Solidarity needed - housing, BA, NHS and finance

Four groups of Unite members are currently engaged in pretty serious industrial action at the moment. They deserve our support.

I'd previously posted about the outsourced Manchester housing maintenance workers. They are now escalating their action with four weeks of continuous strike action from Saturday 8 July to Friday 4 August. A letter appealing for support has been issued by Unite's north-west region. You can support the strikers by:

1. Visiting pickets, typically 7:30-10am on strike days, at Hendham Vale, by the junction of Hazelbottom Road and Vale Park Way (map) 
2.  Donating to the strike fund by cheque payable to UCATT UD.393 Manchester 1st Branch, sent to Andy Fisher, Unite, 2 Churchill Way, Liverpool, L3 8EF, or online to account 46034412 sort code 60-83-01.
3. Sending a message of support to Colin Pitt via colinpitt65@hotmail.co.uk

Meanwhile cabin crew at BA Mixed Fleet have announced another 14 days of strike action. Like the Mixed Fleet Unite Facebook page for more information, or their web site gives details of how to support them.

In the NHS in London, cleaners, porters and security staff employed by Serco at Barts Health NHS Trust have been striking this week and plan a further seven day strike from Tuesday 11 July followed by a 14 day strike from 25 July. The action covers Whipps Cross University Hospital, Royal London Hospital, St Bartholomew’s Hospital and Mile End Hospital. Messages of support can be sent via Unite branch secretary Len Hockey (leonardhockey789@hotmail.co.uk). Photos and videos on the strikers' Facebook group show an impressive level of participation - and that migrant workers are at the heart of fighting low pay rather than being the cause of it. Cheques payable to “Barts NHS Health Branch” can be sent to Willie Howard, Unite the Union, 33-37 Moreland St, EC1V 8BB or you can donate online to account 20344885 Sort code 60-83-01.

At the Bank of England maintenance, parlours and security workers will be taking a four day strike from 31 July.

Two things stand out from this cluster of strikes. Firstly, all are about pay - reflecting workers losing patience after years when wages were held down and prices are rising. Why should we wait to make Labour's manifesto pledge of a £10 an hour minimum wage a reality? Secondly, all are sustained action to try to win, not token or "protest" action for odd days. Nearly two years ago I pointed out that the Trade Union Act "strengthens the case for intensive action rather than relying on the disruption of odd hours or days of action". In an article yesterday Gregor Gall argues that the "predominant strategy of one-day strikes, (or a series of one-day strikes) is coming to an end". If this is the case it is not before time - token strikes have acted more as a way of letting of steam than a serious attempt to win.

cleaners, porters and security staff

cleaners, porters and security staff

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Support Manchester housing maintenance strikers

180 Unite members employed by Manchester Working Limited / Mears, who carry out vital maintenance in the city, have been been in dispute for five weeks and are currently striking on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. Today they held an impressive protest outside the Northwards Housing office in Blackley.

The workers are paid appallingly for skilled and often safety-critical work. Manchester City Council has a substantial stake in Manchester Working Limited, and it is particularly disgraceful after Grenfell Tower that Manchester residents are still facing attempts to do maintenance on the cheap. Strikers have already protested at Manchester town hall.

I understand that their low pay is being used as a "benchmark" by other employers to try to hold down wages elsewhere.

Strikers are discussing escalating the action to every day, but under the Tory Trade Union Act Unite would have to give two weeks' notice to the employer. They need more financial support to sustain and escalate the action.

A letter appealing for support has been issued by Unite's north-west region. You can support the strikers by:

1. Visiting pickets, typically 7:30-10am on strike days, at Hendham Vale, by the junction of Hazelbottom Road and Vale Park Way (map) 
2.  Donate to the strike fund by cheque payable to UCATT UD.393 Manchester 1st Branch, sent to Andy Fisher, Unite, 2 Churchill Way, Liverpool, L3 8EF, or online to account 46034412 sort code 60-83-01.
3. Send a message of support to Colin Pitt via colinpitt65@hotmail.co.uk
4. Join a protest on Thursday 29 June from 9am at Manchester Central Convention Complex (GMEX), where Mears will be meeting from 11am with other employers in their industry

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Solidarity with Bryan Kennedy

UNITE members at One Housing are on strike from tomorrow in defence of their victimised convenor, Bryan Kennedy.

There's a leaflet explaining the issues here.

The strike starts 8am on Friday 6th June and runs through to 7:59 on Tuesday 10th June.

The strikers plan picket lines from 8am-4pm on Friday and Monday at 100 Chalk Farm Road, London, NW1 8EH (3 minutes walk from Chalk Farm tube, next to the Roundhouse).

There will also be pickets on Saturday from 12 - 2pm at Ponders Bridge House, 402a Caledonian Road, London, N7 8UA.  This is next to the Caledonian & Barnsbury Overground station and 5 minutes walk from Caledonian Road tube.

You can send messages of support by email to Bryan.  Donations can be paid to Housing Workers branch, Unity Trust bank, account 20040639, sort code 03-60-01.  Cheques payable to "Unite Housing Workers Branch" can be sent to PO Box 66701, London E11 9FB.

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21 days till the money runs out

UNITE's new film about pay day lenders and promoting the 20th October demo.

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Decisions of UNITE Policy Conference, Wednesday 27 June 2012

These were the decisions:

• Composite 19 (motions 105+amendment, 106, 107 & 108) Defend the NHS: Carried
• Composite 20 (motions 109 & 110) Council Housing: Carried
• Motion 112 + 2 amendments Public Services, Jobs & Pay: The Fightback: Carried
• Motion 111 Rent Control to Replace Benefit Caps: Carried
• Motion 113 Shared Services / Contracting Out: Carried
• Motion 114 Campaign Against the Cuts: Carried
• Motion 115 Wealth Tax: Carried
• Motion 116+amendment Benefit Cuts: Carried
• Emergency Motion 10 A Tax On Young People: Carried
• Motion 118 Private Finance Initiative (PFI): Carried
• Motion 117 Campaign for the Reform of National Insurance Contributions: Remitted
• Motion 119 Yvonne Hossack Campaigner against Care Home Closures: Lost
• Emergency Motion 3 National Collective Bargaining: Carried
• Emergency Motion 8 Legal Aid Bill: Carried
• Emergency Motion 11 Hidden Agenda of the Localism Bill: Carried
• Composite 11 (motions 69+amendments & 71) Defending Pensions: Carried
• Composite 12 (motions 70, 72+amendments & 80) Occupational Pensions: Carried
• Composite 13 (motions 74+amendment, 76, 77 & 78) State Pensions: Carried
• Composite 14 (motions 75 & 79+amendment) Dignity for Pensioners: Carried
• Motion 73 Enhanced Retirement Provision: Remitted
• Motion 26 Diversity in the Union: Lost
• Motion 35+amendment Equality Monitoring in Appointments: Carried
• Motion 36 Getting Involved: Carried
• Motion 40 Job Equality: Carried
• Motion 27 BAEM Members at the heart of the Unite Community Sectino: Carried
• Motion 28 BAEM workers voice needs to be heard now: Remitted
• Composite 6 (motions 30+amendment, 31, 32 & 33) Disabled Workers: Carried
• Motion 29+2 amendments Disability Hate Crime: Carried
• Motion 34 Adherence to Article 19: Carried
• Motion 37 LGBT Education and Zero Tolerance to Discrimination: Carried
• Motion 38+amendment 2 (amendment 1 was remitted) Organising and Young People: Carried
• Motion 39 Young Workers - Underpaid or Unpaid: Carried
• Motion 104 Votes at 16: Carried
• Motion 41+amendment Asylum Seekers: Carried
• Motion 42+amendment Gypsy and Traveller Law Reform: Carried
• Motion 43 Moroccan Workers in Gibraltar: Carried
• Executive Statement ES1 Balanced Energy Policy: Carried
• Composite 3 (motions 17 & 18) Nuclear Power: Fell
• Motion 16 Nuclear Motion 2012: Withdrawn
• Composite 4 (motions 20, 21+amendment, 23 & 24) Green Jobs and Sustainable Development: Carried
• Motion 19+amendment Low Carbon Industrial Strategy: Fell
• Motion 22 Integrated Planning Regulation: Carried
• Motion 25 Hydraulic Facturing / Fracking: Carried
• Motion 101 CLASS Action: Carried
• Motion 102 Unite Code of Conduct for Employers: Remitted
• Motion 103 National Shop Stewards Network: Remitted
• Motion 44 Palestinian Child Prisoners in Israeli Detention: Carried
• Motion 45 Support for Gaza: Carried

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Right to work flexibly - race to the bottom

What a disgrace that the government is talking about delaying the extension of the right to work flexibly.

This must be a new entry for the ongoing competition for the most blatant example of the government bailing out the rich while piling the costs on the most vulnerable. Previous "top of the pops" had to be the news of the massive rise in house repossessions by the government (aka Northern Rock), which is repossessing far more homes than most lenders.

What the latest announcement means is a signal to businesses that when times are hard, they should ditch those with caring responsibilities first.

I fear that over the coming months there may be many occasions to use this excellent cartoon about the race to the bottom.

How about putting people before profit for a change? It's not as if the doctrine of "competitiveness at any price" has worked, is it.

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Economic Crisis - what does it mean for us?

It's hard to keep pace with the development of the current economic crisis, and the numbers are so large they are mind-boggling. There's a real danger of the labour movement not responding adequately to the scale of the changes that are taking place. This is not the time to be stuck in a rut.

Economics
The old saying that "there's no crisis so bad that the bosses can't get out of - if we're prepared to pay" should stand as a stark warning to us all.

We're already seeing recession in many countries, jobs being lost, house repossessions on the rise etc. How will governments raise the billions being pumped in to prop up the casinos? Will they get away with forcing through tax rises and service cuts?

Will employers get away with increasing their share of wealth by holding pay rises below inflation?

Can we press the government to reduce dependence on increasingly vulnerable pension funds (many of which held shares in the banks) which gamble on the stock market by a boost to the state pension on a similar scale to the support for banks?

Ideology and Resistance
For some decades the ideology of the free market (neo-liberalism) has been used as a barrier to workers fighting to improve or defend their standard of living. The arguments came in a variety of forms:

• The money isn't there
• Governments are helpless in the face of the markets
• Any interference in the market would only make things worse

All these arguments now stand threadbare. The money is there - on a scale that we in the labour movement never dared ask for. Governments can and have intervened in the market.

The stark truth is that governments chose not to intervene when jobs, livelihoods, homes and whole industries were under threat. Because many in the labour movement accepted the neoliberal arguments to a greater or lesser extent, we were disarmed. We didn't believe we could fight and win the things we needed. It's high time this changed.

Politics
There is no escaping the political dimension to the current crisis.

With the government now owning most banking activities in the UK, will they press on with repossessions? How can it be right to make someone homeless for failing to service their mortgage, while bailing out the billionaires? As other industries suffer from the recession, how can the government justify non-intervention? We're not just talking about a few small companies on the ropes here - for example GM, Ford and Chrysler are reportedly talking about mergers and wholesale job cuts.

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Members at Shelter on strike again

The general public image of the "Not For Profit" sector is pretty "fluffy", yet the reality of employment practices is often pretty grim. Bosses (often pretty well paid) often expect those at the bottom of the pile to put up with anything if it helps achieve the organisation's objectives. Low pay and bullying are rife.

It's sad to see members at Shelter being forced to take a second day's strike action today to resist attempts to force them to sign up to new employment contracts.

I popped down to the Shelter office in Manchester this morning before work to show some support for the members braving the storms on the picket line.

Just because they're doing a useful job, why should they have to put up with being treated so shoddily?

If the government continues to block council house building - driving up the cost of housing - we're likely to see even more repossessions and homelessness in coming months.

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Brown - a let down - on housing too

When people at the top of various unions were scrabbling round for justifications for backing Gordon Brown's coronation as Labour leader, heavy hints were dropped that he would make big changes on council housing. Many people found it plausible, given that many "Brownites" had backed the Defend Council Housing campaign.

I guess some people must be feeling pretty let down by the reality, which is starkly spelt out in a UNITE press release "The need for new council housing has been completely overlooked in the new Housing and Regeneration Bill".

At a time when sub-prime mortgage problems in the US are sending shock waves across the world economy and our dependence on credit is in question, the case for good quality, publicly owned, affordable housing seems almost irresistable. It seems that Brown needs to see the argument of our force as well as the force of our argument...

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