Reminder: West Ham Education Debate Thurs 16 Jan 7pm Stratford Town Hall

 

This will be a great free debate taking place tomorrow at the historic Old Town Hall in Stratford High Street, London E15. It is only 5 minutes walk from Stratford Railway and Bus station and at the back of the Town Hall, in side streets, there is free parking spaces after 6.30pm (check Parking signs !!!). 

Le Vieux Cordelier 2014 by Nick

"I was amazed to witness an outburst by our great leader of men, and women, at the BC today. He was clearly upset about 2 motions submited by two branch committee members which want to amend the rules of Lambeth Unison. They have every right to do this. I don't think the motions will get two thirds majority nor will members at AGM be very interested in the content. But that does not mean the people who have submitted these motions are right wing or reactionary? I would be happy to leave the argument there but since Jon of the Rogers has also had an outburst on his blog I thought I would respond in kind. Or is he trying to get attention for himself..? I wonder..

Nick Venedi"

Ryanair Robbing Pensioners (and pension peril of zero hour contracts)

According to the FT controversial airline Ryanair is closing its Pension fund for staff in Ireland and transferring their accrued defined benefit pension scheme benefits to a defined contribution scheme - in which future benefits will depend on investment performance???

Not only are they doing this to active (current) members but also to former staff who have left their pension with the scheme.

Does this mean that staff who were promised a guaranteed pension will now have to face the uncertainties of the investment market? Why did the trustees agree to this?

Yet I understand that many of the new Ryanair staff can't even join the DC scheme as they are 'self employed' on zero hour type contracts!

So it seems that all staff in Ryanair former, past and future will be stuffed.

Except I believe its senior management.

No surprise there!

Hat tip Pension Biggles

CRATUPEAR!

CRATUPEAR is the acronym of the "The Collective Redundancies and Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) (Amendment) Regulations 2014" which comes in force on 31st January 2014. 

Hat tip to Daniel Barnett Employment law bulletin  for this information and the summary of the changes below. The Tories have tried to water down employment protection for workers but it seems to me they are making TUPE even more complex, confusing and potentially litigious than ever.

"The summary below of what the government is not changing is probably as important as what it is changing. The main changes which the government is proceeding with are amending the TUPE Regulations to:-

allow renegotiation of terms agreed from collective agreements one year after transfer, provided any changes are no less favourable to employees,

the location of a workforce can be within the scope of an economic, technical or organisational reason entailing changes in the workforce, thus preventing genuine place of work redundancies from being automatically unfair.

clarify that for there to be a TUPE service provision change, the service provision must be "fundamentally or essentially the same" as before the transfer

allowing microbusinesses to inform and consult directly with employees (in some circumstances) allowing TUPE consultation to satisfy collective redundancy consultation rules.

Importantly, the government is not:- removing 'service provision change' from what amounts to a TUPE transfer removing the transferor's obligation to provide employee liability information; rather, the time for providing such information is increased to 28 days.

 Also mentioned is the extension of the right to request flexible working to all employees with 26 weeks' service, which will come into force on 6th April 2014".

Private Thomas Highgate - the First to be Shot at Dawn

I think people know that on the 28 July this year it will be the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War. Not many will know that within a few weeks the first British soldier had been shot by firing squad for desertion.

This morning I was looking for a Sunday walk in the country and picked this 7 mile circular route starting in Shoreham, Kent.

Before I left I checked google for Shoreham and on Wikipedia found this "Shoreham was the birthplace and home of Private Thomas Highgate, who was the first British soldier to be shot for desertion during the First World War on 8 September 1914, following the Battle of and Retreat from Mons. In 2000, Shoreham Parish Council voted not to include his name on its war memorial. However, after a posthumous pardon in 2006, it was considered that his name might be added.^[1]"#

I wondered if 19 year old Thomas's (see picture above) name had indeed been added to the War memorial and decided at the end of the walk to have a look.

The walk itself was wonderful (click for photos) and I would recommend it. Lots of up and down hills with great views and different scenery. You go past the historic Roman villa and Castle at Lullingstone. The only significant downside being some noise from nearby (but very largely unseen) motorway.

At the War Memorial near the old village bridge there was no sign of his name on it. I have since found out via the Internet that the issue has been hugely controversial in the village. It appears that 2 (or 3) of his brothers were later killed in the War but also that Thomas had deserted once before while in the (peace time) Army and had been imprisoned for 42 days.  It is reported also that Thomas had no witnesses for his defence at his trial for desertion since the rest of his unit were killed in the Battle.

I think that this is at the end of the day a matter for the local community and no-one else.

I will say that on the way out of the village I noticed 3 local teenage boys sitting on a wall near the village shop, probably aged about 15, looking bored and fed up as only adolescent boys can be. They were only a couple of years younger at most than Thomas was when he joined the Army at 17. I do wonder how they would have dealt with the aftermath following the carnage at the Battle of Mons?

UPDATE: BBC report 31 May 2014

UPDATE: visit 2020 John's Labour blog: Private Thomas Highgate - the First to be Shot at Dawn (2020 update) (johnslabourblog.org)

UPDATE visit 2024 John's Labour blog: Shoreham & Lullingstone Park Walk (& the 110th anniversary of the "shot at dawn" youngster) (johnslabourblog.org)

West Ham "on the knocker" in Thurrock for "Cost of Cameron" Day.

Today was a busy #CostofCameron day for West Ham Labour Party and other activists up and down the Country.

The Party targeted 106 marginal seats nationally and we locally went out to help comrades in our sister CLP in Thurrock, Essex. The aim of this campaign day is to speak to voters about why they are suffering a cut in their income due to this Tory Cost of Living Crisis.  Unlike (my view - see link) the "Fat Cat Executives" whose money has gone up and up at our expense.

Beforehand there had been a canvassing training session organised by West Ham Women's Forum. I had my ward surgery then at 11.30 (ish) 15 of us drove to Thurrock (others made their way by train).

The weather was glorious, perfect for being "on the knocker" - blue skies and thankfully dry. We divided into 3 teams and I was with John Whitworth, Charlene McLean and Gordon Miller.  Our MP Lyn Brown and local candidate Polly Billington led another team together with Thurrock activists.

Our reception was pretty good. A little different than canvassing in West Ham with its largely rock solid labour support but on the whole residents were pretty cheerful and even seemed to be pleased to see us! Even the odd Tories we came across!

The ward we were canvassing is currently Tory and based on previous experiences of campaigning out of London over the years I thought that we did pretty well. It was only one afternoon but I do think that even traditional Tory supporters, who are feeling the pain of year after year of pay cuts are starting to twig that a government that only delivers for the rich and not ordinary working families is frankly not worth supporting.

I am more and more convinced that 2015 is going to be about "the economy stupid" and while the NHS, Housing and Education will be important the Party that can persuade voters that they can put more money into their pockets and purses is going to win.

Hat tip ace photographer Gordon. 

Financial Reporting Council "Why we are too lazy and owners too stupid to vote in pooled pension funds"

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is a well known "mates club" of financial services industry representatives pretending to be a UK independent regulator on corporate governance and investment.

Top Finance blogger Tom P at "Labour and Capital" comments on the latest FRC report that dismisses attempts by pension schemes who invest in pooled funds to be able to vote on their shareholding.

As Tom points out there is no good reason for this not happening whatsoever. The only reasons I can see is that most (not all) asset managers are just too lazy to arrange this and think that asset owners are too stupid to be able to vote. 

I am also forced to conclude that the FRC doesn't want pesky share owners to be able to vote because they may have the blooming cheek to vote down their mates obscene (and growing) executive pay and other super generous perks.

"Fat Cat Wednesday"

Did you realise that yesterday was "Fat Cat Wednesday"? "Top executives will have earned more money by mid-morning today than the average worker does in a year, making it "fat cat Wednesday", a new report says.

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/01/07/workers-pay_n_4555778.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

The High Pay Centre think tank said chief executives in the FTSE 100 were paid an average of almost £4.3 million in 2012, equivalent to an hourly wage of well over £1,000, compared with the country's average annual wage of £26,000.

Executive pay has increased by 74% over the past decade, while wages for ordinary workers have remained "flat", the study found. Company bosses who returned to work on Monday after the festive break will have made more money in 2014 by mid-morning today than the annual salary of average workers, said the report.

UNISON Comment: Our pension funds should be voting NO to these outrageous pay deals at the company AGMs!"

Hat tip UNISON Capital Steward website

"Please come and have a DRINK!! with me"

I got this odd email invite the other day. Too busy doing union stuff to attend. 

: "For a new squabbling and democratic centralist disunted left? 

To: "Dave Bala<d.bala@trotsrus.co.uk>

Dear Comrade, I am writing to ask if you would be interested in an initial chat and drinkies about how UNISON activists in London can best organise between and across branches and Service Groups to provide each other with solidarity, support and fun! 

I'm sending this to a fairly random selection of fellow activists who I think might be interested, but if I've got that wrong in your case please accept my apology and feel free to denounce me in whichever way seems most appropriate! 

A few of us will be meeting in the O’Neils pub in Euston Road for several hours from 1pm on Thursday 9 January to have such a chat about fine wines, favourite Waitrose recipes and Star Wars. 
We hope that this will be the beginning of a conversation which will broaden and deepen over the coming year. 

Since the tragic popular vote to walk away from pointless strikes was taken two years ago, we have been trying to chase more strikes, with precious little support from our national and Regional Union. 

Although individual branches and activists are resisting the attacks from us strike chasers we have not had a sufficiently strong rank and file network to force them to do what we tell them other in more than an ad hoc way. In London many of those trying to strike chase are under attack and feel isolated, and the official structures of the Union perpetuate that. 

With a further round of cuts and the threat of widespread privatisation at the same time as the possibility of spreading the fight for fair pay beyond Higher Education, now may be the time to build and strengthen an activist pub network for support and solidarity. We can only work out if this is possible through drinking between activists. 

Those of us hoping to start this discussion believe that all our union work must be founded on and informed by a principled and consistent opposition to oppression. We don't believe in an approach which sidelines (for example) issues of male violence against women in the interests of unity to oppose cuts. Our vision is of a workers' movement which builds unity from all our struggles and drinks together. 

Which is why we don’t want any of those splitters and wreckers from the SWP or SPEW, also why we have picked a pub to meet up with since we don’t want any boring teetotalers or Muslims turning up either. But while it's nice to have visions, what we need right now is far more practical. Such as a few drinkies! 

At this stage, we think activists need to consider and debate how we provide each other with mutual liquid aid in the circumstances of 2014 in UNISON in London. 

On Thursday lunchtime I hope to be part of the beginning of a long drinking discussion about how we might do that. If you're interested I hope you might be too? 

Obviously only a few of us will be able to participate in a lunchtime weekday chat. Many activists will be tied up in their branches doing real union work and don’t have full facility time like what we have. So they will not be able to use their facility agreements and travel during their union time to the pub, have drinkies, then travel back in union facility time. 

This is the beginning of a discussion of which no one knows the outcome. You know what it is like when you have had a few jars. 

Please pass this on to any UNISON member you think might be interested. Best wishes for the New Year! 

Solidarity, 
Dave Bala Lambeth Workers' Institute of Marxism-Leninism-Trotskyism Thought. (but completely unofficially of course!)

Cost of Cameron Saturday

This Saturday 11 January 2014 Labour activists will launch the "Cost of Cameron" day across 106 key marginal seats.  West Ham will helping out its sister CLP in Thurrock, Essex with our MP, Lyn Brown.

I am always amazed that British people are not more angry about the huge loss of pay they have suffered under this Tory led coalition government. While at the same time the rich have got even richer?