Please support the tube strikes

Thousands of London Underground workers are taking part in a 48-hour strike over proposed cuts which include closing every Tube ticket office in London. Members of the RMT and TSSA unions walked out on Tuesday and will stay out until 9pm on Thursday 6th February in the first of two 48-hour stoppages. Under the proposals being put forward by London mayor Boris Johnson and Transport for London (TfL) hundreds of station staff jobs would be lost and supervisors would be moved from stations. TfL claims the plans are needed to save £50 million a year. The London Chamber of Commerce and Industry estimate each strike could cost the London economy £50 million a day. Workers have already been taking action with an overtime ban in place since last month which has led to some station closures. From Friday union members are set to start a 'revenue strike' which should allow free travel between certain times on certain days. The second 48-hour stoppage is due to take place from 9pm on Tuesday 11th Feburary to the same time on Thursday 13th February. Picket lines Workers are asking members of the public to support their picket lines and are expecting supporters from groups fighting austerity, such as Disabled People Against the Cuts and Occupy, to attend. Please visit this website below http://www.rmtlondoncalling.org.uk/node/4830 To find out where picket lines will be and to pop down and lend your support. During the next few days where we will see some rough stormy weather why not warm a tube worker up by popping along to the picket lines and offering solidarity. This is sure to be a long drawn out bitter dispute with Boris Johnson looking to try and smash the unions. Don’t let him these are attacks against our class we must stand up and show solidarity with our brothers and sisters who work on the tube day in day out and provide the safety in their assistance they give us. As a disabled person I am hugely appreciative of the kind support and assistance I can access when travelling the tube and this allows me to access the capital and travel independently. Do not allow Boris his moment in the sun. Solidarity and victory to all tube workers.

Solidarity with striking Aslef tube drivers

Firstly merry Christmas to all who read this blog hope you all had a peaceful and restful Christmas. Mine was not great had a rotten cold all day just starting to feel better now. But enough about me today I’d like to send solidarity to striking Aslef tube drivers who are taking strike action today on Boxing Day over a long term dispute which they have been fighting with the boss’s of TFL for ages now. The bile some have been throwing at these workers today has been saddening selfish football fans who cant get to watch Arsenal West ham as they bottled the game and called it off forgetting there is still taxi’s, bus’s and overground rail pretty pathetic really and then there are those going to the sales. Such anger from them too how dare these workers go on strike don’t they know how much of a mess we’re in without going on strike too they tell me. Others tell me how inconvenienced they are and how much hassle these greedy drivers are causing. So greedy drivers is the nub of the issue it seems. Pushing aside the huge salaries the boss’s get into the 100’s of thousands a year plus expenses this miss’s many by. But tube fares go up in January will ordinary tube drivers see this increase put towards their pay? Like hell they will It is a interesting thing that many people would ratehrmoan about tube drivers taking strike action more so than the rising fares which happens every day and yet they still get on with the train system and don’t boycott the tubes at al. It’s an odd sense of workers lack of confidence and a huge lack of solidarity with our fellow workers which ultimately saddens me so often. This is not about greedy drivers this simply wants a decent level of pay for leaving your family at home to work. My view is if they boss’s want a tube service to run they should pay their staff a proper wage to do a job when they’d otherwise be at home enjoying Christmas like the rest of us. Its sheer ignorance to attack tube drivers as greedy when bankers and the likes of the Queen come in for no attacks at all. Tube drivers are skilled workers and go through huge amounts of training before even stepping inside a train and these people who want driver less trains well no thanks I may be a bit old fashioned but I’d rather like someone who knows what they are doing caring about their job and being paid well than a robot with no mind of its own driving the train I’m on. I always support workers entering into struggle as they are standing up for our class against the boss am who else is going to? Solidarity with Aslef workers defends them when you can and remember an injury to one is an injury to us all. Merry Christmas and a happy new year.

Solidarity with London bus workers taking strike action today

From 3.00 BST today many of London’s bus workers on many of the major routes in and around London will be taking industrial action for the first tiem in many years. This is all over the failure of TFL and the bus companies to agree a Olympic bonus for the bus workers. Unite the union who is the major union in the London bus workers will be supporting its members across the capital today. I will be lending my supporta and solidarity with the workers who deserve a decent bonus for being made to work harder and longer hours during the Olympic games.
Bus workers from 17 companies will go-ahead with a 24-hour strike in London despite an injunction, a union said.
The Arriva, Metroline and Go Ahead firms applied for the court injunction, which was granted, and their workers have been told not to strike on Friday.
But union members at the other firms plan to walk out in a row over a £500 bonus for working during the Olympics.

Unite had called for the bonus to be paid to its20,000 members, in line with extra pay deals agreed with train companies.


The failure by the bus companies to negotiate seriously and their desire to run to the courts will only heighten tensions”
End Quote Peter Kavanagh Unite
The three companies who went to court account for 15-20% of London's bus routes, providing services in north-west and south London.

Unite's regional secretary for London, Peter Kavanagh, said: "Bus workers across the vast majority of London's bus network will be on strike tomorrow.
"This comes despite an injunction which was given without any proper explanation.
"Granting an injunction in the face of a massive vote for strike action is an affront to democracy. We will appeal [against] this anti-democratic decision."

BUS FIRMS AFFECTED
• London United
• London Sovereign
• Stagecoach East
• Stagecoach Rainham
• Stagecoach Selkent
• Arriva North
• Arriva South
• First Capital
• First Centre West
• London Central
• Abellio West
• Abellio South
• Metrobus
• Docklands
• Blue Triangle
• CT Plus
• Arriva Southern Counties

Talks between the bus operators and the union aimed at halting Friday's planned strike action broke down at the conciliation service Acas earlier.
On Wednesday the mayor announced that the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) had offered £8.3m in a bid to avert action.
Unite said it "cautiously welcomed" the offer. It blamed the failure of the talks at Acas on TfL's and bus operators' refusal to negotiate a meaningful settlement.
The £8.3m is in addition to £91m the ODA gave to TfL to cover the additional costs of running extra services during the Olympics, including bonus pay deals agreed with rail workers.
Deals have been announced giving workers at Heathrow Express £700, Network Rail £500, Docklands Light Railway £900, London Overground £600 and London Underground at least £850, Unite said.
Unite estimates it would cost £14m to provide a £500 bonus for every bus driver.

solidarity with RMT tube drivers who ballot to strike over unfair sackings

TUBE UNION RMT today announced strike dates after members voted by almost two to one for strike action in a ballot of all train operator and instructor operator members in the on-going disputes over the victimisation of union activists including two driver members - Eamon Lynch and Arwyn Thomas - over their trade union activities.

All London Underground train driver members are instructed not to book on for any duty that commences:

•between 21:01 on Monday 16 May and 11:59 on Tuesday 17 May
•between 12:00 on Wednesday 18 May and 11:59 on Thursday 19 May
•between 12:00 on Friday 20 May and 21:00 on Friday 20 May

All London Underground train driver members are further instructed not to book on for any duty that commences:

•between 21:01 on Monday 13 June and 11:59 on Tuesday 14 June
•between 12:00 on Wednesday 15 June and 11:59 on Thursday 16 June
•between 12:00 on Friday 17 June and 21:00 on Friday 17 June

Eamon Lynch, RMT Bakerloo Line drivers’ health and safety rep, has been sacked by LU and although he remains on full pay following the union’s victory on Eamon’s behalf at an “interim relief” Employment Tribunal hearing the company has shown total contempt for the Tribunal process and have upheld his sacking. Interim relief is only ever granted by the Employment Tribunal where there is the clearest possible evidence that an employee has been dismissed on the grounds of their trade union activities. RMT is currently awaiting the outcome of Eamon’s full tribunal hearing.


Arwyn Thomas, a long-standing RMT activist and driver at Morden has been sacked on trumped-up disciplinary charges following unproven allegations made against him by strike breakers. Arwyn has been an RMT/NUR member for over 29 years and has held various positions in the union. Arwyn has also won an interim relief hearing at the Employment Tribunal on the grounds of his victimisation as an RMT activist and has been put back on full pay as a result.


RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said:


“It is the abject failure of LU to recognise that their policy of victimisation of union activists has been well and truly rumbled both in the Employment Tribunal and in their own depots that has left us with no choice but to name these dates for strike action.


“The solution is simple - LU should accept that they have been found out, get these drivers back to work doing the job that they are being paid to do and bring an end to the constant harassment of union activists whose only crime is fighting cuts to jobs and safety.


“The massive vote for action by tube drivers shows that they are well aware of the consequences of allowing our activists and safety reps to be picked off while we hear daily reports of breakdowns and failures on the network as a direct result of the very cuts that our members have been fighting.


“The attack on Eamon Lynch and Arwyn Thomas is the clearest cut case of victimisation on the grounds of trade union activities that you will ever see and it’s no wonder that the Employment Tribunal was swift to see through the management lies and grant both these members “Interim Relief” - an award which requires the strongest possible proof that their sackings were down to their union activities.”



Ends




To me i will always b ack union members wishing to take strike action no matter what as i believe in workers having a way to protect themselves against management and the onslaugh of the capitalist system at its harshest. This strike is not only right but it is fair and i do hope the two workers are reinstated on full pay and compensated for loss of earnings too. The LU think they can bully union members around well they have anotehr thing coming. This sadly is not uncommon in the workplace the victimisation of union members and union reps is something i have blogged about before on this blog and it upsets me to no end. IT just shows that the law is so unfairly balanced against trade unions in this country we barely have a foot to stand on. Its a disgrace and we must show our support and solidarity with these workers. The RMT are one of the best unions for standing up for their members and i think they should be supported not victimised and slandered by the capitalist press.

Are anti smog warnings the future as global capitalism takes hold

As an increasing population and more and more of us driving on the roads with bus's and cars taking to the streets of our great capital i thought i'd look into smog levels and how dangerous they are to us as the capitalist system looks to take a tighter grip on our society by increasing globalisation.

Air pollution in London has hit its highest level since 2003 according to official figures.

Under European Union air quality laws daily pollution levels must not be above the legal limit on more than 35 days in a calendar year.

But air pollution levels in London have already exceeded EU daily limits 36 times this year.

It is the first time that the annual limit has been exceeded by this date since 2003 when there were 50 breaches.

On Wednesday, Marylebone Road in central London exceeded EU limits for the 36th day this year.


The station there records air pollution from tiny sooty particles, known as PM10, which are mainly caused by traffic.

The government has issued a "smog alert" for the Easter weekend for PM10s, which can affect people's health.

Simon Birkett, director of Clean Air in London, said: "We need mayor Johnson and the government to tackle an invisible public health crisis with as many premature deaths attributable to air pollution in London in 2008 as we thought occurred during the Great Smog of 1952."

The European Commission has already given the UK two written warnings and the next stage in the legal process will be referral to the European Court of Justice.

The Commission gave the mayor and UK Government until June to come up with a "London action plan" to ensure compliance with the air pollution limits.

The UK will not face fines for the breach, as the EU has given Britain an extension until June before it has to start meeting the standards in the capital.

James Grugeon, chief executive of the charity Environmental Protection UK, said the breaches showed official assurances that pollution was under control in the capital were not true.

He said: "The mayor's air quality strategy, even with a new action plan set to start in June, is not up to the job of tackling the high levels of pollution already recorded this year."

A statement from London mayor Boris Johnson said that until 11 June, the daily limit of PM10 in London was 50% higher as a result of the UK's extension from the EU.

The statement says that as of 19 April, the daily limit value has been exceeded at Marylebone Road just six times this year, meaning that the annual legal limits have not been breached.

We need mayor Johnson and the government to tackle an invisible public health crisis”
Simon Birkett

Director of Clean Air in London
A spokesperson for the mayor said: "The mayor is already taking action to improve London's air quality with cleaner buses, tougher standards for the Low Emission Zone and the first ever age limit for taxis.

"Since the beginning of 2011, we estimate that more than 75% of air pollution episodes have occurred when pollutants have been blown in from Europe."

But Simon Birkett said the extension was only valid when the air pollution action plan is implemented and until then the lower limits apply.


This to me says one thing to me, globalisation is crippling us as a nation and us as a planet. The drive for profit over anything else be that peoples liveliehoods or the environment takes no priority over profit. The mad rush to work everyday during summer months in London is unbearable as it is but despite Londons attempts to ease traffic off with their conjestion charge the smog and fumes keep on coming.
To me the conjestion charge is a load of rubbish it collects lots of money dont get me wrong but where does that money go ?

in the back pockets of city hall chiefs of course and TFL boss's no doubt. What was origianlly set up to reinvest in greener energiesa nd alternative transport has simply not materialised and this comes as no surprise to myself and many other socailists with a care for the environment too.

To me and many others you can not have a green economy without a socialist economy whilst the capitalist companies strive for profit to any length they have no consideration for the economy. Only under a socialist governmenta nd society will green energies be ableto be brought to the front. When the society isnt based on profit but a better life for all not just the few investment and research into green energies can become a priority anda nessessetity to preserve our planet in its current form.

So the smog and the pollution is yes down to man and our greed for moneya nd our nice cars and things but i lay the blame for the pullution of our cities and towns firmly at the feet of capitalism who have no care in the world for the world and this will end up in us destroying our planet unless we change the way society is run.

Boris's blatent attacks on Londons commuters

Reading Ken Livingstones article in the Evening Standard today
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23910672-commuters-dont-deserve-outrageous-fare-hikes.do

He raises some excellent points that Boris Johnson Londons conservative mayor has been very tactical by scrapping the western zone of the congestion charge in London. This is cleverly where alot of his tory based voters originate in and will be very pleased with this move i'm sure. But to counter balance this move Boris has hiked up tube and bus fares up by huge amounts.

What's wrong with the way fares are being handled now is that people on average incomes are feeling the pinch.

The richest have an unyielding champion in the Mayor, who only last week was saying he was worried about criticism of the bankers, and warned that the tax levels of the rich could not continue.

But who is standing up for those on average incomes and those in the suburbs?

The Mayor's fare increase is a direct transfer of resources. Between £50-£70 million of income has been lost by axeing the western half of the congestion charge zone. Today's fare increase raises almost exactly the same amount.

Over the past three years we've got used to soaring fares. Since Boris was elected he's raised the price of a single bus journey on our Oyster cards by 44 per cent and pushed up weekly bus and tram passes relentlessly, now up to £17.80, an increase of 40 per cent.

There can't really be any justification for that in hard times. To pile such increases on hard-pressed Londoners in such a difficult period verges on the immoral.

It also means thumping outer London hard. From today a weekly travelcard for zones one to four will be £249.46 a year more. An annual six-zone travelcard will cost £232 a year more, breaking through the £2,000 barrier. A zones one and two monthly travelcard will crash through the £100 barrier for the first time.

Whether in City Hall or Whitehall, Conservatives seem to prefer measures either to help the richest Londoners or vanity projects such as the “new bus for London”, or aiding polluters, or piling on the misery with VAT.

The Campaign for Better Transport and celebrities such as Michael Palin are now at the forefront of demands for fairer rail fares. They are right. Fares policy is out of touch.

Tube, bus and rail fares are more unfair than at any time since London was given back its democratic voice.


Ken raises some excellent points and if he carries on these lines i think he shall pick up some support from frustrated and angry commuters who have had enough of fare rises's every year.

There is just a complete lack of investment in the tube of late which has lead to delays and signal failures. As someone who lives close to London i take a interest in London as it is our capital city and matters a lot to the country and how it runs. As to tourists it is often what people see first when arriving in the country. Having affordable public transport is a key issue for me as a disabled person as i more than a lot of others rely on the public transport. Being priced off this angers me alot.

I urge you all to take a look aat this website here which i've signed up to to campaign for fairer fares for all. I feel this is important for keeping Londoners happy.