Between 2012 and 2015 hate crimes against transgender people more than doubled, according to Home Office figures. But they do not tell the whole story: It is estimated that as much as 80 percent of…Read more…
A history worth fighting for
Unite took its fight to save Somerset cider all the way to Parliament yesterday (February 23) in a meeting with Unite shop stewards and MPs. The meeting with the all-party parliamentary group…Read more…
‘Landmark’ investment by Aston Martin
Aston Martin has today (February 24) announced its new SUV vehicle will be built in Wales creating 750 new highly skilled jobs and up to 1,000 jobs in total in the wider supply chain. Unite…Read more…
On the ‘brink of collapse’?
More bad news for the oil industry hit the headlines late last week (February 19), as the Aberdeen-based oil services firm Wood Group slashed contractor wages for the third time since the downturn in…Read more…
Freedom is a beautiful thing
For LGBT history month this special Unite film shows Unite LGBT members talking about the fight for equality and the many achievements so far. But members also discuss the still present…Read more…
Unhelpful scaremongering?
This post originally appeared on the TES. I hope all the teachers reading this column had a relaxing half term, busy doing nothing, and certainly not ticking pupil progress data boxes. The…Read more…
Cider workers fight to save mill
Unite senior shop steward at Shepton Mallet Cider Mill, Stephen Faulkner (second left) leads Unite delegation on West Country job creation to Somerset MPs at House of Commons, today (February 23)….Read more…
Not listening
Unite Scotland says the Scottish Government is ‘not listening’ to local government workers, who will descend on the Scottish Parliament again tomorrow (February 24) in protest against a £600…Read more…
We’re not quite there yet
Mark “Pasty” Turner was ‘a confused kid’ – but it didn’t stop him standing out from the crowd. At school he never saw the problem with wearing pink shirts – even if his classmates did. The…Read more…
TTIP: ‘Real and serious threat’
The government has repeatedly dismissed fears that an EU-US trade deal, currently being negotiated in secret, would threaten the National Health Service. Critics have long warned that clauses…Read more…
Bill’s tip dipping
Bill’s restaurant is the latest chain to be accused of keeping tips left for waiting staff by customers. Bill’s is one of the fastest growing restaurant chains. It has 67 restaurants…Read more…
Tata Steel: deal in the offing?
As private equity firm Greybull Capital may be set to take control of Tata Steel’s Long Products division in Scunthorpe in April as part of a £400m deal to rescue the operation, steel unions have…Read more…
A ‘hidden history’
“Who hates the miners? Thatcher. Who else? The police, the public and the tabloid press,” says the character of legendary campaigner, Mark Ashton, to fellow activist Mike Jackson, during a Gay Pride…Read more…
Swaziland’s feudal dictatorship blocks public sector pay protests
If you think the Tory attempts to prevent unions opposing cuts in the public sector through the Trade Union Bill are bad, spare a thought for the public sector unions in Swaziland, sub-Saharan…Read more…
#TUBill will limit the amount of paid time off for public sector reps
A new report from the TUC on the benefits of paid time off for union reps provides evidence that the Government’s attack on facility time in the public sector is wrong-headed. The proposals in the. This is the culmination of a campaign waged by the political right against workplace representation…Read more…
Iran: what does ending sanctions mean for workers?
Iran is returning to the international community, as the nuclear weapons programme is ended and sanctions are being abandoned. Throughout the diplomatic standoff, unions globally and here in the UK…Read more…
Victory for the Airbus 8: to strike is not a crime!
Earlier this month, thousands of trade unionists marched in Madrid, Spain under the slogan “to strike is not a crime” to show solidarity with eight trade union activists on trial for…Read more…
EU referendum campaign begins: let’s put workers first
This morning an edited version of this piece was in the Sunday Mirror, with the alternative point of view put by Michael Gove MP. His remark that “membership of the EU prevents us being able to…Read more…
Where does the Chancellor now stand, as calls for public spending and ending reliance on monetary policy grow ever louder?
Prompted in part by the OECD’s latest warnings, more and more commentators are now arguing for expansionary policies. They argue that with the monetary policy near exhausted, governments need to step up and spend. The OECD set matters in motion. In their latest economic report (here; chief…Read more…
North Sea ‘race to the bottom’
Unite, the UK’s biggest offshore trade union, has reiterated its warning to the UK and Scottish governments that a new wave of cuts to offshore contractors pay rates will intensify a race to the…Read more…