This morning the Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney argued that migration was not to blame for low wages and living standards. Interviewed on the Today programme, he said that low productivity and lack of investment by employers, not migrant workers were to blame for the lack of wage…Read more…
In extraordinary times
Ahead of a crucial executive meeting of Scottish Labour this Saturday morning (May 16), Unite has said that the party’s best chance of a recovery requires Jim Murphy doing the ‘decent thing’ and…Read more…
Work with us call
Britain’s major supermarkets, which are suffering tough trading conditions, are being urged to work with the trade unions to secure the jobs, and terms and conditions of their respective workforces….Read more…
TUC Migration Messaging Project Showcase April 2015
The TUC held an event in April at Congress House to showcase the work that took place during the TUC Migration Messaging project. Campaign group members from the project’s three pilot areas: Corby,…Read more…
US Senate blocks TTIP bill
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a mammoth EU-US trade deal, suffered a blow on Tuesday (May 12) , when the US Senate blocked a bill that would enable it and other similar…Read more…
Living Wage win for Saria cleaners
Unite wants all workers to be paid at least the Living Wage, which is the minimum income a worker needs to ensure their basic needs are met. Unite reps at many workplaces are increasingly…Read more…
Economic miracle or economic mire?
It now seems there have been more miracles attributed to the Tories than to Jesus Christ himself. So many economic miracles the Tory press don’t know who to raise to political sainthood. They…Read more…
TTIP – after US Senate blow, European Parliament is next up
The shock decision by the US Senate on Tuesday not to deliver ‘Trade Promotion Authority’ to the President for negotiating a trans-Pacific trade deal dealt a serious blow to the EU-US Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) that is currently being negotiated. It now seems…Read more…
Bank of England shows jobs gains are concentrated in lower-paid work
ONS released today another upbeat set of employment numbers, as well as an underlying nominal earnings figure above 2 per cent for the first time in approaching four years (see my colleague Richard Exell’s post). But in the meantime the Bank of England issued a sobering analysis of the nature of…Read more…
Strike for a ‘fitting pay rise’
A strike comprising 11 one day stoppages commenced at Antrim carpets in Belfast today (May 13) over what workers have dubbed ‘poverty pay’. Workers laid down tools at 1pm today for six hours in…Read more…
Conservative strike plans are an aggressive assault on our rights and our democracy
That one of the first priorities of the new government has been to push ahead with punitive new plans for strike ballots is not just a blow for union members, but a blow for UK democracy.
The post Conservative strike plans are an aggressive assault on…Read more…
Labour can’t survive without the unions
Back to the future seems to be the pre-cooked consensus response to Labour’s dramatic defeat last week. To hear many party grandees tell it, all we have to do is party like it’s 1997 again. I…Read more…
“Do you consider yourself to have a disability?” – a bipolar worker speaks out
“Do you consider yourself to have a disability?”; even if you’re completely open about your mental health disorder, you can’t help but think about it for a moment when you see this question in your…Read more…
US Senate blow to Pacific trade deal means TTIP is in trouble
The US Senate decision last night to withhold fast-track ‘Trade Promotion Authority’ for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a blow also to the EU-US Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP), and it demonstrates that opposition to TTIP is not a solely European…Read more…
Safeguard our jobs
At the Irish policy conference of Unite, held in Croke Park yesterday (May 12), Ireland deputy regional secretary Jackie Pollock called for action to safeguard jobs in the manufacturing sector….Read more…
Under attack
Sajid Javid, Vince Cable’s replacement as business secretary, today (May 12) set out his plans for office in an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme. Javid, a former banker appointed…Read more…
And so it begins…
The newly elected Tory government has wasted no time in its assault on working people and the organisations that represent them, as business secretary Sajid Javid announced this morning (May 12) new…Read more…
When will all of our children and teachers have the learning environments that they deserve?
Anne Heavey is an Education Policy Adviser at ATL. Purposeful; Calm; Bright; Interesting; Clean. These words sum up the physical environment of both Stanley Park High and Springwell Learning…Read more…
Election- what it means to young workers
Last Thursday’s general election saw a Conservative majority government voted into Westminster. After having had the weekend for it all to sink in, it’s time to look at what the election result means…Read more…
Pay growth to slow and public sector restraint a big factor, says CIPD
A new survey of 1,013 employers published by the CIPD published today* reports that pay growth is expected to slow during the coming year, and that many employers now believe that public sector restraint is slowing pay growth across the whole economy: •”Basic pay is expected to grow by just…Read more…