Skip Navigation | HOME | UK Indymedia | Editorial Guidelines | Mission Statement | About Us | Contact | Help | Support Us

manchester Indymedia

Unemployed Workers Unions spring up from Salford initiative

MULE | 02.03.2010 20:03 | Social Struggles | Workers' Movements

MULE spoke to Alex Halligan, one of the founders of the first modern-day Unemployed Workers’ Union, in Salford. The phenomenon is now sweeping the country, 80 years after the Battle of Bexley Square.

MULE: Why was the UWU set up?

AH: We are suffering from an epidemic of unemployment and places like Salford are hit hardest at times like this. We were involved in Salford Unemployed and Community Workers Centre which does great work to help unemployed people, but because of the way they are funded, can’t engage in anything that could be seen as controversial political activism. Unions don’t do as much as they should do either; if you don’t have a job you can’t hold office in a trade union.

MULE: What’s the situation now?

AH: We set up the Salford branch in July 2009 and now there are twelve fully functioning branches across the county. Another 25 are on their way. The national office is in Salford and it’s really amazing how fast it’s taken off. Although it’s difficult to coordinate nationally and the groups generally operate autonomously, we’re going to have a national conference soon to bring it all together.

MULE: What do you hope to achieve?

AH: We want to give unemployed people a voice. Fighting the government over attacks on welfare, like the Welfare Reform Bill, is really important. We also want to be a catalyst in forcing the unions to take unemployed workers more seriously. We do lots of practical stuff too, like helping people with tribunals and help finding work.

MULE: Are you working with trade unions at all?

AH: Yes. We regularly support unions when they’re taking industrial action. We go down and show solidarity at the pickets – after all, we can’t be touched by the anti-union legislation. We can have all the flying pickets we want. Anyway, we see our interests as wrapped up with those in work.

MULE: Is it just people on Jobseekers Allowance that you work with?

AH: No. We see pensioners, people on incapacity benefit and students as unemployed too, and we work with them all. We’re setting up campaigns at the moment to work specifically with these kinds of groups.

MULE: Have standards of provision dropped with the privatisation of the benefits services?

AH: There is a fundamental difference between Jobcentres and private companies like Action 4 Employment (A4E). Jobcentres are generally staffed by people who want to help. A4E are just driven by profit. They force people into totally unsuitable jobs.

MULE: Do you see fighting for unemployed workers’ rights as an end in itself or as part of a wider struggle?

AH: I don’t think you can really just look at this within a bubble. We believe in the right to work and this is only really possible if there is a much wider change within society. There has to be a move away from the profit motive.

 http://manchestermule.com/article/unemployed-workers-unions-spring-up-from-salford-initiative

MULE
- e-mail: editor@manchestermule.com
- Homepage: http://www.manchestermule.com

Download this article in pdf format >>

Email this article to someone >>

Submit an addition or make a quick comment on this article >>

Comments

Hide the following 2 comments

Important information missing

03.03.2010 13:57

Where are the other 25 unemployed workers unions located? Is there one in Oldham? Only, some of us would like to join one.

Annie Citizen
- Homepage: http://www.rightsandwrongsuk.blogspot.com


No To Welfare Abolition network

30.04.2010 15:21

Don't know how many UWU there are in reality outside of Salford but there are a lot of independent claimants action groups forming around the No To Welfare Abolition network, joining those already running:
 http://www.afed.org.uk/nottingham/claimants has a list. There is also an email group to join if you want to get involved:
 http://groups.google.com/group/no-to-welfare-abolition

Dolescum


Publish

Publish your news

Do you need help with publishing?

Kollektives

Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World

Other UK IMCs
Bristol/South West
London
Northern Indymedia
Scotland

Manchester Topics

Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista

Manchester Actions 2010

Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands

Manchester Actions 2009

COP15 Climate Summit 2009
G20 London Summit
Guantánamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
University Occupations for Gaza

Manchester Actions 2008

2008 Days Of Action For Autonomous Spaces
Campaign against Carmel-Agrexco
Climate Camp 2008
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Smash EDO
Stop Sequani Animal Testing
Stop the BNP's Red White and Blue festival

Manchester Actions 2007

Climate Camp 2007
DSEi 2007
G8 Germany 2007
Mayday 2007
No Border Camp 2007

Manchester Actions 2006

April 2006 No Borders Days of Action
Art and Activism Caravan 2006
Climate Camp 2006
Faslane
French CPE uprising 2006
G8 Russia 2006
Lebanon War 2006
March 18 Anti War Protest
Mayday 2006
Oaxaca Uprising
Refugee Week 2006
Rossport Solidarity
SOCPA
Transnational Day of Action Against Migration Controls
WSF 2006

Manchester Actions 2005

DSEi 2005
G8 2005
WTO Hong Kong 2005

Manchester Actions 2004

European Social Forum
FBI Server Seizure
May Day 2004
Venezuela

Manchester Actions 2003

Bush 2003
DSEi 2003
Evian G8
May Day 2003
No War F15
Saloniki Prisoner Support
Thessaloniki EU
WSIS 2003

Languages

english

IMCs


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech