Welwyn walkout shows how workers can win

By a Free Our Unions supporter On 10 May, refuse workers in the Hertfordshire town of Welwyn Hatfield launched an unofficial strike to deal with a manager they said was sexist, racist, and bullying. A hundred refuse, recycling, and maintenance workers employed by commercial waste contractor Urbaser, members of Unite, refused to work and made

Covid-19 crisis: Protect the right to strike!

Already in the Covid-19 pandemic, we’ve seen examples of workers taking industrial action, often to improve workplace safety. Outsourced cleaners, caterers, and porters at Lewisham Hospital walked out to demand the payment unpaid wages. Workers in Lambeth libraries took action to demand the closure of their workplaces. Postal workers in Bridgend struck, after bosses refuse

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.

Royal Mail’s anti-strike injunction is an affront to democracy

Published 13th November 2019. The High Court injunction granted to Royal Mail to prevent postal workers from striking, despite their overwhelming vote to do so, highlights the profoundly undemocratic nature of Britain’s anti-trade union laws, and the urgent need for the whole labour movement to renew our fight for their abolition – including by demanding that the

Corbynism and the drought of workers’ struggles

Published 3rd April 2019 Despite some important developments in workplace struggle, and despite the political framework of the growth of the Labour Left, strikes are at a historic low and trade unions face a historic crisis. Professor Gregor Gall, an affiliated research associate at the University of Glasgow and Visiting Professor at the University of

“We will not be bullied” – Glasgow workers defy council’s threat of anti-union laws

Published 24th October 2018. In response to Glasgow refuse workers, street sweepers and parking attendants refusing to work in solidarity with striking home care, cleaning and catering workers, Glasgow city council has threatened their union, the GMB, with legal action under the anti-union laws.

Women’s strike shakes Glasgow, male workers take solidarity action

Published on 23rd October 2018. At this stage, The Clarion can’t report anything much about the Glasgow “women’s strike” by thousands of home care, cleaning and catering workers that you won’t get from the GMB and from the bourgeois press. We do however want to note the strike and express our solidarity. We hope to find opportunities for practical support

Labour must get the anti-union laws off workers’ backs!

By Mark Osborn, NEU rep at City of London Academy (Southwark). Published on 23rd October 2018. The National Education Union at CoLA took three days of strike action in March. We took one day of action on the first week, two days the next week and the union told our Head we would be out

Matt Wrack and Shen Batmaz on why Labour must repeal all anti-union laws

Two leading labour movement activists, FBU General Secretary Matt Wrack and McStrike organiser Shen Batmaz, spoke to Free Our Unions about why the demand to repeal the anti-union laws is so important.

Tamworth CLP submits conference resolution on McDonald’s strike and union rights

On the same day that McDonald’s workers in Crayford and Cambridge made history by going on strike, demonstrating the power of workers getting together and organising, it was an honor to propose to my CLP, in Tamworth, that it send a contemporary resolution to conference supporting the strike (see below). It also talks about other