All Out...Oh no you don't!

When i heard that the bosses at Milford Havern Port were trying to seek an injunction against the pilot and launch crews from striking last week, it didn't surprise me one bit when they succeeded. What did surprise me, was an article in the Morning Star (http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/index.php/news/content/view/full/86978) that suggested that this was the 13th example of a court ruling in favour of the bosses in a case of industrial action in the last year!!

These workers were annoyed. Their pensions were being attacked, and they decided to make a stand. A ballot was held on whether or not to down tools in protest, and indeed, it came down in favour of strike action. However, much like the BA dispute over Christmas, the anti Trade Union Laws brought in in 1992 have been used to undermine a democratic decision - see article. They were forced back to work at the risk of being fired for not doing so.

This is yet another example of why these regressive laws need to be reversed, as was set out in Tony Blair's Labour manifesto before he ascended into power.

Civil Servants to Strike?

Civil Servants union PCS has recently begun balloting members to strike over attacks to the compensation scheme.

The government has, in the last few months presented plans to drastically cut the payoff given to civil servants (that include Job Centre Staff, Revenue and Customs Officals, National Statistics workers and regional/national government members to name but a few) when presnted with redundancy. At a time when politicians are vying with one another as to how they plan to cut jobs and therefore, the national debt, this is a serious risk to those workers, who, if the plans are finalised, will find themselves easier to get rid of!

Not only that, but the Tories have indicated that up to a quarter of staff could be offloaded into the private sector, thus further increasing the likelyhood of workers being exploited or their terms and conditions damaged

http://www.pcs.org.uk/en/campaigns/cscs/