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Union News 21 December 2022

Trade Union News. Here’s a round up of the latest trade union and labour related news from around the UK. In this programme: NHS Staff March on Downing Street, Train Drivers to Strike, Christmas Post Truce Rejected By Management, Ambulance Workers Pledge To Maintain Essential cover and Union Leaders Meet To Discuss a unified day of strikes.

NHS Staff March on Downing Street

NHS staff and campaigners marched on Downing Street yesterday as picketing nurses were greeted with outpourings of public support in towns and cities across the country.
The march was organised jointly by campaign groups NHS Workers Say No! and NHS Staff Voices which are part of the Keep Our NHS Public campaign.
Spirits were high on nurses’ picket lines nationwide, with many people honking their horns in encouragement as they passed by.

Train Drivers to Strike

Train drivers represented by their Union, Aslef, will go on strike on Thursday January 5, joining RMT members who are scheduled to walk out on January 3, 4, 6 and 7.
This is a result of a new ballot that was forced on them by government anti-strike laws. The mandate was even stronger than in the original ballot six months ago – 93 per cent for strike action on an 85 per cent turnout.
The drivers’ strike will halt services at 15 train companies including Avanti West Coast, Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway, Greater Anglia and GTR Great Northern Thameslink.
Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan said: “We don’t want to go on strike but the companies have pushed us into this place.”

Christmas Post Truce Rejected By Management

The Communication Workers Union has announced that postal workers will be striking on December 23 and 24, after Royal Mail rejected their offer of a Christmas truce.
The union had sought to get Royal Mail to sign a joint agreement incorporating the company’s latest promise of no compulsory redundancies, but the offer was rejected almost immediately.
This will be the 17th and 18th day of action in the dispute over pay, and is likely to cause significant delays in mail delivery during the festive period.

Ambulance Workers Pledge To Maintain Essential cover

GMB national secretary Rachel Harrison said that unions representing ambulance workers had been working “round the clock” to ensure there were enough strike exemptions to keep critical services running.
Tens of thousands of ambulance staff including paramedics and call handlers are expected to walk out today in a dispute over pay.
Speaking to MPs on the Commons health and social care select committee, Ms Harrison said strike action would go ahead unless Health Secretary Steve Barclay is willing to talk about pay.
The GMB leader said that “essential” parts of the service will still be covered today, including responses for the most life-threatening conditions, like cardiac arrest.
Ms Harrison told MPs that ambulance workers have been forced to take strike action after raising concerns for years about ambulance delays and unsafe conditions for patients as well as pay.

And finally, Union Leaders Meet To Discuss a unified day of strikes

According to a report in Socialist Worker Trade union leaders are planning to call a unified day of strikes on Wednesday 1 February, which could involve over a million workers. Union leaders met last week to discuss whether some sort of joint action was possible, and agreed to reconvene on 10 January when a final decision could be made.


This plan is a sign of the potential for powerful struggles to transform British politics says the report.

Episode Notes

Thanks for listening to this episode of Union News. Don’t forget to like & share to spread news of the labour and trade union movement in the UK. You can also send us news, soundclips, photos and video footage by email. Our email is given in the show notes. Please email: UnionNewsServices@protonmail.com

Our music is provided by Tim Bragg. Tim is a multi-instrumentalist & singer-songwriter. You can hear his songs here: – or any streaming service or on YouTube.

Ambulance picture credit: Florian, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0

, via Wikimedia Commons

Whose side are you on?

The recent spate of strikes in the UK has been sparked by a number of grievances, ranging from pay and pension issues to job security concerns. In addition, many workers are calling for an end to austerity, which has resulted in deep cuts to public services and a squeeze on wages. For these reasons, it is important for all citizens to stand in solidarity with the striking workers and support their cause.

In recent years, workers across the country have suffered as a result of austerity-driven reforms. Public sector pay has been routinely frozen or cut while real-terms wages have stagnated. This has made it increasingly difficult for many families to make ends meet and left them struggling to keep up with rising costs of living. Furthermore, jobs are becoming more precarious as companies turn towards zero-hour contracts and other forms of insecure work. In this context, strikes provide an essential tool for workers to push back against unfair labour practices and secure better working conditions.

The strikes also reflect wider economic trends in the UK that disproportionately impact lower-paid workers who struggle the most under austerity measures. The gap between rich and poor continues to widen as corporate profits continue to soar while average wages fail to keep pace with inflation. Austerity policies have also had a detrimental effect on public services such as education and health care which are critical for people’s well-being yet suffer from chronic underfunding due to limited resources. These issues must be addressed if long-term progress is to be achieved and this can only be done through collective action, such as striking.

It is therefore important that everyone supports the rights of UK strikers by standing in solidarity with them during their protests. Strikes can serve as an effective way for workers to push back against exploitation and demand fairer treatment from employers but they can only achieve results when there is broad public support behind them. By lending our voices we can help ensure that working people get the pay rises they deserve, secure improved job security provisions,and safeguard essential public services that so many rely upon day-to-day across Britain.

The strikers’ demands should not be seen simply as special requests from a single group but rather part of a broader effort towards achieving social justice throughout the nation – something which requires us all to take action together if we wish to make lasting progress towards greater equality and prosperity for all citizens in the United Kingdom.

Pete Seeger had a hit with the song “Which Side Are You On?” in 1967. The song was written by Florence Reece in 1931. Florence was the wife of Sam Reece, a union organizer for the United Mine Workers in Harlan County, Kentucky, USA. In 1931, the miners of that region were locked in a bitter and violent struggle with the mine owners called the Harlan County War.

Just as then the question was simple which or whose side are you on? Then you could side with the striking miners or the bosses, today you side with the strikers fighting for social justice, decent pay and reasonable conditions or against them. Whose side are you on?

Union News 19 December 2022

Transcript of programme, click on image to view

Trade Union News. Here’s a round up of the latest trade union and labour related news from around the UK. In this programme: Amazon workers to strike, Unions warn against using troops to break strikes, Disabled Scots hit hard in cost-of-living crisis and strike dates announced by ambulance workers.

Amazon workers to strike

The workers at Amazon’s Coventry warehouse in the UK have voted to go on strike after a derisory hourly pay offer of just 50 pence.
98% of staff voted in favor of the strike, which is likely to take place next year.
The workers are represented by the GMB union.
Amazon has been accused of union-busting activities on both sides of the Atlantic.

Unions warn against using troops

Unions and campaigners warn that using troops to break national strikes endangers NHS patients and threatens civilian democracy.
The Royal College of Nursing, Unite, GMB, and others slam proposals to deploy 1,200 “insufficiently trained” military personnel to cover for striking nurses, ambulance staff and Border Force officials.
Thousands of RCN members are set to follow up last Thursday’s walkout with a further 24-hour strike tomorrow.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has responded by claiming inflation-matching salary packages are “unaffordable” and threating to further curb the right to withdraw labour.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay claimed yesterday that his “number one priority is keeping patients safe,” but Unite accused the government of “hollowing out” the NHS and blasted plans to rely on troops as a “desperate measure.”

Disabled Scots hit hard in cost-of-living crisis

Disabled people in Scotland are facing a hidden cost-of-living crisis due to bills associated with their health condition, a charity warned today.
Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) is urging disabled people or their carers to seek advice on energy bills and other household costs amid the costs crisis they face.
A YouGov survey of 1,002 adults in Scotland found 37 per cent are in households where someone has a disability or long-term health condition.
•The charity’s analysis of the poll found 31 per cent of adults in such households need to keep their homes at a certain temperature, 15 per cent have to cook specific meals and 8 per cent must run medical equipment, incurring higher costs.

Strike dates announced for ambulance workers

The GMB union has announced strike dates for more than 10,000 ambulance workers across nine trusts in England and Wales on Wednesday 21 and Wednesday 28 December. Action will involve paramedics, emergency care assistants, call handlers and other staff. Unison union members working as part of A&E road crews in five ambulance trusts in England will strike on Wednesday 21 December.

More than 1,600 workers in the Unite union at three trusts in England are scheduled to strike on 21 December.

Thanks for listening to this episode of Union News. Don’t forget to like & share to spread news of the labour and trade union movement in the UK.

Episode Notes

Our music is provided by Tim Bragg. Tim is a multi-instrumentalist & singer-songwriter. You can hear his songs here: – or any streaming service or on YouTube.

If you have news, video footage, pictures etc that you want featured in Union News please email: UnionNewsServices@protonmail.com

Ambulance picture credit: Florian, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Union News 17 December 2022

Sunak under pressure to start talking to nurses union

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing pressure from the Labour movement and his own backbenchers to negotiate with nurses and prevent further NHS strikes.

The Tory leader insists that this year’s 4.75 per cent pay deal — less than half 40-year high inflation — is “appropriate and fair,” but four Conservative former ministers have urged him to back down ahead of a second 24-hour walkout in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on Tuesday.

Mr Sunak and Health Secretary Steve Barclay reiterated their praise for July’s offer, recommended by the “independent” NHS pay review body, despite its remit being set by Downing Street.

Royal College of Nursing general secretary Pat Cullen warned that industrial action would only grow without a change of approach from ministers.

Unions given green light for legal challenge

The High Court has granted permission for the legal challenge – brought by eleven trade unions, coordinated by the TUC and represented by Thompsons Solicitors LLP – to protect the right to strike.

The unions come from a wide range of sectors and represent millions of workers in the UK.

With industrial action taking place across the economy after years of declining real pay and attacks on working conditions, reports suggest the government is considering new ways to restrict workers’ right to strike.

Unions argue that the regulations are unlawful because they violate fundamental trade union rights protected by Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady says that “the right to strike is a fundamental British liberty” but “the government seems hellbent on attacking it at every opportunity.”

Unite announce big pay win at Rolls Royce

The Unite union has announced that the workers at Goodwood’s Rolls Royce factory have won the “largest single pay deal in the history of the plant.”

The inflation-busting package, worth 17.6 per cent, will see staff at the site in West Sussex pocket an extra £3,205 a year alongside a one-off payment of £2,000.

Unite General secretary Sharon Graham praised the “top notch pay deal,” saying that it is a testament to the organising efforts of Unite reps at Goodwood and proof that their union’s focus on jobs, pay and conditions is winning for workers.

Staff at the plant build some of world’s most expensive luxury cars and had voted to go on strike during dispute. The Rolls Royce brand is owned by BMW who reported total sales of £13.5 billion in first half of this year.

People with heart and lung problems suffer more from cold homes

1.3 million people living in poverty in private rented homes suffer from a cardiovascular or respiratory condition, according to new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

People with such conditions are more likely to need hospital treatment and to die from the cold, with this risk increasing for people who are too poor to afford to keep warm.

About a fifth of people with such conditions live in poverty, with coastal areas of north-west England worst affected.

Blackpool was found to have the highest proportion of people with cardiovascular or respiratory problems living in poverty (4.6 per cent), while Richmond upon Thames had the least (1.6 per cent).

Commenting on the figures, Asthma and Lung UK director of external affairs Henry Gregg said: “For years, our lungs have been a clear victim of inequality and poverty.”

UK government fails to set-up promised workers’ rights body

The UK government has reportedly shelved plans to introduce an independent body to oversee workers’ rights in the country.

Announced in June 2021, the watchdog was intended to combine the work done by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate and HM Revenue & Customs’ national minimum wage enforcement team.

Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, told the House of Commons business committee: “We’ve spent two years plus of this parliament fighting Covid. It may well be with two years left to go that we’re still able to address some of that. But what we’re more interested in is making sure that the bodies that are already there are operating effectively.”

The proposed group formed part of the Conservative manifesto and was a component of proposed revisions to the Employment Bill, which has also fallen by the wayside in 2022.

Episode Notes

Our music is provided by Tim Bragg. Tim is a multi-instrumentalist & singer-songwriter. You can hear his songs here: – or any streaming service or on YouTube.

If you have news, video footage, pictures etc that you want featured in Union News please email: UnionNewsServices@protonmail.com

Union News 12 December 2022

Tens of thousands rally outside Parliament to support strikers

• Tens of thousands of postal workers demonstrated in Parliament Square, London, on Friday over pay and conditions.

• The Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) said that “17,500 CWU members came to London”—one in six of those on strike.

• The CWU members were joined by politicians and other trade union leaders in solidarity.

• Royal Mail workers across the country formed picket lines and more action is planned for the rest of the week.

• CWU acting deputy general secretary Andy Furey spoke to the rally, saying that their demands are not going away and that unity will win in the end.

Christmas is cancelled for many disabled and carers

• One in five families who care for a disabled relative are planning to cancel their Christmas celebrations this year due to soaring prices, according to research by disability charity Sense.

• A survey of 1,007 families found that more than half said they were in debt and over a third were skipping meals to save money. With energy bills soaring as temperatures drop below 0 across the country, over a third (38 per cent) said they will not buy Christmas presents, and a fifth (22 per cent) said they will cancel celebrations altogether.

• The government has pledged to increase benefits in-line with inflation in April next year, but Sense warns that the delay to the uplift will leave “millions” of disabled families struggling to afford food and energy this winter. People with disabilities typically have higher living costs which makes them more vulnerable to soaring prices.

Jacob’s strike ends following settlement

• The Jacob’s cream cracker factory strike in Aintree, Liverpool has been called off after eleven weeks.

• Strikers voted in favour of a pay offer put forward by management, but over a third wanted to keep fighting.

• The deal includes a 6.5 percent pay rise this year backdated to January with a £300 one-off payment, followed by 3 percent increase next year with a £250 one-off payment – far less than the RPI rate of inflation which has soared to 14.2 percent.

• GMB union members were initially demanding a minimum pay rise of 8.5 percent but accepted 6.5% for first year and 2% for second year.

Shelter workers start two week strike

• Around 600 workers at housing charity Shelter began two weeks of strikes last Monday in the fight for a pay rise that at least matches inflation.

• Strikers are out at Shelter’s offices in Old Street and Hackney in London, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Birmingham, Blackburn, Bristol, Bournemouth, Manchester, Newcastle , Norwich , Liverpool , Plymouth , and Sheffield .

• On the picket line in Old Street , strikers chanted , “ Three percent won ’ t pay the rent ” while car horns beeped in support—and at the “ Honk if you’re not paid enough ” sign .

• The strikers are using their campaigning skills to run the picket—with a book swap group , tactics meetings teach – outs. A rally took place on Friday from where the strikers marched to the CWU union rally.

Episode Notes

Our music is provided by Tim Bragg. Tim is a multi-instrumentalist & singer-songwriter. You can hear his songs here: – or any streaming service or on YouTube.

If you have news, video footage, pictures etc that you want featured in Union News please email: UnionNewsServices@protonmail.com

Resist anti-union laws

Rishi Sunak has confirmed the government is ready to ram through new anti-strike laws.

The government has already started the process to pass a new law implementing minimum service levels during transport strikes, which would gut the right to strike.

The prime minister’s official spokesperson said on Wednesday that work was “ongoing” on other options for mitigating future industrial action, including a ban on walkouts by ambulance staff and other emergency workers, and extension of proposed minimum service level legislation to cover the whole public sector.

Unions, including Solidarity, have condemned the proposals.

“[The government] changes the law every time it loses an argument,” Mr Lynch of the RMT union told reporters.

“If people want to protest against them, they say you’re not allowed to do that anymore. If people want to take industrial action, they say it’s illegal.

“All of the opinion polls show it. They are losing the argument [on wages]. So, they are trying to get rid of the argument by suppressing trade union rights.”

Mr Lynch said that the trade union movement needs a co-ordinated and robust response to the attacks.

He said: “I fully expect [the government] to press ahead because they need a diversion for all their incompetence, so it’s a handy thing for them.

“Trade unions have no choice. When your members are being impoverished, you have to respond.”

Other union leaders have also spoken out against the plans.

Pat Harrington, general secretary of Solidarity said:

“Attacks on the right to strike are assaults on democracy. Strikes, or the threat of strikes, are a way for ordinary workers to bring about change in their pay and conditions. Sometimes a strike is the only way to get bad bosses to listen to their workers. No one wants to go on strike but sometimes it’s necessary. If passed this legislation will be fiercely resisted and will further divide our society.”

Fire Brigades Union (FBU) general secretary Matt Wrack said any attempt to ban workers from taking strike action would be an “outrage to so-called democracy.

“To further restrict the right to take industrial action would be a highly authoritarian move, and more in keeping with the actions of a dictatorial regime,” he said.

“The Tories are badly misjudging the public mood with these attacks.

“Any attempt to limit the right to strike will be fiercely resisted by the FBU.”

Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said that the government should instead be concentrating efforts to meeting with unions to solve the disputes.

“This threatens to backfire spectacularly on the government,” she said.

“The public has immense sympathy for ambulance workers and their NHS colleagues.

“Ministers could do well to remember that union members are voters too.”

When asked what action they would take on strike laws, a Labour spokesperson said only that they would repeal the “archaic” 2016 laws brought in under previous Tory administration, but offered no specifics beyond that.

Education Workers join the strikers

The cost of living crisis has led to an increasing number of strikes, against austerity and against real term pay cuts offered by the government and bosses. Education workers are the latest to say, “Enough is enough” and take strike action.

Tens of thousands of university workers at 150 universities began three days of strikes on Thursday against low pay, intolerable workloads, insecure contacts and pensions cuts.

70,000 University and College Union (UCU) members walked out on Thursday over pay, pensions and conditions—and plan to again on Wednesday of next week.

Also striking are support staff, members of the Unison and Unite unions, demanding better pay and conditions.

Thursday’s strike was held the same day that up to 50,000 teachers in Scotland walked out in their first national strike since the 1980s against pay restraint by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and Scottish National Party devolved government. Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) members rejected—with inflation now running at 14.2 percent—an initial 5 percent pay offer and a revised offer of 6.85 percent for the lowest-paid teachers. The union is demanding a 10 percent pay increase, also below inflation.

On picket lines across Britain, strikers made it clear that unions should strike together.

Strikers said bosses have the money to pay workers.

Activists are gearing up for a national demonstration that will gather at 1 pm at King’s Cross in London today.

Picture credit: KollectivFuture 2022. All rights reserved.

Public back the nurse’s strike

71% of British adults think it’s acceptable for nurses to go on strike for a pay raise, while 74% say it’s acceptable to take industrial action for better patient care (IPSOS survey).

Around one in 10 people were neutral on the subject, while just 16% said it was unacceptable for nurses to go on strike for a pay increase and 13% said it was unacceptable even to secure better standards of care.

The poll of 1,083 British adults found 75 per cent of people who voted Labour in the 2019 general election strongly or tended to support the nursing strikes, compared to 45 per cent of Conservative voters.

Union News 24/11/22

  • Long Covid sufferers face stigma

A new study has found that the majority of people living with long Covid have experienced some form of stigma associated with their condition.

The research, which was based on a survey of 1,100 people, found that 95% of those suffering from long Covid have experienced some form of stigma while 76% reported experiencing it “often” or “always”.

As of October 1 it is estimated that 2.1 million people are living with long Covid in Britain — around 3.3% of the population, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Dr Marija Pantelic, a lecturer in public health at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, said: “The stigma attached to long Covid is likely to leave a devastating mark on our society and health service provision.”

  • RMT announce further strike action

RMT union members at Network Rail and 14 train operating companies plan strikes on 13, 14, 16 and 17 December and 3, 4, 6 and 7 January, in addition to an overtime ban between December 18 and January 2.

This is the latest development in an increasingly bitter six-month dispute over potential job cuts and plummeting take-home pay.

RMT assistant general secretary John Leach has called on Mark Harper—the third Tory transport secretary since July—to meet with RMT general secretary Mick Lynch and come to a resolution.

  • Strikes close Scottish schools

The Education Institute of Scotland has launched their first national strike over wages in 40 years, with the action expected to close most schools north of the border.

This comes after the union rejected a last-minute offer which would have seen most staff pocket a 5 per cent rise – less than half of soaring double-digit inflation.

General secretary Andrea Bradley has branded the proposal an “inept rehash” of the offer made to teachers earlier this year and accused ministers and local authority umbrella group Cosla of “not trying hard enough.”

She has repeated her demands for a 10 per cent salary boost, a figure described by Scottish Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville as “unaffordable due to extreme budget pressures.”

  • Strikes called off after pay deal

Outsourced workers at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy called off strike action today after winning a 12 per cent pay boost.

The caterers and hospitality staff, employed by Aramark at the government department, had been set for five days of walkouts into next month after public services union PCS warned of plummeting take-home pay.

But they are now set to pocket a rise above last month’s 11.1 per cent consumer prices index inflation rate.

Meanwhile, PCS members employed in the same central London offices by fellow contractor ISS as security guards, postal staff, porterage workers, cleaners and receptionists have suspended a planned four-day strike after receiving an improved offer on health and safety issues from bosses.