Sunderland 29th March 2014 – North East Infidels, EDL and anti-fascists protest

N.U.T. Teachers’ Strike 26th March.

If you’re a teacher and you’re striking tomorrow, good luck and solidarity!

If you’re a teacher, not in a union or in a different one and you’re thinking of crossing a picket line:

• A. Don’t
• B. No one wants a scab, your pupils will lose all respect for you.

If you’re  in the N.U.T.  and you’re thinking of crossing a picket line:

• A. Don’t.
• B. What are you fucking thinking of? Don’t you know there’s a war on!
• C. What sort of example are you setting the youth? Selfish, cowardly, treacherous…

If your children have a scab teacher, keep them home:

• A. This is about more than just the future of their education but about resisting the ravages of this despicable neoliberal regime.
• B. This is the most important lesson they will ever learn, don’t scab.
• C. Forcing them to cross a picket line before they are old enough to understand the enormity of betraying their class is child abuse.

If you’re at school and you’re old enough to think for yourself (hint), join the picket line, show some support, one day others will do the same for you.

Join a march or rally

Solidarity, and a bit of fun.

Our fellow workers at Gainesville’s local food cooperative, Citizens Co-op, announced The Citizen Co-op Workers Unions in early March.

A couple of days letter they brought their demand for union recognition to the board during a meeting, and a few days ago they met with the General Manager.

By unionizing, the workers want to ensure that the patrons of the store are promoting a business that respects its worker-owners and operates in a fair, democratic, and truly cooperative manner.

7 of 10 Citizens Co-op Workers petitioned to have a union. In response Citizens Co-op fired 5 of them and 2 of them are now on strike because of Unfair Labour Practices.

However, it seems Citizens Co-op might be hiring scabs. They have advertised the position of a current Worker Rep on the Board and Workers Union member:
http://gainesville.craigslist.org/fbh/4385258888.html

We are asking that every IWW member and supporter immediately apply for these positions regardless of your location or qualifications.

Thank you for you help and Solidarity!

To keep in touch with Citizens Co-op you can follow them online:

Facebook:   Tumblr:  Twitter: @coopworkerunion

Here look we’ve done it for you –  Sample e mail:

To: mvdkn-4385258888@job.craigslist.org

Subject: Grocery Purchaser (Gainesville, FL)

To whom it may concern:

I wish to apply for your crappy fucking job, I’ve been purchasing groceries for years.

I am a member of the Industrial Workers of the World.

OBU

Cindy Callist.

You can support the strikers financially here:

George Osborne’s Budget Was Class War, Let’s Give The Bastard What He Wants

the void

Who the fuck has got fifteen grand a year to spare that they can stash in an ISA to take advantage of George Osborne’s so-called saver’s revolution?

The answer is George Osborne, his parents, and everyone he knows.  The same could be said about David Cameron, Nick Clegg, David Miliband and even Nigel Farage.  And that is the reason why high earners with whopping savings are now presented as the norm in the UK – and the only people that matter to all of the main political parties.

The reality is that the average weekly wage is just over £500 a week, which doesn’t leave much room for an ISA if that’s all a family has to live on.  Around 5 million people are paid below the living wage, and another five million or so live from hand to mouth on meagre benefits.  Nearly six and a half million households…

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Launch of Tolpuddle Radical Film Festival & Call For Entries To Radical Short Film Competition.

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The Small Axe Short Film Competition is a brand new initiative for radical filmmakers being launched at the inaugural Tolpuddle Radical Film Festival in July 2014. Young people, students and activist filmmakers from all over the world are invited to submit short films that are rebellious, angry, radical, revolutionary, socialist, anarchist, militant, progressive or subversive! Films can be any length between 1 and 30 minutes, they can be on any theme and can be documentary or fiction, arty or agitprop, funny or serious – as long as they contribute to the fight for progressive social change. The Small Axe screening and awards event will take place on the morning of Sunday 20th July in the Vintage Mobile Cinema on the festival site of the Tolpuddle Festival in Tolpuddle, Dorset. Short-listed films will be screened between 10.00-12.30 with the winners being announced between 12.30 and 13.00.

DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES Friday 30th May 2014 Award Categories: Best Student Film – Fiction Best Student Film – Factual/Documentary Best Activist Film – Fiction Best Activist Film – Factual/Documentary All submitted films and videos must have been completed after 1 January 2013. Apply online, either include a link to an online preview copy of your film or post us a DVD. Online Application Form Full Terms and Conditions.

Dorset Socialists organise against deportation 24/03/14

The Verne ex-prison on Portland is due to open its doors to detainees on Monday 24/03/14.

The opening of the Verne as a Detention Centre has been postponed, but the MOJ has declared it will house detainees there from Monday whilst it is still a prison, according to the Echo.

Dorset Socialists have collaborated with Detention Action and others to help set up Dorset Against Deportation.

1/. There will be an Anti-Deportation vigil to mark the opening on the roundabout at Victoria Square on Portland from 17:00 to 18:00 on 24/03/14, followed by
2/. the inaugural meeting of DAD in Osprey Quay nearby from 18:30 to 20:00. This will be addressed by Bill Mackeith from the Campsfield campaign and Oxford TUC. Banners and placards welcome.

All welcome.

Train carries straight on from Dorchester to Weymouth. It is a no1 bus to Portland from Debenhams.

IWW Social Folk/Punk night at Harland Cafe March 21st!

Sheffied Wobblies visit the Workers Economy Conference in Occupied French Factory.

Stop workfare in its tracks – Take action 29 March – 6 April

Workfare: If you exploit us we will shut you down!

Tens of organisations have already quit workfare. The government will not reveal which organisations are still using it for fear the schemes will collapse. Its contractors complain that they have lost hundreds of placements due to public pressure.

But they’re trying it again with a new scheme – “Community Work Placements” – launching on 1 April 2014 which will force claimants to work for six months without pay. Six months – 780 hours – is more than twice the maximum community service sentence. Workfare does not help people find jobs and being unemployed is not a crime.

This new workfare scheme is part of a raft of draconian measures, misleadingly called “Help to Work”, which are designed to increase sanctions (benefit stoppages) and undermine wages still further.

For the workfare schemes to happen, they need places to send people, but tens of large charities have already quit. Oxfam stated that the schemes were incompatible with its goal of reducing poverty in the UK. Liverpool CVS has condemned the scheme in the strongest possible terms.

Our action can stop companies, charities and councils from exploiting forced unpaid work and make sure this new scheme falls flat on its face. Wherever you are, however you can contribute, take action on 29 March-6 April.

Target the charities:

• Friendly local charity or Volunteer Service? Invite them to commit not to use forced unpaid work by signing our pledge.
• Big workfare user like RSPCA, YMCA, Salvation Army, The Conservation Volunteers, British Heart Foundation, Barnardos or Cancer Research? Write to them, organise a demo or encourage people you know not to donate until they stop using workfare!
• Approach workers in the voluntary sector to ask them to pressure their employer not to participate in the scheme. There are often Union branches for voluntary sector workers you could contact.
• Visit boycottworkfare.org daily during the week to take part in online action!

Target the councils:

• Find out if we know about workfare in your local council on this spreadsheet.
• If so, adapt our press release and expose them in your local paper.
• Contact local Unison, GMB or Unite branches for council workers and encourage them to pass the motion to challenge workfare and to take it up with the council.
• Find out if any sympathetic local councillors would take a motion to the council for it to boycott workfare. It has been done!

Support each other to get our rights:

• Order know your rights leaflets to give out at the job centre or around your local community – email info[at]boycottworkfare.org with how many you would like!
• Thinking about starting a mutual support group? Invite an existing group to help get it going with a workshop or talk.

Want to target the companies involved in workfare as well?
There are currently call outs to target Peacocks, and Grosvenor Casinos. Or there’s our crowd-sourced list of workfare exploiters to whom you may also like to pay a visit.

More about the Community Work Placement scheme:

• Show the charities which bid to run the Community Work Placement schemes your disgust at their role in sanctioning people and driving forced work in the UK
• The companies and the charities profiting from Community Work Placements
• Boycott Workfare’s press release when the CWP scheme was announced – pointing out the failure of its pilot scheme
• (Heavy reading but) The DWP’s info pack for “delivery partners”

Making links:

• One year too long for the Bedroom Tax – End it now! Protests are organised in Leeds, Manchester, Ashfield, Harlow, Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Southend and London on Saturday 5 April. Why not go along, make the links and pay a visit to a local workfare provider afterwards?
• The TUC has called for a Fair Pay Fortnight from 24 March-4 April. Despite the threat it poses to members’ jobs, workfare (zero pay work) doesn’t seem to be on the agenda. The TUC currently even has policy supporting sanctions (PDF – 3.6, pg 31). Our week of action at the same time is a chance to point out that trade unions urgently need to take action on workfare and sanctions.

TAKE ACTION ON 29 MARCH – 6 APRIL TO STOP WORKFARE IN ITS TRACKS AND PUSH BACK AGAINST SANCTIONS.

Whatever you’re planning – let us know and we’ll help spread the word! info[at]boycottworkfare.org

Solidarity with Health Care Workers in Greece: Neo-liberal “Adjustments” Destroy the Healthcare System | Industrial Workers of the World

Solidarity with Health Care Workers in Greece: Neo-liberal "Adjustments" Destroy the Healthcare System | Industrial Workers of the World.