Amicus

Large engineering and general union

Radiographers lead the way in rejecting Agenda for Change

The 16,000-strong Society of Radiographers has emphatically rejected the proposed new pay deal for the NHS, Agenda for Change (AfC). In results announced on October 1st, the SoR delivered an 83% no vote, on a 67% turnout. A year ago, the SoR was the only union to reject AfC, although only the RCN positively accepted it. The other unions, most significant amongst them Amicus and UNISON, voted to 'try out' the package in twelve Early Implementer sites. Now that the EI sites have had a year to test the proposals, the unions are balloting again, and the SoR set the ball rolling with it's massive...

Solidarity works: Wembley workers win back jobs

TWO HUNDRED and forty steel construction workers on the Wembley Stadium project who walked off the job after their new bosses — Hollandia-Fast Track — unilaterally imposed new attendance arrangements — have won their dispute. Many of the workers — organised by the GMB and Amicus — were from the north east and needed time off at weekends to go home. That was allowed until the Dutch company Hollandia took over the contract at Wembley. As one worker put it: “All we wanted was the same that we had. We’re lodging here and we wanted to be able to go home every weekend and see our families. We weren...

Industrial news in brief

Wembley steel workers sacked Met Uni lecturers strike Swansea council strike set to escalate Fire pay dispute settled Wembley steel workers sacked Steel construction workers on the Wembley Stadium project picketed the site on Monday 23 August after they were sacked. 200 of them, members of unions GMB and Amicus, were sacked on Friday 20 August by their employers Hollandia-Fast Track. The companies say they sacked the workers for taking unofficial action in a dispute about working hours and breaks. The dispute arose when the workforce was transferred to Hollandia-Fast Track in July from its...

GMB-Amicus merger?

We need unions that serve the members Sanjay Sirikanth, GMB member With the recent takeover of the print union GPMU and the forthcoming acquisition of banking union UNIFI, AMICUS is fast becoming the union of choice for trade union bureaucrats seeking to secure their pension funds by pushing merger through their union Executives. The TUC appears to be backing this AMICUS campaign and complaints from members in both GPMU and UNIFI point to large amounts of time and money being invested in getting the "right" result out of membership votes - that is, the one that suits the suits. The TUC has...

"Big Four" demands: "confidential" but not confident

In Solidarity 3/52 we reported how the leaders of Britain's biggest trade unions, Amicus, GMB, TGWU and Unison, had drawn up demands for the manifesto Labour should stand on in the next general election. We now have a copy of that manifesto, although it remains "private and confidential". It does not include, for example, a promise to repeal the Thatcherite anti-trade union laws that Labour keeps in place in order to cow union members and prevent them taking effective action in pursuit of their goals. The trade union leaders' demands do not include a promise to tax the rich and private...

Struggle, not sops

The leaders of the 'Big Four' unions, Amicus, GMB, TGWU, and Unison - the trade-union 'mountains' - have recently made noises to suggest that they are about to go into labour. But so far they have not given birth even to the proverbial mouse. They have had private meetings to draw up an 'alternative' trade-union version of the Labour manifesto for next year's General Election - that is, proposals they want to put into New Labour's manifesto. So far not much. And not enough. By the time of the General Election, the Blair 'Labour' government will be eight years old. Through all that time it has...

Amicus and GMB to merge?

According to reports from a number of AMICUS Executive members, a deal is being struck between Derek Simpson and Kevin Curran for Amicus to take over the crisis ridden GMB next year. Simpson has only a few years before he retires and the deal seems to be that Curran would assume the role of General Secretary after he goes. The arrangement has the full support of the TUC who seem to be spending much of the £10 million Blair gave them to "modernise" the unions on campaigning for yes votes in unions about to be taken over by AMICUS - Unifi, GPMU, and the merged KFAT/ISTC for example. This will be...

The "Big Four" start moving

The "big four" trade union leaders - Tony Woodley of the TGWU, Derek Simpson of Amicus, Kevin Curran of GMB, and Dave Prentis of Unison - have laid down their demands for the next Labour manifesto. They include a big council house-building programme and an end to the Private Finance Initiative. The unions' statement, adopted on 15 May and endorsed by ASLEF, CWU, FBU, GPMU and NUM as well as the big four, has not yet been published in full, and it is not clear what action the union leaders propose beyond private meetings and letters. For reports see the TGWU website , the Guardian , and the...

Fighting Back for Manufacturing

Rally and March 11am Saturday 22nd May 2004 Broad Street, Birmingham Speakers: Tony Woodley, T&G General Secretary Derek Simpson, Amicus General Secretary Debbie Coulter, GMB Deputy General Secretary Richard Burden MP Rally to be Chaired by Gerard Coyne, Regional Secretary TGWU Called By: The TGWU, Amicus and the GMB Trade unions will be taking the fight back for manufacturing into the heartland of British industry this month, with a march through Birmingham city centre culminating in a rally at Centenary Square on Saturday 22nd May. Tony Woodley, Transport and General Workers' Union General...

Unions challenge Blair on gay equality

Trade unions are challenging the Government in court to give full employment rights for their lesbian, gay and bisexual members. The case begins on 17 March at the High Court in the Strand, against the Government's inadequate implementation of the EU Sexual Orientation Employment regulations, which were brought in on 1 December last year. The TUC is coordinating the action, but it is being brought by seven unions including the teaching unions NUT and NATFHE, other public sector unions, including UNISON, TGWU, and AMICUS, the union representing the clergy. The Government is being supported by...

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