January 2009

A recent report by professor Paul Gregg calls for benefits to be stopped for anyone who “does not co-operate” in looking for a job. Gregg wants those who show insufficient zeal to be held in “work equal activities.” This is similar to “school detention.” The miscreant would have to get on a computer and start searching.  Minister Purnell welcomed this “independent” report. In fact he had commissioned it himself to confirm his own reactionary prejudices. “The direction of travel is the right way,” he declared.

South West
Trains has declared its intention to slash 480 jobs on its operations. SWT’s
parent company is Stagecoach, which is owned by the fabulously wealthy Brian Souter.For years winning a franchise to run
one of the train operating companies has been a license to print money. Profit really
comes from the fares paid by passengers and the government subsidies, handouts
from taxpayers. Now that recession is here, passenger numbers are set to fall.
The railway companies are feeling the pinch. They have decided to make their
staff take the burden of the fall in revenues

Well, sooner or later it had to come. As we have been
saying recently sooner or later the bourgeoisie, and not just the Irish bosses,
would come for their pound of flesh. After all, someone is going to have to pay
for the crisis and it doesn’t take Einstein to work out that it’s us.So the Irish government is looking for €2bn worth of cuts and that means pay cuts for
public sector workers.

Unite Amicus General Secretary Election.

On Friday January  16th Jerry Hicks learned that he
had enough nominations to stand as candidate in the election . Jerry spoke of his great pleasure and pride at
having received official notification.

For the past 4 years PCS members in the civil service have been in
dispute over threats to their pensions, attacks on their sick leave,
massive programmes of job cuts, privatisations and endemic low pay.
Through united campaigning and strike action a number of concessions
have been won. This is testament to members’ willingness to fight back.

There has been an explosion of anger among young people all over
Europe. This anger is directed at hardline neoliberal policies aimed at
privatising education and casualising youth employment. In a word they
have been designed to make young people bear the burden of capitalism.
The youth have been fighting back. This inspiring movement recalls
memories of the pan-European movement of 1968. It could be bigger and
more significant, as it coincides with a reawakening of the organised
working class in the teeth of the crisis of capitalism.