THOUSANDS of trade unionists – including members of Unite, the GMB and the CWU postal workers’ union – will demonstrate in Manchester today at the Labour Party conference.
Millions of union members are angry at PM Brown’s determination to march hand in hand with President Bush in bailing out the bankers, and sacking tens of thousands of workers.
Unite says its members in the public sector will be marching in Manchester ‘against breadline pay’.
The march will assemble at Castlefields, Liverpool Road, at 11.30 this morning and finish outside the Labour Party Conference at Barbirolli Square.
Unite said yesterday that the march was part of the union’s ‘continued fight to improve the 2.5 per cent below-inflation pay deal from their employers.’
The Brown government is insisting that public sector workers must accept pay cuts to keep capitalism going.
Unite said: ‘Members from across the public sector, including low paid hospital staff, social workers and refuse collectors, are staging the protest angry that their pay is being cut to curb inflation, even though experts agree there is no relation between a living wage for public sector workers and rising living costs.’
Derek Simpson, Unite joint general secretary, added: ‘Staff morale in the public sector is at an all-time low.
‘Our members are angry that central government wants poorly paid public sector workers to carry the can for rising inflation.
‘They want their employers to listen to their plea to keep them off the breadline.’
Unite’s co-leader, Tony Woodley, who along with Simpson is a major supporter of the Brown government, said: ‘Government nationally and locally must think again on this.
‘It is simply unacceptable that in the world’s fourth richest economy we should have hundreds of thousands of workers – those who help run our hospitals, care homes and classrooms – scrimping and saving to get by while their employers bank huge savings.’
Unite will call upon the Labour government ‘to intervene in the pay dispute and ensure that all public sector workers receive a decent living wage’.
This is similar to hoping that pigs will fly.
Unite said that:
• The rise in living costs has meant that the average household has had to find an extra £1,537 in 2008, in comparison to 2007, to cover basic costs like food and petrol.
• Mortgage interest costs have risen by 8% in the year to April 2008;
• Energy suppliers have increased tariffs by around 15% in recent months, and
• Petrol costs have risen by 18% and public transport fares by 4.5%.
* Food costs have risen by an average of almost 7%, with many staples increasing by a higher figure (milk 13.5%, eggs 33% and bread 13%).
The Royal Mail workers’ union, the CWU, will also join today’s demonstration.
Royal Mail chairman Allan Leighton is going, and a new man is being brought in to push through the contents of the Hooper Report, which is widely expected to recommend the privatisation of the Post Office, when it is published next month.
Among those contenders to replace Leighton are Philip Hampton, chairman of Sainsbury’s, and industrialist John Parker.
The CWU said its members would protest against the ‘drastic changes and closures in the postal industry’.
Billy Hayes, CWU general secretary, said: ‘There are huge changes taking place in the mail industry which are damaging jobs and services.
‘Royal Mail’s plans to close large numbers of mail centres and ongoing post office closures will cause thousands of job losses across the country.’
GMB delegates attending the Labour Party Conference will stage a demonstration today outside Marks & Spencer, 7 Market Street, Manchester, at 9.30am, in a protest over the ‘summary dismissal’ of Tony Goode for revealing details of cuts in redundancy terms for 66,000 M&S workers.
‘The GMB delegates will be protesting against this “corporate bullying’’ and in support of GMB member Tony Goode, who has lodged an internal appeal against his sacking,’ said the union.
The GMB will carry placards saying: ‘Snooping: the new face of M&S’ and ‘M&S, you never know if they are listening’.
Paul Kenny, GMB general secretary, said: ‘This is the first in a series of demonstrations outside M&S stores around the country.’
