. They are seeking action from the Government to restore school funding in order to deal with twin crises in special needs provision and crumbling buildings. The Stop School Cuts website is run by education unions the National Education Union, Association of School and College Leaders and National Association of Head Teachers, and supported by Parentkind and National Governance Association and has been monitoring school funding levels in England’s schools since 2016 read more
NEU Cymru members at Flint High School continue strike action over workplace bullying and failures to tackle pupil behaviour (16 Sept) – NEU members at Flint High School will be taking two days of strike action on Wednesday, 17 and Thursday, 18 September, due to the employer’s continuing failure to deal with bullying behaviour from the Headteacher and the inability of the school’s leadership to tackle high levels of behavioural issues. Since strike action was taken last week, the employer has made no effort to engage with the union to resolve these issues read more
Teacher and school leader pay (9 July) – Joint education union response to Secretary of State: “Responding to the Secretary of State’s consultation on the STRB report, ASCL, NAHT, NEU and Community have set out their united view on the need for the Government to provide the additional investment needed to fully fund September’s 4% teacher and school leader pay increase. Teachers and school leaders have seen huge real terms cuts to their pay since 2010. Their pay cuts have been much greater than those of other professions and as confirmed by the STRB this has hit the competitiveness of teacher and school leader pay hard. Excessive workload and poor wellbeing are driving teachers and leaders out of the profession, worsening the recruitment and retention crisis in education. The unions are also calling for a fair national pay structure and the removal of performance-related pay read more
Sixth Form College indicative pay ballot results (4 July) – National Education Union members who teach in sixth form colleges have returned a strong result in their indicative ballot over their readiness to undertake a formal strike ballot in support of their 2025/26 pay claim. Over 4,500 members across 75 colleges were balloted, achieving a 68.2 per cent turnout overall and an 88.7 per cent vote in favour of action. Should the pay claim not be met satisfactorily by the Sixth Form College Association (SFCA), then a formal strike ballot will follow in the autumn term read more
OGAT strike action over increased working hours continues into July (30 June) – National Education Union members in fourteen Outwood Grange Academy (OGAT) secondary schools across the country will continue to take strike action throughout July read more
NASUWT
More Dorset teachers strike as dispute widens over restructuring plans (15 July) – Members of NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union at Sturminster Newton High School in Dorset are taking strike action today (Tuesday) in protest at restructuring plans. The Sherborne Area Schools Trust (SAST), which runs Sturminster Newton and Shaftesbury schools, is pushing ahead with plans to cut teachers’ jobs and cut the pay of subject leads and head of year posts. The NASUWT believes this is unacceptable and will significantly impact the remaining teachers’ workloads, their pay and status and will be detrimental to pupils’ education. NASUWT members at Shaftsbury School have already taken strike action over the plans and now teachers at Sturminster Newton are striking, with further days of action planned in September read more
Shaftesbury teachers draw public support as dispute deepens over restructure (7 July) – Members of NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union will continue strike action at Shaftesbury School this week as Sherborne Area Schools Trust (SAST) refuses to come back to the negotiating table. SAST has made a number of teachers redundant in a cost-cutting exercise and now expects Heads of Department to be shared between Shaftesbury School and Sturminster Newton High School. Teachers at Shaftesbury School will hit the picket lines on Tuesday 8th and Thursday 10th July, and will enjoy renewed public support after a video from last week’s picket line went viral on TikTok over the weekend. In the video, Shaftesbury teacher Rachel Sammons explains the “traumatic” impact of losing her job as Head of English after working at the school for twenty five years. Thousands of people, including her ex-pupils, have commented to share their shock and dismay at the cuts read more
Teachers strike at £24k-a-year private school over ‘second class’ pay offer (26 June) – Members of NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union at Surbiton High School are taking the first of three days of strike action today (Thursday) over a pay award that is 45% lower than that given to state school teachers. The fee-paying school in the London borough of Kingston, Surrey, which charges as much as £24k a year per pupil, has only offered 3% to teachers for the 2024/25 academic year. In contrast teachers in the state-funded sector were awarded 5.5% for the 2024/25 academic year read more
Teachers strike at OGAT schools over planned increase to school day (2 June) – Members of NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union at five secondary schools run by the Outwood Grange Academies Trust (OGAT) are to take strike action over plans to increase the length of the school day and the resultant impact on teachers’ working hours, workload and the welfare of staff and pupils. Members at OGAT Hindley in Wigan, OGAT Foxhills in Scunthorpe and OGAT Easingwold in York will begin six days of strike action tomorrow (Tuesday). Members at OGAT Portland and OGAT Valley, both in Worksop, will begin five days of strike action on Tuesday 10th June. OGAT is planning to increase the length of the school day and teaching contact by 30 minutes per day from September 2025 onwards read more
EIS
UWS Lecturers continue third and fourth day of strike action, with no further movement on job security (22 Sept) – Lecturing staff at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) are on strike today in their third day of strike action with a fourth day planned for tomorrow, demonstrating their determination to protect jobs and oppose any move by the university to seek compulsory redundancies. Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland University Lecturers Association (EIS ULA) are picketing again today and tomorrow, maintaining their presence at the university’s four campuses. The continuing strike action highlights the concerns among staff regarding the potential impact of the planned cuts on theirs and their colleagues’ jobs as well as the academic provision for students read more
EIS ULA Members at RGU and UWS set to strike tomorrow against job cuts (9 Sept) – Members of the EIS ULA at Robert Gordon University (RGU) and the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) will take co-ordinated strike action tomorrow, Thursday 11th September read more
Teachers Send Strong Message to Scottish Government and COSLA on Workload (29 Aug) – Scotland’s teachers have today sent a very strong and very clear message to the Scottish Government and local authority employers: deliver on your commitments to tackle teacher workload, or we will move to industrial action. A ballot organised by the EIS has today displayed strong support for both Action Short of Strike (92% in favour) and strike action (83% in favour), if a long-awaited promise to cut teachers’ class contact time is not delivered in the near future. The online consultative ballot opened at the EIS AGM in June, and ran throughout the summer holiday period before closing this week. The result makes clear that the patience of teachers is at an end, and they expect the promise made, prior to the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, to be delivered as a matter of urgency read more
INTO
Reminder – Threshold & Upper Pay Scale Progression: 2025/2026 (22 Sept) – Threshold Assessment Arrangements for 2025/2026:
The Employing Authorities have issued a covering letter to all Principals of grant-aided schools regarding the Threshold Assessment process effective from 1 September 2025 read more
UCU
UCU Stop the Cuts campaign
Sign petition against the education cuts
University of Bradford staff announce further strike dates job cuts row (18 Sept) – University of Bradford staff will down tools for 10 days in a fight to save jobs, UCU announced today. Staff will strike every weekday from Monday 22 September until Friday 3 October in their dispute over redundancies, disrupting the first two weeks of the new academic year read more
Imperial staff vote for strike action in pay and conditions row (16 Sept) – Staff at Imperial College London have voted to take industrial action in a dispute over pay and conditions, UCU announced today. The decision follows a ballot in which 77% of participating staff backed strike action, on a turnout of 59%. The dispute centres on management’s refusal to increase its below inflation 2% pay award. When consulted, members of all three recognised unions (UCU, Unison and Unite) voted to reject it. The latest Bank of England estimates are that CPI inflation will be approximately 4% by the end of 2025. Taken cumulatively with recent sub-inflation pay awards, management is imposing a real terms pay cut of nearly 9% compared to 2018. Imperial has argued that a higher pay offer is unaffordable. But UCU disputes this, pointing to the university’s healthy financial position, including unusually large reserves and a £81 million operating surplus. Unlike many other institutions facing financial pressures and job losses, Imperial is in a strong position and is even planning further expansion read more
2 days of strikes called at Manchester international student college over low pay (15 Sept) – Staff at INTO Manchester, a private college for international students will take two days of strike action in a fight for fair pay unless management makes an improved offer, announced the University and College Union (UCU) today. Workers will down tools on Thursday 25 September and Tuesday 30 September, and will be on picket lines outside the college on both strike days. UCU called on the college to immediately confirm dates to meet at ACAS and come back to the table with a fair pay offer so strike action can be avoided even at this late stage. The strike comes after an incredible 97% of UCU members voted to take strike action in a ballot that saw a turnout of 83%. So far, the college has refused to budge from its offer of just 2%, a significant real term cut against inflation. The college charges international students up to £38k per year, and last year made over £20m, paying out £15m in dividends read more
Strike ballot at the University of the Highlands and Islands in dispute over job cuts (10 Sept) – A ballot for industrial action opens today at the University of the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) in a dispute over job cuts and the use of compulsory redundancies. Members of UCU employed at UHI’s Executive Office are being asked if they are prepared to take part both in strike action and action short of strike. Action short of strike means that members would work strictly to contract and not cover for absent colleagues. The ballot will close on Tuesday 7 October. The ballot follows the announcement last month by university’s senior management that they plan to make 16 people redundant as part of an effort to save £2million read more
UK wide ballot paves way for national strike action across university campuses (8 Sept) – Over 65,000 University and College Union (UCU) members working in universities across the UK will be balloted for strike action after employers refused to budge from their ‘offer’ of 1.4%, which represents a 3% real-terms pay cut the union announced today. The dispute comes in the context of more than a decade of vicious attacks on the pay and conditions of university staff, which have led to pay being degraded against inflation by at least 30%. All five trade unions representing higher education workers at the pay negotiations have voted to reject the 3% real terms pay cut offered by the Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA). The 1.4% pay award also compares poorly to awards from similar sectors, such as the 4% recommended to teachers. UCU has now begun preparations for an aggregated UK-wide ballot of its members, covering 138 institutions, which it expects to open in the week commencing Monday 20 October. UCU’s sister trade unions in HE are also considering ballots of their members. In the absence of movement from employers, successful ballots will help pave the way for coordinated industrial action between every union representing university workers in the new year, causing maximum disruption on campus. The last UK-wide strike action UCU took resulted in a momentous win with the UK’s largest private pension scheme fully restoring a 35% cut to staff pensions read more
Five-day strike at Edinburgh University at start of new term over cuts and job losses (8 Sept) – Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at the University of Edinburgh today begin the first of five days of strike action over senior managers’ plans to cut £140million from the annual budget and cut up to 1,800 jobs, including by compulsory redundancies. Staff will be on picket lines across the university and will hold a rally from 12noon today at George Square in Edinburgh. The strike lasts throughout the week and covers the ‘welcome week’ at the university which sees new students arrive on campus for the first time. As well as taking strike action, members have been taking action short of strike since 20 June, which includes working to contract and not volunteering for duties or covering for absent colleagues read more
More strikes possible at Dundee University as union opens new strike ballot (5 Sept) – Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at Dundee university are being re-balloted from today (5 September) to take industrial action as the financial and management crisis at the university enters its eleventh month. The ballot will run from today until Monday 6 October read more
Strike ballot opens at University of Sheffield staff over job cuts (27 Aug) – Staff at the University of Sheffield are being asked to vote for strike action, announced the University and College Union (UCU) today. The ballot opened yesterday and will close on Tuesday 30 September. The dispute is over management’s plans to put staff in five academic areas at risk of redundancy, as well as continued risk of redundancy to professional services staff across the university read more
Staff at Liverpool Hope University announce strike action over job cuts (31 July) – UCU members at Liverpool Hope University have announced they will take 10 days of strike action across the first two weeks of teaching in response to the university’s plans to slash academic jobs. Staff will walk out from Monday 22 September to Friday 26 September, and again from Monday 29 September to Friday 3 October. The action comes after 69% of UCU members voted in the recent ballot, with 85% backing strike action. The dispute centres on proposed cuts to academic posts across multiple departments, including Education and Social Sciences, Creative Arts and Humanities, and Human and Digital Sciences. UCU says these plans pose a serious threat to the university’s academic mission and the quality of provision for students. Despite a partial retreat by university management, after union-negotiated alternative proposals reduced the number of roles at risk, 11 positions and over 30 staff remain under threat. Management has reopened its voluntary redundancy scheme yet refuses to rule out compulsory redundancies. UCU says there is no financial justification for these cuts, pointing to significant cash reserves and highlighting that the university’s recent deficits stem not from staff costs but from rocketing non-staff expenditure, including major capital projects. Meanwhile, senior leaders at the university have continued to enjoy generous pay packages, with the vice-chancellor receiving a total of £313,000 in 2024 read more
Strike ballot opens at University of Leicester over threat of compulsory redundancies (31 July) – UCU has this week opened a ballot for strike action at the University of Leicester. The dispute is over university leadership’s refusal to rule out a programme of compulsory redundancies in the upcoming academic year read more
Huge 94% strike vote at Warrington & Vale Royal College over frozen pay (14 July) – An overwhelming 94% of staff at Warrington and Vale Royal College backed strike action in a ballot with a turnout of 75%, UCU announced today. The huge vote reflects staff anger at having their pay frozen for almost a year (from Thursday 1 August 2024). Warrington is now the only college in the North West that has refused to make a pay offer this academic year read more
University and College Union strike ballot at University of the West of Scotland in dispute over threat of compulsory redundancies (7 July) – A ballot for industrial action opens today at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) in a dispute over job cuts and university senior management’s refusal to rule out compulsory redundancies. The ballot could pave the way for strikes at the university. Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at UWS are being asked if they are prepared to take part in strike action and action short of strike. Action short of strike could include working to contract and not covering for any absent colleagues. The ballot will run until 14 August read more
Staff to lead rally against job cuts at Redbridge Institute of Adult Education (7 July) – The University and College Union today condemned plans by Redbridge Institute of Adult Education (RIAE) to cut at least 12 staff ahead of the new academic year this September, and confirmed staff will be protesting against the cuts later this week. On Friday (11 July) staff and students will demonstrate outside the college at 12.30pm to demand management halts the cuts. RIAE management is trying to slash jobs, cut student service provision and reduce teaching hours. Management claims the cuts are necessary due to funding pressures. However, UCU, supported by fellow unions Unison, GMB and NEU, said the proposals are unjustified, excessive, and deeply damaging to students and staff. The union also warned the loss of experienced teaching and support staff would harm students and place unsustainable pressure on remaining staff read more
UCU fighting fund: the link is here and donations to the fund are spent on supporting members involved in important disputes.
FBU
Hampshire and Isle of Wight fire service announces plans to force through cuts despite agreed delay (5 Sept) – Chief fire officer Neil Odin has today sent a video message to Hampshire and Isle of Wight firefighters announcing that cuts to the service will go ahead, despite the fire authority voting to delay the decision on 29 August. Firefighters, councillors, members of the public and the fire authority have raised serious concerns that £1.6 million cut to the frontline in the region will put public safety at greater risk. Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service (HIWFRS) has already lost one in four firefighters since 2010, and recent inspections reveal the service is struggling to meet its own emergency response standards. The latest HMICFRS report rated the service as inadequate in staffing and skills, requiring improvement in emergency response and resource management. In the video emailed to fire service staff, the chief also stated that a letter has been sent to government ministers today, calling for the government to commit to funding the service in the future – but not pushing to prevent this round of cuts. The FBU is urging the service to use the £23.9 million reserves it holds to plug the gap while it campaigns for more funding from central government read more
Sign this petition: To Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire Authority and Chief Fire Officer – STOP, THINK & REASSESS Dangerous Cuts to Firefighter Numbers
POA
NEC minutes September 2025 read more
General Secretary update read more
National Chair update August 2025 read here
Employment rights bill and prison officers right to strike – POA Circular 14/2025 explained to members that John McDonnell MP had submitted amendments to the Bill that would reinstate the basic human right of Prison Officers ability to withdraw their labour. The Executive invited members, their families, friends and others in the Trade Union movement to contact their MPS to support the amendments. As a result of the campaign 1572 people contacted their MP by email, along with many others who contacted their MP by other means. Despite this, MPs were denied a vote on John’s proposal and the Bill has now gone through the Report Stage without John’s amendments included and we will continue to have our basic rights denied. John McDonnell did speak in the House of Commons on his amendments and a link to his speech can be found here. In addition, the following MPs added their name to the amendment: John McDonnell, Mary Kelly Foy, Richard Burgon, Mike Amesbury, Dr Simon Opher, Jon Trickett, Brian Leishman, Neil Duncan-Jordan, Kim Johnson, Nadia Whittome, Steve Witherden, Kate Osborne, Imran Hussain, Jeremy Corbyn, Andy McDonald, Ian Byrne, and Zarah Sultana read more
BFAWU
TUC Congress 2025 (16 Sept) – A report from Abs J Choudhury, Branch Secretary, Branch 105 – Warburtons Enfield, Region 1, BFAWU delegate read more
Post BFAWU Conference Foodworker 2025
Support the campaign to unionise Samworth Brothers – get organised, sign the petition read more
Nautilus International
MAIB calls for global fire safety overhaul after Finnmaster cargo vessel blaze (19 Sept) – Investigations into a 2021 fire in the auxiliary engine room of Finland-registered roll on/roll off-cargo vessel Finnmaster have sparked calls for international changes to maritime fire safety standards read more
NUJ
McCullough Review highlights need for government to blow the whistle on illegal surveillance (24 Sept) – The National Union of Journalists has called on Hilary Benn, Secretary of State, to bring forward legislation aimed at ensuring strict compliance with the laws governing surveillance by police forces operating in Northern Ireland read more
PA chapel shows solidarity with Reach journalists (23 Sept) – The PA chapel has passed a motion to show public support for colleagues at Reach plc in light of mass redundancies at the publisher read more
Belarus: union supports journalists resettle after their ‘forced exile’ (19 Sept) – The Belarusian Association of Journalists is supporting several journalists forced to rebuild their lives outside Belarus, following their transfer to Lithuania this month read more
Demand an end to the freelance rip off (18 Sept) – Fair treatment for freelance journalists must be central to business reforms on which the UK government is consulting. The union has launched a new campaign and urges engagement from freelances. The NUJ has launched a campaign to publicise the consultation and persuade journalists, whether members or not, to share their experiences of ill treatment by publishers and broadcasters read more
Financial Times chapel solidarity with Reach journalists (17 Sept) – The FT chapel has sent their full support as members are consulted over next steps read more
Write to End Violence Against Women Awards (17 Sept) – The Write to End Violence Against Women (WEVAW) Awards, sponsored by the NUJ, recognise journalists and writers who report on violence against women responsibly, sensitively and accurately read more
Changes to eligibility for the UK skilled worker visa (17 Sept) – A House of Commons Library briefing has been published following changes to UK visa and settlement rules read more
Equity
Arts cannot be the preserve of the elite (18 Sept) – Equity has responded to a new report on inequalities saying it needs to be a “wake-up call” to stop the arts being the preserve of the elite read more
Equity celebrates World Afro Day with film screening and demands for workers’ rights (16 Sept) – Unacceptable hair and make-up provision is “discrimination, and it’s about your rights” read more
UVW
Migrant concierge & cleaners launch 10 day strike at luxury Paddington flats (22 Sept) – Concierge and cleaning staff at WEQ luxury apartments launch strike action today, running until 29th September, after management refused to award any pay rise in 2025 and following a serious breakdown in talks over inflation-proof pay, equal rights, and compassionate leave. The strike comes after eight hours of ACAS-mediated talks, where a pay deal had finally been secured. But in a last-minute move, management attempted to impose a sweeping contract, giving concierge and cleaners an ultimatum: keep their rights to collective bargaining or receive a 2025 pay rise — but not both… The full strike period will run from Friday 19th September to Monday 29th September, with action scheduled across multiple days and shifts read more
Historic strike vote pushes GESH board to consider NHS equality for facilities workers (9 Sept) – “The lowest paid staff have been ignored for many years, and only now that hundreds of us are all ready to strike, they are finally starting to listen. We deserve equal treatment just like any other NHS worker, and we will not stop until we get equal rights which the Trust Board has deliberately taken away from us. If we have to strike, we all are ready” – Farrokh Hormoz, a UVW member and porter at St Helier Hospital. A groundbreaking strike ballot by hospital cleaners, porters and caterers has forced St George’s, Epsom and St Helier Hospital Group (GESH) to take an unprecedented step: the Board has now committed to voting on whether to grant these workers full NHS Agenda for Change (AfC) contracts. More than 300 facilities workers, all members of United Voices of the World (UVW), voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action last week. These staff are directly employed by the NHS but, for the past four years, have been denied the same pay, pensions and conditions as their NHS colleagues. The powerful mandate from workers has now pushed GESH to put AfC contracts – which set the national standard for NHS terms and conditions – on the agenda for the first time. Strike action, which was due to begin this September, has been temporarily postponed in light of the Board’s commitment. But workers have made clear: unless equal treatment is secured, they are prepared to take action read more
Solidarity Financial Appeal: UVW’s office was targeted in a break-in! – in January, laptops, essential equipment and other valuables worth several thousands of pounds were stolen, disrupting critical support for low-paid, migrant and precarious workers. This won’t stop our fight for justice. The theft comes as UVW leads critical campaigns with hundreds of workers taking strike action across London. Please support UVW during this critical time. Help replace stolen equipment and ensure campaigns for dignity and equality continue. Every donation makes a difference. Donate now: https://www.uvwunion.org.uk/donate. Read more on UVW Facebook page
IWGB
UCL Cleaners – Stop the Cuts! – In August 2025, UCL and Sodexo announced plans to make dramatic cuts to cleaning services at UCL and across students’ halls of residence. UCL say that these redundancies are part of a modernisation and cost-cutting agenda. At the same time, the university is in a very strong financial position, with student numbers up from 38,000 in 2015/16 to 52,000 last year. These changes come after cleaners have reported long standing issues with overwork, unsafe conditions and precarious contracts read more
Mandate (Ireland)
Mandate Members Urged to Support UAR & Le Chéile Anti-Racist Street Carnival (10 Sept) – United Against Racism and Le Chéile have announced they will be co-hosting an anti-racist, multicultural community carnival in Dublin on Saturday the 27th of September 2025. The event will begin at 1pm at the Garden of Remembrance and march to the Custom House. Mandate members, along with all people, organisations and communities in Ireland who wish to take a stand against racism are encouraged to attend read more
Mandate Backs Fórsa Strike for Equality in Schools (28 Aug) – Mandate stands in solidarity with the school secretaries and caretakers represented by Fórsa as they commence indefinite strike action today, Thursday, 28th August. This strike arises from the ongoing denial of access to the Single Public Service Pension Scheme for secretaries and caretakers—despite the fact that they work in the same schools, under the same management, and on the same payroll system as teachers and Special Needs Assistants. Their exclusion from this scheme, and from other basic employment entitlements, is unjust and indefensible read more
SIPTU (Ireland)
SIPTU condemns Minister over Bord na Móna sale and demands clarity on CEO repayment (24 Sept) – SIPTU has condemned the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Darragh O’Brien, for seeking to sign off on the private sale of Bord na Móna Recycling without having met with the workers directly affected, despite repeated requests from the Union for such engagement read more
Proposed minimum wage increase is a slap in the face to low paid workers (22 Sept) – SIPTU Deputy General Secretary for the Private Sector, Greg Ennis, whose Union represents almost 90,000 workers in the private sector, has said that a proposed increase of just 67c to the minimum wage would be “another slap in the face from Government to low paid workers” read more
SIPTU to ballot ambulance members for industrial action in outsourcing dispute (13 Sept) – SIPTU members in the National Ambulance Service (NAS) are to ballot for industrial action, up to and including strike action, in a dispute concerning attempts to outsource inter-hospital transfers in the Greater Dublin Area to the private sector read more
Dublin Fire Brigade to begin industrial action over safety concerns (1 Sept) – SIPTU members in Dublin Fire Brigade (DFB) have served notice of industrial action due to serious safety concerns over the introduction of a new call-out and dispatch system. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is attempting to impose this Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system onto DFB without consultation read more
Sign this petition: Take Action for Workers’ Rights!
Other news
From SHAC – Social Housing Action Campaign: Conference to Discuss Forming a National Tenants and Residents Union – 11am – 4pm Saturday 11th October. SHAC is working towards a new, national, democratic tenants’ and residents’ union. Our conference brings together tenants, residents, and housing campaign groups to discuss the creation of a national tenants and residents union. The aim is to form a steering committee that can take the project to the next level. Register here
Join Disabled People Against Cuts to protest against the Labour policies killing disabled people outside the Labour Party conference in Liverpool 29/09/2025 at 12pm. We will assemble near the Wheel of Liverpool on Keel Wharf L3 4FN. We encourage those who can to a mask in order to protect immunocompromised members of our community and will have some masks available for those who do not have their own details
Trade union support for an independent PIP review
Dear Trade Union council, branch, organisation, or colleague,
I am writing about our campaign to tell the minister Stephen Timms that disabled people want an independent PIP review, with trade union involvement, and no more cuts. DIsabled People Against Cuts Cymru (DPAC Cymru) were thrilled to see motion 38, disabled workers oppose welfare reforms, and motion 39, oppose disability benefit cuts emergency, pass unanimously at TUC conference 2025 last week. Disabled people are still fighting this battle without respite. The disability minister Stephen Timms was forced to promise parliament that further changes to PIP would only come after a review co-produced with disabled people. Timms has not kept his promise in the slightest.
An open letter initiated by DPAC Cymru demanding an independent review into the PIP benefit, to be led by disabled people and our organisations, has now received signatures from more than 600 people including representatives of more than 25 organisations.
That letter also says that “any review of welfare reform must also, in a process led by disabled people, involve trade unions as democratic organisations representing 1.4 million disabled workers as well as representing the workers responsible for the day-to-day delivery of services that disabled people rely on.”
I hope that you might consider signing our open letter in support of that demand. Signatures are being collected until the end of September.
With the government acting this way, I have also enclosed for your consideration a PDF leaflet about an upcoming trades council conference in Wales that aims to discuss the crisis of working-class political representation, with the Labour Party invited to defend their record. (eventbrite link here)
DPAC Cymru’s coordinating team recently voted unanimously to support that conference and ask if we could send observers. That conference is endorsed by Cardiff Trades Union Council, Swansea Trades Union Council, Newport Trades Union Council, Caerphilly Trades Union Council, Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, Cardiff Council Unite branch, Cardiff Rail RMT branch, GMB Wales Ambulance Service branch, Cardiff General Unite branch, Unite Community Cardiff & Area, PCS ARMs branch, and Disabled People Against Cuts Cymru.
Thank you to trade union colleagues, in particular trades council delegates, for offering your support, solidarity, and advice through months of protests. You are always warmly invited to send representatives to talk to DPAC Cymru members about your campaigns, and we are always honoured by any opportunity to send a speaker to branches or conferences.
In solidarity, Kind regards, Ben Golightly – Co-coordinator, Disabled People Against Cuts Cymru (DPAC Cymru)
Email [email protected]
Phone 07410 303 652
Townsend Theatre Productions presents: WE ARE THE LIONS, MR MANAGER!
– the story of Jayaben Desai and the Grunwick Strike
Written by Neil Gore Directed by Louise Townsend
We Are The Lions Mr Manager!” is the story of the Great Grunwick Film Processing Factory Strike of 1976-8, and the inspirational strike-leader Jayaben Desai, one of many newly arrived Gujarati women workers from East Africa.
Grunwick wasn’t a strike about wages – it was about something much more important than that: it was about dignity. Dignity at work. And, for the small band of Asian women strikers, who braved the sun, rain, and snow month-in and month-out on the picket lines, from August 1976 to July 1978, rights in the workplace and pride at work were far more important than any amount of money
- Tour dates and tickets here. Tickets: £15 and £7.50 concessions
General Strike Centenary & The Cramlington Train Wreckers 2026 – As you know, next year is a hugely important year for working history (centenary of the General Strike) .Following the success of The Cramlington Train Wreckers last November (4,000 people attended 7 venues) it is transferring to the 1200-seat Newcastle Theatre Royal next July. We are looking to touring it next year but would like feedback from unions re support. Can you circulate it among your affiliates, please? We also have an event at Glasshouse in May to mark the first full day of the centenary of the General Strike.
We are using both events to encourage a new layer of (young) trade union activists. It is an opportunity to draw in people We had a tremendous intervention in at Durham Miners’ Gala over the weekend. Any support would be appreciated.
The Cramlington Train Wreckers is transferring to Newcastle Theatre Royal after a sell out tour at 7 North East venues (4,000 attended!) last November.
www.cramlingtontrainwreckers.co.uk
www.wisecrackproductions.co.uk
Alan Hardman ‘Need not Greed’ – Alan Hardman’s razor-sharp political cartoons collected for the first time. Coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the Miners’ Strike, Need Not Greed is a career-spanning collection of visual art by one of Britain’s greatest unsung political cartoonists. Alongside Alan Hardman’s essential work, the book also includes a contribution from former President of the National Union of Mineworkers, Arthur Scargill, as well as a foreword by Jeremy Corbyn order a copy – £45 each
Affiliate with STAMMA – at this year’s NSSN Conference, Gary Clark retired CWU Royal Mail rep and a member of the NSSN Steering Committee spoke about STAMMA. STAMMA’s Employment Support Service helps people who stammer as well as those who don’t around issues related to stammering in the workplace. Union branches and regions can affiliate with STAMMA to access a range of services and support at a reduced rate.
- £75 for branches and regions
- £125 for national unions with under 400,000 members
- £200 for national unions with 400,000+ members
Sign this petition: To the Right Honourable Steve Barclay, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and The Right Honourable Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister – Make toxic landfills safe – Support ‘Zane’s Law’! Find out more about this campaign here
From Strike Map – Our final instalment of the ‘Industrial Unionism’ series with Manifesto Press is here. Building on this success of our other pamphlets- which has sold over 2,000 copies, our next pamphlet in our series is the infamous ‘A Manual of Industrial Unionism’ by William Z Foster. Click the button here to pre-order your copy for you and your organisation
Stop the attack on Gaza
Many NSSN supporters have joined marches and protests against the escalation of violence in the Middle East, particularly the invasion and bombardment of Gaza by the Israeli government.
See Stop the War website for info on protests. The next national central London demo is on Saturday 11th October – 12noon details
A number of unions have issued statements on the situation in the Middle East, including: the TUC, FBU, RMT, NEU, Unite, Unison, PCS, ASLEF, TSSA, UCU, EIS, USDAW, BFAWU, CWU, Equity, BMA, NUJ, MU, UVW, GMB, SOR, RCM, RCN, IWGB, Prospect, CSP, NAPO, INTO (Ireland), SIPTU (Ireland) and Mandate (Ireland)
Fight blacklisting and victimisation of union reps
‘SPYCOPS’ EXPOSED AND DEFEATED – Campaigners have successfully exposed the scandal of 50 years of secret undercover political policing. In fact activists are also celebrating 5 decades of struggles for a better world, despite police spying and repression
Affiliate to the Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance (COPS) here
ITV documentary – https://policespiesoutoflives.org.uk/itv-spycops-documentary-coming-soon-spring-2025/
www.campaignopposingpolicesurveillance.com
https://policespiesoutoflives.org.uk/
https://tmg-uk.org/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/blacklistSG/?locale=en_GB
https://powerbase.info/index.php/UndercoverResearch_Portal
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. You can catch up on disputes at Strike Map UK. Also, check out Organise Now! – Support for new worker organising.
International
Please support – MassArt in USA: rescind the suspension and drop all punishment for the exercising of free speech and protest! Union educator Peggy Wang was successfully brought back to work by supporters after a 3-month-long campaign against MassArt administration’s attempts to fire her for participating in a peaceful pro-Palestinian protest. But now, MassArt administration is suspending her without pay for 2 weeks, punishing her through retaliatory measures. We demand that MassArt immediately rescind the suspension and drop all punishment against her. Those in the MassArt community should have the right to free speech, assembly, and protest; pro-Palestinian protests should not be an exception! Send letter of protest
Support Nigeria Solidarity
From Rob Williams NSSN Chair:-
At a recent international conference recently I had the privilege to meet Adaramoye Michael, National Coordinator of the Youth Rights Campaign in Nigeria. Michael is one of the Nigerian activists facing trial for treason, which can carry the death penalty, for the ‘crime’ of protesting against bad governance and poverty. The trial of Michael and other defendants has been delayed repeatedly but is now set for 9 October, 2025. Please show your support by asking your branch to pass the Nigeria Solidarity motion that can be found here: Union Motion – Nigeria Solidarity, sending protest letters to the Nigerian High Commission (template here: Letter to Embassy on #EndBadGovernance Protestors Repression – Google Docs), donating to the campaign if possible, and taking solidarity photos in the days before 9 October.
Further details on www.NigeriaSolidarity.com/Events.
Türkiye: No to union-busting at Digel read more
Diary
2025
September
