Friday 31 October 2014

Thursday 30 October 2014

UCU London Retired Members Branch, UPDATE

Lobby of Parliament, UCU pamphlet on immigration and a couple of books
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Pensioners' manifesto launch - Lobby of Parliament

Wednesday 5 November 2014
12noon Old Palace Yard (opposite House of Lords)
1-3pm Rally/Lobby, Committee Room 14, House of Commons
The manifesto can be downloaded here...

UCU Publication - "Why immigration is good for all of us"

Release by UCU of a new booklet that details the important impact immigration has on Britain.
the pamphlet can be downloaded here...

Beaten but not Defeated

Merilyn Moos will launch her book ‘Beaten but not Defeated. Siegfried Moos: an anti-Nazi who settled in Britain’ at Bookmarks - 1 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3QE - on Friday, 14th November, at 6.30pm
more details about the book..

Bread, Freedom and Social Justice

Anne Alexander of Middle East and North Africa Solidarity, who recently spoke at a branch meeting, has just published a book which argues that collective action by organised workers played a fundamental role in the Arab Spring in Egypt, which erupted after years of strikes and social protests.
more details about the book...

Next Branch Meeting

Next branch meeting will be on December 4th at 2pm at UCU Head Office, Carlow Street
Copyright © 2014 UCU London Retired Members Branch, All rights reserved.
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Sunday 26 October 2014

green wobblies


RITZY REDUNDANCIES THREAT

A Living Wage for Ritzy Staff added 2 new photos.(ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS TO ROY SANDISON)
***PROPOSED REDUNDANCIES NEWSFLASH***
We are utterly dismayed and saddened by the brutality which was thrown at us yesterday by Picturehouse Cinemas.
In what can only be described as a cynical attempt to 'improve customer service', they plan to axe the positions of 2 managers, ALL 8 supervisors, 3 technical staff, numerous Front Of House and numerous Bar staff.
The announcement of a 'consultation' period regarding these redundancies will start from the 3rd of November for a minimum of 30 days. It is anticipated that the redundancies will occur within a period of 90 days beginning towards the end of November. We have been told that our positions will be ‘renamed’ and that a yet undisclosed ‘pool’ of people will interview us and consider us for our existing jobs. The selection criteria proposed will be based on performance, skills, qualifications, attendance and our discipline currently kept on individual employee files. Redundancy payments will be in line with statutory levels.
Whilst there is no evidence of financial problems at the site, in fact we regularly come number 1 in monthly profits, the company propose that lowering it's workforce by a quarter will improve the cinematic experience which a skeleton number of staff are already working incredibly hard to deliver.
NO OTHER site in the company is facing redundancies and NO OTHER site is subject to these dramatic changes.
This is nothing short of a scandalous provocation which is set out to undermine a years worth of hard work to gain a bare minimum wage rise, nothing short of backhanded corruption of statistics, nothing short of pure vindictive retaliation because we the workers showed that with determination and collectivity, we could effect change to make our lives that tiny bit more comfortable.
Picturehouses have backtracked and are behaving against what they agreed to at ACAS and the documents attached bring into question their ethics and honesty both as a company and our employers. PLEASE READ.
We call on you to show solidarity with us by emailing alastair.o@picturehouses.co.uk and Lyn.g@picturehouses.co.uk
to make complaints about the appalling way the company are treating us. These are the company directors who couldn't even be bothered to show up yesterday to tell us this news face to face.
You can also send messages via
Twitter - @picturehouses
FB - /picturehouses
Ritzy Cinema Workers will fight this callous act of retribution and we will update you accordingly
SOLIDARITY!

Thursday 23 October 2014

TSSA climate change motion may 2014

Climate Change (Item 34)

That this Conference notes the catastrophic refusal of major world powers to take
responsibility for a meaningful reduction in carbon emission at the COP19 Warsaw talks
2013 (UN Climate Change Conference).

Conference notes the UK Coalition government’s reckless abandonment of its own
targets, cynical cut in green taxes to benefit the ‘Big Six’ energy companies’ profits and the
move away from renewables to nuclear and fossil fuel projects.

Conference calls on the EC to inform and engage members and actively campaign:
(a) in support of renewable energy expansion instead of fracking, fossil fuels and nuclear
power;
(b) to work with Fuel Poverty Action for energy justice and a publicly owned,
decentralised energy system;
(c) to work with the One Million Climate Jobs Campaign for the just transition, skills,
infrastructure and employment needed for a sustainable future, and
(d) for nationalisation of the ‘Big Six’ energy companies under the
democratic control of their users and employees.

Moved by Fliss Premru (TfL Central)
Seconded by David Lyons (Network Rail North London)

 acknowledgements to J.Carver

Support St Mungos Broadway Strike

Support St Mungos Broadway Strike

Staff members of homeless charity St Mungo’s Broadway who are members of the Unite union are on strike for 7 days until Friday 24th October.
st_mungos_strike.jpegFollowing the recent merger between St Mungo’s and Broadway the new senior management team have imposed, without any prior consultation, considerable changes to the pay and terms and conditions for new project workers. For example the pay of newly employed project workers – who will be working in hostels, outreach teams and independent living services, will be cut by £3,200-£5,000 per year. They will also be employed on less favourable contracts than existing project workers. We believe that this will eventually lead to all staff being re-structured onto the new cheap pay rates or to everyone being replaced by cheap labour.
The Chief Executive and Board have said savings have to be made although they have not provided any financial evidence whatsoever to support their argument. At the same time the Board has decided that St Mungo’s Broadway has enough money to award a £30,000 a year pay rise to the Chief Executive Howard Sinclair. In fact all of the other Executive Directors have been awarded a pay increase as well, although the Board and Chief Executive are refusing to make public how much.
Members of staff at St Mungos Broadway also believe this dispute is about the type and quality of care and support the senior management team aspire to provide the people which the charity exists to help. St Mungos Broadway service users are entitled to consistent, skilled and thoughtful support and this requires a conviction that working to support vulnerable people is important work with those who do it paid accordingly and not on the cheap.
Before the merger St Mungo’s were widely known for providing high quality and safe services to people who are homeless. Members of staff at St Mungo’s Broadway are committed to continuing to offer our service users - many of whom are society’s most vulnerable people - high quality care which is client centred, safe and supportive. Unite staff members are striking to fight to protect jobs and to protect services and service users from a race to the bottom in standards in social care.
Please come and support our public protests:
Wednesday 22nd October
12 noon Hackney Town Hall, Mare Street, E8 1EA
2.30pm Lewisham Town Hall, Catford Road, SE6 4RU
Thursday 23rdOctober
10.30am St Mungo’s Broadway Head Office, Griffin House, 161 Hammersmith Road, W6 8BS
1pm Haringey Council, Civic Centre, High Road, N22 8LE
Raise your concerns with your local MP’s and councillors who commission St Mungo’s Broadway services.
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Wednesday 15 October 2014

Following the High Court injunction which prevented the strike in Further Education last week, UCU Westminster Kingsway Branch, have launched a petition

Following the High Court injunction which prevented the strike in Further Education last week, UCU Westminster Kingsway Branch, have launched a petition which may be found by following this link:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/fair-pay-for-all-defend-the-right-to-strike.html
It was the Principal of Westminster Kingsway that sought the injunction, so the more signatures we can get for this petition, the better will be the position of the UCU branch in the college in their struggle with their reactionary management.
Copyright © 2014 UCU London Retired Members Branch, All rights reserved.
UCU London Retired Members Branch Committee

Our mailing address is:
UCU London Retired Members Branch
53 Fladgate Road, London, United Kingdom
Leytonstone, London E11 1LX
United Kingdom

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Monday 13 October 2014

VICTORY TO THE NHS STRIKERS!



Martin Francis writes "Nurses and other health workers were in fine spirits despite the rain when I visited this morning and Shahrar Ali, deputy leader of the Green Party also joined them to express Green party solidarity. This is why they are striking:




Sunday 12 October 2014

Solidarity to all those NHS workers who are striking

The Green Party Trade Union group sends solidarity to all those NHS workers who are striking today (13/10/2014). It is a disgrace that in one of the richer nations of the world, we are so misgoverned that workers in our health services are not properly paid for their skilled and dedicated work, whilst the government continually seeks to make the provision of health available as a source of profit to the private sector. GPTU and the Green Party stand for a properly resourced health service staffed by properly paid workers providing health free at the point of need. Victory to the NHS strikers!

Friday 10 October 2014

The strike in Further Education

ROUXEL Doug via lists.greenparty.org.uk 

11:18 AM (4 hours ago)
to gptu
Whilst the LG strikes are suspended next week, there are a number of other strikes which are still on - this includes the strike in Further Education over their on going pay dispute:

Picket locations for the West Midlands Only are as follows:

FE strike location and times
Telford College of Art and Technology: front entrance, 7am-10am
Gloucestershire College: Five Acres Campus, hopefully Gloucester

Dudley College: Main campus, potentially other sites depending on support

Halesowen College: Main (Whittingham Road) campus from 7.30am

South Gloucs College: Filton Campus, not Stroud Campus

Sandwell College: 7.30am, main campus

South & City College Birmingham: Digbeth, Fusion 2, Hall Green, Handsworth, Bordesley Green, Golden Hillock, Tyseley and Ladywood

City College Coventry: 7.50am onwards

Solihull College: main campus

Bournville College: 7.45am-9.45am

Walsall College: Wisemore Campus


Apologies, I don't have other regions details.

Doug

Friday 3 October 2014

The Coalition Government are balancing the budget on the backs of the poor

This went out as a press release GPEW 30/09/14


Orwellian nightmare
 
  • The Coalition Government are balancing the budget on the backs of the poor
  • Green Party is the only party committed to transforming the economy to make it work for all not just the 1%
 
Work and Pensions Minister Iain Duncan Smith’s announcement on Government plans to introduce payments on pre-paid cards to welfare state claimants has today been denounced as “positively Orwellian” by the Green Party.
 
The party has responded to Iain Duncan Smith’s speech with anger saying that “this move is deliberately aimed at generating  disunity and creating hostility towards the most vulnerable.”
 
Green Party Welfare Spokesperson, Romayne Phoenix said:
 
The Conservative's  disastrous decision to introduce payments on pre-paid cards for claimants shows how out of touch they are with the realities of life for many people in Britain today. Anyone that is in debt or struggling to earn a living doesn't need reminding to spend their small benefit payments on food for their families. What most people need are better wages and better support. 87% of people claiming state aid are already in work but often in such low paid jobs that leave them  unable to pay their bills and having to look to the state for help. These families deserve support, not retribution and humiliation." 
"If the Conservative's really want to help people facing problems with gambling and addiction, they should stop promoting the national lottery and stop cutting funding to those vital support services that have been set up specifically to help people in tackling such issues. If the government is really that hung-up on problem gambling, a more socially beneficial approach might be to introduce pre-paid cards for their friends in banking that require them to invest sustainability and ethically rather than speculating away public finances."
 
The Welfare reforms have so far caused "financial hardship and distress" a committee of MPs found in April.

one million climate jobs pamphlet: sheffield launch 21/10/14


Thursday 2 October 2014

Wales Against Austerity And Cuts Conference Saturday 4th October

Wales Against Austerity And Cuts Conference Saturday 4th October October 2, 2014

Filed under: Uncategorized — Bridgend or Swansea Green Party - South Wales West @ 7:29 am 
APOLOGIES FOR LATE NOTICE
Cardiff Saturday 4 October 2014 11.00 – 16.00 at the Owain Glyndwr High Street 
Arcade CF10 1GL
Proposed structure of the day
i. Introduction to the Day to include briefing paper on the public sector
cuts situation in Wales – Len Arthur. 11.0-11.20 a.m.
ii. Feedback from the floor, to include reports of action already taken or
proposed by local groups. 11.20 – 12 noon
iii. People’s Assembly UK speaker 12 noon – 12.20p.m.
iv. Lunch – 12.20 – 1.20 p.m.
v. Two speakers from public sector unions – in support of the 14 October
strike and the 18 October TUC demonstration (names to be confirmed)
1.20 – 1.40 p.m.
vi. Questions and discussion from the floor 1.40 – 2.15 p.m.
vii. The Way Forward – Next Steps – Plans for Action (to include October 14th
and October 18th London Demonstration, and Action for Wales)
Open discussion around the draft outcome to be tabled leading to agreed
statement from the day. 2.15 – 3.15 p.m.
viii. Future organisation of Wales campaign. – 3.15 – 4.0 p.m.
Chairing
Woman in the morning – man in afternoon: TBC
Draft action statement
See attached
Name of campaign
People’s Assembly Wales will be put to the meeting as well as the working
title Wales Against Austerity and Cuts.
After the 4th
The action focus should initially be on the UK budget announcement and
the Assembly consideration of the 2015-16 budget. Following that process
supporting bodies should address ongoing organisational requirements.
Calling letter distributed in August
The People’s Assembly RCT/Bridgend made a call to anti cuts, anti austerity and
trade union organisation across Wales recently, to support a meeting to coordinate
and prepare for the fightback against the new Tory austerity measures that will be
announced this coming autumn. The outcome is this letter which is currently
supported by 14 organisations. It is also hoped to add individual’s names in the
near future.
We are asking you to add you own or your organisation’s name to this call and to
attend or send a delegate to the Cardiff 4 October meeting that will be from 11.00 –
16.00 at the Owain Glyndwr, St John Chambers, High Street Arcade, Cardiff CF10
1GL.
The prime purpose will be to establish a coordinated campaign across Wales to
oppose austerity cuts that will be announced this autumn, to help mobilise support
for the 14 October public sector strikes and the TUC 18 October demonstration.
A draft agenda will be circulated to all supporting organisations and individuals at
least three weeks before the start of the meeting. If you wish to help with this
please let us know.
The austerity policies of this Tory government are increasing inequality and
degrading public services across the UK.
In Wales we have been directly affected through cuts made to both devolved and
non devolved services.
About £700m will be cut from local council revenue budgets across Wales by 2017
– 18. If reductions in capital spending are added in this figures rises to about
£1000m or £1bn. These figures are dependent on a number of assumptions that
may not happen but are nevertheless based upon ‘prudent’ assumptions of
councillors’ financial advisers.
To put these figures into context the current Welsh Government budget is £15bn:
£1bn is therefore a significant additional reduction in real public sector spending
and a huge hit on a public sector that provides a quarter of all jobs in Wales.
Over 2010 to 2017 there is by the end date likely to be a loss of £750m in real
spending in the Welsh NHS.
Across Wales there will be loss of £930m through social security cuts in 2015/16.
This means that by 2017 austerity will have cost Wales almost £3bn a year in lost
public service spending – around £1000 per person per year in Wales or £4000 per
year for the average family.
Everyone in Wales knows a person or family that has been directly hit: everyone in
Wales knows of a local service that has been cut.
We cannot allow this to continue. We did not create this financial crisis and we
should not be forced to pay for it.
Wales already has some of the poorest and most deprived communities in the
United Kingdom, with both rural and urban poverty a feature of many Welsh
people’s lives. These cuts hit the most vulnerable members of our communities the
hardest.
This autumn we will be faced with decisions involving another round of cuts and
we should insist that our political representatives join with us in resisting and
fighting back.
Len Arthur – secretary People’s Assembly RCT/Bridgend
Supporting organisation so far:
Bridgend Green Party
Cardiff Against the Cuts
Cardiff People’s Assembly
Cardiff Trades Union Council
Green Left (Wales)
Left Unity Wales – Chwith Unedig Cymru
Mid-Wales Uncut
North Wales Against the Cuts
Pembrokeshire People’s Assembly
Penybont Plaid Cymru
People’s Assembly RCT/Bridgend
People’s Assembly Wales – Cynulliad y Werin Cymru
People’s Assembly Wrexham
Powys Uncut
South Wales Federation Against the Bedroom Tax
Unison RCT branch

Wednesday 1 October 2014

HONG KONG: Strike for democracy


UCU London Retired Members Branch: October and November Events

Defend Maryam Al-Khawaja
October and November Events
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Defend Maryam Al-Khawaja

The last branch meeting voted to support the campaign to Defend Maryam Al-Khawaja,  leading member of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights. More details from the branch website...

Events

Lambeth College dispute - 7th October demo

Lambeth College UCU are still in dispute over management's attempt to impose a new (much worse) contract.
London Region UCU has called a demonstration on Tuesday 7th October from 5pmonwards, outside Lambeth College, Clapham Centre (Clapham Common tube, Northern Line). Our banner will be there, please try to come to support this important dispute.
More details...

Branch Walk - October 13th

October 13th "Between Land and Seamore details...

October Public Sector Strikes

13th NHS...,
14th Firefighters and UCU FE Colleges...
15th PCS...

TUC Demonstration - October 18th

more details...
Branch banner will be there, meeting point to be arranged.

NPC Pensioners Manifesto - 5th November

Launch of the Pensioners Manifesto and Lobby of Parliament - Wednesday 5 November 2014 - more details...
read the Pensioners Manifesto...

Book Launch - 14th November

Merilyn Moos will launch her book ‘Beaten but not Defeated. Siegfried Moos: an anti-Nazi who settled in Britain’ at Bookmarks on Friday, 14th November, at 6.30.
Copyright © 2014 UCU London Retired Members Branch, All rights reserved.
UCU London Retired Members Branch - members and supporters

Our mailing address is:
UCU London Retired Members Branch
53 Fladgate Road
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United Kingdom

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