Proposals that could see the closure of the Woolwich ferry, which has been free for more than a century, has been condemned by Unite. Unite said that the threat to the ferry, whose history…Read more…
What the Party Manifestos say on health and safety.
We now have the manifestos of all the main parties, it is interesting to see what they say (or don’t say) about occupational health and safety issues.Read more…
WORK NOT PLAY CAMPAIGN
On the 20-22 April the STUC Congress will be meeting in Ayr. The theme of this year’s Congress is Decent Work and Dignified Lives. In the run up to Congress this blog will host a series of…Read more…
#respect4managers – Debunking the myths about NHS managers
In the leadership debate two weeks ago, David Cameron described NHS managers as ‘bureaucrats with clipboards’. He boasted that he’d got rid of 20,000 such managers in England and that somehow this had created more jobs for doctors and nurses. Well yes, they got rid of the managers, in the most…Read more…
When the homeless are criminalised
Hundreds of people took to the streets of London yesterday, bringing traffic to a standstill as they marched on Parliament to raise awareness of the treatment of homeless people in the UK, Ireland…Read more…
Smurfit Kappa strike on hold
The four day strike at corrugated packaging company Smurfit Kappa in Northampton, due to start on Friday (April 17), has been suspended. This is to allow the appeals of the two sacked senior…Read more…
What polling on working time shows about attitudes to Europe
The High Pay Centre launched the findings of some interesting polling yesterday, showing that social measures like the Working Time Directive and restrictions on bankers’ bonuses introduced by the European Union were popular with British people, but not well-understood to originate in Europe….Read more…
FAST FOOD CAMPAIGN
On the 20-22 April the STUC Congress will be meeting in Ayr. The theme of this year’s Congress is Decent Work and Dignified Lives. In the run up to Congress this blog will host a series of…Read more…
Someone on our side
UNITElive spoke yesterday (April 14) with Cardiff mum and Unite member Jo Stevens, a prospective parliamentary candidate for Labour in Cardiff Central. Jo was hitting the campaign trail in Wales with…Read more…
What working for Amazon really does to your health: the truth is starting to come out
We all know about Amazon’s lackadaisical approach to paying its taxes, and its “hire and fire” attitude to the workers who run its giant warehouses, where impossible work standards mean staff are…Read more…
Justice Committee Inquiry finds government reforms have reduced safety and performance of prisons
The Justice Committee recently concluded their first major inquiry on prisons planning and policies in this last parliament, focusing on measures the Ministry of Justice has used to reduce the ‘operational costs’ of the system. The inquiry report reveals the huge strain that the system is under, as…Read more…
‘Beyond barmy’
Nigel Farage had long sought to throw off the spectre of what he himself described as the “drivel and nonsense” of UKIP’s 2010 manifesto. Sadly for the him the 2015 version…Read more…
Inspiration movement
Protest action has taken place in 20 cities across the UK in support of low paid workers in Fast Food restaurants demanding an end to poverty pay and union rights. The Fast Food Forward…Read more…
“Standing for the common good”
At the Arcola theatre, Hackney, Natalie Bennett launched a Green party manifesto based on the wholesale rejection of austerity – “that no one in the world’s sixth richest economy should not be able to put food on their own table or have a roof over their head.” Bennett challenged the notion of an…Read more…
REC/KPMG ‘report on jobs’ shows anticipated pay growth in 2015 of just 1%
As befits the seeming ‘good-economic-news-only’ environment in the run up to the election, last Friday’s REC (The Recruitment & Employment Confederation) report on jobs was issued under the banner: “Stronger growth of staff placements in February” But in the last section of the…Read more…
Fight for 5
On the day (April 15) that McDonalds workers in America are protesting against poverty pay and appalling working terms, Unite members stood in solidarity at over 20 demonstrations throughout the UK….Read more…
Will extension of Right to Buy really lead to building of new homes?
The Conservatives have announced in their election manifesto that that they will extend Right to Buy (RTB) to all housing association tenants in England. We will extend the Right to Buy to tenants in Housing Associations to enable people to buy a house of their own… We will fund the…Read more…
CRISIS IN THE OFFSHORE INDUSTRY
On the 20-22 April the STUC Congress will be meeting in Ayr. The theme of this year’s Congress is Decent Work and Dignified Lives. In the run up to Congress this blog will host a series of…Read more…
Young workers speaking up for housing
The UK is caught in a deepening housing crisis, which is particularly hitting younger people. House building is stuck at a historically low level meanwhile the waiting list for social housing has…Read more…
They’ve got to be McJoking
US-based McDonalds workers have been offered a 10 per cent pay rise and big increase in paid holidays. But the pay rise only applies to one in 20 workers, at 89 cents its around 50p an hour and the…Read more…