Solidarity Federation welcomes the overwhelming support for strike action as voted by RMT members across the UK. In the face of some of the most repressive anti-strike legislation in Europe, rail workers have delivered a resounding message to both train bosses and union bureaucrats: the time for talking is over, a national strike now.
Last Tuesday, December the 18th, Liverpool-SolFed joined the protest called for by Liverpool Migrant Solidarity Network.
On International Migrants Day, we joined our voices for the closing down of Detention Centers and an end to deportations. Probably the most extreme aspect of the “hostile environment” that the UK is using to demonize and target vulnerable people.
Last Saturday 16th November we started the public campaign against Imperial Hotel. The worker, Francesco, contacted Brighton Solfed regarding a serious case of wage theft: this hotel owes him part of his wages, including his notice pay, holiday entitlement, money stolen from this pay, and sick pay. As the company has ignored every attempt from Brighton Solfed to contact them we had no other choice but to start direct action.
Recently, workers at YHA hostels around the country launched a campaign for the living wage (£7.85 an hour, up from their current average of £6.50). Bristol Solidarity Federation would like to extend our Solidarity to YHA workers, who are also campaigning around irregular shifts and unfair payment for sleepover shifts. We meet regularly at the YHA in Bristol, which has also hosted our workplace organiser training, conference, new members days and other events. However, we will be boycotting the venue and encouraging other groups to do so until the demands of the YHA workers campaign are met. As a further show of solidarity, members of Bristol SolFed visited the YHA to make sure the workers there were aware of the campaign. Good conversations were had with staff and leaflets distributed in English and Spanish.
A fourth International Day of Action saw Westcountry members of the Solidarity Federation take to the streets of Bristol, Dorchester and Swindon in support of a Spanish worker sacked for organising a union branch in his workplace. The worker, a member of the anarcho-syndicalist CNT union was fired during a campaign by his colleagues for decent contracts and against illegal outsourcing by ISBAN, a subsidiary of Santander. Solidarity actions took place in 13 countries around the world.
Members of Manchester Solfed held a lively lunchtime picket outside a city centre branch of Santander bank as part of the International Workers’ Association’s international day of action on June 5. The IWA’s coordinated campaign is part of an escalation by the Spanish section, the CNT, in support of a union organiser sacked from one of the bank’ s outsourcing companies. Santander has been transferring thousands of jobs to outsourcing agencies to save costs by minimising the rights and security of its employees.
More information on the struggle can be found here: http://www.iwa-ait.org/content/1st-october-day-action-against-santander-bank-worldwide
After a short but intense campaign, Marta, a receptionist at the Speak Up London language school, has won a week’s unpaid wages and a glowing reference.
Marta was sacked without reason and without the required one week’s notice. She got in contact with Solidarity Federation who quickly organised over a dozen people to March into the bosses’ office with a letter demanding she be given a week’s pay in lieu of notice and a positive reference.
After Speak Up failed to respond to Marta’s letter, SolFed and other supportive individuals and organisations organised a massive blockade of the Speak Up Facebook page. Hundreds of post appeared within the 45 minutes. An hour and half into the action, Speak Up shut down their Facebook page entirely to all UK users.
The North London local of the Solidarity Federation would like to offer our sincerest congratulations and solidarity to the Counihan family who recently had their housing benefit reinstated by Brent Council. The fight you've led has been inspirational and militant. It serves as an example for the sort of struggles that are going to be needed if we're to win the to fight against the onslaught of cuts facing the working class.
We will be advertising your upcoming march and public meeting to our members and contacts. Congratulations again and please keep us informed of upcoming actions and campaign developments on northlondonsf (at) riseup.net
Leaflet about the campaign available here:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/114270652/Counihan-6th-Dec-Leaflet
What: Pret a Manger communications blockade
When: Thur 29th November, 2:00 - 4:00pm
Call, email, and text Pret on the 29th November between the hours of 2:00 and 4:00pm demanding that Andrej be reinstated and that Pret stop victimising all union members.
See full article for email addresses and phone numbers.
Despite the wet weather, today a member of NLSF joined PAMSU in leafleting some half-a-dozen Pret a Manger shops in central London. Demanding reinstatement for sacked union activist Andrej, we handed out several hundred leaflets, began conversations with customers, and established contacts with a handful of workers inside the shops.