The RMT are very close to completing its ballot matrix for all protection staff that work on London Underground Contracts for Morsons and Cleashars.
This has been a lengthy and complex matter, but it is important to get it right.
The companies affected should be notified by your union that their level of pay is unacceptable to our members and that we intend to fight for an increase.
Ballot papers will follow within the next few weeks and we will keep you udated
LUL have announced a new wave of job losses as our mayor implements both the government austerity measures, along side his own cuts agenda.
However, these cuts are now starting to occur within operational areas and also include areas that have already been cut before, for example:
Asset Performance Control Centre (APCC) and Duty Operation Manager Engineering (DOM(e)) was reorganised less than 2 years ago. That reorganisation in the APCC and DOM(E) area saw over a 17% cut in staff and that lead to increased pressures and workload for the remaining staff. Despite assurances that to the contrary, we now find that they are being attacked again. It is obviously that if you give so much as an inch then the company will take a mile. The DOM(E) and their counterparts on JNP, will go from 20 staff to 7 staff, again being unworkable and will effect the lives of those left in these roles
In the Fault Report Centers, LUL want to lower the number of operators on both from 50 staff to 28 operators and 7 team leaders despite the fact that staff there are struggling with their current workload. The RMT do not accept that this is safe and we believe will effect our members health and well-being and workload balance.
And no surprise bu tno senior manager is losing their job!
It is obvious that the company want us to pay for their cuts with our jobs and we say NO!
Breach of agreements
RMT have taken the serious decision to refuse to enter into talks and have entered into dispute instead. This is because LUL are refusing to acknowledge the processes and agreements that you Union negotiated for us all to protect us and protect our jobs.
Jobs for life deal.
The below agreement was reached with LUL prior to privatisation of the Engineering Functions and is contractual. They cannot make anyone compulsory redundant and have to show, very importantly, that a job loss is SAFE. There is no point in talks if they refuse to follow these agreements and insist on sham talks without FULL and THOROUGH discussions with our health and safety reps prior to any further discussions. That does not mean us going cap in hand to LUL and saying this is wrong, but working together to identify all the risks and making sure it is correct. We fail to understand why LUL are refusing to cooperate with us on this matter unless they intend to to force these changes through.
Jobs for Life Deal click here>>
If it is not safe, then there is nothing to accept.
Negotiation and NOT consultation.
The below agreement is also contractual and LUL are refusing to acknowledge and follow its principles for these talks. This is the precedent that will be used to beat us ALL up with and is not acceptable.
Negotiation means we talk, we agree and we work together. Consultation means they told us now off we go like good little children. We will defend our agreements and we will not accept them telling us anything especially when it comes to people’s livelihoods.
Code of Practice PPP click here>>
LUL need to come to the table and start talking seriously with your union and honour our agreements and we intend to ballot our members to ensure this occurs
Reminder that if any RMT members wish to come and celebrate the life of Bob Crow, there is a memorial event on the 8th June from 19:00 at Millwall Football Club
for more details please see below.
It is vitally important that members keep their contact and work details up to date with the RMT.
This is so that we can keep you updated and if need be, have the details that we need to ballot you, ie correct job title, work location and company.
You can update your details via the rmt website
or talk to your local rep or email your secretary at
LUEngineering@rmt.org.uk
TFL/LUL TRANSFORMATION
Further to my letter of 15th April 2019 you will know that TfL/LUL is undergoing a process called ‘Transformation’ which aims to cut costs and make savings by making job cuts. LUL has recently announced a further raft of job losses affecting members in Track Access Control, Power Control, Service Control, LUCC, Skills Development, Waste, Pumps, Stations Buildings & Civils and Signals Incidents.
RMT is of course opposed to the whole Transformation process and I immediately wrote to the Company to demand that section 6.1.1. of the Main Framework Agreement is adhered to. This states that any changes in relation to staffing levels will only be carried out following full consultation and negotiation with the trades unions. This has not been the case so far as no negotiation has taken place and no safety review or validation has been provided.
The Company were informed that we are in dispute over its failure to follow the correct procedures and failure to adhere to our agreements while pushing ahead with job losses affecting RMT members. All RMT Reps were also been advised not to attend or take part in any briefings or discussions regarding this matter until further notice.
We have now had sight of an LU Skills Development Change Update Bulletin sent to staff where appallingly the company has gone ahead and opened up a Voluntary Severance Scheme despite our request for proper negotiations and in the full knowledge that a dispute situation exists between us. We have demanded that this notice is withdrawn immediately and that this completely unacceptable trawl for Voluntary redundancies is stopped. We will not tolerate management riding roughshod over our agreements and trying to bulldoze through such a major transformation, which will have a devastating effect on jobs, without proper consultation and negotiation with RMT.
I will of course keep you updated with all further developments.
Yours sincerely,
Mick Cash
General Secretary
TUC Congress
Last week, John McDonnell announced that a public inquiry into blacklisting would form part of the first Queen’s Speech for an incoming Labour Government.
More from the TUC Congress
Righting working class miscarriages of Justice:
Working class miscarriages of justice: Ensuring they never happen again chaired by Unite assistant general secretary Howard Beckett. Speakers include: Sheila Coleman from the Hillsborough Justice Campaign, Chris Peace from Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign, Dave Smith from the Blacklist Support Campaign, Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance (COPS) and Terry Renshaw from Shrewsbury Picket.
https://www.unitelegalservices.org/news-stories/unite-at-tuc-congress-2018
Major Morning Star Article at TUC congress on the need for a radical manifesto for employment rights – including a public inquiry into blacklisting. Lee Fowler representing.
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/rolling-out-manifesto-labour-law
http://unitelive.org/bill-parry-tuc-blacklisting/
Spycops
Great article in the Daily Mirror on the Spycops inquiry
Good luck to Kate Wilson in court on 3rd October exposing the human rights abuses of the undercover police officer Mark Kennedy
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/political-undercover-policing-and-our-human-rights-tickets-50409683721
Major report published by Big Brother watch UK with article on blacklisting by Phil Chamberlain. John Bryan representing at the launch party.
https://bigbrotherwatch.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/The-State-of-Surveillance-in-2018.pdf
Labour Party Conference
Kier are to build the new Durham County Council HQ. The 2 contractors bidding for Manchester City Council’s historic Town Hall renovation are Laing O’Rourke & Lendlease. Why can’t some Labour councillors understand the policy: No Public Contracts for Blacklist firms?
Roy Bentham will represent the Blacklist Support Group at this session at the parallel The World Transformed conference to the Labour Party’s.
https://theworldtransformed.org/sessions/class-justice
Haldane Fringe meeting 6pm, Monday 24th Sept – The miners strike and undercover policing (flyer attached)
Tackling the Housing Crisis meeting – Unite the Union Holborn – 6pm Thursday 27th September. Speakers include: John McDonnell MP and blacklisted safety campaigner Tony O’Brien, whose book, ‘Tackling the Housing Crisis’, was published in July
Carillon
BSG demonstrated at Royal Liverpool Hospital project when exposing Carillion back in 2015. There’s a public meeting over the embarrassing predicament the long from complete Hospital now finds itself. Roy Bentham will speak on behalf of the Blacklist Support Group.
https://www.pcs.org.uk/events/public-meeting-whats-going-on-at-the-royal-liverpool-hospital
An independent review is being carried out into the impact of policing on affected communities in Scotland during the 1984 to 1985 miners’ strike.
https://beta.gov.scot/publications/policing-during-miners-strike-consultation-paper/
Launch of a major new oral history archive from post war construction workers covering building the new towns, the Southbank and the Barbican. Many blacklisted workers took part in the project. Prof. Linda Clarke (long time friend of the BSG) is the curator and project leader.
10th October @ Bishopsgate Centre
BBC story – Suicide risk for construction workers is 3 times the male average. One of the main reasons is precarious work. Top work Simon Pantry for representing.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/health-45363740/high-suicide-risk-for-men-in-construction?SThisFB
No toilets? Seriously? Crossrail is a multi-billion pound publicly funded project. But watch out if you complain about it – Skanska & Costain have form on blacklisting workers who speak up about their safety concerns.
Gary Doolan R.I.P.
Blacklist Support Group send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Gary Doolan, National Political Officer for GMB who has passed away. Gary always fought our corner; standing with us on pickets, protests and at the High Court. Gary also got us private meetings in parliament which led to the Labour manifesto pledging a public inquiry into blacklisting (under Ed Milliband). In his role as Labour Councillor in Islington, he took the £16m a year housing maintenance contract away from Kier because of their role in the blacklisting scandal. All the workers were taken back in-house. Islington were the first local authority in the country to publicly take that step. This is what solidarity looks like and what our movement should aspire to.
“There are times when doing the right thing is easy. There was no other way to deal with this, but to send a message loud and very clear to any contractor wishing to bid for work in our borough, in that those contractors who are guilty of blacklisting will be excluded from any tendering for work. Islington is the first local council that’s made this statement. If it’s right for one council to stand up for workers, it’s good enough for all the others to take the same stance. Perhaps that way blacklisting will finally be eradicated”. Gary Doolan R.I.P.
New Inflation rates for year to March 2019
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) have published inflation rates for the year to February 2019. The Retail Prices Index (RPI) was 2.4%, down 0.1% on the year to February 2019. The alternative measures of CPI and CPIH were 1.9% (unchanged) and 1.8% (unchanged) respectively.
Your union’s policy is to use the RPI rate for all pay negotiations. Should an employer attempt to use alternative inflation measures during pay talks, please inform the National Policy department as soon as possible.
I would be grateful if you could bring the content of this circular to the attention of all members in your Branch.
Yours sincerely
Mick Cash
The Bob Crow Branch overwhelmingly backed Sean Hoyle for General Secretary tonight at our branch meeting.
Both Sean and Mick Cash spoke well and were a credit to our union, but ultimately, it was Sean’s passion and vision for the future that won the vote.
Sean stated
To learn more see below
