The NHS: unsafe in their hands
By the end of the next parliament the NHS could become a thing of the past, regardless of who is elected. Only workers can save it…
The politics of Hong Kong protest
19 October 2014
The so-called “pro-democracy” demonstrators seeking to occupy central areas of Hong Kong are for the return of Hong Kong as an independent capitalist statelet, severed from mainland China.
Union organisation answer to benefits freeze
17 October 2014
Chancellor Osborne told the Tory conference in Birmingham he will freeze working-age benefits re-elected. The consequences might – and should – be a rise in trade union organisation.
More doublespeak over TTIP
17 October 2014
On 9 October the European Union released the text of its “negotiating mandate” for the TTIP – the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership treaty that it is negotiating with the European Union. Perhaps inadvertently, it includes one telling admission.
Midwife anger over private ads
15 October 2014
Adverts for private care displayed at maternity units are outraging midwives. On the picket line at an east London hospital, one midwife explained why.
Survey reveals scale of teacher workload
15 October 2014
Excessive workload has driven nine out of every ten of teachers to consider giving up teaching during the past two years, according to an online survey carried out by the National Union of Teachers.
Ambulance workers’ power blunts emergency provocation
The first strikes in the NHS for 32 years on 13 October – especially in the London Ambulance Service – gave the lie to the idea that workers are weak and that unions don’t matter.
Understanding the TTIP
Understanding the TTIP
Thursday 23 October 2014 18:30 to 20:30
TUC South East Regional Council open meeting. A good question to ask: Why did the TUC tell the government it supports the EU’s right to negotiate on our behalf? Admission free but registration “essential”. Event details here.
SNP threat to bypass referendum result
9 October 2014
SNP leader Alex Salmond promised on 19 September to accept the referendum result and he urged Yes supporters to do the same. He at once broke this promise.
Underemployment: Working, but not enough
2 October 2014
The number of underemployed in the workforce is increasing, according to TUC analysis in September of the latest Labour Force Survey from the Office for National Statistics.
Referendum: The truth about young voters
30 September 2014
Reports that 71 per cent of 16- to 17-year-olds voted Yes in the Scottish referendum don’t stand up to scrutiny, says statistics programme.
Midwives to take historic action
30 September 2014
Midwives and maternity support workers will walk out on Monday 13 October after the government overruled the Independent Pay Review Board’s recommendation for a 1 per cent rise.
Hands off Syria!
We are told that we have to attack Syria in order to defeat the Islamic State (IS). The peoples of the Middle East will have to deal with their own backward feudal despots.
After the vote - Rebuild Britain
19 September was a great day, a great victory – a day of unity when the people of Scotland finally spoke and buried the narrow aspirations of separatism…
Russia’s not our enemy
Is the US trying to push the EU into war with Russia? It’s starting to look like it…
What democracy really means
Now that the referendum is over, the focus of the media has leapfrogged the coming months and focused on the general election. Nothing else is held to be relevant.
Strike call in NHS England
Unison members in the NHS in England are to be called on to take part in a four-hour strike on 13 October for more pay. But after that, what?
Health care professionals face 7-day challenge
People who work in health know that low levels of service provision over the weekend put patients’ lives in danger. The problem is how to move to 7-day provision while preserving wages and conditions…
Concert celebrates bonds of friendship
A Glasgow concert for unity formed part of the campaign to keep Britain together by promoting the No vote in the Scottish referendum.
TTIP and the unions
Many unions are opposing the proposed transatlantic trade and investment treaty – while supporting the EU and endorsing its exclusive right to negotiate TTIP on our behalf.
Playing games with safety
The government wants to integrate the emergency services. The unions involved know what this really means: cuts in services, jobs and standards.
TUC and pay - time to grasp the nettle
We need to destroy the pay freeze and put wages centre stage. But in preparations for Congress the real focus has been on the next general election.
Scotland’s false flag
The Scottish referendum is an attempt to turn the growing desire in Britain to be an independent country into its opposite, for Britain to be partitioned instead.