Welcome to Union News featuring reports from the labour and trade union movement in the UK. Writing is by Pat Harrington and music is by Tim Bragg
Junior doctors to strike for five days in England and seven days in Wales over pay dispute
Junior doctors in England are set for a fresh strike over five days this month, and those in Wales are preparing for their own extended action. The English stoppage follows a six-day strike by junior doctors in the BMA union last month—the longest in the health service’s 76-year history.
The tenth round of junior doctors’ strike in England is set to take place from 7am on Saturday 24 February to 11.59pm on Wednesday 28 February. BMA consultant members voted to reject a new government pay offer last month, raising the possibility of further strikes by consultants and junior doctors again.
The BMA said the Tory offer in England of a 3 percent pay increase, on top of a roughly 9 percent rise already offered, was not “credible”. It said it did not address 15 years of inflation-linked pay erosion. The BMA junior doctors’ committee is also balloting for a further six-month strike mandate.
Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi, co-chairs of the BMA junior doctors’ committee, said the “glacial speed” of progress in dealings with ministers was “frustrating and incomprehensible”. Health secretary Victoria Atkins had made clear that she had a further offer to make, they said. It took more than 20 days for a meeting with a minister to be offered, only then to tell them “there was no offer on the table”.
In Wales the Labour government offered junior doctors just a 5 percent increase— lower than the amount recommended by an independent review body. Junior doctors in Wales are set to walk out for three days from 7am on Wednesday next week and for four days from 7am on Monday 25 March.
Delivery workers strike on Valentine’s Day for fair pay and dignity
Delivery riders and drivers in London joined their counterparts in the US and Ireland in a strike on Wednesday evening. They were angry about low pay, harsh conditions and police harassment. They chose to strike for five hours on one of the busiest nights for food deliveries—Valentine’s Day.
Workers from Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat took action across the capital. They set up strong picket lines outside dark kitchens—takeaway-only restaurants—in Tower Hamlets and Hackney. They persuaded some workers who were trying to make deliveries to join them. They also clamped up the bikes of those who refused to stop working.
The strikers were mostly migrant workers, many of them from Brazil. They said they had to work long hours every day to make enough money. They complained about the low pay per order, which sometimes was as little as 80p. They also said they suffered from fatigue, back pain and rent arrears.
The workers took their protest to the home of Deliveroo co-founder and CEO Will Shu. They also rode around parliament and blocked Westminster Bridge. They demanded better pay and respect from the companies and the authorities.
In Dublin, workers gathered at the Spire on O’Connell Street to make the same demands. In the US, thousands of workers for Uber, Lyft and other apps also went on strike. They said they were tired of the exploitation.
The strikes were organised from the bottom up by the workers themselves. They should inspire all workers who are fighting for higher pay. They showed that workers can send a powerful message to the bosses with more action.
Steelworkers rally in Port Talbot to save blast furnaces and jobs
Hundreds of steelworkers from south Wales will hold a rally in Port Talbot on Saturday to demand that Tata Steel UK stops its plans to close down two blast furnaces at the site. The union Unite said the closure would destroy jobs, reduce capacity, damage the community and put the national security at risk.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham, who will speak at the rally along with representatives from Community and GMB, said the town of Port Talbot, which depends on steel, needed to be heard. She said Unite had a £12 billion plan to revive British steelmaking over 12 years and was considering industrial action to stop Tata’s plans.
Tata Steel UK announced last month that it would shut down the blast furnaces as part of its £1.25bn four-year plan to build electric arc furnaces (EAFs) at the site. The company said it had secured a £500 million government support for the plan, which would save 200 jobs and create some temporary ones. However, the plan would also result in the loss of 2,800 jobs and reduce the steel output by half.
The rally will take place at the Civic Centre Square in Port Talbot and will be attended by local politicians and union representatives. A separate plan by Community and GMB, which has the support of industry experts, the Labour Party and members of the Senedd, will also be presented. The plan calls for keeping the blast furnaces open and investing in green steel technology.
Aberavon MP Stephen Kinnock, who will also speak at the rally, said Tata should not rush into a decision that would have irreversible and damaging consequences for the steel industry and the region. He said the workers and the community deserved a better future.
Asda workers vote to strike over ‘toxic’ conditions and cuts
Workers at three more Asda stores are set to join the strike action against the retail giant over its “toxic” working environment. The GMB union accused the owners of Asda, the billionaire Issa brothers and TDR Capital, of “asset-stripping” the company and cutting staff hours and pay.
The union said nearly 400 workers at the Wisbech, Brighton Hollingbury, and Brighton Marina stores will vote on whether to take industrial action until March 5. They are unhappy with the poor health and safety, inadequate training, lack of collective bargaining and failure to resolve equal pay issues at Asda.
The strike action follows the first-ever walkout by Asda workers in Gosport earlier this month. The GMB national officer Nadine Houghton said the strike was a result of the “continuing asset-stripping of Asda at pace”. She said the company had cut an estimated eight million hours from the shop floor in the past two years, reducing staff costs by tens of millions of pounds.
An Asda spokesman said the company had processes in place for the union to raise concerns and was waiting for specific details over the alleged issues. He said the company was committed to providing a safe and rewarding working environment for its staff.
and finally, George Galloway hopes to shake up politics with Rochdale by-election victory
George Galloway, the leader of the Workers Party of Britain, is hoping to pull off a political upset in the Rochdale by-election on February 29. The former Labour MP, who has been campaigning on the issue of Gaza and criticising Keir Starmer’s leadership, is the bookies’ favourite to win the seat.
The by-election was triggered by the death of veteran Labour MP Tony Lloyd, who had a majority of 9,668 in the 2019 general election. However, Labour’s chances of retaining the seat have been damaged by the suspension of its candidate, Azhar Ali, over alleged antisemitic remarks.
Galloway, who has previously won two seats from Labour as a Respect party candidate, has been appealing to the large Muslim population in Rochdale, which makes up about 20 percent of the electorate and 30 percent of the population. He has also been using social media and his online talkshow to mobilise his supporters.
Galloway said he was offering an alternative to the “failed” mainstream parties, which he accused of neglecting the working class and the north of England. He said he wanted to revive the spirit of the Rochdale pioneers, who founded the co-operative movement in the 19th century.
Galloway faces competition from the Conservative candidate, James Daly, who is the leader of the opposition on Bury council, and the Liberal Democrat candidate, Andy Kelly, who is a Rochdale councillor. The Green party, Reform UK, and the Social Democratic party are also fielding candidates.
The result of the by-election could have significant implications for the future of British politics, as it could signal a shift in the loyalty of traditional Labour voters and the emergence of a new force on the left. Galloway said he was confident of winning and making history in Rochdale.
Picture credit:
Port Talbot Blast Furnace #5 By Grubb at English Wikipedia – Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20431866
ASDA By Oxfordmale – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=136449577
George Galloway By David Hunt from Warwickshire, UK – Stop The War – 09 – George Galloway, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=144593400
