Solidarity 546, 5 May 2020

The Covid-19 crisis and the right to strike

Socially distanced picket line by Royal Mail workers. Since the Covid-19 crisis hit, many workers, including those working in hospitals, libraries, construction and in the postal service, have taken unofficial industrial action to stand up for themselves and for safety. In the face of a government disastrously dragging its feet and putting profits above lives, these actions highlight the central role of workers’ struggles in defending rights, winning new ones and changing society. During this crisis, employers have not suspended their organisation or paused their struggle against workers. The...

Care blighted by profit

A specialist nurse who has worked with patients in both hospitals and care homes responds to our briefing on social care in Solidarity 544. What’s happening at the moment in care homes has thrown a spotlight on how they operate. A lot of the problems now running wild were already problems, but with the pandemic everything is obviously more acute. The thing I thought when I read the number of deaths is that staff must have been working very hard to keep people in care homes rather than sending them off to hospital. I think it’s generally the right thing, because most people living in care homes...

Cancel rent!

The New Economics Foundation has published a report (see here ) supporting the London Renters’ Union for a cancellation of rent and mortgage payments (the NEF says for three months). The NEF finds that as early as 9 April residential tenants were paying less than half their rent bills. “Low income tenants who lose their job and have to rely on universal credit will in many cases see their incomes fall by around 50%”. Without rent cancellations, the easing of the lockdown will bring a flood of evictions. Commercial tenants, including big ones like Burger King and Superdrug, are also not paying...

Tim Roache and the cabal system

On Tuesday 28 April, Tim Roache, general secretary of the big GMB union, which organises in many different sectors, stepped down, just months after his re-election. He cited ill-health. On Wednesday, following the circulation of an anonymous letter to press outlets, GMB issued a statement: “GMB received an anonymous letter, last Wednesday, in which a number of allegations have been made about Tim’s conduct whilst he held the office of general secretary.” The news of the allegations against Roach has reignited discussion of conduct in the labour movement, echoing previous incidents including...

Return to school?

The National Education Union has produced five tests for the reopening of schools. They are: much lower numbers of cases; a national plan for social distancing; comprehensive access to regular testing for staff and pupils; a commitment to testing a whole school when a case occurs; and the option for vulnerable staff, or those who live with vulnerable people, to continue working from home. These are fine as far as they go. A more general slogan being used by teacher and school worker trade unionists about the reopening of schools is “not until it’s safe.” This really has to be understood as...

Testing: learn from Korea and Taiwan

Some trade-unionists have suggested swab-testing of all workers in each workplace before a return to work. The Tory government’s focus on the crude total of test numbers as the big thing has boosted this idea. Full isolation pay for those with symptoms, or identified as contacts of virus-sufferers, and social distancing plus PPE where necessary in the workplace, will help much more. So will regular (instant-result) temperature checks, widely used and effective (so far as we can tell) in South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. More testing is surely needed for a “tracking and tracing” policy. When...

Safe and Equal rally with McDonnell on 12 May

The Safe and Equal campaign continues to grow. Through using stickers with QR codes outside nursing homes, social media, and phone-banking our new online sign-ups, every week we are making contact with more workers who want to support our political campaign and organise a fight at work. A letter to MPs raising our demands for full self-isolation pay and equality for all is in the works, and John McDonnell MP has agreed to address a Safe and Equal rally at 7pm on 12 May, which will be held via Zoom. Meanwhile every week provides more confirmation that exploitative bosses are Covid-19’s best...

Tracing app is no cure-all

As governments and tech companies tout digital contact tracing as a way out of coronavirus lockdown, many experts and privacy campaigners are expressing scepticism. They worry these systems may do little to help contain outbreaks but could usher in unprecedented mass surveillance. So, what are the issues?

Diary of an engineer: Falling on deaf ears

This week access to the control room and the manager’s offices is more restricted. Lack of contact with Ops and the assistants means no information about bin wagon drivers is coming through to us, although the email from the union suggests drivers are almost at breaking point: “We have requested an additional payment (Covid Clear up) for the increased weights that are coming through and also the risk of infection. This fell on deaf ears locally so the union will be raising it nationally this week. “We cannot hold a mass meeting at the site due to social distancing but it is important that we...

Getting safe workplaces

Our union (PCS) National Executive Committee will meet this week to discuss a formal position on criteria for any possible return to work. The majority of civil servants can work from home, so there’s no reason why any return to the workplace shouldn’t be voluntary. Other ideas being discussed include a demand that distancing measures be maintained in the workplace, facilitated by mechanisms such as staggered start times, to regulate the amount of people who are in the workplace at any given time. We also want a clear agreement around a protocol for what will happen when there’s a confirmed...

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