Striking while the iron is hot

Gregor Gall writes topically in the Morning Star about the various tactical options available to unions when mounting strike action: ‘The effectiveness of any industrial action will depend to a large extent upon the tactics deployed and whether they increase leverage over the employers or government and whether they maintain or lose public support’: http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/111265

John Ross 1955-2011

John Ross, UNISON stalwart, a dedicated Labour politician, and a friend to so, so many, died aged 56 on 22 October 2011. He worked for Edinburgh District Council, then the City of Edinburgh Council for almost 38 years. He was a senior activist in the NALGO Edinburgh City Branch and then in the UNISON City of Edinburgh Branch until his death. He had been Scottish vice-chair of NALGO.

Tory 'cast-iron' pledge to protect the NHS melts into air

Analysis from the House of Commons Library confirms that the Conservative Party has broken a pre-election 'cast-iron' pledge to protect the NHS. Official figures show that health service spending fell in real terms in the coalition's first year: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/cameron-has-broken-castiron-pledge-to-protect-the-nhs-official-figures-show-2377780.html

Monopoly by Paul Farley

We sat like slum landlords around the board
buying each other out with fake banknotes,
until we lost more than we could afford,
or ever hope to pay back. Now our seats
are empty — one by one we left the game
to play for real, at first completely lost
in this other world, its building sites, its rain;
but slowly learned the rules and made our own,
stayed out of jail and kept our noses clean.
And now there's only me — sole freeholder
of every empty office space in town,
and from the quayside I can count the cost
each low tide brings — the skeletons and rust
of boats, cars, hats, boots, iron, a terrier.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Farley

State funding life support machine proposed for declining political parties

As front line public services face drastic austerity cuts, the dithering Kelly Commission is proposing to introduce state funding for political parties - an option pushed hardest by the Liberal Democrat's which is otherwise hardly viable as a nationwide political force: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/oct/28/political-parties-more-state-funding For background information on UK party membership read: http://unisonactive.blogspot.com/2010/07/inexorable-decline-in-membership-of-uk.html

Dyslexia is a trade union issue

An online survey of union learning reps by unionlearn found that a lack of understanding of dyslexia is widespread in the workplace. UNISON member Carol Warren says ' my confidence has increased enormously and I am now a UNISON rep and have spoken twice at national delegate conference. If you think you may be dyslexic, it is never too late to get assessed and get support: it could change your life'http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-news-1.nsf/0/4BFC0D094311B71B80257936003DF81D

Scandal by Sarah Ahmad

Fashionable acted like the state
Exposing in public
Affairs exist no one is safe from

Top directors’ total earnings rise 49pc

FTSE 100 directors saw their total earnings rise by 49 per cent in the past financial year, taking the average to just under £2.7m, according to research by Incomes Data Services, the pay monitoring group. So we're all in it together are we?
http://link.ft.com/r/J0VG55/7AXBZT/A7D92C/
NJRT73/HYJ737/FW/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=27 and http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15487866

Part of City Not For Sale?

Edinburgh UNISON members are lobbying the council this morning as it meets to decide on the privatisation of cleansing, waste collection and parks. Press reports suggest a change of view by the Lib Dem/SNP administration could see a postponement while more work is done on the in-house option. The branch has been running a huge campaign, engaging the community, with leafleting, lobbies and public meetings. Decisions on two further privatisations involving up to 4,000 jobs are set to follow in the next couple of months. Ten reasons why City of Edinburgh Councillors should oppose privatisation (STV)
. Edinburgh Evening News .  BBC . http://www.unison-edinburgh.org.uk/

Unionising Higher Education's private sector

Interesting article in this week's TES on union plans to recruit and seek recognition in mainly non-unionised private colleges, where casual employment and low pay are endemic: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=417919&c=1