On strike at Blackburn college
Thousands of workers at colleges in London struck for three days this week for better pay and conditions. Workers are striking after the Association of Colleges recommended that their pay goes up by a paltry 2.5 percent.
In London members of the UCU union at five colleges that are part of the New City College group began their strike on Monday. Workers in the group have already taken four days of strikes. This builds on at least ten days of strikes taken by workers in colleges across Britain.
Branch chair at the Epping Forest campus of New City College, Dan, told Socialist Worker, “We’ve had a decade of below-inflation pay rises so we’ve said enough is enough. We need a pay rise for all staff and we need better working conditions.”
A strike ballot of university workers was set to end on Friday of this week. Members of the UCU union have been voting on whether to strike over cuts to the USS pension scheme, and over pay, workloads, casualisation and equalities.
Activists reported that some UCU branches had smashed the 50 percent turnout mandated by anti‑trade union laws. Because ballots are aggregated the overall turnout and vote are what matters. But it does mean all workers at all universities could strike together.
If workers do vote to strike, what comes next is important. Union leaders must call for strikes before Christmas which will hit during the middle of term time. These strikes must not be just token days, they must be consecutive and escalating.
Rank and file workers should fight for a programme of strikes that actually has the power to win. If those at the top of the union aren’t on board with this programme, workers must pressure them and organise themselves.
Teachers could strike as their NEU union promised a strike ballot following an overwhelming show of will to fight by its members. Teachers voted by 86 percent to strike for pay on an indicative ballot with a 62 percent turnout, in a consultative ballot.
Some 78 percent of support staff also voted to strike on a 68 percent turnout. The NEU also launched a strike ballot of workers in sixth form colleges, running from Tuesday of this week to Friday 11 November.
Some 40 workers at West Coventry Academy were set walk out on Wednesday and Thursday of this week in their battle against an unreasonable workload. It follows one day of action last week and there are plans to strike from 1 to 3 November.
The NEU union claims teaching hours are the second highest in Coventry. The picket line last week was well attended with support from NASUWT members and the local trades council.
A staffing crisis in the NHS
Health workers set to strike across four Manchester hospitals
Bus workers rejected an offer and came back out
