Unite delegate Pat Stuart spoke on the last day of the TUC conference (Wednesday September 16) in support of trades councils. Pat called trades councils, which bring together unions to work…Read more…
Making the change
This week we look at the work of Show Racism the Red Card (SRtRC) together with Unite in fighting racism. Today we start with how it all began. At Newcastle’s St James Park in 1995 it…Read more…
Unions face increasing harassment in Iran
Despite the recent thaw in relations between the Iranian regime and western countries, the situation facing trade unionists in the country has worsened alarmingly this month. While we were in…Read more…
Developing the expertise of vocational teachers and trainers
By Lorna Unwin, Institute of Education. How can vocational teachers and trainers (VTTs) develop and their subject and pedagogical expertise? How much CPD goes on ‘under the radar’ as VTTs seek their…Read more…
Lidl: wages pledge exclusion anger
As supermarket chain Lidl announced today (September 18) that it would introduce a Living Wage of £8.20 an hour for workers in England, Wales and Scotland, Unite members demand to know why workers in…Read more…
Crisis point
Britain’s steel industry is at ‘crisis point’ warned Unite as it urged the government to step up its support for the troubled industry. The call follows today’s (September 18) decision by SSI…Read more…
Porton Down secret move
Public Health England (PHE) has been accused of ‘acting in bad faith’ by not informing the trade unions before the announcement that its facilities will be moved from Porton Down to Harlow in Essex….Read more…
Why are so many children so unhappy at school?
The 2015 Good Childhood Report comes to some chilling conclusions. Children in England were found to be among the most unhappy with their school life in the world. And their dissatisfaction…Read more…
The Chancellor drops his guard at the House of Lords – continued cuts are about the next financial crisis (and he moves the public debt goalposts to 100% GDP)
There was a significant exchange last week (Tuesday 8 September) ago in the House of Lords Treasury Select Committee. Sir Andrew Turnbull, head of the Civil Service (2002-2005), head of the Treasury (1998-2002) challenged the Chancellor on the real pur…Read more…
Millions say no to TTIP
Set to be one of the largest bilateral trade agreements every negotiated, TTIP – the mammoth EU-US deal currently being negotiated in secret – has also garnered mammoth media attention. The…Read more…
White Rose: Helping CCS to bloom
Carbon Capture and Storage is critical to meeting climate change targets. Without it decarbonising the economy would cost £32 billion more a year by 2050.
The post White Rose: Helping CCS to bloom appeared first on ToUChstone blog.Read more…
‘Paltry’ pay offer
Workers at a Leeds printing plate firm are going on a 48-hour strike over a ‘paltry’ pay offer from Sunday morning (September 20). About 50 Unite members at AGFA Graphics, Coal Road, Seacroft…Read more…
High cost of right to buy
More than one hundred thousand council homes across England will have to be sold to fund the Tories’ extension of right to buy, according to a new report released today (September 17) from housing…Read more…
David, David, David, boy!
The government says a key objective of the feed in tariff “is to give people a direct stake in moving to a low carbon economy.” A new video from the Banister House community solar project makes this appeal to the Prime Minister to stop the proposed tariff cuts: “David, David, David, boy!” an intern…Read more…
Guatemala: joker in the pack holds cards in election run-off
Guatemala has dodged the bullet of a ‘gangster President’, but will those remaining in the contest be willing and able to heal a country tearing itself apart? Guatemala has been gripped by protests…Read more…
London Labour Film Festival 2015: Holding a mirror to working life
It’s very exciting for me to be back in the London Labour Film Festival programme this year (24-26 Sep 2015), as I participated actively in the first festival back in 2012. The LLFF is one of over…Read more…
This draconian and partisan bill has no democratic mandate
ATL vice-president Shelagh Hirst is among the members of ATL’s Policy Council attending TUC this year. On Monday, she spoke to a motion on the Trade Union Bill. Much has been written about the…Read more…
No workers’ rights? No World Cup
Unite delegate Scot Walker spoke in support of a motion on FIFA today (September 16) on the final day of the TUC conference. “Sisters and brothers, as a football fan, I recognise that…Read more…
LGBT equality fight continues
Unite delegate Maggie Ryan moved a motion today (September 16) at the TUC on discrimination in survivor pensions – a motion that was prioritised at this year’s national LGBT conference. …Read more…
End gender pensions gap
Ceri Wright, a Unite delegate from the finance sector, spoke today (September 16) on the gender pension gap. According to a report from Prudential, women can expect an average retirement…Read more…