Now -read the book!

Here is a link to my memoirs which, if you are a glutton for punishment, you can purchase online at https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/an-obscure-footnote-in-trade-union-history.
Men fight and lose the battle, and the thing that they fought for comes about in spite of their defeat, and when it comes turns out not to be what they meant, and other men have to fight for what they meant under another name. (William Morris - A Dream of John Ball)

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Getting ready for the fight of our lives

Whatever shade of reactionary opinion dominates the next Government we can anticipate that the attack upon the trade union movement which has already commenced will intensify before, during and after the General Election campaign.

As the CWU are forced towards national strike action by the calculated intransigence of a deliberately offensive management, UNISON members in London local government are already witness to attempts by Tory Councils to marginalise and hobble our trade unions.

As well as attacks upon jobs, services and conditions, the coming onslaught will see an intensification of attacks upon trade union activists. This is no coincidence.

Grassroots trade union activism will be the backbone of the resistance to the attacks which are now being made upon the interests of working people. The managers who make themselves (willing or otherwise) tools of these attacks will perceive trade union activists as obstacles to be avoided, isolated or removed.

Therefore we need to step up our support for one another. We need to share information between our branches (across Regions, Service Groups and between different unions) and we need to stand together - without question - in support of fellow activists.

We also need an immediate end to the blatantly political misuses of internal procedures - the luxury of internal squabbling is not something which our members can afford and the playground-icepick politics must cease. If it does not then we must show the same determination to defend activists from victimisation no matter who is doing the victimisation.

There is a gathering storm of acts of individual victimisation coming at activists from the employers and I shall aim to report on these here and encourage solidarity. There are also positive initiatives from the rank and file to strengthen and develop our ability to defend the interests of our members and I will report on those here too.

Class struggle is an old fashioned concept - but since it is now being waged against us we had better rediscover it ourselves.

4 comments:

Brian said...

We think it's fair to say that you our customers are not interested in why we are once again striking.It is also fair to say that some of the problems we are going through does not affect you either. What you are interested in is you getting your mail and whatever mail you send getting there within the allotted time depending on what service was paid for.
But we do think that it is fair to inform you of part of the reason as to why we are striking as it affects you in a big way.
But before we go on let's get one thing out 1st,it's not about a pay rise,far from it,a pay rise if we are to be truthful is in the mix but is not as a high priority as other concerns we have.

Please just take a minute to see what we have to say.
http://www.royalmailchat.co.uk/home.php

Anonymous said...

Ken Clark just announced Tories will privatise wholesale Post Office and in Tory manifesto.

Cameron has said he will crush union militants

As some say no difference between Labour or Tories

Lets ask them at Hammersmith or Barnet

Jon Rogers said...

Of course the Tories are our enemies. We must resist them in any way possible.

At the same time, as a senior local government manager said to me today, whilst the Tories will have a war cabinet to cut public spending within 24 hours of being elected, a Labour Government will take 48 hours to do the same thing.

Therefore our opposition to the Tories must be linked to our desperate attempts to get Labour to adopt policies which are (well) Labour policies...

Anonymous said...

lets see how long it takes the Tories to cut union rep facility time