UK UK Newswire Archive
Albany Lettings – pay what you owe!
05-03-2013 00:55
Please help us support a tenant claiming their illegally charged fees back!
Kerstin recently obtained a decree from the court against Albany Lettings saying they have to pay back illegally charged fees, but they are refusing to pay up, so we are organising a protest at their office to help Kerstin get the money she is owed!
Edinburgh East Save Our Services Meeting
05-03-2013 00:55
6.30pm Tuesday 5th March 2013
Northfield / Willowbrae Community Centre, 10 Northfield Road, EH8 7PP.
Open meeting for people in the East of Edinburgh to organise against public sector cuts and privatisation. All welcome.
'Workfare Ain't Fair' Protest and leafleting
04-03-2013 20:55
12.00 4th March 2013
Folks initially gathered outside the entrance to the offices of A4e at Maid Marian House, Maid Marian Way, Nottingham.
Banners displayed and leaflets handed out expaliain the issues. There was much interest from the clients / customers / canon fodder. It was heartening to see so many leaflets being taken and read earnestly.
Then across the road to the Ingeus offices, 55 Maid Marian Way. This time, a nicer spot in the sun.
Event Statement:
On Monday March the 4th meet outside A4e's Nottingham offices at First Floor Maid Marion House Maid Marion Way. We need to let them know that they their reckless treatment of the working class will not be tolerated, and that we will not take attacks on our lives without fighting back. A4e are one of the UK’s biggest Workfare companies they are being paid billions of pounds to bully people into unpaid labour for supermarkets, charities and high street shops.
Compulsory workfare was at the heart of the Government’s £5 billion Work Programme. So far the Government are refusing to provide figures detailing whether anyone has actually got a job on the Work Programme.
A4e's workfare contract means they get paid £45million. In the first 10 months of their contract, almost 115,000 people were referred to the A4e under the Work Programme. Of those just 4,000 have managed to obtain jobs that lasted 13 weeks or more - the length of time the government determines as a successful outcome.
A4e, which paid its former chairman Emma Harrison an £8.6m dividend in 2010, referred the second largest number of cases for punishment. The firm, which has been at the centre of a series of fraud allegations, in the first year of it's Work programme contact demanded that 10,120 individuals be sanctioned. The Jobcentres agreed to withhold benefits in 3,000 of those cases.
Workfare means that those who need welfare are forced into unpaid work for multimillion pound companies. Instead of a living wage, they recieve only Job Seeker's Allowance (JSA) far below the minimum wage. The companies themselves don't pay anything.
Workfare means that those in paid positions may see their jobs replaced by this unpaid labour. Why would a company pay for people to do your jobs when they can get free labour from the job centre?
It's clear that workfare and other work programmes like it are another attack by the rich on the poor. We need to unite in order to fight back against the rich bosses and goverment officals who think we'll take this lying down.
Contact email: nottsagainstworkfare@riseup.net
Demonstration against A4e and Ingeus
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/articles/5412
Riseup! Radio at A4e
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/articles/5413
Workfare : Forced Labour Protest
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/articles/2447
Workfare walk of shame in Nottingham
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/articles/2834
Workfare walk of shame
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/articles/2836
Ingeous Bollocks O:-)
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/tumbles/2812
____________________________________________
ALAN LODGE
Photographer - Media: One Eye on the Road. Nottingham. UK
Email: tash@indymedia.org
Web: http://digitaljournalist.eu
Member of the National Union of Journalists [NUJ]
____________________________________________
"It is not enough to curse the darkness.
It is also necessary to light a lamp!!"
___________________________________________
<ends>
Demonstration against A4e and Ingeus
04-03-2013 20:55
Precarious workers, students, the unemployed, squatters, and the angry and annoyed turned up outside the Nottingham offices of Ingeus and A4e for a demonstration called by Nottingham against Workfare and Stop G8 Notts. A “Workfare ain't Fair” was handed out and hundreds of leaflets entitled “Workfare is Class warefare” were handed out to shoppers, as well as those employed and harassed by A4e and Ingeus. This demonstration was part of a local and national campaign aiming to highlight the grievous attack by the capitalist class on everyone else that is workfare.
So far in Nottingham different groups and individuals have leafleted job centers, held pickets outside shops that use workfare, and private companies who administrate the welfare industry such as Atos, Ingeus and A4e have had their building sabotaged by unknown individuals with hammers, stickers and glue. Similar activities have happened around the country with shops being occupied by bodies and certain offices being targeted with phone blockades.
It's clear that the willingness to resist is there, questions remain over whether the class solidarity, the organization or the long term strategy is? We know we can't rely solely on Unions many of whom have implicitly supported the recent reforms and explicitly suggest that the response is to re-elect a Labour party who were as guilty in attacking the poor and working classes as this current Lib-Con government is. Street demonstrations like todays could remain a valid way of spreading the word and engaging with more pissed off people, they will only be relevant if they are used to build a broad coalition where the balance between autonomy and horizontal collectivism is found.
As part of the Workfare week of action Nottingham Against Workfare will be holding a Blockdade on Workfare parasites Burtons Men's Clothing on the Saturday 23rd March at 14:00.
Stop G8 Notts will be next meeting at the Sumac Centre on Tuesday 12th March at 19:30, and a “They won't pay and neither will we” demonstration at the Tax offices on the 5th April.
If you're a claimant or unemployed come along to The Unemployed workers Club at the Sumac Centre every thursday at 11am.
Riseup! Radio at A4e
04-03-2013 20:55
Riseup! Radio is being re-launched. In a few weeks time our first show for nearly four years will be arriving in your hearing holes. There will be many many things on the show- reports from the Annoymous Demo, political chit chat in the Sumac Bar, news from the NG7 Food Bank and loads of other good good stuff.
To give you a ramshackle, hodgepodge taste of things to come here are some of the voices on the street at the A4e that took place earlier today.
If people wanna get involved, or want to tell us their news from around Nottingham then get in touch at our email address.
We Are Half Way There!!
04-03-2013 20:55
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04-03-2013 19:59
UK peace activist faces deportation by Israeli occupation authorities
04-03-2013 12:40
PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEUK peace activist faces deportation by Israeli occupation authorities and is set to be detained by Special Branch under anti-terror powers upon return
RECLAIM IT! Direct Action in London on International Women's Day.
04-03-2013 12:22
Direct Action against cuts and austerity, open to all, let's fight back!The powerful influence of Levy & McRae
04-03-2013 11:53
The powerful influence of Levy & McRaeWe refer to The Drum’s article of the 19 February 2013. “Questions asked of Alex Salmond lawyer Peter Watson of Levy & McRae over Leveson role.”
Manchester Monkey Business!
04-03-2013 11:45
The EDL attempt to 'unite the right' was a bit disappointing. Not much happened apart from them being drunk and attacking each other. No leadership, no political direction and no strategy.Afghan Youth Volunteers Protest NATO Killing of Two Afghan Children
04-03-2013 11:11
VIDEO - ‘We are those two Afghan children’
http://youtu.be/VW43_Y2qkWw
Capitalism has eaten itself? Notes on Mark Fisher’s talk last Thursday
03-03-2013 16:55
Still trying to digest all of the interesting things said at Thursday’s two talks, never mind yesterday’s packed event on Belarus.
Coal and the Risks Faced by Planning Authorities
03-03-2013 13:59
This press release recounts the problems beseting the UK Coal Indusrty such as the fire at Daw Mill, the decline in the demand for coal for power generation purposes, lack of willingness to invest in coal, downward pressure on coal prices, pollution caused by coal being responsible fro premature deaths. Yet despite all this the Government wants to make it easier to dig it up!! See what you can do at this late stage to stop this plan it its tracks!!Fascist thugs attack Nick Lowles in Havering
03-03-2013 13:09
Fascists attacking free speech