This article is reposted from the Labour Research Department Publications website, here. Unions say the draconian Police Bill threatens trade union activity — by restricting the right to protest and placing further restraints on picketing. Opposition to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill (PCSCB) has been growing as the Bill has been making its wayContinue reading “Fight is on to kill the Bill”
Category Archives: Resisting the Tories
The implications of the Police Bill for workers and unions
By Professor Gregor Gall, Visiting Professor of Industrial Relations, University of Leeds Though there are many different aspects to the 2021 Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, the Government has made it clear that those parts pertaining to public order result from its desire to clamp down on Extinction Rebellion (XR) and Black Lives MatterContinue reading “The implications of the Police Bill for workers and unions”
“Workers have never been gifted anything. We’ve protested and won.”
This is a speech given by Fire Brigades Union National Officer and Free Our Unions activist Riccardo la Torre at the 2021 May Day protest in Southend in Essex. A transcript of the speech is below the video. I’m Riccardo la Torre from the Fire Brigades Union, bringing May Day solidarity to all of you. It’s fantastic,Continue reading ““Workers have never been gifted anything. We’ve protested and won.””
Government concedes right to picket during lockdown
Following a Unite legal challenge, the government has conceded the right to picket during lockdown. We repost the following from the Unite website: The government has been forced to confirm that workers taking lawful industrial action have a right to picket their workplace during the Covid-19 lockdown. In doing so they have vetoed the actionsContinue reading “Government concedes right to picket during lockdown”
Defend the right to picket during lockdown!
Free Our Unions opposes any attempt to use lockdown as a pretext for further restricting workers’ rights to organise and take action. Protests and pickets can be conducted safely, in appropriately distanced conditions. We support Unite’s judicial review, undertaken in defence of the right to picket, following police obstruction of a bus factory workers’ picketContinue reading “Defend the right to picket during lockdown!”
The Tories still plan new anti-strike laws
In May, Bloomberg journalist Alex Morales asked Business Secretary Alok Sharma at the Downing Street press briefing whether, in light of government rhetoric about “working with unions” and valuing essential workers, the government still planned to bring forward new laws to restrict transport workers’ right to strike. We can only assume Sharma’s non-answer means “yes.”Continue reading “The Tories still plan new anti-strike laws”
For a united front to resist anti-union laws
The Free Our Unions campaign has written to other campaign groups active on similar issues to propose joint activity to resist the threat of new anti-strike laws. The following letter was sent to the Campaign for Trade Union Freedom, the Institute for Employment Rights, the National Shop Stewards Network, and Unite the Resistance.
Resist the Tories’ new anti-strike law!
In his government’s first Queen’s Speech, Boris Johnson has announced that he plans to introduce new laws to restrict strikes. There could be little clearer indication of the class loyalties of his government than this.
Workers must fight Johnson’s right-wing coup
Published on 2nd September 2019. Boris Johnson’s outrageous attack on democracy is not illegal. Strikes to stop it are. What does that tell you about the law?
Free Our Unions 