Leicestershire Rank and File Meeting - Details

The planning meeting to organise a Leicestershire-wide public and private sector rank and file conference will take place at:

7.30pm

Thursday 12th January 2012

at Leicester Secular Hall

75 Humberstone Gate

Leicester LE1 1WB

Click here for map

All rank and file workers, groups, reps, are invited to participate in organising for this event.  Contact leicestersolidarity@gmail.com to get involved.

No sell outs - link the strikes!

It looks as if a number of public sector union leaders are now virtually gagging to sell out their members, despite the mass show of strength on November 30th.  It is vital, therefore, that we do what we can to build a fighting counterweight to the toothless and collaborationist bureaucrats.  That fight starts here, in our workplaces and in our locality.

Additionally, the actions of striking electricians has already shown a way forward and by uniting the fight of local public sector workers with the electricians who recently struck unofficially in Hinckley and with all militant private sector workers, we can begin building a real resistance to austerity, cuts and attacks on working class people.

With this in mind, Leicestershire Solidarity Group calls for a Leicestershire-wide rank and file workers' meeting to take place in January 2012.  All public and private sector workers, union members, shop stewards and reps are invited to help us organise, publicise and participate in this meeting, the goal of which, is to build a viable response to both the government and treacherous leaders and bureaucrats, and to coordinate rank and file action outside of the stranglehold of sell-out union bureaucrats.

We'll be announcing a date and venue for a planning meeting very soon, in the meantime, we urge all who are not prepared to take this lying down to get in touch with us at leicestersolidarity@gmail.com and to help to build a local fighting alternative in the public and private sectors.

LSG

STOP PRESS! Pensions Deal News!

UNISON, Unite and GMB withdraw from pensions deal (Union News)
     "GMB, UNISON and Unite have suspended their pensions agreement with the government after a letter from Eric Pickles laid down new conditions outside the agreement.
     "The government has since withdrawn the letter, saying it was sent in error, but the unions say they have lost confidence in the negotiations." READ MORE

Gearing up for a sell out?

As a number of union bureaucrats appear to be gearing up to sell the public sector workers' struggle down the river, here are some comments doing the rounds at the minute.  Leicestershire Solidarity Group will be making its own announcement regarding this on Thursday morning, 22nd December, so watch this space.

Unite the Resistance (L&DTUC)
     "The 30 November strike was a brilliant show of strength and solidarity by up to three million public sector trade unionists determined to knock back the government’s attack on our pensions.     "Many of those trade unionists are now shocked and deeply unhappy to hear that the TUC and leaders of some unions may be prepared to agree to a deal that falls far short of what is needed on all the main points."  READ MORE

A New Atmosphere in Pension Negotiations (Truth, Reason, Liberty)
     "Trades Union Congress General Secretary Brendan Barber has effectively confirmed that capitulation is on the cards in the pensions dispute. No agreement has yet been finalised, but 'we have reached a stage where the emphasis in most cases is in giving active consideration to the new proposals that have emerged rather than considering the prospect of further industrial action.'" READ MORE

Accolade for Leics Solidarity Group from Notts SOS

We're pleased to announce that Notts Save Our Services has made us their Blog of the Month!  So a big thanks to them, we're really chuffed. 

Gold-plated pensions poster
Also, Notts SOS have kindly put our Gold-plated pensions poster online.  We really appreciate it because the technophopes at LSG couldn't figure out how to do that!  It's A4, black and white and is ideal for works noticeboards, front windows or anywhere else you can think of.

You can download and print the poster: HERE

Will Prentis try and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory?

Praying for a dodgy deal

While Brendan Barber openly pimps the government's latest pensions "offer" (which in reality offers sweet FA) and is busy urging all public sector unions to kiss Francis Maude's posterior, Unison's Dave Prentis also seems keen to let his backbone slip, and the word on the street is, he's been arguing for total surrender with other union bureaucrats.  We're not in the least bit surprised, given that Prentis and the Unison leadership only backed N30 on account of rank and file pressure.  Still, Dave tells us it ain't so and in today's Unison eFocus says:

     "I realise that rumours have been circulating and I wanted to reassure you that no decisions have been taken over the details surrounding contribution increases or the future look of the LGPS.

     "However, I believe that - if agreed - the principles under discussion will provide a very positive framework for negotiations and potentially could lead to no change until 2014."

If you notice just how positive he is, then you don't need to read between the lines to see that Prentis is itching to sell out his members. Twat.

Rank and file pressure forced him to back us and rank and file pressure can force him to hold firm.  But if that fails, the electricians are already showing us how it's done without the help of union bureaucrats.

Meanwhile, there's an online petition against secret deals by union leaders HERE

And another petition at http://bit.ly/rJ8SGJ

STOP PRESS!!! Unofficial walkout in Hinckley tomorrow (Thursday)!!!

Posted at 10.00pm on Wednesday on the rank & file sparks website Electricians Against the World

     "The M&E workers under the NAECI agreement are walking out tomorrow over constant pushing back of pay talks. The JIB and NAECI agreements are intertwined so both disputes are linked. If the JIB falls then NAECI will be next. The NAECI workers have realised this, hence the support they have been showing by walking off sites across the country to defend the JIB. 

     "Tomorrow they are walking out for themselves and we will be supporting them. Notably in Scotland where the recent protests are splitting in two to offer support to NAECI workers at Longannet and Markfitch."

Our nearest confirmed NAECI site walking out tomorrow is Hinckley.

Best of luck! Fight the good fight!

N30 Gold-plated pensions?

When public sector workers are vilified by politicians and the press for selfishly wanting to look after their gold-plated pensions, this film from Bristol IWW looks at whose pensions exactly are gold-plated.  Not ours, that's for sure.

Rank and File Sparks Show How It's Done

Without the backing of their union, Unite, electricians across the country are standing up to the firm Balfour Beatty, in spite of the anti-trade union laws, in what is the biggest unofficial walkout in years.



For up to the minute information on the sparks' dispute, check out this excellent new website, Electricians Against the World

Anti 'Atos' Actions

Support the 'Atos Two'

The two people arrested following a protest at Atos in Nottingham need your support.  For full details on this, go to our Claimants' page HERE

A Rolling Festive Phone-in to Atos 'Healthcare'

Beginning on Monday 12th December and running up until Christmas benefit claimants, disabled people and supporters will be ringing both local and national Atos Offices to complain about their obscene treatment of sick and disabled people. More info on our CLAIMANTS page (you'll need to scroll down the page).

LSG Next Meeting

The next meeting of Leicester Solidarity Group will be on
Wednesday 18th January 2012
Venue TBC.

We don't give up (a musical interlude)

To keep everyone's spirits up for the coming battles, here's a song from France (with English subtitles) that captures much of what Leicestershire Solidarity Group is about.

On Lâche Rien by HK et Les Saltimbanks

Sparks fly!

Electricians staged wildcat strikes in various town across the country today after the Unite union bottled it in the face of threatened legal action by Balfour Beatty.  Sparkies voted 82% in favour of strike action but Balfour Beatty are keen to milk the anti-trade union laws for all they're worth.  Meanwhile Unite bureaucrats have clearly demonstrated that they do indeed have the backbone of a slug.  Well done to rank and file electricians for sticking together and standing firm.  For the full story, click HERE

Leicestershire Against the Cuts

Public Meeting
Defend pensions, stop all cuts
Discussion, workshops, bringing anti-cuts campaigns together

Saturday 10th December
10.30am-1.30pm

at Leicester Adult Education Centre
Wellington Street LE1 6HL

Leicestershire Solidarity Group

Following the 30th November public sector strike, a Leicestershire coordination meeting attended by rank and file workers, union members, unemployed workers, students and participants in Occupy Leicester took place on Thursday 1st December 2011.

The initial aim of the meeting was to find ways to:

• widen the current public sector dispute into a general dispute over the repeated attacks on the working class
• intensify the dispute and promote tactics and strategies that will improve our chances of victory
• ensure the unions don’t backtrack
• build strong grassroots workers’ organisation in Leicestershire

As well as the above, broader issues such as claimants and disability struggles were also discussed during the meeting.  It was widely felt, that there is a need to build on the current public sector struggles, not only as rank and file union members and local community activists, but to also widen the current public sector struggles to include private sector and unemployed workers and claimants.

As examples of effective organisation, Tottenham Claimants’ union of the 1980s and the later anti-Poll Tax struggle were mentioned, as was the ongoing Haringey Solidarity Group which developed out of both of the Claimants’ Union and anti-poll tax movement in that area.  Closer to home, the activities of the former Leicestershire IWW branch and various actions by disability activists were also looked at.  Leicester Trades Council was noted as a positive workers’ organisation in the region.  All of the above were seen as useful ways of developing class struggle activity in Leicestershire.

It was finally agreed to establish Leicestershire Solidarity Group.

Leicestershire Solidarity Group is independent of any political party or group.  Its aim is to work towards the empowerment of working class people locally, whether public or private sector workers, unemployed or unwaged.  Its activities will include the encouragement of grassroots activity within the workplace, between different workplaces and industries and in the wider local community.