Who on earth on their Central Committee authorised them to break up a meeting at Acas (Acas for crying out loud!) which was trying in last ditch talks to reach an agreement on a bloody serious dispute between a trade union and management? I recognise in the videos some of the usual suspects who should know better. How can any real trade unionists now have anything to do with these cultists who attack workers?
Excuse the language but until today I had actually thought that the commonplace trade union joke about the initials SWP actually standing for “S**t on the Workers Party” - was infantile. Silly me.
Picture is from the BBC report showing Unite Joint General Secretary Tony Woodley showing incredible (and unusual) restraint while telling the moronic protestors that if they supported BA staff they would leave and let him get on with his job. I am sure that if TV cameras had not been present the former Ellesmere Port Vauxhall car factory steward would have undertaken some form of working class “direct action” with the largely public school, middle class “fantasy union” protestors to show them the error of their ways.
This is the Sky Report. “Some 100 people broke into the HQ of the conciliation service Acas where talks were ongoing to try and settle the long-running dispute.
But the discussions have now been abandoned after BA chief executive Willie Walsh was forced to leave the venue.
A furious Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite, told Sky News the activists were "idiots" and "lunatics".
"Negotiations have not broken down, they have been broken up. We have made some progress but there is more to do," he said.
"This was a complete waste of an early-evening.
"I am so disappointed... that idiots, who think they are helping, but they are outsiders. They are lunatics."
When asked if talks would continue on Sunday, he added: "I hope so, but Willie Walsh was harangued and left the building quickly, understandably."
Unite members of BA cabin crew are set for a five-day walk-out from Monday unless an agreement can be reached”.
UPDATE: check out the fall out in Socialist Unity and UNISONactive
John,
ReplyDeleteThis is a disaster only for the SWP. BA know that Unite are not beholden to the SWP, and that this bunch of fringe lunatics - backing Paul Holmes in the UNISON Gen Sec elections lest we forget - have no hold on workers, or indeed on reality. Let us hope that Unite move to swiftly expel any of them who happen to be their members. Let us hope that any other unions they belong to recognise that they bring those unions into disrepute by their actions and expel them in solidarity with Unite. These scum have no place in the union movement. Their party is dead, they are only dancing at the wake.
so what does Gill George SWP Unite exec member say
ReplyDelete13.And just to emphasise how utterly idotic and out of touch this organisation is, here’s Richard Seymour’s take on events.
ReplyDelete‘What I can assert with reasonable confidence is that the protest did not disrupt negotiations, as is alleged by practically every media outlet I have seen, which predictably avoids the substantive issues behind the dispute and the protest. This is because the BA management is not negotiating, and the union leadership is neither in a position to compel them to negotiate, nor is it inclined to. It is effectively drafting terms of surrender.’
What an arsehole.
Comment by John — 22 May, 2010 @ 10:03 pm
14.“This is because the BA management is not negotiating, and the union leadership is neither in a position to compel them to negotiate, nor is it inclined to. ”
fucking middle class wank idiot.
have they any idea how much harder they have just made it for the left in the unions.
Comment by Andy Newman — 22 May, 2010 @ 10:06 pm
taxi for SWP backed Paul Holmes
ReplyDeleteunless he condems them
lets see
Come on Mr.Holmes, don't be shy! Condemn these idiots and lunatics!
ReplyDeletehttp://unisonactive.blogspot.com/2010/05/irresponsibility-of-ultra-left.html
ReplyDeleteDear John
ReplyDeleteAs i watched the Andrew Marr Show this sunday morning i was agast to see a member of a Union (the name of the union I shall not mention so as not to bring the union into further disrepute) dressed in Ganster B...h clothes bandana and what have you behaving in such a diabolitical way in the MIDDLE OF THE FRACAS to stop negotiations led by ACAS in the BA dispute. The person i referred to should be expelled post haste, as they have brought the union into disrepute. association as led to the defamation of the union. TICO London
Dear John
ReplyDeleteAs i watched the Andrew Marr Show this sunday morning i was agast to see a member of a Union (the name of the union I shall not mention so as not to bring the union into further disrepute) dressed in Ganster B...h clothes bandana and what have you behaving in such a diabolitical way in the MIDDLE OF THE FRACAS to stop negotiations led by ACAS in the BA dispute. The person i referred to should be expelled post haste, as they have brought the union into disrepute. association as led to the defamation of the union
why dont the SWP set their own union up
ReplyDeleteif they feel unite are sell outs
workers will flock to their ranks
NOT
You are all cut from the same cloth. The protestors were just expressing the same views that you all hold. I thought it was a very revealing. probably Unite secretly encouraged it.
ReplyDeleteJohn,
ReplyDeleteGood that you highlight how idiotic the extrimist are and this is when public opinion was turning towards supporting BA cabin crew! These extrimists walk in and get their day on national television. I have said this before and will say it again they should be thrown out of any union they represent nothing other than a tiny number of opportunists. A lot of them are bullies and their method is simply based on intimitading ordinary members. I can tell you a few stories about that as I have seen them in action! I hope that when Dave wins again he will be more decisive in dealing with them at branch level.
Nick Venedi ex Branch Secretary
Hi John,
ReplyDeleteabsolutely, unbelievable and outrageous. The SWP are a bunch of arrogant, idiotic towrags. At this point in time I have too many expletives swirling around in my head to be any more coherent than that.
The reasons behind their stupidity: as always the SWP priority is sell a few more papers,recruit a few more members. What do they care about the Unite Cabin Crew, about Trade Unionists disciplined by managment?
Nothing.
Dave Draycott
Maybe another take on this is that these SWP Trots are the "Vanguard" of the make it up as you go along, do it yourself "Big Society" proposed Cameron and that weasel Clegg.
ReplyDeletethe swp cannot make their mind up today if it was an accident they broke up meeting or Woodley was going to sell the workers out
ReplyDeletealso claiming it was the
Right To Work campaign not them
ie SWP Front
which did you know in an independent anti cuts campaign
my arse
RTW is just a 70s retread - fire up the Quattro
Rule number one of a union activists dont interfere in union negotians
The Swp are just "substituting" themselves for the Class
a short cut to the revolution
disaplined authorised Direct action will need to be taken to defend services soon
but as with Greece
we cannot afford a handfull of extremists to kill people and theby not only cause their tragic deaths but seriously undermine popular support
We need to decide in the trade union movement if we can afford to allow them to continue to disrupt our union.
Thank goodness action has been taken in the past to limit the effect of these sects set on infantile disorder (unlike Unite)
who may wish they had
would the SWP have smashed up a meeting between Boris and Bob Crow
ReplyDeletedont think so
death to sects
More proof, if any be needed, that unions and political parties have nothing in common! Out with all entryist cults.
ReplyDeletebill glad you agree entry cults have no place in unions. Labour Party have 200,000 members and 3 million affiliates.
ReplyDeletehow many agree with your views?
Aren’t you the cultist entryist? so when while you resign?
Anon.,
ReplyDeleteI am not a member of any organised faction within Unison - and just because a cult is popular, doesn't make it any less a cult: I recall the Jesus dult did very well for itself...
Hi Bill
ReplyDeleteSo you are a religious cultist?
It figures.
No, I'm not a religious cultist, why should you think that?
ReplyDeleteBTW, why do you list the SPGB under CPers?