All the union news that's fit to blog...
Banners, bands and crowds. Locally known as The Big Meeting, the Durham Miners’ Gala has been marching along on the second Saturday in July since 1871 and despite there being no mines today it seems certain to continue for the foreseeable future as the largest annual labour movement gathering. Among the 100,000 participating in the […]
The post Durham Miners’ Gala – ‘Show of Union Power’ appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite is taking its campaign to improve pay and conditions for local government craftworkers to the Local Government Association national conference today (Wednesday 8 July) as the dispute escalates. The conference brings together local government leaders and policy makers from across England and Wales, and a protest will take place outside the Bournemouth International Centre […]
The post “Craftworkers deserve better” appeared first on Unite Live.
Norfolk’s Burston Strike School Rally is back in September, with a packed line up of speakers and music commemorating the longest strike in history. The Rally, this year held on 6 September, remembers the role of trade unions in building a “Strike School” for the children of rural workers in Norfolk following the persecution of […]
The post Strike School gathering appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite branch members from Devon are recovering after organising a new festival near Plymouth. Unite on the Hill ran from 19 – 21 June at Maker Heights in Torpoint, bringing together Unite members, their families, and invited guests in a mix of workshops, music, children’s activities and informal space to talk and spend time together. […]
The post Solidarity in the South West appeared first on Unite Live.
With another heatwave forecast for next week Arriva bus drivers across North London are balloting for strike action over ongoing frustration at the company’s failure to address dangerously hot working conditions. Over 1,900 drivers across 10 garages are balloting for the strike action across the Arriva North London network, after their employer has failed to […]
The post Boiling over appeared first on Unite Live.
An event later this month is exploring ways to rebuild collective spaces in the 21st Century. Nick Troy, Chair of Unite Hospitality, Glasgow will join Ros Wynne-Jones from the Daily Mirror and Luke Hurst from Mainstream for a discussion about the benefits of social clubs and what the future might hold for these, once common, […]
The post Space to organise appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite Community members are celebrating this week after joining forces with Age UK in a successful campaign to protect the Freedom Pass in London. Last Thursday (June 18) Unite Community activists lobbied the Transport and Environment Committees AGM as part of a joint campaign between Unite Community London and Eastern Region and Age UK to […]
The post “Seismic win” appeared first on Unite Live.
High skilled defense workers in Wales are celebrating after accepting a substantial pay rise after the employer saw sense and negotiated a two year deal of eight per cent with the union. Workers at Qioptiq, a high-tech defence optics company in Denbighshire, North Wales had voted to take strike action earlier in June after rejecting […]
The post Seeing sense appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite is urging workers to stay safe in the sun, and the second heatwave of the year is forecast to bring brutal temperatures across the UK. With workers once again melting under heatwave conditions the call for a national maximum working temperature for workers continues to grow. The extreme weather warning has been issued across […]
The post Heatwave alert appeared first on Unite Live.
“Today is Windrush Day,” writes Sharon Harding, national officer for equalities (BAEM and disabled members). She continues, “This not just a day to remember the Windrush generation, but to honour them and to speak their truth, and to defend their legacy. “They came to this country in its hour of need. After the devastation of […]
The post HONOUR WINDRUSH GENERATION SAYS UNITE appeared first on Unite Live.
“We have so many people standing together that we cannot be ignored, and we have every confidence that we will be heard and we will be making a lasting impact on our industry. “We are world leaders at our institution and we want to act as world leaders, and inspire others to stand for what’s […]
The post Scientists, dreamers… strikers! appeared first on Unite Live.
Over a thousand local government craftworkers have started strike action yesterday (17 June) in a dispute over pay and attacks on their conditions. The highly skilled workers predominantly undertake the local authority housing maintenance and repair work that keeps council tenants safe and comfortable in their homes. But, after years of pay freezes and paltry […]
The post Red Book Strike appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite members in airports across Scotland have been celebrating over recent days as a number of substantial pay increases have been secured by the union. The agreements were not only good news for nearly a thousand airport workers in Scotland, but also passengers who now no longer have to worry about potential industrial actions spoiling […]
The post Flying High appeared first on Unite Live.
The community across Weymouth and Portland gathered on Saturday (13 June) for a festival of protest about a proposed waste incinerator at Portland Port. Unite branches in the area have supported the campaign to stop the development, which is also opposed by Dorset Council and the local MP, Lloyd Hatton. The event, dubbed a “Protestival” […]
The post Portland Protest appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite Community will be staging a day of action on Wednesday 1 July 2026. The day of action takes place when the Energy Price Cap rises by £221 a year for an average household, and campaigners are saying that, “It is time to end fuel poverty”. Fuel poverty is real for so many people, with […]
The post Stop the rip off! appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite members at Enniskillen-based sawmill Balcas have announced strike action starting next week, with the first of three 24-hour strikes on Thursday (June 18). The Balcas sawmill in Enniskillen is highly profitable, and the industrial action follows a vote by its low-paid workforce that overwhelmingly rejected the insulting pay offer. Balcas claims to be one […]
The post Sawmill Strike appeared first on Unite Live.
There will be an opportunity to see a performance of the acclaimed folk drama, To Win the Day at this year’s Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival as part of the packed programme in the Unite Marquee. To Win The Day has been created and performed by the Dorset-based group, Time and Tide, and follows the extraordinary lives […]
The post To Win The Day appeared first on Unite Live.
As people across the world get ready for tonight’s (June 10) World Cup kick off in Mexico, Unite Live shares a story from the latest edition of the buildingWorker. Last October trade unions scored a goal for workers rights in the build up to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. While much of the world has […]
The post Scoring a goal for workers safety appeared first on Unite Live.
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.