It was an opportunity for Theresa May and her discredited government to heed the voice of millions who voted for a change of direction by ditching failing austerity for a brighter future. …Read more…
Never again
“Get stuffed”. That was the response of Boris Johnson, our present foreign secretary, when quizzed as mayor about his fire safety cuts. In just two words, Johnson embodied the hideous disdain…Read more…
Who’s really to blame?
It is a truism that we always think our present is the best or the worse depending on the circumstances – it usually isn’t. This time however I really do think that the hostility metered out to…Read more…
‘Partners in productivity’
As the deadline for responses to the government’s Industrial Strategy Green Paper closes, it’s worth taking stock of the extent to which things have moved on and how much further there is still to…Read more…
Change has to come
Hospitality workers are among the hardest working yet lowest paid, so it’s hardly surprising that low wages and unfair tipping practices are two of the biggest issues facing our members. After all,…Read more…
‘Still the aliens’
For those on the spectrum, every day is a guessing day – and with it the terrifying thought that something needing logic will happen. It is at this point, when the day begins to fall in on itself and…Read more…
What sort of Britain?
When Pret a Manger opened its first sandwich shop in 1986, I doubt many of us would have expected well-known high street chains to end up trying to pay their staff in leftovers. But that’s…Read more…
‘The insulting Budget’
The Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn summed up Philip Hammond, the Chancellor’s first and last spring budget – it was a budget that was complacent and out of touch he said. He could also have…Read more…
Wake up to what women need
As the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, gets ready to deliver his Budget today, he would do well to remember the 47 per cent. That’s the proportion of women in the UK workforce. With this year’s…Read more…
The crisis that can’t be contained
The omens ahead of tomorrow’s Budget are not good. Last week the business select committee warned that the much-heralded industrial strategy was welcome in intent but absent of strategy….Read more…
Am I really self-employed?
The company I work for have told me I am classed as self-employed and therefore have to pay my own tax and don’t get any holidays. I’ve read quite a bit about bogus self-employment recently. How do I…Read more…
Learning for change
Embracing arts, creativity and culture is critical to the survival of our movement. Within certain areas of the media there is an emphasis on “respecting” the Establishment and individualism….Read more…
‘Flexible’ for who?
Amid the Brexit worry surrounding Parliament’s on-going debate over the triggering of Article 50, there appeared to be a crack of light from PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC). Despite the…Read more…
Secretive NHS shake-up
The cash-strapped NHS could be spending up to £15m on management consultants for advice on the secretive shake-up of the health service in England. Unite, with 100,000 members in the health…Read more…
Unite’s first Brexit conference – GS speech
(Check against delivery) Good morning and thanks to our North West Region’s invite to speak at this important conference on Brexit – and the effects leaving the European Union will have on our…Read more…
‘Trump Tower’ deals spell harm
Unite general secretary Len McCluskey has warned that working class communities face the `fight of their lifetimes’ to fend off a ‘hard’ exit from the European Union. He issued the warning…Read more…
A patient’s progress
I am relatively lucky in that I enjoy fairly good health and rarely have to use the NHS. In fact since moving to my current home over two and a half years ago I have yet to make a personal…Read more…
Swimming with sharks
By the time this is read Prime Minister Theresa May will be on her way with her begging bowl to Washington. Earlier ending months of speculation, and to acclaim in the right wing press, the Prime…Read more…
A bold vision
Ahead of the launch today (January 23) of the government’s plan to develop a modern industrial strategy, the leader of the biggest union in manufacturing again called upon the prime minister to stand…Read more…
What hope workers’ rights under Tories?
Working people can take little comfort from Theresa May’s promise this week to transfer over rights when Britain leaves the EU. There may be a change at the top but, on workers’ rights, the…Read more…