“We think transport is at the heart of our communities and transport workers are at the heart of our communities”, explained Unite assistant general secretary for transport Diana Holland. …Read more…
Results against the odds
While the numbers of people illegally being paid below the minimum wage is a relatively minor phenomenon, in the West Midlands the problem is a more worrying one. That’s because it tops the…Read more…
‘Plane truth’ on toxic fumes plea
Unite has told British Airways to stop classifying the release of toxic fumes into plane cabins as ‘odour events’ and warned that downplaying such incidents risks masking an industry-wide problem….Read more…
IT workers strike again
Up to 300 workers at IT giant Fujitsu in Manchester will be staging a further two days of strike action next week in the continuing dispute over pay, pensions and job security. The workers,…Read more…
Young worker’s Challenge #2: Poor quality jobs
This month we’re counting down the ten most significant challenges faced by young workers. Number two is poor-quality jobs. Ever heard of the shrinking middle? No it’s not the latest weight loss fad,…Read more…
Fuel poverty rising
Unite says politicians need to support public ownership of energy companies if they are serious about tackling the country’s fuel poverty crisis. Yesterday (November 3) Scottish Housing…Read more…
Action on tribunal fees is key test of Theresa May’s commitment to workers’ rights
Figures we published today show that with each passing month thousands more workers are being priced out of justice by employment tribunal fees. In the year before fees were introduced (2012/13) on average 16,000 people a month took a claim against the…Read more…
High court puts #Brexit ball back in Parliament’s court
Today’s decision by the High Court that the decision about whether and when to trigger Article 50 and start the formal process of negotiating Britain’s exit from the UK will now go to the Supreme Court. The government does not want Parliament to have the decision-making power, so it is…Read more…
How many legs does a horse have, if you call its tail a leg?
Answer: Four. Calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it one! On 8 July 2015, George Osborne – then Chancellor of the Exchequer – dropped a budget speech bombshell: the introduction of a statutory…Read more…
Like a criminal
From a Unite Community member’s real-life ‘Daniel Blake’ benefit sanctions experience: “I asked how I was supposed to survive for the week with no money and having to live on…Read more…
‘Me versus the world’
With Ken Loach’s award-winning film I, Daniel Blake exposing the cruel reality of life those caught up in Britain’s brutal benefits’ system, we asked people to tell us what it’s like to be at the…Read more…
‘Subtle blacklisting’
The failure of a construction company to recognise the elected officials of workers on Europe’s largest rail infrastructure project in central London has been branded ‘a subtle form of…Read more…
Unsafe and under-staffed
Mental health nurse (MHN) numbers have dropped by almost a sixth since the Tories took power in 2010 new figures show, despite continued government promises to improve ailing mental health services….Read more…
Thai Supreme Court win for migrant rights defender Andy Hall doesn’t end legal fight
It’s great news that, overnight, Thailand’s Supreme Court rejected an appeal by the Natural Fruit Company against Andy Hall, the British born migrant and workers’ rights defender…Read more…
‘Historic moment’
Today (November 2) Unite and Ucatt announced the two unions’ merger. “This is a historic moment for the construction industry and the men and women who work in it. Bad bosses and…Read more…
NHS: ‘Disgraceful accounting’
The NHS faces mounting pressure as never before — a fact made startlingly clear in a recent poll of 99 Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) which found that nearly half of the NHS authorities intend…Read more…
Pallet racking jobs at risk
Unite is holding crunch talks with the management of Link 51 in Telford tomorrow (November 3) to mitigate the 69 job losses announced in the pallet racking business. Link 51, part of…Read more…
Living Wage changes lives
For thousands of workers up and down the country, the Living Wage – not the government’s bogus rebranding but the ‘real’ Living Wage – has changed lives to the tune of thousands a year. For…Read more…
Strike for justice
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…