demonstrations, pickets and protests

On Friday 13th May Thames Valley (Reading) SolFed returned to the local Office Angels in support of Dan’s wage claim. By now people had begun to recognise us and in general the public were taking our leaflets quite happily. At 5-45 some of the staff from Office Angels came down and in contrast to the previous night's scuffle the mood was light-hearted. The man from the office who had sought to grab our leaflets came to apologise and tell us how much he respected our actions in support of Dan.

On Thursday 12th, Thames Valley Solfed leafleted outside Office Angels in Oxford, in addition to the pickets that we undertook in Reading.

We had about 10 people over the course of the picket, including friends of SolFed members who were passing & wanted to help out, a member of The Commune up for the day, and other Oxford locals. The office looked deserted at first but a member of staff came out & accepted our leaflet, but produced one of their own which deplored “the need for direct action”.

On Wednesday 11th and Thursday 12th May two members of the Thames Valley SolFed local leafleted outside the Reading branch of Office Angels as part of the nationwide campaign against the firm’s dodgy practices. Round one of the leafleting started on Wednesday at 9 am and included an imaginative re-working of the Office Angel's logo on the door of their building. On both days members of the public showed interest and often support for the campaign with at least 6 people saying that they would phone Office Angels to complain about their behaviour.

Today, the 11th of May, three London locations of Office Angels had the the pleasure of a visit by members of South & North London Solidarity Federation along with other organisational support. The pickets were part of the week-long national campaign being orchestrated by the Solidarity Federation in support of Dan, a worker who's been cheated by the Office Angels employment agency.

First up was ADECCO, Office Angel's mother company, on London Bridge. The manager was none too happy with our picket and came on a few occasions to address us in a fury.  On one of those occasions, he began throwing down placards that we had placed on his beloved private property. Another unhappy customer was a 72-year-old antagonistic Thatcherite who couldn’t comprehend the idea that individuals would give freely their time to show solidarity and support workers’ in struggle. (No surprise there, then).

Bristol Solidarity Federation, with support from Bristol Anarchist Federation and Bristol IWW members, picketed Office Angels calling for the non-payment of wages to London temp, Dan.

The picket was surprised to find the local police had sent in advance two Community Support Officers. Why it was felt that the branch needed protecting was not explained to the picket.  A delegation were stopped from delivering a demand letter personally to the branch manager. Instead the police took this letter and a leaflet into the branch. The picket were forbidden from entering into any dialogue with staff from Office Angels.

Petty intimidation will not stop this campaign. The campaign for justice and payment in full for work done for Office Angels.

On the 11/05/11 West Yorkshire Solidarity Federation picketed the Leeds branch of Office Angels. We were joined by Leeds AF. Office Angels locked there doors (maybe thinking we where planning to storm the office) but didn't come out to see what we were doing. We gave out 300 leaflets, getting a good response. Some people came over... to ask for leaflets and at one point the whole of a bus queue outside of Office Angels where reading the leaflet.

Today, the 11th of May, three London locations of Office Angels had the the pleasure of a visit by members of South & North London Solidarity Federation along with other organisational support. The pickets were part of the week-long national campaign being orchestrated by the Solidarity Federation in support of Dan, a worker who's been cheated by the Office Angels employment agency.

First up was ADECCO, Office Angel's mother company, on London Bridge. The manager was none too happy with our picket and came on a few occasions to address us in a fury.  On one of those occasions, he began throwing down placards that we had placed on his beloved private property. Another unhappy customer was a 72-year-old antagonistic Thatcherite who couldn’t comprehend the idea that individuals would give freely their time to show solidarity and support workers’ in struggle. (No surprise there, then).

On Monday 9th May, Liverpool Solidarity Federation organised a picket of the offices of Atos Origin. This was as part of a national week of action against the company, being paid millions by the government to throw disabled people off benefits.

Atos's contact with the DWP to carry out "work capability assessments" is worth £300 million. Their system has previously provoked concern from the very doctors who carry them out, and over 8,000 appeals are heard every month for Employment and Support Allowance alone. Three people have even died as a result of having their support removed, and at the time of their death still awaiting the results of their appeal.

As with the last time we picketed the office, the response from the public was a positive one. With a larger turnout and more signs on show, it was also a lot easier to draw people's attention to what was going on and pique their curiosity so that they took a leaflet.

As part of a national week of action against the Office Angels agency in a dispute over unpaid wages, members and supporters of Brighton SolFed today picketed the Brighton branch for the third time in a week. Management locked the doors, and when a passing member of the public went in to ask why they didn't pay their staff, they could only desparately claim we were "liars". The passer-by sharply pointed out we wouldn't be giving up our time to picket for the fun of it! And pickets will keep spreading until Dan gets paid.

We also had some good conversations with other passers-by, many of whom worked through agencies or had friends who did. The more we talk to people, the less Dan's case seems like a one-off. If you've been mistreated by Office Angels, please get in touch.

We picketed the Brighton branch of Office Angels for the second time in 24 hours this morning to keep the pressure up in the dispute over unpaid wages. After running out of leaflets yesterday we printed another batch overnight to inform passers by and potential Office Angels workers of the details of the dispute, and to encourage them to get in touch if they've also been mistreated by Office Angels.

Until Dan gets paid, we will keep on increasing the pressure we are putting on the company. We want to hear from any current or previous Office Angels employees that have come into conflict with this company and its culture of disrespect. We know that this is not an isolated incident and the more people get involved, the more pressure we can put on the company to start treating its workers properly.