Strike action could be on the cards at a major cereal manufacturer in Wiltshire after a manufacturing operative was sacked unfairly. Justin Beckett, a Unite rep at Cereal Partners in…Read more…
Building a strong future
Construction workers will have one powerful union voice on their side fighting for them from January 1, 2017 as members of UCATT voted by 85.5 per cent to merge with Unite today (Wednesday 2). …Read more…
Climate Change and the US Presidential Election: is there a way forward?
Martin Wolf is on fine form in today’s Financial Times (£), writing about the imperative of addressing climate change. Specifically, Wolf describes with frightening clarity the warming of the planet and asks, rhetorically, if this is such an important issue, why has it not featured in the debates…Read more…
Young worker’s challenge #1: Low pay
This month we’re counting down the ten most significant challenges faced by young workers. We’re kicking off with low pay. It’s no surprise that younger workers are paid less than older…Read more…
3 reasons why Philip Hammond should Fully Fund our NHS
SIGN THE PETITION HERE Your colleagues say it needs more money Yesterday the Health Select Committee – a group of MP’s with a Conservative majority – accused Theresa May and Jeremy Hunt of giving the “false impression” that the NHS was “awash with cash”, following the government’s pledge to…Read more…
Save our libraries, museums and galleries
Unite will be joining librarians and campaigners in a joint march with Unison and the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union to save our libraries, museums and galleries on Saturday (November 5)….Read more…
Massive vote for pension strike
Bosses at AWE Plc – the Atomic Weapons Establishment – are being urged to have urgent talks, after staff voted overwhelmingly to strike over the threat to close the defined benefit pension scheme and…Read more…
Cut – sex scene censors?
The chances of scenes from sexually explicit films getting through the censors’ net, with serious implications for child protection, could increase if five examiners are axed, Unite warned today…Read more…
Do the right thing
“Supporting the accredited living wage is quite simply the right thing to do; it improves our employees’ quality of life but also benefits our business and society as a whole.” Everton FC…Read more…
Living wage: Everton FC signs up
Everton FC has become the second Premier League side to pledge to pay its staff a real living wage. The Liverpool-based club has been accredited by the Living Wage Foundation (LWF), which…Read more…
As an Uber driver I’m sick and tired of losing out
Drivers won a pivotal victory in a case taken by my union, GMB against Uber that proved that they really are employees and not “partners” as the company always says. Our win is about keeping hold of…Read more…
BMW: ‘Pensions robbery’
BMW group car workers who make the iconic Mini and prestigious Rolls-Royce begin voting in a consultative action ballot today (October 31) amid accusations of a ‘pensions robbery’ over the carmaker’s…Read more…
Establishment ‘stitch up’ slammed
The home secretary Amber Rudd has today rejected calls for any kind of inquiry into violent policing at the Battle of Orgreave, in a move described as an “establishment stitch-up.” Rudd ruled…Read more…
‘Salami-sliced’ pensions ‘frenzy’
The UK has fallen out of the top 10 list of countries with the best pensions for the first time in history coinciding with an alarming swell of companies in an apparent ‘frenzy’ of defined benefit…Read more…
Assurances call
The UK’s auto industry workers are world-renowned for their craftsmanship — it’s thanks to them that the industry has largely flourished over the years. That Nissan pledged last week to…Read more…
Real Living Wage benefits 3K businesses and their workers. Let’s make it 30K next year
The new Living Wage rates for London and the rest of the UK will be announced at 9.30 this morning. The announcement will also be made simultaneously in Glasgow, Cardiff and Manchester. I shall be at the London launch with the Mayor, Sadiq Khan. The re…Read more…
#CETA: zombie trade deal is no recipe for #Brexit
Today the Prime Minister of Canada flew into Brussels to sign the EU-Canada so-called trade agreement known as CETA – the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement – with the European Union. For the past fortnight, the signing had been held up by the French speaking regional parliament…Read more…
Counting the cost of pregnancy discrimination
This week, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) released figures on the financial cost of pregnancy discrimination. For women who lose their jobs, the cost is between £47 million and £113 million, just in the first year. Losses flowing from long term impacts on their career have not…Read more…
Night working is a boom industry
Personally, I struggle with mornings. To me, the arrival of daylight savings time and an extra hour in bed is the highlight of autumn, a season that contains my birthday. As you look forward to…Read more…
Win for gig workers
Unite announced it would be setting up a special ‘bogus self-employment’ unit to pursue employers who were shamelessly dodging their responsibilities by classifying workers as self-employed. …Read more…