JOHN McDONNELL'S STATEMENT ON THE STRIKES AND NEED FOR SOLIDARITY

In recent days, some have accused the LRC of staying silent on the issue of the recent strike action. This is neither a fair nor an accurate portrayal of where leading people within the LRC have been stating their case. John McDonnell's own statement regarding the dispute can also be read on his blog

UNISON PICKET LINE HEBDEN BRIDGE

It's from 8am outside the Town Council Offices. I shall be there ........Wednesday night's Town Council meeting has been cancelled and I urge all those who support the publicx sector workers in their struggle against low pay to be there.

SOLIDARITY WITH UNISON!

Local authority workers are set to take two days of strike action next month it has been announced today.
Unison 's 600,000 council members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will walk out on 16 and 17 July. The union's strike committee will meet on Friday to ratify the decision.
Unison's head of local government, Heather Wakefield, said: "It is a tough decision to take strike action but our members have shown that they are willing to fight for a fair deal.
"Once the dates are finally agreed, we will be going all out to mobilise maximum support around those strike days.
"We are, of course, always willing to meet the employers. The solution to this is in their hands.
"They must know that we mean business and they must know that our members cannot afford to take another pay cut this year."

COUNCIL WORKERS VOTE FOR STRIKE ACTION

There was understandable scepticism last week when UNISON leader Dave Prentis finally started to talk tough overthe Government's attitude to public sector pay
But now council workers have voted in favour of industrial action maybe it is time for the union general secretaries to get out of their ostrich costumes and take on New Labour.
UNISON members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland voted by 55% to strike, after rejecting a 2.45% pay offer.
Unison general secretary Dave Prentis says this is "a clear message" to employers "that our members are willing to fight for a decent pay rise".
Prentis says quite rightly his members were "fed up and angry they are expected to accept pay cut after pay cut while bread and butter prices go through the roof.
"Most of them are low-paid workers, who are hit hardest by food and fuel price hikes, and they see the unfairness of boardroom bonanzas and big City bonuses."
It remains to be seen exactly when the Government will also see the injustice of lectures on belt-tightening when MPs have the gall to vote for huge pay increases - on top of salary levels way above the average public sector worker.

THE "FLEXIBLE" WORKFORCE

The above is a phrase dear to Gordon Brown's heart. And Ministers who never have to face the harsh reality of casualised working. This is how it is.
Having been a freelance journalist for 17 years, I'm kind of used to work coming and going. But even the most Gradgrindian of newspapers and magazines tend to look after their respected reliables.
So something of un unpleasant shock today to find six months' hard work at a local university rewarded with the promise of.......nothing. Today started badly as I got the wrong bus ( again) and ended up riding round the badlands of West Yorkshire for two hours before I got to work.
I planned to have a chat with the Head of Department. And I did. The result? There may,or may not be, work in September. No promises, no guarantees.So, basically, it's a non-starter as a realistic option of remuneration. It wasn't always like this.
Many years ago, I was a part-time FE lecturer for ILEA (Inner London Education Authority) and in those days there was some kind of continuity when it came to courses. And income. I suppose in my naivete I had expected something similar. Not so.
So, as I made the journey back on another two bloody buses, I decided I will not be hanging around in the hope of scraps from the academic table come the autumn. Do I feel angry and undervalued ? Yes.
And having had my little rant I will therefore be attending the rally being held at Hebden Bridge Trades Club on Thursday April 24 jointly organised by PCS, NUT, and UCU. The good thing I suppose is that it has been a learning curve and I now understand why part-time university lecturers feel hard done by. And are taking action........

COBBLERS TO "COBBLERS."

Nice to see Royal mail management being so reasonable as the CWU strike action continues. Boss Adam Crozier is quoted on the BBC as saying that the union's claims re unfair treatment are "cobblers." And then he goes on to use the F word so dearly bleoved of those who seek to impinge on the rights of trade unionists. "Flexibility is the main issue at stake," he says. Well, we all know what flexibility means in the doublespeak which passes for labour relations these days. Longer hours, fewer rights, less pay. Billy Hayes and the team must stick to their guns..........

"DEAFENING SILENCE" SAYS CWU LEADER

CWU members went out on strike at 12noon following the breakdown of talks with employers. The second two-day strike by the CWU's 130,000 members is scheduled to begin at 0300 BST on Monday, 8 October. Also supposedly the day when the PM announces a General Election . Away from the Bournemouth Conference bubble, public sector anger over low pay is kicking in. On PM, Billy Hayes rightly denounced Royal Mail boss Adam Crozier for not being there AND the Government for its "deafening silence" on the issue of diminishing services, loss of 2500 Crown Post Offices and unacceptable pay offers. I could of course ask the question why Billy got into bed with the Government last week over Conference issues but let's move on......

STRIKE ACTION AT HEATHROW

Maintenance workers at Heathrow and Gatwick airports have voted overwhelmingly for strike action next month over a pay dispute.
Over 80 per cent of GMB members working for Emcor, which provides maintenance, cleaning and security services at the airports, will walk off the job for 24 hours on 7 September.
The union said 100 workers would strike after members overwhelmingly rejected the firm's pay offer in a ballot.Naturally, Emcor is playing down the possible knock-on effects. But the message from the low-paid is coming across loud and clear. They have simply had enough of being treated badly. And are prepared to stand together to fight for a better deal