BSG members call demo outside Band Street station at 5.30pmRead more…
Trade Unions and the law – as in UNITE so in UNISON?
Len McCluskey is right that unions must be able to fight for workers even if it means breaking bad laws – see his article in the Guardian reporting an important decision of UNITE’s Executive;
http://gu.com/p/46zxh
The General Secretary of our sister u…Read more…
Neville Lawrence named as keynote speaker for Move on Up North
Line up completed for BECTU-organised event in SalfordRead more…
Win! Train strike cancelled after worker wins her job back
Diane Johannessen wins her job back after union interventionRead more…
RMT lifts the lid on London Bridge chaos
Union says fragmentisation and privatisation lie at the heart of the problemRead more…
Save the Bees:
One in ten wild bees face extinction in Europe By Helen Briggs BBC Environment correspondent There are 1,965 bee species native to Europe Almost one in 10 of Europe’s native wild bees face…Read more…
Trade unions can still improve conditions for working people – the case of shared parental leave
I blog enough about how bad things are working in the public sector (and local government in particular) and also have enough to say criticising what I perceive as the shortcomings of my own trade union.I think it is worth saying that not everything is…Read more…
When is a motion also a Number Two?
There is, I suppose, a sense in which a “motion” which is “number two” in order of prioritisation may be considered to the same thing twice.An unkind person (unlike your blogger) might make this observation about Motion 44 on the agenda for UNISON’s Special Local Government Conference (titled “NJC…Read more…
Dave – Don’t Duck Debate!
Among the many things I rather admire about Ed Miliband is his pursuit of David Cameron over the latter’s refusal to face a fair, public debate in the General Election campaign.
It’s clear that an incumbent is always likely to resist such a debate (unless the consider themselves an underdog) but…Read more…
Unite Analysis Of Osborne’s Last Budget
By the Unite Political Department To call George Osborne’s performance, hopefully for the last time, at the Commons’ despatch box a budget for the nation is stretching credulity to its limits. With…Read more…
When a government just doesn’t care
The Department of Work Pensions—the epicentre of the coalition government’s destruction of the welfare state as we know it—was today (March 19) the scene of Unite’s national day of action against benefits sanctions. Hundreds gathered outside the DWP to protest the cruel sanctions, in which benefits claimants’ entitlements are suddenly cut for spurious reasons, […]
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did the chancellor really raise the income tax threshold for 2016-18?
The personal tax allowance will increase to £10,800 pounds in the 2016/2017 tax year, George Osborne told parliament, up from the £10,600 announced for 2015/16. The allowance will rise again to £11,000 in 2017/2018. This year’s increase is a real one, but the rates announced for subsequent…Read more…
No one deserves sanctions
Unite activist and former Teeside charity boss, Jessie Jacobs speaks out against benefits sanctions Today at 12.30pm I was stood outside Middlesbrough job centre, speaking to a crowd of people about the benefit sanctions regime. I have been taking part in Unite’s national day of action #no2sanctions. Up until recently I was leading […]
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Fighting ‘grotesque’ sanctions
Unite Community members today held protests against grotesque benefit sanctions outside over 75 job centres across the United Kingdom. Millions of claimants have faced sanctions varying in length between four weeks and three years. Many are often imposed for the most trivial reasons that are beyond the claimant’s control. The unemployed, sick, disabled, […]
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#Budget2015 Roundup
The TUC’s economic and social affairs team has been working flat out to pick apart, scrutinise and analyse the final budget of this Parliament. Here are some of the most popular posts: 1. Welfare cutsThe Chancellor referred to £12 billion of welfare cuts. Nicola Smith crunches the numbers to…Read more…
IDS ‘verdict’: Guilty
‘Iain Duncan Smith’ has today ‘been jailed for crimes against humanity’ by Unite community members in Southampton over the government’s widespread use of benefit sanctions. As part of a national day of action against the sanctions – which lead to a cut or loss of benefits for the most trivial reasons – Unite […]
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Osborne’s ‘Rollercoaster’ of Public-Service Spending:
Robert Peston, Economics editor BBC Can Osborne get off the rollercoaster? The Chancellor told Jim Naughtie on the Today Prog that the scale of austerity in the opening years of the next…Read more…
#Budget2015 Real talk about regional employment growth
Regional employment growth is a pretty simple statistic. The ONS helpfully publishes a clear analysis every month. In fact, they did this just yesterday morning. In his budget announcement yesterday afternoon, Mr. Osborne boldly proclaimed: “Today’s figures show that since 2010, 1000 more jobs have…Read more…
Irish unions solidarity message to student occupation in Netherlands
ICTU Youth, Union of Students in Ireland, IFUT Support De Nieuwe UniversiteitRead more…
Scotland says No to TTIP: launch event 11 April
Come to the launch of the Scotland Against TTIP coalition, find out more about how TTIP might impact on Scotland and what you can do to stop it.Read more…