Off The Rails has called a meeting for railworkers to discuss how we can make our unions fit to fight the employers' attacks. Click 'read more' to read the text; 'download' to view, download and/or print it as a one-page Word document. Please circulate this to as many railworkers as you can.

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Making Our Unions Fit To Fight

Our employers are constantly on the attack. They want to make us work harder; give us the lowest possible pay rises; attack our pensions; cut corners on safety; and slash jobs by getting rid of guards, ticket offices, cleaners and others.

Through our unions, we should be able to resist these attacks. But many rank-and-file workers feel let down by our unions, and feel that they are not as effective as they should be.

Off The Rails has called a meeting to examine the experiences of recent disputes, and identify what the unions did right and wrong. We will use this to launch a concerted campaign to make the unions more effective and more membership-led.

Rank-and-file activists will report on disputes on Central Trains, LUL pay, Network Rail operational, the Railway Pension Scheme, Virgin Cross Country, Heathrow Express, ISS cleaners, Metronet, LUL stations shorter working week, successful fights against victimisation, and others. Then we can discuss and compare experiences and learn the lessons.

We will be asking:

• How can we get more and better information from our unions?

• How can we overcome divisions between unions and grades?
• Would we be stronger with one all-grades union?
• Is one union better than the others? And if it is – does that mean it’s perfect?!
• Why do union leaders take decisions over the heads of members – and how can we put rank-and-file members in the driving seat?
• Shouldn’t we have a strategy for each dispute, rather than a series of gestures?
• We usually know what the unions are against – but should they be clearer about what they are for?
• Are workers sick of being marched up the hill only to be marched back down again?
• And are workplace reps sick of working hard week-in-week-out, only to lose members because of actions – or inaction – by head offices?
• With employers on the offensive, are our unions up the challenge of fighting them?
• Can we afford to go on punching below our weight and repeating the same mistakes?
• And what are we going to do about it?!

Please come to this meeting and join our efforts to make our unions fit for the fight.

Saturday 5th May, 14:00-17:00
Comfort Inn, Birmingham (a few minutes walk from New Street station)

Off The Rails supporters will also be attending the Railworkers 4 John McDonnell meeting taking place in the same venue at 11:00 in the morning of the same day.

Yours in solidarity

Off The Rails

PO Box 823, London SE15 4NA
07941-777632
off.therails@btopenworld.com
www.workersliberty.org/offtherails