May Day

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. 

We've been holding Mayday events for the past few years, trying to bring International Workers Day back to its roots in worker militancy and anarchist organising. This year, we're joining in the call from a coalition of local grassroots initiatives organising against casualised working conditions and the housing crisis. Meet 7pm Jubilee Square - A critical mass bike block will lead the (walking) demonstration - if you want to take part in that block, just bring a bike. The only way we’ll make our lives better is by fighting together!

Last weekend, Brighton-SolFed organised different activities to commemorate May Day, the International Workers Day.

Although the Working Class has not so much to celebrate these days, we used this opportunity for discussion, to give visibility to our struggles, and to invite our members and collaborators to have a good time together.

Anarcho-syndicalism in Brighton: talk and social
Saturday 30th April, 6pm at the Cowley Club

Day of action against exploitation
Sunday 1st May, 3pm at the Clock Tower

29 Wednesday - Syndicalism and Education Sussex Uni Fulton building 113 = 6−8pm

01 Friday - MayDay

02 Saturday - Syndicalism in Brighton at the Cowley Club = 4−6 pm

03 Sunday - Roast + Film and Discussion after at the Cowley Club = 1−6 pm

04 Monday - Demonstration 12 0’Clock from Old Steine + picnic

The latest copy of the West Yorkshire SolFed newsletter, Spanner in the Works, was released to an unsuspecting public on Saturday 20 April 2013. Articles on ex-Remploy workers, David Brown Ltd, May Day, Freedom benefit and workplace victimisation. Initial distribution took place at the anti-bedroom tax demonstration in Leeds and later the same day at the Freedom Press benefit gig at Bradford's 1in12 Club. Available to download here: http://db.tt/aGUdeY2f

May 1st was, of course, Mayday, International Workers’ Day, held in memory of the six anarchists executed after the Haymarket riot, a protest in Chicago way back in 1886 over the 8 hour working day.  Despite it falling on a normal working day this year, both London SF branches called an anti-Workfare roving picket through central London, as well as attending an electricians’ picket and, least interestingly, the official, Trade Union Congress (TUC) march.

The electricians’ picket – called by the Sparks rank and file group – was in response to employers trying to block rank and file activists from even attending the ongoing negotiations over the JIB agreement. We braved the bleak, grey early morning for a couple of hours befire retreating to a
café for a break and a caffeine fix.

MEET: 12:00pm @ Clerkenwell Green.

RE-CONVERGE: 16:00pm @ West One Shopping Centre (by Bond Street tube)

MAP OF LOCATIONS: http://g.co/maps/wx93f

On May Day we are calling on all those fighting back against the government's austerity plans to join us in taking direct action against companies participating in the workfare schemes. Instead of standing around and listening to speeches at the end of the TUC march we will be heading straight into the West end to regroup and start taking action.

Workfare is a range of government schemes that make people on benefits work for their dole. The government and some in the media present it as a way of encouraging people back into work by gaining experience. This ignores two things – first, there are not enough jobs available for those who want them; and second, workfare placements themselves are taking jobs away from paid workers.