Strike Follow

THE LONDON weighting dispute in higher education is continuing to spread. There was a one-day strike by support workers in the Unison union in the old (pre-1992) universities on 26 September.

FIREFIGHTERS AND emergency control room staff have been voting for their first national strikes in 25 years. None of them relishes going on strike. They have been forced into it by a government that treats them with contempt. It is the same arrogant New Labour government that backs George Bush's war drive even though unprecedented numbers of people in Britain oppose it.

Lecturers and support staff in London universities are now set to strike on Thursday 14 November over allowances for working in the capital. A meeting of the London region of the Natfhe union, which represents lecturers in the former polytechnics, decided the strike date last Saturday. The AUT union, which has members in the "old" universities, is balloting for a strike on the same day.

ROLLING STRIKE action by council workers in London continued last week as finance staff in nine London boroughs walked out. The selective action is part of the workers' fight for an increased London weighting allowance.

Probation officers have backed a plan to strike over staff shortages and workloads. Delegates at the probation officers' Napo union conference in Eastbourne, East Sussex, last week overwhelmingly agreed on a one-day strike, boycotts and work to rule action.

STRIKES BY drivers in the Aslef rail union on First North Western last weekend were solid again. The Aslef union is asking all drivers to put £5 into a FNW disputes fund. Drivers on the Merseyrail company have offered to put in £10 each. More drivers are discussing escalating the dispute.

SOME 500 porters, telephonists and cleaners in the Unison union at Swansea's Singleton, Morriston, Hillhouse and Cefn Coed hospitals were on the verge of escalating strike action as Socialist Worker went to press. The issue is resistance to poverty pay levels.

STRIKING WORKERS who were sacked by their millionaire boss took their case to an industrial tribunal last week. The 87 workers were employed at the Friction Dynamics car components factory in Caernarfon, North Wales. They went on strike in April 2001 when boss Craig Smith imposed a 15 percent pay cut.

POSTAL WORKERS across Britain will soon start a strike ballot over their bosses' plans to privatise the Cash Handling and Distribution (CHD) section. The Post Office wants to sell CHD to Securicor, a full privatisation that will affect 3,000 workers.

LUIS INACIO "Lula" da Silva came within a hair's breadth of winning the Brazilian presidential election on Sunday. The former left wing socialist and strike leader got 47 percent of votes, almost double that of any other candidate. Lula fell just short of the 50 percent he needed to win outright, and will now face a run-off on 27 October against Jose Serra.

UP TO 500,000 workers demonstrated in Madrid in Spain last Saturday against the right wing government's attacks on workers' rights. The demonstration is a continuation of a struggle that included a general strike in June. Spanish leader Jose Maria Aznar is a key ally of Blair in Europe.

HUNDREDS OF thousands of workers went on strike across South Africa against the policies of the ANC government last week. Bosses and the government claimed the strike was a flop but the Cosatu union federation, which called the action, disputed their figures. Cosatu leaders said that up to 60 percent of their members had taken part in the strike.