We are in a recession, we have a labour goverment so that all strike

Cadbury workers 'vote on strike'

Cadbury's produces some of the UK's best known chocolate bars Cadbury workers begin voting on possible strike action on Saturday, according to the union Unite. Ballot papers consulting on action will begin to arrive at the homes of workers at the UK's best-known chocolate maker, it said. Unite claims that Cadbury is breaking a long-standing pay deal with workers at its Bourneville, Chirk, Marlbrook and Somerdale plants. About 1,300 people work across the sites, the union said. The ballot will run to 18 August, it added. sourced from THE BBC Postal staff set to strike again The union has warned a national strike could take place Industrial action at the Royal Mail is set to escalate with strike action scheduled for three days next week, the BBC has learned. The strike action on 25, 27 and 28 July comes on top of Friday's one-day walkout by 12,000 Royal Mail employees. The escalating action is in defence of workers who, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) say, are being unduly pressured by Royal Mail managers. The Royal Mail has accused the union of standing in the way of modernisation. 'Illogical cuts' Union members in London and other selected regions are to down tools in the dispute over job cuts and working conditions. This could result in no deliveries of mail on Saturday 25 July, and no work at Royal Mail's London distribution centres on 27 and 28 July, says BBC business correspondent Joe Lynam. The CWU has accused Royal Mail managers of trying to "break the union for good" and accused them of "illogical and arbitrary" job cuts. Deputy General Secretary of the CWU, Dave Ward, said his union recognised that the Royal Mail is "facing huge problems" but said that it had a very different view of what modernisation is needed. The vision that Royal Mail has put to workers involves "endless job cuts, hugely damaging cuts to the service and continuous cuts in our members' pay, pensions and conditions," he said. Paul Tolhurst at the Royal Mail countered that with "mail volumes falling and our profits under huge pressure, there is no real opportunity for us to stop [making] the changes." "Particularly," he added, "as these changes we are trying to put in were agreed with [the union] in 2007." Earlier on Friday, about 400 employees marched on Westminster to deliver letters of protest to the Business Secretary Lord Mandelson. Sell off The Royal Mail is suffering from a big drop in demand for letters as more and more people use the internet to communicate. The government announced last month that it was delaying controversial plans to sell a stake in the postal service to a private company. It maintains that the partial sell off of Royal Mail is required as part of measures to tackle the company's finances - in particular a pensions deficit said to be near £8bn. Lord Mandelson has said the company cannot survive without the sale. The Royal Mail employs more than 150,000 people in the UK, most of whom are represented by the CWU. sourced from THE BBC

We are in a recession, we have a labour goverment so that all strike

Cadbury workers 'vote on strike'

Cadbury's produces some of the UK's best known chocolate bars Cadbury workers begin voting on possible strike action on Saturday, according to the union Unite. Ballot papers consulting on action will begin to arrive at the homes of workers at the UK's best-known chocolate maker, it said. Unite claims that Cadbury is breaking a long-standing pay deal with workers at its Bourneville, Chirk, Marlbrook and Somerdale plants. About 1,300 people work across the sites, the union said. The ballot will run to 18 August, it added. sourced from THE BBC Postal staff set to strike again The union has warned a national strike could take place Industrial action at the Royal Mail is set to escalate with strike action scheduled for three days next week, the BBC has learned. The strike action on 25, 27 and 28 July comes on top of Friday's one-day walkout by 12,000 Royal Mail employees. The escalating action is in defence of workers who, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) say, are being unduly pressured by Royal Mail managers. The Royal Mail has accused the union of standing in the way of modernisation. 'Illogical cuts' Union members in London and other selected regions are to down tools in the dispute over job cuts and working conditions. This could result in no deliveries of mail on Saturday 25 July, and no work at Royal Mail's London distribution centres on 27 and 28 July, says BBC business correspondent Joe Lynam. The CWU has accused Royal Mail managers of trying to "break the union for good" and accused them of "illogical and arbitrary" job cuts. Deputy General Secretary of the CWU, Dave Ward, said his union recognised that the Royal Mail is "facing huge problems" but said that it had a very different view of what modernisation is needed. The vision that Royal Mail has put to workers involves "endless job cuts, hugely damaging cuts to the service and continuous cuts in our members' pay, pensions and conditions," he said. Paul Tolhurst at the Royal Mail countered that with "mail volumes falling and our profits under huge pressure, there is no real opportunity for us to stop [making] the changes." "Particularly," he added, "as these changes we are trying to put in were agreed with [the union] in 2007." Earlier on Friday, about 400 employees marched on Westminster to deliver letters of protest to the Business Secretary Lord Mandelson. Sell off The Royal Mail is suffering from a big drop in demand for letters as more and more people use the internet to communicate. The government announced last month that it was delaying controversial plans to sell a stake in the postal service to a private company. It maintains that the partial sell off of Royal Mail is required as part of measures to tackle the company's finances - in particular a pensions deficit said to be near £8bn. Lord Mandelson has said the company cannot survive without the sale. The Royal Mail employs more than 150,000 people in the UK, most of whom are represented by the CWU. sourced from THE BBC

British jobs for British workers

Deal hope in foreign workers row

Workers say the action is not racist, but about discrimination against Britons

A possible deal to end the row over the use of foreign labour at Lincolnshire's Lindsey Oil Refinery will be put to local union leaders and workers later.

The proposal emerged after talks chaired by Acas.

A GMB union source told the BBC the deal could see half of the disputed 200 jobs offered to British workers, but the Unite leader has denied this.

Hope that new 'half-and-half' deal in foreign workers row could end wildcat strikes

A proposed deal that could end the bitter row over foreign workers at an oil refinery will be put to unions today.

Marathon talks aimed at ending a series of wildcat strikes at Lindsey plant in Lincolnshire ended last night with the outline of a possible deal.

Union sources said it involved offering half the jobs of the disputed recruitment contract to UK workers.

Downturn will bring big fall in migrant workers, says CBI

Companies facing decline in demand for goods and services will reduce their use of agency staff, MPs are told

The use of migrant labour in Britain will decline abruptly as companies face a sharp fall in demand for their goods and services, the Confederation of British Industry told MPs yesterday. John Cridland, the CBI's deputy director general, told the Commons home affairs committee that the first response of many firms to the downturn was to reduce their dependency on agency staff, many of whom are migrant workers.

He said that there was evidence that many nationals of new EU states were going home as unemployment rose in Britain and suggested that the flow of skilled migrants from outside Europe would also decline. He added: "I expect that, when we have the next report from the [Home Office's] migration advisory committee on the needs for skilled labour, we will not see the same need for non-EU labour in the same numbers because of the need to provide as many employment opportunities as possible for the unemployed. All I'm suggesting is that the market will correct itself, but what we cannot avoid is a significant increase in unemployment, which is a sad but inevitable consequence of recession."

read full articles Click here

British jobs for British workers

Deal hope in foreign workers row

Workers say the action is not racist, but about discrimination against Britons

A possible deal to end the row over the use of foreign labour at Lincolnshire's Lindsey Oil Refinery will be put to local union leaders and workers later.

The proposal emerged after talks chaired by Acas.

A GMB union source told the BBC the deal could see half of the disputed 200 jobs offered to British workers, but the Unite leader has denied this.

Hope that new 'half-and-half' deal in foreign workers row could end wildcat strikes

A proposed deal that could end the bitter row over foreign workers at an oil refinery will be put to unions today.

Marathon talks aimed at ending a series of wildcat strikes at Lindsey plant in Lincolnshire ended last night with the outline of a possible deal.

Union sources said it involved offering half the jobs of the disputed recruitment contract to UK workers.

Downturn will bring big fall in migrant workers, says CBI

Companies facing decline in demand for goods and services will reduce their use of agency staff, MPs are told

The use of migrant labour in Britain will decline abruptly as companies face a sharp fall in demand for their goods and services, the Confederation of British Industry told MPs yesterday. John Cridland, the CBI's deputy director general, told the Commons home affairs committee that the first response of many firms to the downturn was to reduce their dependency on agency staff, many of whom are migrant workers.

He said that there was evidence that many nationals of new EU states were going home as unemployment rose in Britain and suggested that the flow of skilled migrants from outside Europe would also decline. He added: "I expect that, when we have the next report from the [Home Office's] migration advisory committee on the needs for skilled labour, we will not see the same need for non-EU labour in the same numbers because of the need to provide as many employment opportunities as possible for the unemployed. All I'm suggesting is that the market will correct itself, but what we cannot avoid is a significant increase in unemployment, which is a sad but inevitable consequence of recession."

read full articles Click here