Strikes and lock-outs

All aboard the 3 Cosas bus!

On the second day of the “3 Cosas” strike by outsourced workers at the University of London, most of the picket line boarded an open-top bus for a sight-seeing tour of London. First stop was the Garden Halls, the University intercollegiate halls of residence at which jobs are threatened by an upcoming refurbishment this summer. Next we drove to Parliament. Followed the whole time by a police helicopter, we were met outside the House of Commons by Labour MPs, John McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn. Their solidarity was very welcome. Our third target of the day was the Royal Opera House, which hires...

HE pay dispute must step up

The University and College Union (UCU), Unison, and Scottish teachers’ union EIS will strike on 6 February in their dispute against Higher Education employers’ 1% pay offer. Unite, the other main union representing non-academic staff in Higher Education, say they are undertaking further consultation before joining the strike. Although the announcement of a further strike day is positive, many workers were hoping for an escalation of the dispute to a two or three-day strike following one-day strikes on 31 October and 3 December. Union members have essentially been kept in the dark since...

Support the 3 Cosas strike

Outsourced workers at the University of London’s central administration, employed by Cofely GDF-Suez (until recent by Balfour Beatty), will be striking from 27-29 January. Terms and conditions for Cofely GDF-Suez workers, specifically sick pay, holidays, and pensions, are much improved after a previous strike, but still inferior to those terms and conditions of direct employees of the University of London. The demand for parity forms the basis of the “3 Cosas” (“3 Things”) campaign, which has seen workers mobilise against university management for over a year. The first and third days of the...

More "3 Cosas" solidarity from Turkish workers

Workers at the Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey, have contacted the University of London's "3 Cosas" campaign for equality between outsourced and directly-employed staff to express their support and solidarity. The workers at active in UID-DER, a rank-and-file network in the Turkish labour movement which sent solidarity greetings to 3 Cosas from its 15 December conference (see here ). The Hacettepe workers write: Our dear class brothers and sisters, We are sending our greetings to you from Hacettepe University, Turkey. We are workers who had been dismissed because of our struggle against...

Tube workers to strike on 4 February

The ballot of Rail, Maritime, and Transport workers union (RMT) members on London Underground for strikes to stop ticket office closures and job cuts returned a 77% majority, on a turnout of 40%. The majority for actions short of strike was even higher. The RMT has announced two 48-hour strikes, each timed to impact across three days, for 4-6 February and 11-13 February. It has also announced a ban on overtime and rest-day working for station staff starting from 17 January, and a revenue action (a refusal to carry out duties such as checking tickets) on 7, 10, and 14 February. A rally is...

Industrial news in brief

The “Fast Food Rights” campaign, launched at a meeting on 8 January and involving the Bakers, Food, and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU), plans a day of direct action on Saturday 15 February. For more information, see here . Curzon Cinema workers win union recognition fight Workers at the Curzon cinema chain have won their battle for union recognition. Curzon bosses signed an agreement with the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union (BECTU) on Monday 13 January which means the company will have to bargain collectively with its employees on issues of pay, terms, and conditions...

Thinking outside the box in Tube fight

Tube workers will strike on 4-6 and 11-13 February in a fight to stop ticket office closures and job losses. A worker and RMT activist spoke to Solidarity about the dispute. It’s definitely positive that we got a solid yes vote. Between now and the strikes we need to organise in the workplace to give people confidence. We’re already showing we have a strategy and a plan, and that includes some types of action which are outside the experience of the employer. The revenue strike is about thinking outside the box, and maximising the impact of the action. There’s a political impact with this...

Student solidarity

On Wednesday 22 January, students in London have organised a “March on Senate House” to put pressure on the management of the University of London to grant the demands of the “3 Cosas” strikers (outsourced workers), and to support the pay claim of higher education workers in their national dispute. Students are also demanding that their organisation, the University of London Union, is not disbanded, as the university’s management currently proposes to do. This demonstration comes after a series of student rallies in solidarity with workers’ strikes last term, which were subject to violent and...

Firefighters' dispute escalates over New Year

The FBU’s pensions campaign cranked up a notch over the holiday period, with three further periods of strike action as well as the first action short of a strike. Firefighters took strike action in England and Wales for five hours on Christmas Eve, a further five hours on New Year’s Eve into New Year’s Day and for two hours on the morning of Friday 3 January. The FBU argued that the firefighters provide a 24/7 service and it was therefore legitimate to take action over the festive period. A Guardian poll found that 85% of the public said firefighters’ should take strike during the holiday...

Korea solidarity

In December, South Korea was rocked by a massive strike of rail workers that lasted for 22 days. The strike, led by the Korean Rail Workers’ Union, opposed the introduction of private companies into the state-owned rail network. Early on in the dispute, the government declared the strike illegal and issued arrest warrants for the union leadership, who were forced into hiding. The rail union had its offices raided and its computers confiscated. Police attempted to break into the headquarters of the KCTU union federation but were fought off by a large crowd of workers. The repression generated...

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