Midwife anger over private ads
15 October 2014
Adverts for private care displayed at maternity units are outraging midwives. On the picket line at an east London hospital, one midwife explained why.
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Survey reveals scale of teacher workload
15 October 2014
Excessive workload has driven nine out of every ten of teachers to consider giving up teaching during the past two years, according to an online survey carried out by the National Union of Teachers.
Ambulance workers’ power blunts emergency provocation
The first strikes in the NHS for 32 years on 13 October – especially in the London Ambulance Service – gave the lie to the idea that workers are weak and that unions don’t matter.
SNP threat to bypass referendum result
9 October 2014
SNP leader Alex Salmond promised on 19 September to accept the referendum result and he urged Yes supporters to do the same. He at once broke this promise.
Underemployment: Working, but not enough
2 October 2014
The number of underemployed in the workforce is increasing, according to TUC analysis in September of the latest Labour Force Survey from the Office for National Statistics.
Referendum: The truth about young voters
30 September 2014
Reports that 71 per cent of 16- to 17-year-olds voted Yes in the Scottish referendum don’t stand up to scrutiny, says statistics programme.
Midwives to take historic action
30 September 2014
Midwives and maternity support workers will walk out on Monday 13 October after the government overruled the Independent Pay Review Board’s recommendation for a 1 per cent rise.
Strike call in NHS England
Unison members in the NHS in England are to be called on to take part in a four-hour strike on 13 October for more pay. But after that, what?
Playing games with safety
The government wants to integrate the emergency services. The unions involved know what this really means: cuts in services, jobs and standards.
Self-employment on the rise
The level of workers categorised as self-employed has reached its highest level in Britain for over 40 years according to the Office for National Statistics.
Eurobriefs: The latest from Brussels
Germany economy shrinking…From lobbyist to Commissioner…Migration up…EU and Scotland…Barroso on the referendum
Mining: Union loan saves pit
Hatfield Colliery in South Yorkshire, one of the three remaining deep British mines, has been handed a lifeline in the shape of a £4 million loan by the National Union of Mineworkers.
Malnutrition: Cases soar
Figures released by the Health and Social Care Information Centre show that 6,690 patients were treated for malnutrition in Britain’s hospitals in 2013-14, a 20 per cent increase on 2012-13.
Pay: Chief execs rake it in
Chief executives of the FTSE 100 companies are now earning 131 times the average wage of their employees, compared with 41 times in 1998.
Billionaires: Join the club
In 2014 the global billionaires club – up an extra 155 members over the year – contained 2,325 people with combined assets of $7.29 trillion, says a new report
Zero hours: Sham proposals
Government talk of banning clamping down on zero hours contracts is a way of helping employers find ways round any new rules.
Turkey: Dairy workers fight
The International Union of Food Workers is campaigning in support of Turkish union members fighting for trade union recognition with the Sutas Dairy Company.
Carr Inquiry: Throwing in the towel
The Bruce Carr investigation into trade unions following the 2013 Grangemouth refinery dispute has flopped. Unable to provide an evidence-based argument, Carr has thrown the towel in.
Hands across the Border
Launch of the building of the Hands Across the Border cairn at Gretna, 20 July 2014. People from all over Britain link arms for unity as they sing Auld Lang Syne after laying their stones.
Eurobriefs: The latest from Brussels
Britain’s largest union backs referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union…Euro-election turnout lower than first thought…Government report into free movement of labour
Meat safety: Abattoir action
Vets and hygiene inspectors working in abattoirs on behalf of the Food Standards Agency have voted for industrial action after a below inflation pay offer coupled with a refusal to negotiate.
Zero hours: Interesting definitions…
In response to a query from Unison, service company ISS has provided an interesting definition of zero hours contracts.
Shipbuilding: Disaster on the Clyde
Scotland’s last non-military shipbuilder, Ferguson’s on the Clyde, is heading for bankruptcy, with the loss of 70 jobs – despite a promise from SNP leader Alex Salmond to maintain it
Bill to open up land grab
An amendment to the Infrastructure Bill going through parliament will allow Boris Johnson or his successor as Mayor of London to acquire land held by all public bodies in London. The prime target for this land grab will be the estates of NHS properties in London estimated as being worth over £50 million.
Museums: Closure threat
The world-famous Oliver Cromwell museum in Huntingdon is under closure threat after Cambridgeshire County Council withdrew funding as a direct result of government cuts.
Sport billionaires welcome
No sooner is the World Cup a mere dot on television screens than Boris Johnson, soon to be forgotten Mayor of London, is jostling for space in the sporting arena by promoting Formula One racing on London’s streets.
Audit abolition on the quiet
In March next year the Audit Commission will be abolished. With it will go an important principle of public life – that the audit of money spent by public bodies should be as genuinely independent as possible.
Pit faces early shutdown
The withdrawal of Hargreaves Services from the funding package to keep Kellingley pit in West Yorkshire open for a further two years of managed closure has brought to the fore the prospect of an early shutdown.
Newspapers: Hitting back at the hub
Industrial action is sweeping through Newsquest papers as journalists strike back against pay restraint, job loss and plans to move editorial production to a central hub in South Wales.
Education: Victory for reason
In a dramatic victory for rational thought over mysticism, the government has decreed that creationism cannot be taught as science in any existing or future academy or free school.