The ballot of 270,000 members of the PCS civil service workers’ union to strike over below-inflation pay is into its second week, and activists are reporting a good response to the union’s campaign.
The NUT teachers’ union began balloting its 250,000 members on Monday of this week. The ballot is for national strike action against a below-inflation, three-year pay deal.
Further education lecturers in the UCU union are currently balloting over whether to accept a below-inflation pay offer.
Around 40 people protested on Sunday 28 September in support of the campaign by the family of Gary McKinnon to prevent his extradition to the US on charges of hacking into Pentagon computers.
Over 100 people demonstrated in Huntingdon last Saturday against plans to hand over management of Hinchingbrooke Hospital to a private company.
The West Midlands Fire Authority is trying to close down the region’s only retained fire station. The station, at Sedgley, is the most cost-effective in the region and deals with 800 calls a year.
Members of the Usdaw union working at the bookmakers Ladbrokes call centre in Aintree held a second 24-hour strike last Sunday to protest against their below-inflation pay offer of 3 percent.
There was anger last week after ITV News announced cost-cutting plans to slash over 400 workers across its regional services.
Postal Workers at Copperas Hill mail centre in LIverpool, which is earmarked for closure, refused to cross a picket line put up by striking Romec engineers on Monday of this week.
Some 500 CWU post workers’ union reps met last week for a two-day national briefing.
An emergency meeting of the national executive of the Unite union was to be held this Thursday. The meeting was to consider two proposals by the joint general secretaries, Derek Simpson and Tony Woodley.
Around 450 rail signallers and signal supervisors in the RMT transport union began the first of two 24-hour strikes at 12 noon on Tuesday of this week.
