Stop the coalition sacking 1,500 Disabled workers ! Send a message today.

Unite the Union (and other unions such as GMB representing workers in the Remploy factories, which provide work for mostly disabled workers) are campaigning against the appalling decision by Iain Duncan Smith to shut down 54 Remploy factories and throw 1,518 staff on the dole.

Len McCluskey, Unite General Secretary, writes:

"Dear Friend,

Sacking decent workers makes no sense.

In a shameful move, the Tory Work and Pensions Minister Iain Duncan Smith is trying to shut down 54 British factories and throw 1,518 hardworking people on to benefits. Even worse, these are Remploy factories – so the workers he wants sacked are mostly disabled.

Help us keep British factories open for business and stop this government putting disabled workers on the scrap heap.

 

Click here to send a message to Iain Duncan Smith, asking him to meet with Remploy workers. It won’t take you more than a minute to do – but it’s a minute that could save the jobs of over a thousand disabled people.

 

Shutting down Remploy shows just how heartless and arrogant this government is. In fact, Iain Duncan Smith told a Remploy worker to her face that he wanted to make her unemployed so he could give someone else a “proper job”. 

 

This is unjustified and nasty. As a union official I had responsibility for Remploy’s workers and I know firsthand that they absolutely do “proper jobs”. Remploy is a brilliant testimony to the British manufacturing industry and it provides real work for disabled people in this country – and we should be proud of it. 

 

I know too that Remploy is much more than a workplace to its staff. Steve Collins, a worker in North Staffs factory, told us that his job at Remploy "saved his life", offering him somewhere he can earn a dignified living, after years of bullying in mainstream employment. This is what Remploy means to its workers – and why we can’t just let it be destroyed.

 

Tell Iain Duncan Smith what you think of his decision to throw 1,518 hardworking disabled people on the scrap heap. Ask him now to save British factories and jobs.

 

Closing down our factories and forcing people on to benefits makes no economic sense at a time when more than two million people in this country are out of work.

 

With the full force of our members’ voices, we can put enough pressure on the government to save Remploy. Thank you for standing up for these workers."

 

Standing up for Jobs and Education

NUT and NASUWT members took solidly-supported strike action over proposed job cuts at Sussex Downs College last week.

While the Unions welcome progress that has been made through negotiations with SDC management to reduce the number of redundancies, members still face significant cuts in hours.

The unions warn that cuts may lead to increased workload for  members, higher class sizes and less teaching time for students. They are bad for NUT and NASUWT members and bad for education.

Division Secretary of the East Sussex NUT, Dave Brinson explained:

"We are calling on SDC management to take urgent further action to avoid job reductions and losses. However we recognise that significant blame lies with recent savage Government policy towards post-16 education:

·         Independent research published recently (by the Institute for Fiscal Studies) has provided details of the impact of the cuts on the post-16 sector.  Sixth form funding will be cut by 17.6 per cent in real terms over the period to 2014.

·         The Government’s cuts come at a time when the increase in the education participation age to 18 will put additional pressure on individual colleges.  The increase in the participation age must be fully funded – instead the Government is cutting 16-19 funding in an attempt to implement increased participation on the cheap !

·         The abolition of the EMA has affected student numbers, as it has deterred many potential students from lower-income backgrounds"

The strike mainly involved teachers at the former Park College, where most staff were NUT and NASUWT members. The rest of Sussex Downs College is organised by the UCU Lecturers union, who are also in dispute with the college over cuts, but did not take strike action this week.

Eastbourne striking for Fair Pensions

Workers in Eastbourne will be taking strike action in defence of their pensions this Thursday.

Across the public sector schemes, the Government is demanding that front line staff work longer (to 68), pay more (a 50% increase in pension contributions), and get less through “career averaged” schemes, linked to the inferior CPI measure of inflation.

In Eastbourne, the PCS Civil Servants' union will be mounting a picket line at the DWP Job Centre Plus in St Anne’s Road, and members will also be taking action at other civil service sites in the town. They will be joined by Unite the Union members in the NHS, and by the UCU lecturers’ union at Sussex Downs College.

Members of the striking unions will be marching and rallying- with a demonstration in Brighton, and, nearest to Eastbourne, a march from Hastings Pier at 11.00am, organised by our brothers and sisters in the Hastings Trades Council.

Colleagues in the Police Federation, the Prison Officers' Union POA and the National Association of Probation Officers will be staging a national demonstration over pensions on the same day.

Teachers in NUT and NASUWT remain in dispute with the Government over pensions. The NASUWT has a current "work to contract" action in schools, and both Unions are expected to announce dates for strike action imminently.

 The PCS union explains the reasons for the strike:-

"The government want PCS members to:

·         Pay more – Extra pension contributions have been imposed for most civil servants –with further increases planned for the next two years.

·         Work longer – Civil service retirement is now linked to the state pension age – that’s already rising to 68 and the government says it will get higher.

·         Get less – Changes to indexation from RPI to the lower CPI inflation mean pensions fall by 15 to 20%.

And a two-year pay freeze is to be followed by 1% rises. New regional pay plans mean that everyone outside London might face further cuts.

We can’t afford not to.

Civil servants and other public sector workers are uniting to defend everything we have worked for. The government is:

·         Making civil servants pay up to three times as much for smaller pensions after working up to eight more years – or even longer.

·         Freezing wages while prices are soaring

The latest scheme is regional pay – which would mean wage cuts for everyone outside London. The strike is your chance to take a stand with colleagues from across government departments and with other trade unions across the public services.We are demanding real negotiations with the government, not imposed cuts.

Who else is involved?

Hundreds of thousands of public sector workers across the civil service, the health service and education will be joining the 10 May walkout."

You can find out more from PCS about the strike by clicking here

You can find more from lecturers' union UCU by clicking here

You can find out more about the Unite the Union health action by clicking here.

Eastbourne marks Workers Memorial Day

Today is International Workers Memorial Day, and local trade unionists were in Terminus Road urging local people to remember those who have died at work or as a result of their job. Dozens of Eastbourne residents stopped to sign the giant Remembrance Card, and to take information about the Trades Council's safety campaigns.

Workers’ Memorial Day is not just symbolic- it is a time to remember real working people in our local area who have died as a result of accidents or illnesses caused at work.

We urge you to remember:-

ROY TRUNDELL (Eastbourne Buses employee- killed in a workplace accident in 2008)

CLIVE BECK (former Eastbourne schoolteacher- died of Mesothelioma. The shelves in his school cupboard were made of asbestos.)

BOB TOLLY (Eastbourne gas fitter- died 2006, also of Mesotheleoma. Exposed to asbestos during his working life. )

SIMON JONES  (Student killed by a crane at Shoreham Port, on his first day.)

 

GEOFF WICKER and BRIAN WEMBRIDGE (East Sussex firefighters killed in action fighting a blaze at a firework factory in Lewes)

AND ALL THE OTHER LOCAL WORKING PEOPLE KILLED AT WORK. REMEMBER THE DEAD… FIGHT FOR THE LIVING !

Workers Memorial Day: Join Us !

Members of Eastbourne Trades Council will be in Eastbourne Town Centre on Saturday morning, marking Workers' Memorial Day.

We will be handing out information about WMD, about current threats to safety at work, and asking Eastbourne people to sign a memorial card for all those workers who have died at work or as a result of their jobs.

If you are able to join us, we will be meeting at Bankers Corner from 10.00am until noon. Or, if you are in town- just come along, say hello and sign the card.

Build Council Houses says Eastbourne TUC

Eastbourne Trades Council has thrown its weight behind a campaign for a national programme of Council House building, initiated by Crawley Independent Tenants Association.

The campaign points out that "Nationally millions are on Council waiting lists (Crawley has 3000). Houses to buy or rent privately are too expensive. The most affordable rent is Council Housing. However since Mrs. Thatcher’s right to buy policy, Council stock has shrunk and hasn’t been replaced. The situation is so serious that in Oxford an advert for an 8ft x 8ft shed, with a rent of £450 a month did receive a lot of offers! This situation can’t go on.
Our e-petition calls on the government to start an NHS style (not for profit) national scheme, to build large numbers of council Housing each year. If we get 100 000 signatures throughout the country, then our e-petition has to be considered for debate in parliament."

You can sign the petition by clicking here

Supporters of the campaign include Labour MP John McDonnell, Green MP Caroline Lucas, Councillors from East Sussex and Crawley, Unite the Union's  South East Region, Gatwick and Agricultural Workers Branches, and, bizarrely, David Elkin the Tory group leader of Eastbourne Borough Council....

Trades Council Meeting: 24th April

There will be a meeting of the Eastbourne Trades Council at 7.30pm, Tuesday 24th April, at the Unite Eastbourne Centre (formerly T&G) , Grand Parade, Eastbourne. All local trade unionists are invited, (although only delegates from affiliated unions may vote on financial and policy matters.)

THE AGENDA WILL BE:

1. Introductions and apologies for absence
2. Approval of new affiliations.
3. Minutes of previous meeting and matters arising
4. Treasurer's Report- Gordon Dyer
5. Employment Law changes- update from Sharon Wentworth  (Sharon is on Union business earlier in the day, but has submitted documents if she is unable to attend personally)
6. Workers Memorial Day- Saturday 28th April. Street stall and other publicity.
7. Tolpuddle Martyrs coach- decision  
8. Any other Union Campaigns: Colleagues invited to provide information on their Unions’ local and national campaigns, and any support that the Trades Council could give.
9. Any other business.

 Any apologies, or requests for information, to the Secretary please, by e-mailing here.

Day of Action for Health and Safety

The TUC is organising a Day of Action to defend health and safety. This will be held on 28 April 2012, which is International Workers Memorial Day when we traditionally remember the dead and fight for the living. Never has that message been more important than now.

Let's ensure that we make it clear that we want clear commitments and action from those who should be protecting us.

Click here to download the Campaign Poster and Leaflet for your workplace

HOORAY FOR UNION H&S REPS

One of the principles behind Britain's health and safety laws is the belief that the involvement of the workforce is crucial to achieving good standards of health and safety, and that health and safety systems work best when trade unions and employers work together.

It cannot be disputed that better standards of health and safety are achieved in unionised workplaces than in similar non-unionised ones. At the core of this are health and safety representatives. This group of unpaid volunteers make a massive difference in the workplace. In recent years they have saved countless lives, and helped stop millions of workers from being injured or made ill by their work.

Yet their work seems to go unnoticed and unrewarded by many employers and by the government. In fact a number of proposed changes will either make it more difficult for health and safety representatives to do their job, or give them an even bigger workload.

There are around 150,000 union health and safety representatives appointed and supported by trade unions. A DTI paper published in January 2007, Workplace Representatives: A review of their facilities and facility time, estimates that safety representatives at 2004 prices save society between £181m and £578m each year. It estimates safety representatives prevent between 8,000 and 13,000 workplace accidents and between 3,000 and 8,000 work-related illnesses.

NHS Bill Passes: Next Steps....

We’re sorry to have to tell you, if you didn’t already know, that the government’s controversial Health and Social Care Bill has cleared both Houses of Parliament. MPs have voted to agree the Lords’ amendments to the Bill, turning down a Commons proposal from Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burnham to delay the final vote until the government published the Transitional Risk Register, outlining the dangers they expected to the NHS through these reforms.

Whilst the government will heave a collective sigh of relief having struggled over the last 18 months to get this legislation through, the negative impacts of these measures will be felt by NHS patients and health practitioners for years to come.

Some MPs who voted for the Bill will today be pointing to the limited amendments they managed to get the Health Secretary to agree to, but they’ve done nothing to change the fundamentals of the Bill, and the outcomes will be much the same with or without their changes.

This is a major blow, but for us and the other groups and organisations campaigning against the Bill, the fight for our NHS is far from over.

It’s important that we don’t let up on our opposition to what the government are doing with our Health Service. The changes, whilst highly damaging to the principles of the service, only affect England, and are reversible. We can and will restore and retain our NHS.

We need to be working now to gather information on the impact these changes are having. We need to gather the evidence to show what the cuts and reforms have done to NHS waiting lists, the quality of service non-private patients receive, and the standards for workers. And we want to gather information about the private companies who are looking to profit from our NHS.

There will be a political price for many to pay for forcing this bad Bill through Parliament, against the wishes of the majority of the public and the overwhelming majority of health professionals, and without a mandate in the parties’ manifestos or the coalition agreement.

Eastbourne's Lib Dem MP, Stephen Lloyd, voted FOR the bill, without waiting for the publication of the Risk Register.

You can keep up with the TUC's campaign for the Health Service by clicking here.

Local Bargaining in the Public Sector- why Eastbourne should worry !

The TUC has produced a discussion paper in response to the Chancellor's announcements, and the Wolf report, on local pay in public services. This should be a major concern to all trade unionists, especially in Eastbourne's relatively "low wage" (for the region) economy !

The Chancellor has asked the public sector pay review bodies to look at how public sector pay can be made “more responsive to local labour markets. It is clear that the Government thinks that public sector pay is too high in some part of the country and it is argued that:

“Public and private sector organisations compete for employees in different markets across the UK. However, while private sector pay is set in accordance with local labour markets, public sector pay is usually set on a national basis. As a result, in many areas, public sector pay does not reflect local labour market conditions.
Differences between public and private sector pay can adversely affect private sector businesses which have to compete with higher public sector wages. It also leads to unfair variations in public sector service quality and limits the number of jobs that the public sector can support.”

The TUC counters that public sector pay supports local economies. The Government's view takes no account of the part that public sector wages play in supporting the less well-off regions and nations of the UK. For example, the North East has both the lowest wages and the highest unemployment in England. It would simply not be credible to argue that the public sector was “crowding-out” private sector jobs in the poorest regions and nations.

Rather, reducing public sector wages in struggling areas would be certain to lead to fewer jobs, as a further fall in consumer spending would drive more private sector enterprises out of business. The failure of these enterprises would then cause f ripple effects. Economists estimate that this doubles the impact of any public sector wage cut.

According to the ONS Labour Force Survey, average public sector pay varies by 10.4 per cent between the regions and nations of the UK . It is most likely that public sector pay would fall furthest in the poorest parts of the UK.

The TUC estimates the regional effect of cutting public sector pay by just one per cent for the 908,000 public employees in the South East Region would have the effect of cutting £231 Million from the local economy- with devastating knock-on effect across both public and private sector workers.

In summary — the main arguments against "local pay" in public services:

• Bad for local economies



• Long-winded and inefficient



• Bad for equalities — particularly affects women.



• Will worsen public services in poorer areas



• Will not improve public services in well—off areas