TGWU

Starting July 30 a succession of 24hr strikes every week will affect airports across the Highlands and Islands from the largest in Inverness, which is expected to deal with several thousand holiday-makers and travellers at its most busiest time, to smaller airports in "Barra, Benbecula, Campbeltown, Islay, Kirkwall, Stornoway, Sumburgh, Tiree and Wick".

The strikes at Llangefni are part of a long-running dispute over pay, pensions and casualisation, previously reported by libcom in October, March and April

A second strike in the dispute at the Tesco distribution depot at Livingston near Edinburgh over changes to job contracts and union representation has been suspended after management offered to open talks with the T&G section of Unite - the union.

The Transport and General Workers' Union (T&G) say 150 drivers are to join the 24-hour strike next Tuesday. Tesco have strongly denied claims that drivers based in Livingston had been threatened with job losses if they did not sign a new contract. A Tesco spokesman has accused the union of "following their own agenda".

The 40 female employees at Sunvic Controls in Uddingston walked out after 14 months of talks on pay and new employment conditions collapsed. Union officials said the company wanted to implement periodic lay-offs and short-time working when demand was low. The T&G Scotland section of Unite welcomed the resolution brokered with the help of conciliation service Acas.

Tony Trench, T&G section of Unite regional industrial organiser, said in spite of the 'Fort Wapping' style security clampdown it was clear all was not well.

The strike will be about half the number of workers who originally voted to strike and a week late, as reported by libcom two weeks ago, this is due to the T&G entering negotiations at several sites across the UK.

Around 2,000 workers will be involved in the strike at plants across the UK including Perthshire, Edinburgh, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, Essex, Somerset and Wales. 24-hour strikes were also held at sites in Sandycroft, Flintshire (site of the recent airbus wildcats), and Llangefni in October over the same issue.

Almost 250 bus drivers are ready to strike from 4.30am on Monday after a ballot showed 81% were in favour of taking strike action.

Norwich Evening News reported: Members of the Transport and General Workers Union said they had resorted to the action because of a row over their pay increase for last year.

Airlines Flybe and Aurigny were affected by the disruption as flights were grounded for an hour.

Thisisguernsey.com reported on the anger of airport bosses that the surprise action provoked, although for the workers the action rapidly achieved its goals.

Their article stated: AIRPORT security staff who went on strike yesterday have been accused of holding passengers to ransom.

Marathon talks between BA and the T&G had been going on to try to avert the stoppages on Tuesday and Wednesday. BA executives and union leaders said an agreement had been reached on the key issues of pay, pensions and the management of sickness absence. BA will now attempt to reinstate as many flights as possible. Two potential 72-hour strikes earmarked for February have also been called off.

The factors that provoked the widespread stoppage of work by thousands of British workers in the winter of 1978-79 began with the Labour government of James Callaghan's attempt to enforce limits on pay rises to curb inflation. Inflation had reached a height of nearly 26.9% in August 1975.

Article from the London Evening Standard 22nd February 1990 about the libertarian direct action union the Despatch Industry Workers Union and the reasons behind recent organising attempts of messengers and couriers in the capital.

In 1985 the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU), then Britain’s biggest union, had a recruitment drive in the courier industry. They succeeded in getting a few members at Hand and Deliver Despatch, but the couriers and the union big-wigs soon fell out, so that was the end of that.

Written by Des Patchrider, this pamphlet was printed and is available for sale from the Kate Sharpley Library. Our thanks go to the KSL and the author for permission to host this text online.

The workers are formally emplyed by DHL, but any pay increases have to be first authorised by Iceland according to the T&G union. The depot, which employs 250 warehouse operatives and 115 drivers supplies food to 180 Iceland stores in London, the South East and East Anglia. The T&G expects the strike to affect stocks in Iceland stores during the run up to Christmas.

Pickets have been out at the Metroline garages and depots since 4.00am this morning with early reports saying the strike has had solid support. Jim Buckley, T&G regional industrial organiser, said the mood was generally upbeat as drivers and engineers came out for the first strike on any London bus service for seven years.

The Transport and General Workers Union today confirmed that last minute talks with Metroline bosses had failed to put more money on the table so the action affecting routes between north and central London will go ahead.

This is the summary of a collectively revised discussion paper including fact briefing on the Crewe Polish migrant worker scandal and its possible solution, written by Martin Kraemer after helping out in translating between Crewe unionists and Polish migrant workers, June 2005

The workers at the Grampian Country Food Group are demanding a pay increase in line with other Grampian employees across the country. The strikes have been held in Sandycroft, Flintshire and Llangefni, Anglesey.