Lindsey Oil Refinery Strikers Reach Out To Italian Workers

A leaflet has been produced by Socialist Party members Keith Gibson (also a member of the strike committee) and John McEwan, for the Italian migrant workers at the site. We publish the document below not in anticipation of many readers of this blog speaking Italian, but to demonstrate that this is a strike about jobs and protecting trade union agreements, and not a racist or xenophobic action as the media and other elements on the left have painted it. This follows hard on the heels of the Polish workers at Langage Power Station coming out in solidarity.

Workers of the world unite!
I lavoratori del mondo unitevi!
Trabalhadores do mundo uni-vos!
Robotnicy świata łączą!

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Appello ai lavoratori italiani -
Partecipate al nostro sciopero per salari e lavoro a condizioni sindacali

Estendiamo lo sciopero!

Volantino scritto da Keith Gibson (G.M.B comitato di sciopero improvviso LOR),
John McEwan (Rsu foro nazionale) entrambe a titolo personale

L’Islanda, la Grecia, la Francia, la Lettonia… In tutta l’Europa i lavoratori scendono in piazza per protestare contro governi che hanno fatto arricchire i padroni e i banchieri mentre attaccano i nostri posti di lavoro, salari e pensioni. Finalmente i lavoratori britannici dicono “basta”. La settimana scorsa il nostro sciopero si è esteso rapidamente, con azioni di solidarietà in tutto il Paese, in 20 stabilimenti. Migliaia di lavoratori stanno scioperando malgrado le leggi antisindacali. Il governo è scosso. È l’ora di estendere lo sciopero per costringere il padronato e il governo ad accettare le nostre rivendicazioni.

Gordon Brown - il tuo governo è ‘indifendibile’

Gordon Brown dice che il nostro sciopero improvviso è ‘ indifendibile’. No Gordon, dopo 10 anni di politica a favore del grande padronato, è il tuo governo che è indifendibile. Il New Labour Party ha incoraggiato il padronato a sfruttare i lavoratori britannici attraverso la deregolamentazione, la mano d’opera a basso costo e le politiche antisindacali. Il ministro del Commercio, Peter Mandelson, dice che i lavoratori britannici possono andare a lavorare nell’Unione europea. Queste parole assomigliano a quelle del ministro conservatore Norman Tebbitt, che durante gli anni ‘80 ha detto ai disoccupati di andare in bici a cercare lavoro! Perché dovremmo essere noi a lasciare le nostre case e le nostre famiglie per poter lavorare, mentre le imprese come Alstom e IREM non ci permettono di lavorare qui?

Lottiamo per difendere il lavoro - FERMARE LA ‘GARA AL RIBASSO’

Il padronato, i banchieri e il governo ci hanno messo nei guai dal punto di vista economico. Adesso vogliono che paghiamo noi la crisi, attaccando il nostro lavoro, i salari e le condizioni lavorative.

Non se ne parla neanche!

Con questo sciopero vogliamo fermare la ‘gara al ribasso’. Scioperiamo contro i padroni, come quelli di Alstom e IREM, che rifiutano di assumere i lavoratori locali. Facciamo sciopero contro le leggi europee, che favoriscono il padronato e contro le decisioni giudiziari che rendono legale lo sfruttamento della manodopera a basso costo per massimizzare i profitti dei padroni.
Questo sciopero punta a fermare i datori di lavoro che violano il nostro accordo nazionale (NAECI) e stanno cercando di dividere la nostra forza sindacale.

L’obiettivo non è “lavoro inglese ai lavoratori inglesi” ma:

Lavoro a condizioni sindacali per tutti i lavoratori COSA VOGLIAMO?

Il Partito socialista pensa che i sindacati dovrebbero lottare per:

- Dire no alle azioni disciplinari contro i lavoratori che hanno scioperato per solidarieta’
- Estendere a tutti i lavoratori nel Regno Unito la tutela dell’accordo nazionale (NAECI)
- Registrare i disoccupati e gli iscritti alle sezioni locali del sindacato, sotto il controllo dei sindacati, con graduatorie di avviamento al lavoro
- Investimenti da parte del governo e dei datori di lavoro nella formazione e nell’apprendistato per la nuova generazione di lavoratori dell’edilizia: un futuro per i giovani
- La sindacalizazzione di tutti i lavoratori immigrati
- Sostegno sindacale agli immigrati, incluso gli interpreti, e accesso alla consulenza per promuovere l’integrazione attiva nel sindacato

Update on the spreading strikes by construction engineers in the refinery and power industry

Report by phone from Alistair Tice (Yorkshire Socialist Party) on the mass picket at the Lindsey total refinery North Lincolnshire.

"The strike committee accepted the main demands of Keith Gibson and John Mckewan to put to the mass meeting today.

Keith is a Socialist Party member and on the strike committee and John is a Socialist Party supporter and victimised worker from the refinery.

The strike committee added an extra demand, calling for John to be reinstated into his job.

The demands were

• No victimisation of workers taking solidarity action.
• All workers in UK to be covered by NAECI Agreement.
• Union controlled registering of unemployed and locally skilled union members, with nominating rights as work becomes available.
• Government and employer investment in proper training / apprenticeships for new generation of construction workers - fight for a future for young people.
• All Immigrant labour to be unionised.
• Trade Union assistance for immigrant workers - including interpreters - and access to Trade Union advice - to promote active integrated Trade Union Members.
• Build links with construction trade unions on the continent.

The mass meeting overwhelmingly voted for the demands put to them by the strike committee.

Prior to the meeting Keith and John (and their wives who had came to support the strikers) had seen some BNP members in the car park and told them that they were not welcome, with that the BNP cleared off.

Socialist Party members gave out over 700 leaflets putting our position (which was now the position of the strike committee) and the leaflet was welcomed. One worker (before he read the leaflet) thought that were giving out BNP leaflets and protested that he was not a racist and didn't support the BNP and was relieved when it was explained to him that they were Socialist Party leaflets and supported workers unity.

Keith is part of the negotiating committee that is now in discussions with the management at the refinery. The strike is continuing and looks as if it is spreading throughout the country at the time of writing with Sellafield and Heysham nuclear plants out. Workers at other plants, according to the BBC, have also decided to stay out, these include Grangemouth and Longannon in Scotland. Warrington and Staythope in Newark are also out as well.

The strikes are spreading from fiddlers ferry in Warrington to the Drax power station in Yorkshire."

Strike While The Iron Is Hot - Socialist Party leaflet written by workers in the refineries dispute

Iceland, Greece, France, Latvia ….. all across Europe workers are taking to the streets in protest against governments that have let the fat-cats get rich while our jobs, wages and pensions are being attacked.

Now at last, workers in Britain are saying “Enough is Enough!” Our strike spread like wild-fire last week with solidarity action all across the UK with around 20 sites out by Friday. Thousands of workers taking militant action completely disregarding the anti-trade union laws.

We’ve got the government rattled. We must strike while the iron is hot. We must spread the strike to force the employers and government to concede our demands.

GORDON BROWN – YOUR GOVERNMENT IS “IN-DEFENSIBLE”

Gordon Brown says our wildcat strike is “in-defensible”. No Gordon, it is your government and ten years of pro-Big Business policies that are indefensible. New Labour have encouraged employers to exploit workers in Britain through de-regulation, cheap labour and anti-union policies.

Peter Mandelson says British workers can go and work in the EU. Sounds like Norman Tebbitt telling the unemployed in the 1980s to get on their bikes! Why the hell should we have to leave our homes and families to work when companies like Alstom and IREM won’t let us work here?

FIGHT FOR JOBS – STOP THE RACE TO THE BOTTOM!

The bosses, the bankers and the government have got us in this economic mess. Now they want us to pay the price with our jobs, wages and conditions. NO WAY!

This strike is to stop this race to the bottom. We are striking against the employers like Alstom and IREM who refuse to hire local labour. We are striking against the EU pro-business laws and court rulings that make it legal for employers to exploit cheap labour to maximise profits.
This strike is to stop employers undermining our national NAECI agreement and trying to break our trade union strength.

Rather than saying British jobs for British workers we should say:
TRADE UNION JOBS & CONDITIONS FOR ALL WORKERS

WHAT DO WE WANT?

Socialist Party thinks that the trade unions should fight for:

· No victimisation of workers taking solidarity action.

· All workers in UK to be covered by NAECI Agreement

· Union controlled registering of unemployed and locally skilled union members, with nominating rights as work becomes available

· Government and employer investment in proper training / apprenticeships for new generation of construction workers – fight for a future for young people

· All Immigrant labour to be unionised.

· Trade Union assistance for immigrant workers - including interpreters - and access to Trade Union advice - to promote active integrated Trade Union Members. Build links with construction trade unions on the continent.

The story so far ……………..

A ninety day redundancy notice had been issued around mid November 2008 at Lindsey Oil Refinery (LOR) for Shaws’ workforce. This meant that by February 17th 2009 a number of Shaws’ construction workers (LOR) would be made redundant.

The day before the Christmas holiday Shaws’ shop-stewards reported to the men that a part of the contract on LOR’s HDS3 plant had been awarded to IREM, an Italian company. The Stewards explained that Shaws had lost a third of the job to IREM who would be employing their own core Portuguese and Italian workforce numbering 200-300. Stewards and Union Officials asked to meet with IREM a.s.a.p. after Christmas to clarify the proposal i.e. would IREM employ British labour? Shaws’ workforce were told that the IREM workforce would be housed in floating barges in Grimsby docks for the duration of the job, they would be bussed to work in the morning, bussed to and from the barge for lunch.

IREM workers would work from 7.30am - 11.30am and 13.00 – 1700. On Saturdays they would work 4 hours to make up a working week of 44 hours. The normal working week is 44 hours divided by 5 days, from 7.30 -1600 finishing at 1400 on Fridays (most workers work overtime). Normal breaks include 10 minutes in a morning and a 30 minute dinner break.
Stewards were told that IREM workers would be paid the national rate for the job; to date this has not been confirmed. After Christmas the nominated Shop Stewards entered into negotiations with IREM. Meanwhile, a National Shop-Stewards Forum for the construction Industry held a meeting in London to discuss Staythorpe Power Station where the company Alstom were refusing to hire British labour relying on non union Polish and Spanish workers instead.

It was decided that all Blue Book sites covered by the National Agreement for the Engineering and Construction Industry (NAECI) should send delegations down to Staythorpe to protest against Alstoms’ actions. The workforce on the LOR site sent delegations. Then, on Wednesday 28th January 2009 Shaws’ workforce were told by the Stewards that IREM had stated they would not be employing British labour.

The entire LOR workforce, from all subcontracting companies, met and voted unanimously to take immediate unofficial strike action. The following day over a thousand construction workers from LOR, Conoco and Easington sites descended outside LOR’s gate to picket and protest.
This was the spark that ignited the spontaneous unofficial walk outs of our brother construction workers across the length and breadth of Britain. This worker solidarity is against the ‘conscious blacking’ of British construction workers by company bosses who refuse to recruit skilled British labour in the U.K.

The workers of LOR, Conoco and Easington did not take strike action against immigrant workers. Our action is rightly aimed against company bosses who attempt to play off one nationality of worker against the other and undermine the NAECI agreement.

UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL. UNITY IS OUR STRENGTH

The RACIST ORGANISATION - the BNP - are attempting to intervene in this strike.
How dare they?
The BNP is an anti-trade union organisation that supported Thatcher against the miners in the 1980s.
They opposed the Firefighters’ strike claiming ‘they should not even have the right to strike’.
They have set up their own ‘segregated’ union that will split and divide workers.
BNP policies are like the policies of company bosses who attempt to play off one nationality of worker against another thus undermining the national agreements that protect the hard won rights of workers like the NAECI Agreement in the Construction Industry.

WORKERS NEED A NEW PARTY

The Labour Party is no longer for the working class.

Blair then Brown under a misleading banner of ‘New Labour’ insists on a ‘Pro-Capitalist Agenda’.
The bankers and bosses whose greed for profit has decimated the global economy are rewarded with billions of tax payer’s money. Our money! Daily, without any consultation, it is announced that WE will pay for their greed and incompetence! Trade unions like Unite and GMB should stop paying the trade union levy to ‘New Labour’ because workers know that a NEW party of LABOUR is needed to fight for the interests of workers and their families.

The trade unions should initiate a new workers party, TO REPRESENT THE MILLIONS NOT THE MILLIONAIRES! Join the Campaign for a New Workers Party. Look on www.cnwp.org.uk

CAPITALISM ISN’T WORKING – TIME FOR SOCIALISM

This recession highlights a fact - capitalism does not work. Around the world millions of ordinary people are being thrown into unemployment and poverty while bankers and bosses grow exceedingly rich.

Socialists know that there is enough wealth and resources in the world for everybody to have a decent standard of living but it will never happen under this crazy system of greed that puts profit before the human needs of people, the environment and our planet. We stand for a ‘Democratic Socialist Society’ where the main industries and services will be publicly owned and democratically run by the working class for the benefit of the majority in society.

A well planned society will eradicate capitalist competition that accumulates vast profits for a few at the expense of: mass unemployment, poverty, disease, wars and environmental destruction.

If you agree and would like to know more - then contact us on www.socialistparty.org.uk

Trade Union Jobs and Conditions For All Workers - Support the Striking Refinery Workers

Thousands of construction workers in oil refineries and other major utilities sites are still on strike.

There were mass meetings in the Lindsey and Conoco refinery sites in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire on Friday and Socialist Party members were well received with 18 copies of the Socialist sold.

The main issue is not that "foreign" workers are being brought in by the employers, as reported in the media, but that there are thousands of unemployed construction workers.

The Socialist Party is raising the demand that any worker should be part of the national engineering construction agreements that cover the wages and conditions on the sites.

We are also calling for an unemployment registrar to be set up under union control that can supply labour to the sites when that is needed.

The reason for the strikes is that the employers have awarded the contracts to an Italian firm that has brought in labour which is not part of the national agreements.

A six-strong strike committee has been set up with a Socialist Party member on the committee. The strikes have been spreading like wild fire according to the BBC, currently covering sites from Scotland to Wales and from Northern Ireland to Merseyside.

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What's Really Behind the Lindsey Oil Refinery Strike?

By Keith Gibson, GMB Union (pc), Socialist Party member and member of the unofficial strike committee

A ninety day redundancy notice had been issued around mid November 2008 at Lindsey Oil Refinery (LOR) for Shaws' workforce.

This meant that by February 17th 2009 a number of Shaws' construction workers (LOR) would be made redundant.

The day before the Christmas holiday Shaws' shop-stewards reported to the men that a part of the contract on LOR's HDS3 plant had been awarded to IREM, an Italian company.

The Stewards explained that Shaws had lost a third of the job to IREM who would be employing their own core Portuguese and Italian workforce numbering 200-300.

Stewards and Union Officials asked to meet with IREM a.s.a.p. after Christmas to clarify the proposal i.e. would IREM employ British labour? Shaws' workforce were told that the IREM workforce would be housed in floating barges in Grimsby docks for the duration of the job, they would be bussed to work in the morning, bussed to and from the barge for lunch.

IREM workers would work from 7.30am - 11.30am and 13.00 - 1700. On Saturdays they would work 4 hours to make up a working week of 44 hours. The normal working week is 44 hours divided by 5 days, from 7.30 -1600 finishing at 1400 on Fridays (most workers work overtime).

Normal breaks include 10 minutes in a morning and a 30 minute dinner break. Stewards were told that IREM workers would be paid the national rate for the job; to date this has not been confirmed.

After Christmas the nominated Shop Stewards entered into negotiations with IREM. Meanwhile, a National Shop Stewards Forum for the construction Industry held a meeting in London to discuss Staythorpe Power Station where the company Alstom were refusing to hire British labour relying on non-union Polish and Spanish workers instead.

It was decided that all Blue Book sites covered by the National Agreement for the Engineering and Construction Industry (NAECI) should send delegations down to Staythorpe to protest against Alstoms' actions.

The workforce on the LOR site sent delegations. Then, on Wednesday 28th January 2009 Shaws' workforce were told by the Stewards that IREM had stated they would not be employing British labour.

The entire LOR workforce, from all subcontracting companies, met and voted unanimously to take immediate unofficial strike action.

The following day over a thousand construction workers from LOR, Conoco and Easington sites descended outside LOR's gate to picket and protest.

This was the spark that ignited the spontaneous unofficial walk outs of our brother construction workers across the length and breadth of Britain.

This worker solidarity is against the 'conscious blacking' of British construction workers by company bosses who refuse to recruit skilled British labour in the U.K.

The workers of LOR, Conoco and Easington did not take strike action against immigrant workers. Our action is rightly aimed against company bosses who attempt to play off one nationality of worker against the other and undermine the NAECI agreement.

THE B.N.P. SHOULD TAKE HEED, U.K. CONTRUCTION WORKERS WILL NOT TOLERATE 'ANOTHER RACIST ATTEMPT' TO SEVER FRATERNAL RELATIONS WITH WORKERS FROM OTHER NATIONS

Demands for Construction Industry:

No victimisation of workers taking solidarity action.

All workers in UK to be covered by NAECI Agreement

Union controlled registering of unemployed and locally skilled union members

Government and employer investment in proper training / apprenticeships for new generation of construction workers

All Immigrant labour to be unionised.

Trade Union assistance for immigrant workers - via interpreters - to give right of access to Trade Union advice - to promote active integrated Trade Union Members

Appledore shipyard workers end dispute

Workers at Appledore shipyard have accepted an offer from Babcock Marine management, ending the industrial action they have participated in. Among other grievances, the strike action was concerned with pay, which was £60-80 less per week than Devonport workers in the same company doing equivalent jobs.

The deal sees a 12% wage increase over two years, and the majority of other demands put forward by the unions (GMB and Unite) accepted by management.

Throughout the dispute, Babcock Marine had attempted to bully and threaten the workforce into submission, with threats of closure and downsizing. An annoucement of job cuts at the company's Devonport operation was made, and middle managers were threatened with the sack if they joined in the action. Unfortunately for Babcock, the news of their record profits had to be released at this important time also!

Despite all that the company threw at the workers, they held firm, with large numbers on picket lines and 100% of engineering staff out. Although they did not achieve parity with their Plymouth counterparts, they did achieve a significant above inflation pay increase at a time of insecurity and increasing redundancies and hours cuts. They showed that unity in action, even in the current climate, will get results, even with only a few days strike action. Both unions on site worked together, and they received the support and solidarity of their fellow workers at other shipyards, through the Confederation of Ship Building and Engineering Unions (CSEU), as well as North Devon Socialist Party.

Support the Appledore shipyard workers

On Friday, workers at Appledore shipyard took part in the first of six days of strike action, which will continue tomorrow and every Friday and Monday after that up until the 17th November.

Every worker involved in shipbuilding was out, reflecting the anger at their treatment by owners Babcock Marine, and the strong union presence at the yard. Babcock Marine, who also own Devonport Dockyard, pay the workers much less at Appledore, and also do not provide them with a pensions representative or workplace nurse.

Wages in North Devon are lower than the average for Devon and nationally, and it seems Babcock Marine have been taking advantage of this to exploit the Appledore workers for years. Extensive negotiations by the GMB and Unite representatives brought no significant concessions from Babcock Marine, and there has been no comment from the company on the strike action. However, Appledore workers are not known to shirk from a fight - the shipyard has been constantly threatened over the past thirty years, being nationalised by the then Industry Minister Tony Benn in the 1970s, and being taken over by the workers in 2003 when it was temporarily closed by the then owners.

Babcock Marine have threatened workers with closure in response to the strike action, even though they only ask to be paid at the same rate as their counterparts in Plymouth.

North Devon Socialist Party has expressed its support and solidarity for the industrial action, and also point out that the best way to safeguard the future of the shipyard for the workers and their families is to nationalise the yard and place it under the control of the workers. They can develop a plan of production to meet the needs of producing ships for civilian use as well as safeguard their own livelihoods, as part of a democratically planned economy locally, nationally and internationally.

24th April - Pay, pensions and 'public services, not private profit'

This Thursday, thousands of teachers, further education lecturers, Department of Work and Pensions (Jobcentre Plus) staff and council workers in Birmingham are going on coordinated strike action. The action will take place on the same day not just to maximise the impact and pressure on the Government and other public sector unions, but to reflect the fact that the issues all these workers face are similar and linked.

Teachers are striking about the insulting pay offer, but are also angry about high and increasing workload, the privatisation of education and performance related pay. As the strike bulletin of the grassroots campaigning organisation 'Classroom Teacher' points out, "The Government wants us to carry on working ourselves into the ground meeting their targets when the best they can offer in return is year after year of below-inflation pay awards."

Further education lecturers have their own problems with pay. It seems likely that the Communication Workers' Union will ballot for strike action soon over Royal Mail pensions.

Staff in the Department of Work and Pensions are staging action on a number of issues, including pay, privatisation and brutal job cuts.

What links all 4 actions is a generalised assault on public services and the workers who day after day keep them running, despite the dead-hand of Government bureaucracy and targets, and crass and exploitative management. The New Labour government is trying to privatise and marketise public services, just as the neo-liberal faith it slavishly follows is crashing and burning in the wake of the global credit crisis and economic slowdown.

We support the strike action. With real inflation running at well over the official inflation (a ludicrous 2.5%) the Government dishonestly peddles, the pay offers to public sector workers means a decline in standard of living, and more and more workers struggling to make ends meet. In addition to this, the Government continues to claim that public sector pay rises are inflationary, a flat out lie, as admitted by most economists, many of them no friend to workers.

It is critical that this Thursday is not the end, but a stepping stone to future action involving all public sector unions. United action around the banner of 'public services not private profit', but encompassing other issues common to most public sector workers such as pay, pensions, workload and bullying management would be the best way to fight back against the Government, who won't rest until every public sector worker has their pay, pension and morale crushed, and every avenue of opportunity for private sector vultures to make as much money out of public services has been explored and exploited.

Join us on the picket lines and at the rally at St James Park, Exeter at noon!

Devon Postal Strike round up

Socialist Party and Socialist Students members visited the picket line at the Mail Centre in Exeter twice at midday and at midnight on Friday. Only 6 workers in this large mail centre scabbed, with the vast majority of workers solid in supporting this strike. When we raised the issue of the need for a new workers' party, pickets expressed firm support for our ideas and are mystified why the leadership continues to fund New Labour, who are behind the privatisation, cuts and job losses in the postal service and public services in general.

In Barnstaple the strike remained solid and the determination of the strikers to continue the fight was evident. Local Socialist Partymembers in North Devon are currently working to try and unite the public sector unions behind the postal workers and againstprivatisation and cuts in the public sector as a whole.

In Teignmouth and Newton Abbot, the determination to see this one out reflected what we saw and heard in Exeter. Socialist Party strike leaflets and 10 copies of the socialist were snapped up as postal workers welcomed a clear explanation of their cause. In conversations there was a higher level of political discussion than in previous strikes with many recognising that New Labour never repealed Thatcher's oppressive anti-trade union laws. Many of picket expressed anger at the media and the bullying attitude of some local managers. Tempers rose with the arrival of 'scab' agency workers at one point management threaten to call the police to arrest the socialist reporter, unfortunately for them they did not know where the picket line ought to be. This is the same management who refuse to give postal workers an opportunity to earn £8 an hour - instead they preferred to use agency workers at £18 an hour of which these receive £6.50 an hour.

Strikers felt that they were in a powerful position with the run up to Christmas. However they recognise that they will face hardship with the lack of funds for their families. During discussions the idea of setting up a South Devon Support Group was brought up. The need to build links with other unions and other members of the public was seen as vital. This would then link up with other groups in Exeter and North Devon.

Support the postal workers

With news that the Communication Workers Union are to stage two further 48 hour strikes from Noon on Thursday 4th October to Noon on Saturday 6th October and from 3am on Monday 8th October to 3am on Wednesday 10th October, the Socialist Party would like to express our support once more for the struggle of the postal workers in fighting job cuts, privatisation and pay cuts. We will be joining CWU members on picket lines and delivering leaflets outlining the case for the action by the striking postal workers to the public at large.

If you would like to help in these crucial acts of solidarity please email Devon Socialist Party at socialistpartydevon.gmail.com .

Despite UNISON members accepting a pay cut after minor concessions by the Government there is an excellent opportunity for the public sector unions to unite to oppose pay and job cuts, and the process of privatisation and marketisation that is destroying our vital public services.

Here in Devon we face post office closures, severe reductions in postal services, cuts in fire cover, library closures, benefit office closures and also reduction in the numbers of NHS staff ans services. There is also the ongoing scandal of a lack of quality affordable housing. Only a fightback by workers and campaigners can stem this tide. For this political and industrial struggles need to be united under the banner of a new party for workers, linked with the building of the Shop Stewards Network to link up fighting trade unionists in all unions.

Recent postal action update from 'the socialist'

PUBLIC SUPPORT for the Communication Workers Union (CWU) action remains strong and in Bideford on 2 August only four out of 80 crossed the lines and scabbed. In Ilfracombe only two went in. And in Barnstaple only five out of 138 workers went in with no slippage in support.
Socialist Party members are helping to distribute CWU leaflets and have been approached by CWU reps to start organising a rally with other unions - NUT, UNISON, FBU - and are looking to contacts with the PCS and RMT. The theme will be 'Public Service not Private Profit'. It is hoped to expand this to other areas.

In the 'English Riveria', Torquay, a very effective leadership has led to a solid 100% turnout of CWU members. There are reports of unoffical 'work to contracted hours' and rows over use of workers' own cars, which has saved this bullying management millions of pounds over the years.
This '100%' was reflected in Newton Abbot. Teignmouth remains at 95% out, with reports coming in of agency workers being used. This apparently is illegal and a waste of time - one agency worker finished their round on a non-strike day at 7.30pm!

Sean Brogan

----UPDATE----

Since this was published in 'the socialist' the strike action has been postponed until September. Worringly, negotiations are taking place in secret behind closed doors, with only Royal Mail bosses Leighton and Crozier and CWU General Secretary Billy Hayes and Deputy General Secretary Dave Ward present. It does seem that Hayes and Ward are prepared to just get a few scraps off of Crozier and Leighton, despite the fact that anything short of complete victory for the postal workers in this struggle would open the doors for privatisation and the break up of the postal service which will lead to further setbacks in the future and weaken the power of the union to campaign and fight for its members.

JL

CWU action and Shop Stewards Conference report

Postal workers staged a second 24-hour strike over 12-13th July. Devon Socialist Party members have again supported the strike across Devon. There will be a fuller report on this website on Friday, but briefly, it is clear that the strike was still near solid. Going by our experiences on the picket lines, the CWU's estimate of 90+% seems accurate. The Royal Mail's claim of 5-60% is laughable.

In parts of Devon, Socialist Party members have also raised money for the striking postal workers, written letters to local newspapers, and delivered union leaflets outlining the reasons behind the action, and countering the misinformation of the Royal Mail bosses.

The important thing now is to keep up the pressure on the arrogant Royal Mail management who refuse even to negotiate with the representatives of the people who actually make our postal service work, and don't get fat million-pound bonuses for it. Public sector unity in opposing privatisation is also essential, as all parts of the public sector face similar threats.

The National Shop Stewards Network held its first conference on the 7th July, attended by nearly 300 trade unionists, and addressed by RMT (Rail and Maritime Transport) general secretary Bob Crow (pictured, left), PCS (Civil servants' union) general secretary Mark Serwotka and PCS President Janice Godrich.

There is a full report on the Socialist Party website here, but it's worth putting on here the significance of the establishment of the network, which in the words of Bob Crow, "will be seen as the starting point in rebuilding the TUC". The network, when it grows and develops, will play a key role in uniting workplace struggles and fighting for decent pay and conditions and opposing pay cuts and freezes and privatisation.

Also significant was the closing address by Bob Crow:

"We can't separate the trade union and the political path. We can have a great shop stewards' movement that can get pay rises and so on, but when the economy goes down those gains are taken back. That's why I argue we need not just new militant trade unionism but an alternative political party."

We fully endorse that position, which we have been arguing for quite some time, and campaigning for it in the form of the Campaign for a New Workers' Party.

Postal strike - brief update

This is only a brief update on today's postal strike, there will be a more detailed report soon, when we have all reports in from Socialist Party members who have supported the postal workers across Devon, from Barnstaple in the north to Plymouth in the south to Exeter in the east, and plenty of places in between.

Generally though, the strike was near solid, and in Newton Abbot it was 100% out. The atmosphere on the picket line was determined and generally there was a good spirit. Our leaflets, copies of the Socialist and support were well received, and the postal workers can be sure we are behind them 100%. Speaking to some of the strikers, it is clear that while they are angry over the 'pay rise' of 2.5% they have been offered (which, with inflation standing at 5%, loss of early start bonuses and strings attached including mass cuts and 40,000 job losses, has got to be one of the measliest 'rises' ever offered), the main reason behind the strike was the privatisation and commercialisation of a public service.

Support for the strike from the general public was high (and very enthusiastic), proving once again that ordinary people can see through the lies, distortions and manipulations of the government and Royal Mail management.

It is not thought that managers working today had much of an impact on the effectiveness of the strike, being collectively described by one worker as 'about as efficient as a sponge in the Sahara desert'!

Concrete steps will now be taken in North Devon to forge public sector unity, by arranging a join meeting of all the public sector unions to move forward, campaign and fight together.

Devon Socialist Party supports the postal workers

With the news that postal workers are set to stage a 24 hour strike on Friday 29th June, the Devon Socialist Party would like to express our solidarity with them and the CWU (Communication Workers' Union), and pledge our support for the action they are taking. On the day of the strike, Socialist Party members in Devon (and elsewhere) will give practical and political support to those taking industrial action.

The reasons behind the action (the 'yes' vote was a resounding 77%) are primarily pay and the direction of the Royal Mail/Post Office.

Justifiably, the CWU think that postal workers should earn the national average wage and that the Royal Mail should not renege on previous agreement. The CWU are also opposed to the privatisation, fragmentation and commercialisation of the postal service that has occurred over these past years and is set to continue. Commercialisation and privatisation is the reason why post offices are closing, conditions at work for postal workers are worsening, pay is being squeezed, and the second post for of the day has been abolished.

Devon Socialist Party calls for the demands of the CWU to be met in full, and for the privatisation and commercialisation of the postal service to be stopped and reversed. Postal services need to be run by a public sector body, democratically run by postal workers and the public at large. No more Post Offices should be closed and any villages or towns lacking a Post Office should be provided with one, even as an adjunct to a local shop.

The CWU has produced a leaflet countering the misinformation coming from the Government and the Royal Mail, which is uncritically reported by the capitalist media. It can be found here.

The Socialist Party leaflet (produced before a date was named for strike action), outlining our views in a little more depth, can be found here.