The ‘brutal’ planned closure of a DHL Supply Chain site in South Yorkshire and a ‘derisory’ pay offer has prompted 15 days of strikes, Unite has said. About 120 warehouse workers, members of…Read more…
HSE needs to ground its research in the workplace
Unions have long been critical of the failure of the HSE to regulate and enforce on occupational health risks. For instance we have asked for specific regulations on stress, lower exposure limits on…Read more…
Brexit nuclear shutdown threat
The future of the UK’s power supply is being threatened by Brexit and urgent government action is needed to resolve the problem, an influential group of MPs warned on Tuesday (May 2). The…Read more…
The strength of the economy matters for the public finances
Summary: It makes no sense to think about the deficit without thinking about the size and strength of the economy. A Newsnight report on the public finances last night was illustrated with a chart seemingly showing high spending causing the deficit. It…Read more…
‘Respect my union’ demo
Hotel workers, members of Unite, will stage a ‘respect my rights, respect my union’ protest outside the flagship Premier Inn in London’s Leicester Square tomorrow (Thursday, May 4) over attempts to…Read more…
The rail franchise needs more than just a reboot
The current system of rail franchising leaves much to be desired. Passenger satisfaction is very uneven, and the system is not well aligned with the needs of the economy. Today, Campaign for Better Transport (CfBT) published a report on the state of Rail Franchising in the UK. Since 1998 range of…Read more…
Bedroom tax victory
Charlotte and Jayson Carmichael have for years been fighting the bedroom tax, a government policy introduced in 2013 that penalises people in social housing for having an ‘under-occupied’ home….Read more…
Too little too late on teacher retention
Yesterday saw the last minute publication of the government response to the inquiry into teacher recruitment and retention undertaken by the House of Commons education select committee earlier this year. The committee’s original report, published in February, highlighted a number of key issues,…Read more…
Personal Protective Equipment: the right fit for women?
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is there to protect workers from potential hazards to their health and safety; it must be used properly. However, the experiences of hundreds of women tells us…Read more…
Bus Bill now law
Unite has slammed a new law that prevents local authorities in England from creating publicly owned bus services as “outrageous”. Despite the controversial Bus Services Bill being given royal…Read more…
‘Safety, not union-busting’
Unite the union on Tuesday (May 2) said that the gas leak at the Grangemouth petrochemical reaffirms the need for the site’s owners’ INEOS to work constructively on its industrial and community…Read more…
Why insecurity at work doesn’t need to be the new normal
New research we’ve published today, commissioned from the National Institute for Economic and Social Research, shows that insecure work isn’t inevitable. The rise and rise of insecure work in the UK is sometimes treated as a natural consequence of technological and social change. The development of…Read more…
Colombia justice fight goes on
On May Day yesterday (May 1) also known as International Workers’ Day, demonstrations were yesterday held right across the world including in London. May 1 commemorates events in Chicago…Read more…
Showroom protest
Car workers, who make engines, the Mini and Rolls-Royce motorcars for BMW,protested outside the German carmaker’s flagship showroom on Park Lane in Mayfair, London on Saturday (April 29) over the…Read more…
Steel deal completed
Unite said today’s (May 2) announcement that Liberty House had formally completed a £100m deal to acquire the speciality steel division of Tata Steel UK, was testament to the skills and resolve of…Read more…
We need to stop the financialisation of justice
The campaigns against TTIP and CETA – EU trade deals with the US and Canada – have raised public awareness of the dangers of the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system. ISDS is a corporate court system contained in trade deals which allows international companies to sue governments for…Read more…
How the tax system is driving people into insecure work in unexpected ways
I work for the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, a group of tax and welfare rights specialists with expertise in the tax and related welfare issues of the low-paid. Often, people contact us describing their problems with tax, National Insurance, tax credit…Read more…
Rights at work – this May Day, it’s all happening at once
You wait for years for the needs of working people to become the focus of political attention and then suddenly everybody’s interested. The onset of the General Election campaign has coincided with the beginning of Brexit negotiations and the long overdue dawning of understanding at the…Read more…
Global trade deals can’t substitute for a good Brexit deal
This week the think tank OpenEurope published a report with recommendations for Britain’s future trade after it leaves the EU. It suggests that Britain may be able to make up much of its shortfall in trade resulting from leaving the EU by strengthening its trade, particularly in services, with…Read more…
Royal Mail pensions talks
The talks with the Royal Mail over plans to close its pension scheme in its current form are ‘complex and difficult’, Unite warned today (April 28). Unite, which has about 6,000 members…Read more…