I’ve written before about how the European Union provides the best opportunity to prevent the exploitation of workers who are temporarily posted to other EU countries (and thus the undercutting of the existing workforce.) The best avenue for such action would be revising the EU’s Posted Workers’…Read more…
EU launches consultation on social impact of TTIP
Last week, the European Commission launched a consultation on its latest ‘Sustainability Impact Assessment’ report of the EU-US trade deal known as TTIP. Beneath this rather technical title lies an important opportunity for campaigners to call for TTIP negotiations to dramatically change direction…Read more…
‘Death knell for key industries’
The decision by the European Parliament recently to oppose granting Market Economic Status (MES) to China is very welome. It follows extensive lobbying by Unite and our global union with the US…Read more…
Report from Labor Notes conference and the Chicago Teachers’ Strike
At the start of April I was lucky enough to be part of a small delegation from the UK to the Labor Notes conference in Chicago, which brought together over 2000 activists for an inspiring, stimulating and useful set of plenaries and workshops. The trip…Read more…
Brexit won’t save us from #TTIP: Our own government are part of the problem
A common argument from the Vote Leave camp in the upcoming EU referendum is that Brexit could save us from the many negative impacts of the EU-US TTIP trade deal. But unfortunately there isn’t a quick way out. The truth is that outside the EU we would be facing the prospect of even worse…Read more…
Ending impunity & upholding the rule of law
Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, spoke at the Anti-Corruption Summit hosted by the British Prime Minister David Cameron on 12 May. This is what she said: This week governments put themselves in the spotlight at the UK Anti-Corruption Conference, where…Read more…
Brexit bonfire of regulations would be a bonanza for worst kind of financial speculators
It’s amazing how short memories are. The way some people talk, the financial crisis happened under Queen Victoria not Elizabeth. Yet it is less than ten years since the actions of a group of irresponsible, under-regulated bankers brought the world economy to its knees. We all know that we could not…Read more…
What ‘Lord Waitrose’ could do at the European trade ministers’ meeting on Friday
In the midst of the harshest crisis experienced by the UK steel industry in over a decade, last week brought some comforting news about securing the future of the sector. Potentially this week could see further good news if the UK government chooses to…Read more…
Your fight is our fight
Unite senior rep and Bentley maintenance technician Stuart Davis shares with us below his experience as part of a delegation to Mexico with Workers Uniting. Workers Uniting, a joint…Read more…
Another report confirms #Brexit would cause massive uncertainty for working people
The House of Lords’ influential European Union Committee has produced another important report ahead of the EU referendum on 23 June. Following their earlier report in March calling for more attention to be paid to the interests of working people, today’s report emphasises the years of…Read more…
Australia’s migration system wouldn’t work here either
When supporters of tougher immigration controls are asked what system they would introduce, they often point to Australia’s points-based system. I often get the feeling that this is as much an appeal to old Commonwealth ties as much as a rational answer to the question, with potentially…Read more…
#ISDS: Government position shows ideology trumps evidence
We’re often told that Governments are committed to ‘evidence-based policy making’, although it often seems that it’s the other way round. Now we see, starkly revealed, how far the UK government’s trade policy is based far more on ideology than evidence. A Freedom of…Read more…
Free Ӧcalan
At the launch of the UK-based campaign to free imprisoned Kurdish leader, Abdullah Ӧcalan, on Monday night (April 25), a standing-room only crowd in the House of Commons heard international speakers…Read more…
NIESR report shows need to end race to the bottom on jobs
A report released this week by NIESR identifies low pay and precarious contracts as one of the key reason more local workers do not take up jobs in the hospitality, food processing and construction sectors leading employers in these sectors to draw on migrant workers from other EU countries, who…Read more…
Rhondda Cynon Taf becomes latest council to condemn TTIP
UNISON congratulates south Wales council on adopting motion condemning secretary trade deal
The article Rhondda Cynon Taf becomes latest council to condemn TTIP first appeared on the UNISON site.Read more…
Whatever it takes
“We are calling on all our branches to affiliate to Justice for Colombia, we are calling on all our branches to support their region in affiliating to Justice for Colombia,” says Tony Woodhouse,…Read more…
UK must stop blocking EU taking action against China steel dumping
The fallacy of Brexit campaigners claim that the EU is preventing the UK from taking action against China dumping cheap steel has been exposed with the government’s announcement today that its plans to part-nationalise the steel industry would be compatible with EU state aid rules. As the TUC…Read more…
Clinton & Sanders show the way on ‘trade’ agreements
While the current Democratic President of the USA, Barack Obama, tours Europe to raise support for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), the two candidates scrapping to be his successor back home are setting out markedly different …Read more…
New Immigration Bill clauses could give workers whistle to blow on abusive employers
On Monday the Immigration Bill will return to the House of Commons. In the House of Lords amendments have been added to give rights and protections to asylum seekers and overseas domestic workers which provide an important counterbalance to the nasty t…Read more…
STUC backs progressive movements in South America
#STUC16 The STUC sent out a clear message today that we should be backing democratically elected governments in South America against a ‘corporate-wealth’ right wing backlash.
Moving UNISON’s emergency motion, Sam Macartney told delegates: “Over the last couple of decades we have seen huge advances for working people in South America.
“The victory of the Lula led Workers Party in Brazil wasRead more…