Government Destroying NHS Direct Services

UNISON members in the South West are taking action to highlight the threat to the services provided by NHS Direct.  Nursing and Health advisors providing the NHS Direct helpline services to Cornwall and the South West based at Exeter are today, Tuesday 1 May, holding a ‘work-in’ in protest against the Government’s plans to replace NHS Direct.

From midnight last night until to midnight tonight NHS Direct staff in Exeter are having a ‘work-in’, with extra staff are voluntarily coming in, in their own time to help staff the NHS Direct phone lines in a protest to the forthcoming changes from NHS Direct to the new 111 services, which will result in clinical staff losing their jobs and a reduction in clinical service provision.

May Day

On May 1, 1890, demonstrations took place around the world at the behest of the Socialist International of left-wing parties.

The main demand was for limiting the working day to eight hours.

Frederick Engels noted that in all of continental Europe "it was Vienna that celebrated the holiday of the proletariat in the most brilliant and dignified manner."

But, he added, even this dramatic revival of the Austrian trade union and socialist movement was "thrown into the shade" by the "most important and magnificent" London May Day march and rally three days later.

What had, in Engels's words, roused the English workers from almost 40 years of slumber to join the great international army?

He pointed his German readers to the previous year's dockers' strike and the founding of the Gas Workers' and General Labourers' Union, which had grown to embrace 100,000 members.

He proclaimed the unionisation of huge numbers of unskilled workers and the fact that they wanted their unions to be led by socialists.

This rise of militant, left-led "new unionism" could be contrasted with the aloofness and conservatism, both industrial and political, of the craft-based unions led by the aristocrats of labour.

Swindon - Demonstrate This Saturday!

GMB have called a demonstration in Swindon for 17th March, on the theme of “We demand Respect at work”, which will be led by the strikers from Carillion at the Great Western Hospital.

Assemble 11:30 am behind Broad Green Community Centre, Salisbury Street, Swindon, of 17th March. Rally at 1:00 pm Canal Wharf

Please bring banners

Union leader threatens public sector strikes to disrupt London Olympics

Taken from tomorrow's Guardian. Here's some of the best quotes:

Government attacks on public sector justify targeting 2012 Games, says Unite general secretary Len McCluskey

"If the Olympics provide us with an opportunity, then that's exactly one that we should be looking at," said McCluskey.

"Our very way of life is being attacked. By then this crazy health and social care bill may have been passed, so we are looking at the privatisation of our National Health Service. I believe the unions, and the general community, have got every right to be out protesting."

"Our parents and our grandparents, having defeated fascism in Europe, came back determined to build a land fit for heroes. They gave us the welfare state, the National Health Service, universal education. All of that is being attacked," he said. "I, for one, am not prepared to stand by and have my children or grandchildren say to me, what did you do when this was being taken away from us?"

Read the full article here

Morning Star National Conference

This government is an unelected bankers’ dictatorship, alongside the other dictatorships already imposed by the EU in Greece and Italy. A broad mass movement can force it to retreat, thereby preparing the ground for its removal – and progress towards alternatives based on the People's Charter and the Alternative Economic Strategy. The labour movement - and the trade unions within it - have to meet and plan strategically if they are to win victories. How can we make the Labour Party leadership be part of the solution, not part of the problem? How can we forge a mass broad alliance?

Speakers include: Michael Meacher MP, Michelle Stanistreet (NUJ), Sally Hunt (UCU - tbc), Len McCluskey (Unite), Bob Crow (RMT); Kelvin Hopkins MP, Bill Greenshields (People’s Charter), Anita Halpin (Morning Star Management Committee); John Haylett (Morning Star political editor) Owen Jones (author of "Chavs: the demonisation of the working class"), Megan Dobney (SERTUC), Hugh Lanning (PCS), Paul Mackney (former UCU Gen Sec, Vice-Chair of the Coalition of Resistance)

Download the full flyer here

Broadening the Battlelines

This pamphlet by CP Chair and former NUT President Bill Greenshields addresses the immediate issues confronting public sector trade unions in their battle against the ConDem governments plans.

Open publication - Free publishing - More britain

The crisis of political representation in the Labour Movement

Statement issued by the Communist Party political committee - January 26, 2012

The Communist Party rejects the analysis peddled by the banks, hedge funds and Con-Dem government that past levels of public expenditure were the main cause of the economic and financial crisis.

We reject, too, the remedy dictated by City of London financial institutions and the EU Commission and European Central Bank, notably that massive public spending cuts and a savage attack on the wages and pensions of public sector workers are necessary in order to reduce the public sector financial deficit.

The policy of the Labour Party leadership to align itself with this analysis and these remedies is a betrayal of the millions of workers and their families who should be able to look to Labour for support and solidarity. In particular, recent statements by Ed Miliband, Ed Balls and Liam Byrne in support of deep cuts in public sector wages and pension entitlements, and in welfare benefits, represent a shameful capitulation to the banks, the Con-Dem regime and the right-wing mass media.

South West in danger of becoming low pay zone

George Osborne's plan to end national pay rates for public servants by levelling down public sector pay to that of the private sector would have a devastating impact on the South West, says the TUC.

This is partly because of the high percentage of public sector workers in the region (27.1%) and partly because of the already low pay (£1.58 per hour less than the UK average). Devon and Cornwall, in particular, would be badly affected because the pay rates for the two counties are lower still - £2.55 less for Devon and £3.59 less for Cornwall than the £14.90 national average.

Nigel Costley, Regional Secretary of the South West TUC, said: "When the Chancellor talks about regional and localised wage negotiations, what he really means is driving down pay to the lowest levels. This will have devastating impact on the economy of the West Country by embedding a low-pay culture that has already caused so much hardship for hard-working families. In recent years progress has been made to close the pay gap between average pay here and that of the UK average but we are in danger of going into reverse.

"The region is dependent upon the public sector and the government is already cutting earnings by reducing pay and increasing pension charges. The latest plan will involve a league table of pay rates across the country, consigning much of the West Country to the bottom divisions of pay.

"This will drive out valuable skills from the region and hit the quality of public services. Already the South West has problems recruiting certain skills in education and health, such as midwives, and this will make matters worse.

'Comparing public and private earnings is complex because public workers tend to be professionals such as teachers or nurses. Such workers have spent years in higher education and training. Professionals in private jobs having spent the same time developing their skills tend to earn a lot more.

The vision for our economy should be one based upon good pay and high performance. We want young people to aspire to develop good skills and help deliver top class public services as well as successful trading companies. A low wage economy will mean young people will do their best to escape.'

Taken from a press release

International Solidarity

Nicaraguan workers express their solidarity with the workers of Great Britan as they prepare for strikes on the 30th of November

N30 - Why unions HAD to strike for ALL

Why were the strikes important? Why are the trade unions so vital to the fight against the coalition government? How did the strikes help those not in unions or not on strike?

Lets make one thing clear - these strikes have to be about far more than public sector pensions. Yes, because of the anti-union laws in Britain, the unions need to have a specific reason to strike. The public sector pension reforms were that reason.

But while striking over unjustified pension reforms is perfectly valid, this struggle needs to be seen in the wider context of the anti-cuts movement. To not see the strikes in this context lends ammunition to the anti-strike, right wing attacks on the trade unions.

Qantas Strikes

Taken from Communist Party of Australia

Qantas management is clearly prepared to destroy the airline, as it now exists, in order to complete its non-unionised, cheapjack makeover of the once iconic, widely respected and publicly owned national carrier.

Joyce almost says as much: “I’m fighting for the survival of Qantas into the long term, and if we have to take short-term pain and to stand up to the unions, and resist these bully-boy tactics to make sure that the company survives, we will do that.”

Read the full article

South West TUC leads delegation of low paid workers

Taken from http://www.tuc.org.uk/economy/tuc-20143-f0.cfm?regional=8

Low paid workers will next week tell members of the Low Pay Commission visiting Cornwall they must be bolder and raise the National Minimum Wage (NMW).

The Low Pay Commission is an independent body set up to advise the government on the impact of the NMW and next week two commissioners are in Cornwall.

The South West TUC is leading a delegation of low paid workers from around Cornwall to meeting the Commission. It will include low paid workers from the tourist industry, agency workers, care assistants, young worker representatives and migrant support workers. They will tell the Commission the county is one of the most expensive places to live in Britain, with the average annual earnings sitting at £20,997 (compared to £25,277 in England) and the average house costing more than nine times that (£191,000), compared to seven times the average annual wage in England (£164,800).

United We Stand

The People's Charter - Not just an anti-cuts campaign

Recently the People's Charter was described to me as "the CPB's anti-cuts campaign".

The People's Charter is not an anti-cuts movement. Yes, if adopted, it would mean that none of the government's cuts would be enacted. But more than that, it is a document for the future. It is a set of policies and demands that lay the groundwork for the building of socialism in this country.

As for the CPB reference, I hand over to John Hendy QC

Taken from the Morning Star 17/05/2011