Attacking trade unions and trade unionism

[Smokeandsteam]

Some interesting data here. The under 35’s would need to join unions at twice the current rate through the 2020’s for union membership to stand still (from an already low point):

Inexorable decline or moment of opportunity? – Gavin Kelly’s blog

 

[hitmouse]

This might as well go here as anywhere else, new site collecting stories of victimised reps: Take Action | Defend Victimised Reps

Also, Southampton RMT demo in support of victimised driver on Monday: RMT to hold demonstration in Southampton

 

[Smokeandsteam]

Superb article on the failed union organising campaign in Amazon at Bessemer:

Blowout in Bessemer: A Postmortem on the Amazon Campaign

The warning signs of defeat were everywhere.

www.thenation.com

Some critically important points about the processes used by Amazon and other union busting companies and the questions and tasks it poses for those committed to worker organisation

 

[hitmouse]

Yeah, excellent article that, really recommended - this was also good: Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?

 

[Smokeandsteam]

Yeah, excellent article that, really recommended - this was also good: Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?

Cheers for that, excellent read.

 

[hitmouse]

This is the other really interesting critical article I've seen on the Alabama Amazon drive, from someone involved in a different Amazon organising project up in Chicago: Primed for Struggle: Organizing Inside Amazon | Rampant Magazine

 

[hitmouse]

Four cleaners at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine have been suspended for union activity:

Four workers at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine suspended after peacefully protesting pay discrimination

At least four cleaners who attended a peaceful protest at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) have been informed they will be suspended from work pending investigation. Clean…

freedomnews.org.uk

There's a protest demanding their reinstatement next Thursday:


They were due to have a disciplinary hearing tomorrow but that's been postponed, the fb event is being left up for ease of organising a solidarity presence whenever it's rescheduled for:

 

[hitmouse]

Two attacks on the RMT, one local at Manchester Piccadilly:

854 people signed and won this petition

Reinstate Peter Clifford RMT activist

www.change.org

And one a bit more high-profile:

Rail unions vow to fight government strike threat

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps claims a new law would protect shipments from disruption.

www.bbc.co.uk

Tory plans to block rail staff from striking are 'desperate nonsense', unions say

'The right to strike is crucial in a free society,' unions made clear as Grant Shapps threatened to slap new restrictions on rail workers

inews.co.uk

 

[steeplejack]

On the SNP's troubling, and troubled, relationship with trade unionism. Very well worth a read. The attacks on the bin strike leadership in the run up to COP26 from sneering SNP fanboys were nothing short of disgraceful.

 

[Sasaferrato]

You rather overlook that Scotland's finances have bee drained over a sustained period by SNP vanity projects, which are many, including Gaelic education at a cost substantially above that of desperately failing mainstream education. Road signs in Gaelic for the zero percent of the populace who speak only Gaelic. The cost of changing the livery of police cars and ambulances with confected ' Gaelic ' because their in no word in that archaic language for either.

Then there is the criminal incompetence of Bifab, the Fort William aluminium smelter (A guarantee to reimburse losses up to £526 m.). The children's hospital costing £1.1m a month whilst unable to be used for a year, a PFI contract despite an undertaking not to use them.

And of course, the ferries, twice over contract, years late and may never sail. The rest of the Calmac fleet is in dire straits, Arran is losing £170,000 a week due to ferry problems.

The there is the utter and complete corruption of buying two Green MSP's and creating ministerial post which did not previously exist.

And a half-witted Scottish journalist has the gall to call Johnson a charlatan.

 

[steeplejack]

I don't "overlook" anything...I posted someone else's article.

 

[Smokeandsteam]

You rather overlook that Scotland's finances have bee drained over a sustained period by SNP vanity projects, which are many, including Gaelic education at a cost substantially above that of desperately failing mainstream education. Road signs in Gaelic for the zero percent of the populace who speak only Gaelic. The cost of changing the livery of police cars and ambulances with confected ' Gaelic ' because their in no word in that archaic language for either.

Then there is the criminal incompetence of Bifab, the Fort William aluminium smelter (A guarantee to reimburse losses up to £526 m.). The children's hospital costing £1.1m a month whilst unable to be used for a year, a PFI contract despite an undertaking not to use them.

And of course, the ferries, twice over contract, years late and may never sail. The rest of the Calmac fleet is in dire straits, Arran is losing £170,000 a week due to ferry problems.

The there is the utter and complete corruption of buying two Green MSP's and creating ministerial post which did not previously exist.

And a half-witted Scottish journalist has the gall to call Johnson a charlatan.

Could you explain what any of what you've written has to go to do with the dispute on the railways and the wider point in the article: which interrogates the SNP's dead end 'nation before class' attitude to organsied labour asserting its members interests.

 

[Sasaferrato]

Could you explain what any of what you've written has to go to do with the dispute on the railways and the wider point in the article: which interrogates the SNP's dead end 'nation before class' attitude to organsied labour asserting its members interests.

It highlights part of the reason why Lochhead is urging restraint, the coffers have been drained. The money has been diverted and squandered.

The Scottish government's reserves are virtually non existent.

Unfortunately, I had to engage with Turkish health services recently, they make NHS Scotland look like a fourth world country. NHS Scotland is something to be deeply ashamed of. The reason, being starved of funding. Our nursing crisis is on Sturgeon's doorstep, as health minister she cut nurse recruitment by half.

Well, the pigeons have come home to roost, there will be a justified wave of strike action, and bankruptcy on the part of the Scottish Government.

The Parish Councillors at Holyrood don't seem to recognise that money only spends once.

 

[Smokeandsteam]

Nup. Still don’t understand what any of what you’ve written has to do with the article. If you care to read it you’ll see that the article sets out a historical analysis of the development of the antipathy towards working class organisation long ingrained in Scottish nationalism.

 

[Sasaferrato]

Nup. Still don’t understand what any of what you’ve written has to do with the article. If you care to read it you’ll see that the article sets out a historical analysis of the development of the antipathy towards working class organisation long ingrained in Scottish nationalism.

For the second time for the slow of comprehension, THEY HAVE NO MONEY. They cannot pay the railway people a proper wage, because despite a 3.9% fare increase, the railway, and the government are skint.

 

[Serge Forward]

That old chestnut, the ruling class pleads poverty???

 

[Smokeandsteam]

For the second time for the slow of comprehension, THEY HAVE NO MONEY. They cannot pay the railway people a proper wage, because despite a 3.9% fare increase, the railway, and the government are skint.

As the article says - at the start, presumably so the slow of comprehension can understand what it is they are looking at - “These specificities (like pay, like the current rail dispute etc) are also something of a red herring when it comes to understand the misgivings many nationalists hold towards organised labour.

 

[8ball]

For the second time for the slow of comprehension, THEY HAVE NO MONEY. They cannot pay the railway people a proper wage, because despite a 3.9% fare increase, the railway, and the government are skint.

The Government that was also skint before they gave the better part of a trillion quid to the bankers?
Or some other Government?

 

[Sasaferrato]

The Government that was also skint before they gave the better part of a trillion quid to the bankers?
Or some other Government?

?.

 

[SpookyFrank]

And a half-witted Scottish journalist has the gall to call Johnson a charlatan.

But that's a matter of public record.

 

[SpookyFrank]

The Government that was also skint before they gave the better part of a trillion quid to the bankers?
Or some other Government?

It was the SNP.

 

[hitmouse]

Likely to see much more attacks on trade unions in the run-up to the RMT strike. At the end of May police arrested three GMB members in Wealden, due in court June 29th:

Show your support for arrested Union Officials, Hastings, Wednesday 29th June 2022 at 10am - DPAC

Three GMB officials – organiser Gary Palmer, FTO Declan MacIntyre and a local rep – were taken from a Biffa in Wealden, Sussex Police, and RMT Belfast Shipping Branch secretary Danny McQuaid was apprehended at a demonstration against P&O at Larne Harbour The three GMB officials were accused of...

dpac.uk.net

And RMT Belfast shipping branch chair arrested at a P&O demo in Larne:


The other GMB currently running a twitter poll on whether transport workers should be banned from striking:

 

[hitmouse]

.

 

[StoneRoad]

Not on twatter so it doesn't want to allow my vote ...

 

[BristolEcho]

What's the current result showing as?

All the bits I heard on the news in the background were very much undermining the efforts of unions and making workers the enemy. Good little piece by a union member though saying all workers should be joining them due to the upcoming problems.

 

[hitmouse]

What's the current result showing as?

All the bits I heard on the news in the background were very much undermining the efforts of unions and making workers the enemy. Good little piece by a union member though saying all workers should be joining them due to the upcoming problems.

I'm not on twatter either so can't say for sure, but apparently it looked quite encouraging as of a few hours ago:

Ash Sarkar seems to have been quite decent:


People may be shocked to learn that Keir Starmer apparently a bit less so:

Rail strikes stance reflects Starmer’s more cautious approach to unions

Analysis: Labour seeking to put onus on ministers to resolve row as Tories try to make capital from Corbyn era

www.theguardian.com

Afterwards, however, Starmer’s spokesperson had no compunction in saying the strikes should not go ahead. “We’ve been clear in the position that the strikes shouldn’t go ahead,” he said. “Nobody wants to see industrial action that is disruptive.”

Starmer has spent much of his leadership distancing himself from his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn, a staunch supporter of the unions who was frequently seen on picket lines, as was the former shadow chancellor John McDonnell.

By contrast, Starmer’s spokesperson said he supported the general right of workers to withdraw their labour, but believed the rail strikes should not go ahead.

 

[StoneRoad]

Official scabbing to be allowed / encouraged ?

Rail strike: Agency staff could cover future disruption

The transport secretary says he is preparing to overhaul rules, as rail workers prepare to walk out.

www.bbc.co.uk

effectively, to me at least, that is very convincing union bashing / strike breaking ...
I can't see that being stopped by parliament.

 

[Pickman's model]

Official scabbing to be allowed / encouraged ?

Rail strike: Agency staff could cover future disruption

The transport secretary says he is preparing to overhaul rules, as rail workers prepare to walk out.

www.bbc.co.uk

effectively, to me at least, that is very convincing union bashing / strike breaking ...
I can't see that being stopped by parliament.

there was someone from aslef on the radio earlier saying how this was for railway drivers and signallers an empty threat.

 

[hitmouse]

there was someone from aslef on the radio earlier saying how this was for railway drivers and signallers an empty threat.

Aye, just get anyone off the streets in to run the trains with a day or two of training, can't see any way that one could go wrong?

RMT response here:

RMT response Grant Shapps' comments on the national rail dispute

Rail union RMT response Grant Shapps' comments on the national rail dispute

www.rmt.org.uk

 

[Smokeandsteam]

Aye, just get anyone off the streets in to run the trains with a day or two of training, can't see any way that one could go wrong?

RMT response here:

RMT response Grant Shapps' comments on the national rail dispute

Rail union RMT response Grant Shapps' comments on the national rail dispute

www.rmt.org.uk

True, and the government have already admitted that it’ll have no impact on the forthcoming rail strikes. However, if the post workers, baggage handlers and public sector workers strike it could potentially undermine action.

It seems to me, given the current labour shortages, that the only way the Tories could make this happen is by P&O style bussing in of migrants forced to endure minimum standards. The spectre of which should prompt unions into thinking through how these workers can be organised and supported so any action is not undermined