demonstrations

There will be two linked actions happening on the 26th of October. First, there is a call-out to all workers in the London and surrounding areas to help extend solidarity with members of the UVW during upcoming strike. Over 70, mainly migrant, security guards who are UVW members and employed by Wilson James across the Natural History and Science Museums have returned an overwhelming vote (96%) in favour of strike action following a recent ballot. Support their picket at 10am on Saturday 26 October, London SW7.

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.

This year's May Day was celebrated in Brighton with the coming together of different local unions and groups organising against casualised working conditions and the housing crisis. The demo soon headed for a local restaurant that has been underpaying one of our members, and demanding they be paid. The protest marks the start of a dispute, continuing our efforts over the past few years of trying to bring International Workers Day back to its roots in worker militancy and anarchist labour organising. 

Although Liverpool-SolFed is still a small a very recent group, we were present in the May Day demonstration in Liverpool. A few comrades join the parade from Toxteth Library to St. Georges Hall alongside with different unions and groups active in the area. 

MIPIM, the world’s biggest property fair, is coming to London this week for the first time in its 25 year history.

Billed as ‘the first UK property trade show gathering all professionals looking to close deals in the UK property market’, MIPIM will attract huge numbers of financiers, developers & local authorities, all looking to profiteer from UK land and property. This profiteering is creating unaffordable, insecure housing and contributing to the corporate takeover of our community spaces and public services.

South London SolFed stands in solidarity with the Radical Housing Network in opposing MIPIM and demanding a city for people, not for profit.

Flyer for this week's actions is here. For more information, visit radicalhousingnetwork.org.

On Saturday South London Solfed's roaming anti-workfare picket targeted businesses on Lewisham High Street exploiting unpaid labour.

Despite autumn choosing Saturday to finally arrive, a determined group took to the streets in support of Boycott Workfare's week of action. Marks & Spencer, Primark and Poundworld were all picketed, as well as Iceland who have reportedly signed up to the new 'Help To Work' scheme, the newest and most punitive version of workfare yet, involving six months' unpaid traineeships. Information leaflets were distributed to the public, including know your rights advice for those facing workfare placements. Despite the rain there were plenty of positive responses.

The North London Solidarity Federation would once again like to send out our solidarity to the London cinema workers who have have been fighting an inspiring campaign against low wages and zero hour contracts.

In a city dominated by low-wage service jobs, London's cinema workers have shown that we can fight back and win.  In their struggle to secure a living wage, they've gone on strike, spread struggle from cinema to cinema, formed unions, devised media-savvy campaigns and enlisted the help of supportive celebrities.  

Cinema is one of the many 'desirable' industries where bosses penalize workers with low wages because they happen to have a job that matches their passion.  Well, no more.  Cinema workers are fighting to make sure that cinema work pays.  And, for that, they have North London SolFed's solidarity and support.

Saturday's market crowds in Dalston were taught a valuable lesson in solidarity today as a large crowd of supporters marched, sang and shouted their opposition to education cuts all the way from Hackney College to Gillet Square.

Neighbours, students, teachers and friends turned out to support the College staff, who are fighting to stop compulsory redundancies and changes to contracts that will make life impossible for language teachers in the borough. 

Joined by workers from Tower Hamlets College and Lambeth College, which are both facing their own attacks by bosses intent on upping margins at the expense of education quality, teachers explained that cuts to college funds had failed to fall at the top of the tree even as courses aimed at the people needing it most lost out on funding to politicians' pet projects, such as short Workfare-related courses which have relatively little impact on skills compared to the more comprehensive courses they replace. 

South London Solfed has called an anti-workfare picket of Lewisham Marks & Spencer in solidarity with Boycott Workfare's week of action this Saturday, 7th December at 1pm.

M&S's use of workfare made news in June when they announced 1400 new 'work experience' placements for young unemployed people would be made available. These positions are unpaid. Indeed, M&S have set a benchmark of 2% of their workforce to be unpaid. More info via Boycott Workfare here.

Let’s step up the pressure on companies who still think they can profit from unpaid work. Show M&S that exploiting unemployed people is not good for their business.

There is more information on other actions taking place this weekend on Boycott Workfare's website.