Pay, hours, conditions

Six in ten junior doctors have voted to reject the re-negotiated contract offered by the government. In a referendum run by the British Medical Association (BMA), 58% voted to reject the contract on a turnout of 68%. It is clear that many junior doctors do not think this contract is a sufficient improvement on the old one, and that it will do significant harm to the medical profession and the NHS. However many who voted to accept the contract also have serious concerns. We must now win them over, and galvanise their support. Yesterday Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt announced that implementation...

On 7 July the International Dockworkers’ Council (IDC), the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) and the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) called a one-hour world-wide strike, from 8 a.m. local time. Under the slogan “Defend Dockers Rights,” the Global Day of Union Action was organised to call for: Improved health and safety in the workplace, an end to job deregulation, respect for bargaining rights and collective agreements, the need for universal labor standards in GNTs, the concerns over automation processes in terminals, and social justice. IDC coordinator Jordi...

Workers at Southern struck again on 21 June in their dispute against “Driver Only Operation” (DOO). One of the strikers spoke to rank-and-file railworkers’ bulletin Off The Rails . The strike is about keeping the role of the guard (conductor) on the train. People think conductors just sell tickets, but we have safety responsibilities. For example, when a train is in a platform, it’s up to us to close the doors and make sure people don’t get trapped. If I close the doors and give the driver the “tip” to go and the signal is red and the train moves, then the responsibility is on the guard. We...

Members of the largest teaching, union, the NUT, will take strike action on 2 July in England to demand nationally agreed terms and conditions for all teachers in all state-funded local authority and academy schools. The action is also demanding increased funding for schools and an end to cuts. 60% of secondary schools in England and 15% of primaries are now academies and can set their own terms and conditions. Back in March the government announced they would force all schools to become academies. That prompted the NUT Executive to propose strike action to demand all teachers have agreed...

Workers at Pennine Foods in Sheffield have suspended their strikes after negotiations meant bosses agreed not to implement changes to their contracts. Negotiations also got bosses to agree to all employees receiving a lump sum for their 2015 pay rise. Negotiations will continue on the contract and further strikes are not ruled out. The contract changes at Pennine Foods were in order for bosses to try to recoup some of the money from implementing the government′s new ″living wage″. A similar fight by members of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers′ Union (BFAWU) has been going on at Samworth...

Mike Ashley, the Chief Executive of Sports Direct, has admitted to paying workers less than minimum wage. The admission came while he was being questioned by MPs on the Business, Innovation and Skills House of Commons select committee. He recognised that for a ″specific time″ workers were effectively paid less than minimum wage due to the practice of keeping workers after their shift to be searched before they were allowed to leave. He is now saying he will pay back pay to those workers effected. This is a huge win for an energetic campaign by the union Unite and others, and campaign which...

On Friday 3 June the British Medical Association’s junior doctors’ committee met to discuss the proposed new contract. The committee agreed not to make a recommendation for the referendum which runs from 17 June to 1 July. Some members will be campaigning to reject. JDC members Pete Campbell and Yannis Gourtsoyannis set out their reasons in this article. Whilst gains have been made by junior doctors over the last eight months it is clear that we do not yet have a contract offer as good as the one we are presently working under. Voting No is therefore a positive decision on our part. We know...

Bakers’, Food and Allied Workers’ Union (BFAWU) members are in the middle of a fierce battle against massive pay cuts in a food factory in Sheffield. Pennine Foods is part of 2 Sisters Group, which has revenue of over £3 billion; its owner Ranjit Singh Boparan has a personal wealth of £190 million. Boparan’s “salami-slicing” of conditions has been going on now for 8 years. The attempt at imposing a new contract that includes Sunday and Bank-Holiday pay reduced by 33%, overtime pay reduced by 25%, and losing half hour paid breaks on 12 hour shifts, is the last straw for many of these workers...

Catering staff at the University of Manchester have won a deal for no compulsory redundancies, no loss of hours, and no pay cuts. Their employer, UMC, a subsidiary company wholly owned by University of Manchester, had said in March that it would sack 46 of its 280-odd catering workers and move the rest to term-time only contracts — meaning a pay cut of about one third. Hannah McCarthy, the student union Campaigns and Citizenship Officer and vice-chair of Manchester Momentum, spoke to Solidarity . This is far from a complete victory. There will still be restructuring. But there will be no...

Workers at US telecommunications giant Verizon have forced significant concessions from their bosses, after a strike that lasted more than six weeks. Around 40,000 Verizon staff are expected to return to work on Wednesday 1 June after the company reached a settlement with their unions, the Communication Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which sees the company retreat from its plans to cut staff pensions and increase outsourcing. Workers will now vote on the proposed settlement before it comes into effect. The deal, which would last for four years...