All the union news that's fit to blog...
Unite bus drivers across the UK have been fighting for, and winning, decent pay rises as workers struggle to keep up with bills during the continuing cost of living crisis. The government has said that buses are vital for the country, with Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander saying they aim to “improve and maintain bus services” […]
The post Routes of solidarity appeared first on Unite Live.
Lindsey oil refinery workers rallied outside of parliament this morning (Sept 3) 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 […]
The post Refinery workers rally appeared first on Unite Live.
Three weeks of strike action by Unite members at Village Hotel in Govan, Glasgow has ended in a win for workers, with significant improvements to pay and conditions for the hospitality workers. On 15 July, Unite members at Village Hotel in Govan voted 100 per cent for strike action on an 81 per cent turnout. […]
The post Village workers win appeared first on Unite Live.
Lindsey oil refinery workers, along with families and supporters, marched through the seaside town of Cleethorpes on Sunday (24 August) as part of the growing campaign to save the North Lincolnshire refinery. The refinery provides 10% of the UK’s fuel supply, is crucial to the regional economy and Unite is determined that its future must […]
The post Cleethorpes marches for Linsdey appeared first on Unite Live.
Workers threatened by the closure of the Lindsey oil refinery in North Lincolnshire will be taking their campaign to parliament on 3rd Sept – and are calling on Unite colleagues to join them. The “Save Lindsey Oil Refinery” rally takes place at 11am on Wednesday 3rd September outside the Houses of Parliament, with Unite protesters […]
The post Refinery workers head to Parliament appeared first on Unite Live.
Six months after the Prime Minister promised to make funding available to invest in Grangemouth, workers are still waiting, and beginning to fear that the promised investment is nothing more than a mirage. The Grangemouth workers have launched an open letter aimed at Sir Keir Starmer for failing to deliver on his promises to provide […]
The post Show us the Money! appeared first on Unite Live.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) have published a new joint report and guidance highlighting the growing global health challenges posed by extreme heat on workers. The report comes at a time when the UK has experienced four heatwaves in one summer and unions, including Unite, have been renewing calls […]
The post Time to change the law! appeared first on Unite Live.
Workers rallied outside the Lindsey oil refinery yesterday (Thursday 21 August), as demands on the government to take immediate action to secure its long-term future intensified. The rally was just the latest in Unite’s campaign to protect jobs at the site, and follows a demonstration outside Grimsby Town Hall in July, along with a planned […]
The post Refinery future “must be secured” appeared first on Unite Live.
In my book Drax of Drax Hall: How One British Family Got Rich (and Stayed Rich) from Sugar and Slavery, I make the point that the Plunkett Ernel-Erle-Drax family are unique in still having an unbroken history of owning sugar plantations in the Caribbean from their inception in the early 17th century until the present day. […]
The post Drax Hall and Dorset appeared first on Unite Live.
After a year on the picket line workers remain strong in face of union-busting activities by waste management giant, Veolia, who still refuse to recognise their union for collective bargaining. The one-year anniversary of their strike action passed yesterday (19 August), and still the employer won’t recognise the Unite members right to have their union […]
The post Remaining resolute appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite and other unions across the East Midlands have signed the TUC Dying to Work charter with the East Midlands Combined Authority in Chesterfield yesterday (14 Aug) along with Claire Ward, the Mayor of the East Midlands. Regional Coordinating Officer Shaun Lee signed the charter, which sets out an agreed way that employers will support […]
The post East Midlands signs Dying to Work charter appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite members working in agriculture have backed a call by fire fighters for improved resources to tackle the increasing number of wildfires flaring up across the UK, as the countryside swelters under successive heatwaves. Following two major wildfire incidents this week, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) highlighted the dangers that the funding crisis for the […]
The post Fields of fire appeared first on Unite Live.
The following feature first appeared in the most recent edition of Landworker – you can read the full issue online here. Most British consumer products spring from a supply chain that stretches thousands of miles. The chain spans continents and is touched by an untold number of hands. What secrets do our consumer products hold? […]
The post True cost of a cuppa appeared first on Unite Live.
The following feature first appeared in the most recent edition of Landworker – you can read the full issue online here. Vast fields, monitored by drones and sensors, with all planting, crop management and harvesting carried out by robotic tractors controlled by AI and a few workers sat behind screens miles from the farm. This […]
The post Rise of robocrops appeared first on Unite Live.
The following feature first appeared in the most recent edition of Landworker – you can read the full issue online here. Unite is standing shoulder-to-shoulder with migrant workers who have faced exploitation on British farms. The union joined a number of charities and NGOs at a protest outside the Home Office in London in January […]
The post “We are tired of being abused” appeared first on Unite Live.
Norfolk’s Burston Strike School Rally returns in 2025, and it will be a chance for the crowds to check out the newly refurbished school building. The Strike School was beginning to show its age, and earlier in the year the call out was made to Unite branches, regions and sister unions across the country to […]
The post Strike School welcomes the crowds appeared first on Unite Live.
The following feature first appeared in the most recent edition of Landworker – you can read the full issue online here. Working alone is normal in agriculture and forestry. Moving stock, doing maintenance at base or at distance, or operating mobile machinery, the rural worker is often a lone worker. In Landworker Winter 2024, we […]
The post Take care when working alone appeared first on Unite Live.
The following feature first appeared in the most recent edition of Landworker – you can read the full issue online here. The timing couldn’t be more telling. Just days after Labour suffered in local elections against Reform UK – Nigel Farage’s party that campaigned heavily on an anti-immigration platform – the plan was announced. Billed […]
The post Invisible and Unwelcome appeared first on Unite Live.
Unite has launched a new campaign this week highlighting the issues workers face regarding musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), and calling on the Government and employers to play their part in keeping workers safe from the life changing effects that MSD can have. Unite’s campaign is calling for: Unite National Health and Safety AdvisorLuke Collins said, “Musculoskeletal […]
The post Fight for your health! appeared first on Unite Live.
The following feature first appeared in the most recent edition of Landworker – you can read the full issue online here. “Every moment is an organising opportunity, every person a potential activist, every minute a chance to change the world,” said renowned trade union activist, Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA) […]
The post Rural Organising appeared first on Unite Live.