Read our weekly union solidarity round-up 16-22 September

At TUC Congress last week, PCS delegates made important contributions to a range of motions, covering pensions, sacked reps, arms sales to Israel, justice for Palestine, taxing the wealthy for better social security, ending welfare privatisation and challenging fascism and the gender pay gap.

TUC President Matt Wrack (FBU) warned that Labour’s commitment to repeal the 2016 Trade Union Act and the Minimum Service Levels Act should not be delayed. Nor should it be a token gesture where so much more work is needed to build the power of workers in the workplace. General secretary Paul Nowak reinforced the message, demanding government work with unions to rebuild public services, recast Britain’s industrial future, and fight right-wing agitators.

News

On Thursday (12), the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Usdaw and several of its warehouse operator members in their fight against Tesco’s ‘fire and rehire’ tactics. Tesco’s restructuring exercise removed workers’ contractual right to a ‘retained pay’ payment for employees who agreed to relocate to new sites. Workers were threatened with the sack if they refused new contracts. Tesco had appealed against a High Court ruling against them in 2022 but the judges agreed that the ruling was correct in granting an injunction to stop Tesco.

It has been announced today (Monday 16) that shipbuilding company Harland and Wolff is going into administration, threatening jobs in Belfast as well as Appledore (England) and Methil and Arnish (Scotland). GMB is calling for the UK Government to step in and protect jobs as well as national capabilities in shipbuilding and renewables.

UK action

Foreign secretary David Lammy faced possible embarrassment last week when he cancelled a trip to the East Kilbride FCDO office where workers are going on strike. The PCS members are employed by ONS on outsourced contracts which have no contractual sick pay. They will walk out on 18 and 19, 24, 25 and 26 September.

PCS members at Defra are currently campaigning hard for a four-day week campaign. Working at the political level, PCS General Secretary Fran Heathcote will join our fringe event at Labour party conference, speaking in a panel discussion on the 4-Day Week Campaign.

International activity

There is widespread international union outrage over political attacks on the Nigeria Labour Congress, where union leader Joe Ajaero has been arrested.

In advance of this month’s United Nations Summit of the Future, PSI union has called for care (which disproportionately affects women) to be officially recognised as a human right and a public good.

In the USA, where union activism is significantly increasing, Boeing factories saw aircraft assembly workers walk out on Friday (13) in the struggle for better pay and benefits.