All the union news that's fit to blog...
Unite is calling for the country’s surge in green energy not to come at the cost of weaker standards and reduced safety. The UK’s shift to clean energy will create thousands of skilled and secure union jobs, but Unite is concerned that some in the industry are pushing for semi-skilled fitters, instead of fully qualified […]
The post Protecting skills appeared first on Unite Live.
This year marks the 90th anniversary of the Battle of Cable Street, with lots of events being planned to commemorate the day in 1936 when working people from London’s East End refused to let the fascist black shirts march through their community and stir up hatred. On 3-4 October, Unite will be participating in major […]
The post Cable Street call out appeared first on Unite Live.
When Unite rep Sarah Guyon returned to work after giving birth to one of her children, she’d expected – as anyone would – the support and congratulations of her colleagues. But on a male-dominated construction site, women like Sarah are still met with attitudes you’d think we’d eradicated decades ago. “Some of the men told […]
The post ‘We all belong here’ appeared first on Unite Live.
Hundreds of GKN Aerospace workers braved sweltering temperatures on a picket line in Filton yesterday (27 May) to tell bosses at the world-leading aerospace supplier to pay up. Around 900 Unite members at the Filton factory had walked out this week in a fight over fair pay after receiving a below inflation pay offer – […]
The post Aerospace action appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite Community is hosting an event in Bristol for trade union members and activists that will explore issues around the current social security system. Organisers point out that it is clear that the social security safety net is broken, and that instead of being there to support those in need it has become a political […]
The post Safety net is broken appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite is encouraging people to head to Sheffield next month and join the crowds at this year’s Orgreave Anniversary March and Rally. The event, organised by the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign, commemorates the 42nd anniversary of the police riot at Orgreave, and celebrates the great Miners’ Strike of 1984/5. The march and rally takes […]
The post Marching for justice appeared first on Unite Live.
As the UK swelters under the first heatwave of the year, bringing record breaking May temperatures, the call for a national maximum working temperature for workers continues to grow. Last week (May 20) the Climate Change Committee (CCC) published a report warning that UK temperatures are increasing faster than the global average, and called on […]
The post Extreme heat warning appeared first on Unite Live.
At least 500 Unite members employed by the University of Cambridge spent four days on strike demanding a ‘Cambridge weighting’ pay supplement to deal with the cost of living in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Unite members, including library, museum, estates management, finance, student services and IT staff, walked out on […]
The post Cambridge Uni workers strike appeared first on Unite Live.
Hundreds of people marched through Barnsley yesterday (May 2) to mark the 100th anniversary of the General Strike and show solidarity with workers currently in dispute. The colourful parade of banners snaked from Glass Works Square to the NUM building, was led by the stirring sounds of the Tweit Silver Band. Earlier in the day […]
The post General Strike 100 – in photos appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite South West and The Landworker are back at the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival this July, and are today, May Day, announcing the initial Unite Marquee line up for another packed weekend in the birthplace of rural trade unionism. Kicking off the weekend in the Unite Marquee, often seen as the beating heart of the annual […]
The post Rural Solidarity appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite construction members are making final preparations this weekend, before starting a five day hike along the iconic West Highland Way on Monday (4 May) to raise money for a Scottish Hospice. The four Glaswegian construction workers have been training hard over the last few months in preparation for the 96-mile trail, where they are […]
The post Walk this way appeared first on Unite Live.
Every International Workers’ Memorial Day (IWMD), Unite members gather in droves by the Harry the Hod statue in Liverpool, just yards away from the union’s Jack Jones House. This year was no different, with members across sectors as well as politicians and campaigners coming to pay their respects on Tuesday (April 28) in one of […]
The post ‘We haven’t even started yet’ appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite is inviting everyone to head to Barnsley this weekend to mark 100 years since the General Strike. The strike that brought the country to a stand still in 1926 is a moment in working history that still echoes in today’s fights for fair pay, secure work, and dignity on the job. Organisers have pulled […]
The post Come to Barnsley! appeared first on Unite Live.
Construction workers, activists and campaigners gathered at the Building Worker statue on Tower Hill yesterday (28 April) for Unites annual International Workers Memorial Day (IWMD) commemoration. Though workplace safety was the focus of the event, the importance of supporting mental health at work was raised again and again. Unite Regional Officer Mark Soave started the […]
The post “Protecting the living” appeared first on Unite Live.
A sea of Unite flags filled Blake Gardens in Bridgwater on Friday (April 24th), as construction workers from Hinkley Point C (HPC) and trade union activists gathered around the Unite Workers Memorial to mark International Workers Memorial Day (IWMD). A large crowd gathered in the sun for the annual commemoration and heard from speakers including, […]
The post Bridgwater remembers – in photos appeared first on Unite Live.
Union members and radical history enthusiasts have been hard at work organising a new one day festival to recognise a little known piece of Kent’s rural past. The Swing Riots & Bossenden Rising Festival takes place near Faversham, at Mount Ephraim Gardens, on May 31st, starting at 1pm and finishing at 7.30pm. The festival is […]
The post “Rooted in solidarity” appeared first on Unite Live.
Hard working NHS workers, and supporters, held a rally at Westminster yesterday (22 Apr) calling for our NHS to be fully and properly funded. Hundreds of Unite members from across the UK joined the protest at planned cuts to NHS budgets and headcounts, with the union saying that the NHS is “running on empty” and […]
The post “At breaking point” appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite member Jon had been working in a large local government organisation in West Yorkshire for more than a decade in a job he loved. A capital programme manager in housing, he never imagined he’d become the victim of a relentless, years-long bullying campaign that would totally upend his life and destroy his self-esteem. But […]
The post ‘I was scared to go to work’ appeared first on Unite Live.
London bus passengers face disruption this month as over 150 Unite members at Transport for London will strike over roster changes that will leave them fed up and fatigued. Workers, who are bus station and network traffic controllers, will walk out from 23 to 25 April, to coincide with RMT workers taking action on the […]
The post Fighting fatigue appeared first on Unite Live.
The sun shone down on Unite members as they started a 24-hour strike at three universities across Scotland today (10 April) over an imposed real terms pay cut. Staff joined pickets and rallies at the gates of some of the country’s biggest education institutions, with strike action involving 1,000 Unite members at Glasgow, Strathclyde and […]
The post Higher education walk out appeared first on Unite Live.