Solidarity 026, 20 March 2003

PCSU: Is the right on the run?

by John Moloney Members in the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCSU) have voted to hold annual elections for the National Executive and annual conferences. This means that there have to be NEC elections this year. The right wing-controlled NEC has refused to appoint election scrutineers as required by the constitution. The general secretary and the president have had to go to the High Court to seek permission to appoint the scrutineers themselves. This right-wing NEC were the people who tried to sack the general secretary Mark Serwotka a year and half after he been elected, claiming that...

TUC women oppose war

by a delegate The TUC Women's Conference in Liverpool this week kicked off with a motion on the war. Proposed by the Women's Committee, it opposed war on Iraq without a second resolution from the UN. It did not go so far as to condemn war unconditionally, but speakers from the floor did, such as Christine Blower from the NUT. Maria Exall, a member of the CWU executive, called for trade unionists to fight against any US/UK war on Iraq but also called for solidarity with Iraqi people to overthrow Saddam's regime. Delegates challenged guest speaker Patricia Hewitt MP and she left the conference...

CWU London: fight for £4k!

by a postal worker After months of not a lot happening, London Divisional Committee (LDC) of the postal workers' union CWU has launched the campaign to raise the London Weighting for postal workers to £4k. Balloting of all grades within the London Weighting area will happen during March, with the result announced at a rally on 1 May. Other unions have already taken action over the £4k claim, and the intention of the campaign is to link with other public sector workers. The longer term aim is comparability with the Metropolitan Police who get more than £6k. House price inflation is forcing many...

Train guards strike over safety role

by a train driver RMT traincrew (the vast majority of them senior conductors or guards) at twelve Train Operating Companies have voted for strike action. Strikes will take place on 28 March, 30 March and 17 April. This is the fourth ballot on the issue of the safety role of the guard since 1995 when changes to the rule book were introduced which virtually wiped out any such role. The last dispute on this issue fizzled out because the union accepted legal advice saying that traincrew could not go on strike against their employers on this issue because the dispute was not with their employer but...

Jobcentre Plus bosses tied in knots

by a PCSU member Following a hearing on 24 and 25 February, an employment tribunal in Manchester has ruled that the dress code imposed on staff in Jobcentre Plus in June 2002 is unlawful under the Sex Discrimination Act. The case was brought by Matthew Thompson, an administration assistant at Stockport social security office, with the backing of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCSU). In reaching a unanimous decision, the tribunal stated: "But for the applicant's sex, would he have been forced to wear a collar and tie? The answer to that question must be 'No'. Therefore he was treated...

Attempt to gag Civil Service union

Press statement issued on 11 March by the East London branch of the Public and Commercial Services Union in the Department of Work and Pensions The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCSU), which represents workers in Social Security and Jobcentre offices, have been told that they cannot campaign against the Government's war drive against Iraq. Posters advertising the Stop the War Coalition's activities have been forcibly removed by managers from Union notice boards. The Union has also been banned from issuing e-mails to its members on the subject of anti-war campaigning. Department for...

Goldsmiths AUT plan action against war

On 11 March Goldsmiths College AUT members pledged action against the war, including: attending the Goldsmiths student protest at 12 noon in the college Quad on the day of an attack, which may involve stopping classes. agreeing to allow speaking rights to student representatives of the anti-war movement during lectures and other taught sessions on the day of an attack to publicise the above events. no-one (either staff or students) should be penalized for attending these anti-war protests.

Leicestershire CWU no confidences Blair

by a CWU member The re-convened Leicestershire CWU Branch AGM has agreed the following emergency motion to CWU conference: "Conference agrees that in recognition of the failure of the present government to listen to the views of the public, party members and affiliated unions on major policy issues, the CWU will adopt a policy of no confidence in Tony Blair as leader of the Labour Party." The motion was passed by 20 votes to 1, with one abstention. The one speaker against the motion was a County Labour councillor. He said that he was worried that passing such a motion would give Blair an...

Big Scottish vote against war

by Angela Paton First Minister Jack McConnell got a lucky escape on the Iraq vote on 13 March when the Scottish Parliament voted down John McAllion's amendment that "no case for military action against Iraq has been proven" by 62 votes to 57. The Tories voted with New Labour. The SNP and the Lib-Dems voted for McAllion's amendment. Labour got its motion through by 69 votes to 52, which called Saddam Hussein a "danger to the international community". The SNP would have favoured a war if there were a UN resolution. Still the only party that is firmly anti-war is the Scottish Socialist Party...

14 March ETUC call heeded: Europe-wide, workers act against the war

Millions of workers stopped work at midday Friday 14 March in protest against a possible attack on Iraq, following a call from the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). The ETUC called for trade unionists to demonstrate their disagreement by halting work for 15 minutes at noon. In Germany, where polls show an overwhelming majority of people opposing a war, the strikes briefly halted vehicle production at three Volkswagen factories and a DaimlerChrysler plant. Trams ground to a halt in the eastern city of Halle. Unions said more than 150,000 workers took brief strike action. Italian unions...

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