job cuts

The North and South London Locals of the Solidarity Federation extend our solidarity to the workers at Queen Mary University. With the threat of redundancies across campus, workers have become energised, linked up with students, and exhibited a growing degree of organisation. In response, university management have suspended the Queen Mary UNISON branch secretary on trumped up disciplinary charges.

While the Solidarity Federation recognises the power of the union rests not in its officials, but in an active and self-organised membership, management clearly believe they can defeat their workforce by 'beheading' the union. Such attacks must be resisted.

Today we heard that the trustees of Brighton's Community Base were meeting to push through privatisation plans and redundancies to the staff directly employed there (numbering two or three). Community Base is a charity providing a home for community and voluntary groups in Brighton and Hove and services to the local community. They use income from affordable services, including the provision of office space and the use of meeting rooms, to repay a mortgage on their centrally-located seven floor building.

A leaflet in support of Queen Mary staff and against the cuts there.  Designed to be given out to students and the public.

On Thursday 14 July, a meeting held in Unite's regional office saw the establishment of Liverpool Against The Cuts. 85 people, including members of Liverpool Solidarity Federation, were in attendance.

The June 30th strikes were well observed in Brighton, with the vast majority of schools shut, five picket lines across the city and a huge march and rally through the town centre.

Jobcentre picket: PCS and supporters set up banners & stall at 7am. BBC radio interviewed PCS organiser & interviewer disclosed that he was going to London after to plan future NUJ action. 2 pickets formed, at entrance to Jobcentre and at staff entrance. Approx 10-15 non-union staff arrived early and entered building. A solid picket of 30-40 formed by 8.15, ready for 8.30 opening. Much beeping of car horns and public goodwill. 2 supporters handing out claimants' leaflets were told forecourt is private property and were physically removed by security.

As around 750,000 public sector workers took strike action, Liverpool Solidarity Federation offered our support to picket lines around Bootle as well as joining a march and rally in the City Centre. We found that strike action was strongly supported, not just by the staff walking out but by the broader constituency of those affected by and fighting the cuts.

With June 30th widely recognised as a strike about cuts as well as pensions, people across the country joined in on the day to show their support and anger. In South London, the aim of generalising the strike was realised through the double fun of critical mass and street party!  The results were tangible, with multiple road blockages giving a jab in the side of the economy whilst public sector workers dealt the right hook of the day.

Friday the 17th of June saw the first Oxford 'Strike Assembly', meeting in advance of the strikes on June 30th to discuss, plan and organise.

We had public and private sector workers, unemployed, self-employed, students and NGO workers attending.

We are holding a morning rally which will go from picket to picket on the 30th: Meet at Gloucester Green at 7.30 am! Pickets are confirmed at Gloucester Green outside the Job Centre and at the Oxford and Cherwell and Valley College on Oxpens, so will be visiting there and other as yet unconfirmed pickets.

WHAT DOES it take to stop the cuts? June 30th represents the first co-ordinated strike action against austerity, under the pretext of defending pensions, due to the legal restrictions on joint strikes. But how do hundreds of thousands of people stopping work help stop the government?

At first glance, it might not seem to make sense. Cuts, we are told, are a response to a struggling economy. So why try and harm the economy by shutting large parts of it down for the day? But turn the question around, and what other option do we have?

Millions marched peacefully against the Iraq war and were completely ignored. We could wait four or five years and vote for Labour, but by then it’s too late. And anyway, Labour are committed to a cuts programme too. So striking is one of the only weapons ordinary people possess to go toe-to-toe with a state determined to force the costs of the financial crisis onto us (see centrefold feature).

On Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th June, PCS members in HM Revenue & Customs staged a series of walkouts. This was in opposition to a harsh new sickness policy being imposed upon staff. Members of Liverpool Solidarity Federation were amongst those who turned up on the picket lines to show support.

The action took the form of an hour's walkout at 4pm on Tuesday, a 10am "walk-in" on Wednesday, and a two-hour lunchtime walkout on the same day. The strikes took place across the country, with a high degree of support and disruption reported in most places. On Merseyside, the action was concentrated in the City Centre and in Bootle - both of which are home to a high number of government offices.