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Dear ComradesJust a quick summer update on recent local and future events. Since the General election we have continued campaigning including holding high street stalls in Forest Gate, Canning Town a…
‘Unthinkably bad planning’
The consequences of scrapping nursing bursaries are already starting to materialise, as shock new figures show a big drop in the number of students placed on a nursing course in England. …
Rising employment shouldn’t distract from the living standards crisis
Recent headline job numbers tell a welcome story of rising employment but they mask a growing living standards crisis. The latest figures show employment has reached a new record of 75.1% and the unemployment rate is just 4.4%. But workers are feeling …
‘On notice’
Unite’s workplace representatives are increasingly reporting that employers are trying to force through pay freezes or below inflation pay offers, citing Brexit as the reason for their actions….
68% of votes wasted in General Election
(NB. Below is why our election system in this country is nuts). Picture BBC
68% of votes had no impact on election result: Electoral Reform Society publish definitive report on June voteEMBARGOED: ‘The 2017 General Election: Volatile Voting – Random Results’ report also shows…
Celebrating the Life of Paul Hockaday: 1st September 2017
Dear Colleagues,
The funeral service, cremation and wake for Paul Hockaday has been organised for 1st September in Bangor, North Wales.
If anyone who knew Paul would like to attend the service, and pay their respects to him please contact me.
In S…
Arnold Schwarzenegger has a blunt message for Nazis (& Trump)
A historical perspective on Trump, Lies and Truth
Harry’s Girl: Street Art
Finally got around to posting this picture of street art off Holloway Road near Highbury Corner. I have just googled it and found out it is about Prince Harry’s Girlfriend!
Asylum. Immigration and Women – Edinburgh reviews 1
Yesterday, the Morning Star published my reviews of four shows I’ve seen at this year’s festivals. It is available here and covers Henry Naylor’s new play – Borders (*****), and a new play by a…
‘Abhorrent’
The Tories have imposed benefit sanctions lasting at least six months on nearly 6,000 sick and disabled people, shocking new figures show. Department for work and pensions (DWP) data revealed…
Why on earth have social care workers not been getting the National Minimum Wage?
Enforcement of the NMW for sleep-ins temporarily suspended in social care Last month the government announced it was waiving historic financial penalties and temporarily suspending enforcement of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for workers required to ‘sleep-in’ on their employer’s premises…
What is ‘rolled up’ holiday pay?
Q: I’ve just started a new job at a warehouse via an agency. I’ve been told I’ll get ‘rolled up’ holiday pay. What does this mean? A: When employers (or agencies) refer to ‘rolled up’…
Mike Jeram was a vital part of our union, and we will miss him
Mike Jeram is someone who deserved a long and happy retirement after years of dedicated service to a union which he loved and its members who he cared about, and I am so sad that his life was cut far…
RBS in IT staff slash frenzy
The 71 per cent taxpayer-owned Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) told staff this week that it will slash its IT operations in the UK by 40 per cent, even after a raft of IT glitches that cost the bank…
SAVE SARAH CHAPMAN’S GRAVE, A LEADER OF THE 1888 MATCHWOMEN’S STRIKE & TRADE UNION HEROINE
SARAH Dearman, née CHAPMAN – Matchwomen’s 1888 Strike Committee and TUC DelegateBorn: 31st October 1862 – Died: 27th November 1945 – Buried: 3rd December 1945Sarah Chapman was a leading member of the 1888 Matchwomen’s Strike Committee (pictured above). Sarah (ringed) is standing to the right of…
‘Name and shame’
Argos has topped the list of companies failing to pay their workers the minimum wage, owing nearly £1.5m in back pay to 12,000 workers, as the government last night (August 16) released its latest…
‘Turning the screw’
Hardline bosses at the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing plant are turning the screw on the workforce, as they have banned workplace meetings to discuss the current pay dispute, Unite has said. …
‘No stone unturned’
Unite has warned that it will leave ‘no stone unturned’ if Doncaster refuse contractor Suez presses ahead with breaking the law during forthcoming strike action. Unite has received evidence…
Glasgow Janitors Strike ends in Victory
Delight for Glasgow janitors as 20-month strike ends in victory After a near two-year battle for a pay rise – led by Unison and dubbed locally as #Justice4Jannies – janitors finally won a six per…