Category: Political

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Trade Union Bill – Take Action Now

Trade Union Bill – Take Action Now

On Wednesday 27 April, the Trade Union Bill is likely to get its final vote in the House of Commons, when MPs will vote on the final Bill and decide whether or not to accept a series of amendments made by Peers. These changes offer a chance to remove many of the most damaging parts of the Bill – and we need to keep up the pressure.

If approved by the Commons, these amendments would remove the power to restrict the time off that union reps in the public sector are allowed to represent their members, move towards allowing unions to use online voting in strike ballots, and considerably reduce the impact of the new restrictions on union political campaigning.

The Government will no doubt be looking for a repeat of last year’s Commons stages, when they were able to use their majority to overrule a determined and united case made by opposition MPs.

RMT, TUC and the other unions are continuing to oppose this unnecessary and divisive Bill in its entirety. We’re calling on MPs to vote against it in the final debate, as well as backing amendments that would reduce its damage.

Can you write to your MP now, to let them know you’ll be watching how they vote on 27 April? Please use this link: https://secure.goingtowork.org.uk/page/speakout/tell-your-mp-not-to-overrule-lords-amendments-on-trade-union-bill

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As EU imposes rail privatisation – RMT says "vote to Leave"

As EU imposes rail privatisation – RMT says “vote to Leave”

The European Parliament’s decision this week to back the opening up of all rail routes across the EU to more competition for private operators was just one more reason to vote Leave on June 23, transport union RMT said today.

Under the proposals in the EU’s so-called Fourth Railway Package, train operators would have complete access to the networks of member states to operate domestic passenger services.

The European Council had already agreed that mandatory competitive tendering should be the main way of awarding public service contracts.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that the failed Tory privatisation of rail over twenty years ago using EU directive 91/440 was now being imposed on 500 million people by EU diktat without a mandate.

“This rail package is designed to privatise railways across Europe and its proposals are remarkably similar to the McNulty report on the future of GB railways, imposing further fragmentation and attacks on workers.

“McNulty, the Tory government and the EU share the business-led mania for privatisation and agree on the need to jack up fares and attack jobs, pay and pensions to pay for it, no-one has voted for that.

“It is impossible to make changes to this privatisation juggernaut inside the undemocratic EU so the only solution is to get out by voting Leave on June 23,” he said.

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RMT SLAMS "TRANSPORT FOR LONDON BILL" MULTI-BILLION POUND RIP OFF BY THE SUPER-RICH

RMT SLAMS “TRANSPORT FOR LONDON BILL” MULTI-BILLION POUND RIP OFF BY THE SUPER-RICH

Tonight, Tuesday 12th April, the Transport for London Bill has its third reading – a Bill which transport union RMT has slammed as a “multi-billion pound rip off tailored yet again to the tax-dodging, global super-rich.”

The Transport for London Bill was introduced into Parliament to help TfL maximise, at all costs, the profits that it makes from developing its property.

Specifically, under clause 5 of the bill, TfL would have been able to enter into novel company structures – including opaque, tax avoiding offshore structures known as “limited partnerships”. Limited partnerships are well-known vehicles for laundering capital and were used recently to defraud the Moldovan Central Bank of millions.

RMT in conjunction with Andy Slaughter MP, John McDonnell MP, and numerous other labour MPs and the Save Earls Court Campaign combined together to petition against the Bill and try to prevent the most ill-conceived aspects of it from becoming law.

As a result of our campaign, TfL finally conceded defeat on clause 5 and abandoned its attempt to acquire the power to enter into limited partnerships. However, it persists with the remainder of the bill.

The union has undertaken further investigation into how TfL was persuaded to engage in the development of the Earls Court site – the model for future TfL development. After an examination of Capco’s (the property developer behind Earls Court construction) annual report, new concerns have arisen.

Specifically, a note in Capco annual report causes us to believe that the TfL Bill still has potential for TfL to give away its assets too cheaply and too riskily. In the case of Earls Court, TfL has already invested nearly £400 million in Earls Court Partnership Limited non-interest bearing loan notes – notes which are not redeemable until 2064 [Note 1].

Under clause 4(2) of the TfL Bill, TfL would be able to permit “charges” to be entered against its property as a way of funding joint property development. To raise finance more cheaply, TfL would be able to mortgage its assets to fund property development activities.

There is a fresh financial crisis brewing – meaning that there is an increased risk of corporate defaults – especially in the over-leveraged property sector. TfL is entering the property development game at precisely the wrong moment and in precisely the wrong way.

RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said:

“The wholesale withdrawal of central government financial support for TfL is forcing it to risk its assets in complex property gambles no matter how dodgy and no matter what the real cost to Londoners.”

“The construction firms with which TfL plans to engage, are running rings around TfL, helping the hapless organisation offload its prime London assets at well below the market rate.

“We have no confidence in TfL to be able to secure a fair price for its land – and our concerns are borne out by its dreadful governance failures in relation to the development of Earls Court.”

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TRADE UNION BILL – CHECK OFF PROPOSALS

TRADE UNION BILL – CHECK OFF PROPOSALS

 The Trade Union Bill has continued its passage through Parliament and was progressed to the Report Stage on 16th March 2016.

As you are aware, the Bill is a draconian piece of legislation which threatens the basic right to strike, in addition to placing massive burdens of various types on the trade union movement.

One aspect of the Bill is an attack on check-off (also known as ‘paybill’), or the deduction of union subscriptions from wages, in the public sector. Public sector employers are defined as follows:

  1. a)     An employer is a relevant public sector employer if the employer is a public authority specified, or of a description specified, in regulations made by a Minister of the Crown.
  1. b)    A Minister of the Crown may by regulations provide, in relation to a body or other person that is not a public authority but has functions of a public nature and is funded wholly or partly from public funds, that the body or other person is to be treated as a public authority for the purposes of this section.

This means that Tory ministers can force companies to withdraw paybill deductions from our members who currently pay their Union subscriptions by that means.

The Union has identified that we have members paying their subscriptions via check-off in Network Rail, TOC’s and Bus companies.  We have sought legal advice but the Executive Committee believes that we should encourage our members to transfer to direct debit to thwart the government’s blatant attack on our Union.

The matter was placed before the National Executive Committee at the March Statutory Meeting. The following report from the Organisation, Training and Education Sub-Committee was adopted by the National Executive Committee:

“That we instruct the General Secretary to initiate a campaign to encourage all members on paybill deductions to transfer to Direct Debit.”

As part of this campaign, it has been identified that there is a body of administrative work that will be required which will need to be overseen and project managed. Dave Jones, our Regional Administration Manager from Birmingham, has been temporarily seconded to this project to coordinate our efforts until its eventual conclusion. I have therefore made arrangements for the Midlands Regional Office to be covered during Dave’s secondment.

Over the coming weeks we shall be contacting members affected to ask that they transfer to Direct Debit and would encourage members, representatives, branches and regional councils to support our efforts to get a maximum sign up for Direct Debit

I shall be writing again with further details.

Yours sincerely

 

 

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PM, the Mayor and being Open

When it comes to disclosures about people’s salaries that work for TFL and other public bodies, it seems Boris and his mate, Dave are more than happy that the public has a right to know. They believe in accountability and openness apparently. It is not a private matter, its a public one

However, when the PM appears to tell ‘porkies’ about overseas accounts, it is a different story and it took a week for him to reveal the full facts regarding his £30,000 account. Nice gift too from his mum of £200,000.

We all pay our taxes because we have to and because ultimately that money is used for the essential services that we need. There is no morality when our so called ruling classes are telling us we have to cut, telling us we are all in it together, taking our NHS and everything and right we have away from us, whilst at the same time they ‘avoid’ paying their tax and playing their part.

In their view, us underlings pay our share and we should pay their share too. We are not in it together, we are in it alone and they are in it up to their snouts.  As Jeremy Corbyn  has said “this is money that’s taken from our health services, our local services.”

So next time Dave and Boris is talking about how much a tube driver earns, perhaps they should remember that at least they pay all their taxes, unlike many of the country’s rich

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Paris Demonstration against Anti-Labour Laws

The LUEngineering branch sends solidarity to the 15,000 Workers and Students that have been and continue to demonstrate in Paris and across France against proposed Labour Laws.

The fight against austerity is seldom reported by the ‘free’ press owned by the mega rich such as Murdock. I cannot think why they would not find workers in struggle a news worthy item unless acceptance of them taking what we have is their agenda. Even the BBC reported more on who won the ‘Voice’ than the this story

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RMT SETS OUT SIX KEY REASONS FOR LEAVING THE EU

TRANSPORT UNION RMT SETS OUT SIX KEY REASONS FOR LEAVING THE EU

TRANSPORT UNION RMT today set out six key reasons why it will be advising members to vote to the leave the EU in the forthcoming referendum:

 

  1. Leave the EU to end attacks on rail workers

New EU rail policies are set to further entrench rail privatisation and fragmentation. That will also mean more attacks or jobs and conditions and EU laws will make it impossible to bring all of rail back into public ownership.

 

  1. Leave the EU to end attacks on seafarers and the offshore workers

The EU has promoted undercutting and social dumping leading to the decimation of UK seafarers. The same is now happening in the offshore sector. EU directives also require the tendering our public ferry services.

 

  1. Leave the EU to end attacks on workers’ rights

It’s a myth that the EU is in favour of workers. In fact the EU is developing a new policy framework to attack trade union rights, collective bargaining, job protections and wages. This is already being enforced in countries which have received EU “bailouts”.

 

  1. Leave the EU to end Austerity

If you join a union you expect members of the union to protect each other in times of trouble. The European Union has done the opposite. It has used the economic crisis to impose austerity and privatization on member states. Instead of protecting jobs and investment EU austerity is driving UK austerity.

 

  1. Leave the EU to stop the attack on our NHS

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) trade agreement being negotiated between the EU and the United States will promote big business at the expense government protections and organisations including our NHS! Environmental regulations, employment rights, food safety, privacy laws and many other safeguards will also be secondary to the right of corporations to make even bigger profits.

 

  1. Leave the EU to support democracy

The vast majority of the laws that affects our lives are now made in the EU and not the UK. We have no say over those Laws. As the late Tony Benn said in 1991…

 

“We are discussing whether the British people are to be allowed to elect those who make the laws under which they are governed. The argument is nothing to do with whether we should get more maternity leave from Madame Papandreou [a European Commissioner].”

RMT will be promoting the six key points direct to members across all sectors of the transport industry through the union’s RMT NEWS, through branches and reps and through the union’s social media platforms.

RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said:

“RMT is proud to stand up for the tradition of progressive and socialist opposition to the European Union, an organisation wedded to privatisation, austerity and attacking democracy.

“It would be frankly ludicrous for a union like ours to support staying in a bosses club that seeks to ban the public ownership of our railways, attacks the shipping and offshore sectors and embraces the privatisation of the NHS and other essential services that our members depend on.

“RMT has set out the six core reasons for our members to vote to leave and we will be campaigning hard on this platform.”

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GOLDMSITH'S ATTACK ON LUL WORKERS’ TRAVEL CONCESSIONS

RMT HITS BACK AT TORY MULTI-MILLIONAIRE GOLDMSITH’S ATTACK ON LONDON TRANSPORT WORKERS’ TRAVEL CONCESSIONS

RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said:

“At a time when the multi-billion pound tax-dodging racket of the super-rich is all over the media it is disgusting that Tory multi-millionaire Zac Goldsmith is threatening the long-established travel concessions for hard-working London transport workers.

“Not only are the hereditary multi-millionaire Goldsmith’s figures a total joke but the fact is that if London needs more investment in transport and policing it should come from the gangsters, crooks and tax-dodgers who use this City as a dumping ground for their dirty money.”

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Save our Steel

RMT CALLS ON GOVERNMENT AND NETWORK RAIL TO SPEED UP RAIL RENEWALS WORK TO EASE PRESSURE ON UK STEEL INDUSTRY

 

RAIL UNION RMT today called on the Government and Network Rail to work up an urgent plan to bring forward rail renewals work to help ease the pressure on the UK steel industry.

 

Rail infrastructure projects are an area where the Government, working with the publicly owned Network Rail, can make an immediate and decisive intervention in support of UK steel and there is no shortage of renewals work backlogged throughout the system. Renewals has been one area systematically hit by Government attacks on the NR budget through its agents the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR).

 

Meanwhile, new RMT research shows that the spend by NR with TATA steel is actually in decline – just at the point when UK steel is under the most pressure.

 

In the financial year, 2014-15, Tata Steel UK Ltd supplied Network Rail with £98,022,077 worth of goods (accounting for 1.3% of Network Rail’s spend).

 

This has fallen by 14.6%, (from £114,865,267 or 2.1% of spend) in the year 2012-13.

RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said:

“Britain’s rail infrastructure is under massive pressure and is creaking under passenger demand and it would be a win-double for the British tax-payer to see the bringing forward of rail renewals work benefitting UK steel at this pivotal time for the industry.

“There is no excuse for the Government dragging its heels as they control the publicly-owned Network Rail and could intervene right now to make a decisive move that would have huge long-term benefits for the twin industries of rail and steel.

“RMT is deeply concerned that the NR spend with Tata Steel has tailed off and that needs to be addressed urgently and decisively by Government ministers from all departments involved.”

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Trade Union Bill – TUCG demonstration – 16 March

Trade Union Bill – TUCG demonstration – 16 March

 

The Report Stage of the Trade Union Bill will be taking place on Wednesday 16th March in the House of Lords.

The Trade Union Coordinating Group will host another ‘after work’ demo to ensure the Bill does not pass without protest. This will take place at Old Palace Yard at 18.00.

RMT Senior Assistant General Secretary, Steve Hedley will be speaking along with representatives of other TUCG unions.

Please make every effort to attend this important demonstration and encourage others to participate.

 

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Devolution of inner suburban rail passenger services to TfL

Dear Colleague

Devolution of inner suburban rail passenger services to Transport for London

The Government are consulting on the devolution of inner suburban mainline rail passenger services to Transport for London with a key proposal being that the responsibility for franchising certain rail services transfers from the Department for Transport to Transport for London.

The consultation document is entitled “A new approach to rail passenger services in London and the South East” and can be found at:

 https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/rail-passenger-services-in-london-and-the-south-east-a-new-approach

The Government consultation closes on 18th March 2016 and National Executive Committee are seeking the views of effected Branches and Regional Councils.  Views are sought obviously in the context that it is the union’s clear and unambiguous policy to support renationalisation of the railways.

I would be grateful for your views no later than Monday 7th March 2016.

Yours sincerely

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London Mayoral Election

London Mayoral Election

 The National Executive Committee has received a Branch request to support the Labour Party Candidate Sadiq Khan for London Mayor.

The National Executive are seeking the views of Branches and Regional Councils in the London Mayoral area and views are sought no later than Thursday 24 March 2016.

 Yours sincerely

Mick Cash

General Secretary

 

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