I’ve just come back from an international conference that could not have happened thirty years ago. And it’s a conference that might also prove impossible to hold in just a few short years. LabourStart’s Global…Read more…
The dark side of IKEA
As a company based in Sweden, which is home to some of the world’s most powerful unions, you would think that IKEA would be an employer that understood the importance of workers’ rights. And if…Read more…
The tragedy of Clara Zetkin
As International Women’s Day approaches (8 March) some mainstream media will run their usual articles about the day and its history. Some may point out that the original name was International Working Women’s Day and…Read more…
A Glorious History: The Printing and Papermaking Trade Unions In The UK & Ireland
For the first time the story of print and paper workers’ struggle for rights and trade union freedoms is brought together in one illustrated volume. From the resources of the Printworkers’ Collection at the Marx Memorial Library and Workers’ School, … Continue reading Read more…
Arming Ukraine: Lessons from history
Everyone knows that the only way to end the war in Ukraine — to really end it — is to ensure a Ukrainian military victory over the Russian aggressor. A decisive victory by the Ukrainians…Read more…
“Delilah” and domestic violence
The Ed Sullivan Show was a weekly television programme which was watched by millions. It helped define popular culture for decades to come by introducing groups like the Beatles to an American audience. In 1967,…Read more…
A spectre is haunting Putin
A spectre is haunting Vladimir Putin — the spectre of Andrei Sakharov. Sakharov was a physicist and the father of the Soviet hydrogen bomb. He later became a world-famous campaigner for peace, democracy and human…Read more…
The Tories, Russia and Lord Palmerston’s Ghost
Nearly 170 years ago, Britain was at war with Russia and Karl Marx was convinced that the Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston, was colluding secretly with the enemy. During his research in the British Museum Marx…Read more…
The Israeli Opposition – from Politics to Protest
I had the opportunity last weekend to do something I’d rarely done during the years that I lived in Israel. I got to speak directly to leaders of the Israel Labour Party and Meretz. The…Read more…
Qatargate: What the scandal reveals about the global trade union movement
In early December, the newly-elected leader of the International Trade Union Confederation, Luca Visentini, was arrested in Brussels as part of a major police operation targeting members of the European Parliament. Visentini was released conditionally…Read more…
Five ways to support our ambulance strikers
Want to support our ambulance workers? Below are five ways you can show your solidarity with UNISON members on picket lines this Wednesday
The article Five ways to support our ambulance strikers first appeared on the UNISON National site.
GCHQ & Trade Union Rights Campaigner Mike Grindley – A Humble Hero.
By Hugh Lanning Many seek prominence, others have it thrust upon them. Mike Grindley, who died aged 85 in hospital on New Year’s Day following a stroke, was definitely one of the latter. Humble and kind, Mike had been beavering … Continue reading Read more…
Venezuela Solidarity Campaign AGM
The VSC AGM took place on line on October 8th. Here is my welcoming speech as Chair of VSC. Welcome all to this 2022 Annual General Meeting and its pleasure to be the opening speaker for the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign … Continue reading Read more…
The Russian people are winning
To the surprise of Russia and everyone, the Ukraine war has taken a remarkable turn in the last few weeks. Initially, the Ukrainians did well by just surviving. Then, they began a slow, systematic counter-offensive…Read more…
A spectre is haunting Europe
A spectre is haunting Europe – the spectre of fascism. We caught a glimpse of that spectre in Sweden last weekend and we are likely to see more of it next weekend in Italy. It…Read more…
The case for space
In the last few days, NASA has twice had to abort launches of the Artemis mission to the Moon. By the time this article appears in print, there may be another attempt, a successful launch…Read more…
Haunted by Andrey Vyshinsky’s Ghost
Last week I sent out a message to tens of thousands of trade unionists alerting them to two bits of news. The good news, I reported, was that some workers in Poland had won a…Read more…
Starmer, Biden and the picket line
The distinction often made by socialists between “liberal parties” and “labour parties” has been undermined somewhat by recent developments on both sides of the Atlantic. Here in the U.K., much has been of Labour leader…Read more…
The Totalitarians at Tolpuddle
This year I attended the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival in Dorset for the very first time. It was on the bucket list for a Canadian friend and as I’d never been before, I thought – why…Read more…
Protest At Your Own Peril
Book Review: Matt Foot & Morag Livingstone – Charged: how the police try to suppress protest By Adrian Weir The odious current Home Secretary, Priti Patel, is widely despised and derided…Read more…