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UNITE National March For Jobs, Birmingham, May 16 2009

Stalingrad O'Neill | 19.05.2009 05:50 | Globalisation | Social Struggles | Workers' Movements | Birmingham

The turnout organizers claimed for Birmingham's national March for Jobs was 7,000, not exactly stunning I'd say! The biggest union in this country Unite (two million members) organized this march. It also had the backing of the TUC. Would it have been to much to expect a better mobilization for a 'mass' demonstration to defend jobs in the UK's industries? It appears once again other than the usual flashy PR promotion, no organizational action follow up commenced to make it a real success. The leaders of the union movement continued their failing in giving a lead! It meant getting off their backsides and rolling up their shirtsleeves, getting down in the workplaces and the streets to do, what they are paid and expected to do. Organizing something that has some bite!

Corus Workers from Teesside at the rally point
Corus Workers from Teesside at the rally point

Bristol AEEU Rolls Royce
Bristol AEEU Rolls Royce

Teachers Union, B’ham TUC and T&G Ford Dagenham Banners
Teachers Union, B’ham TUC and T&G Ford Dagenham Banners

UNISON and T&G IBC Luton workers
UNISON and T&G IBC Luton workers

Shrewsbury College T U Studies and Allied Agricultural Workers Trade Union
Shrewsbury College T U Studies and Allied Agricultural Workers Trade Union

Banners of the IWW, Bristol Health Workers, and B’ham NUJ branch
Banners of the IWW, Bristol Health Workers, and B’ham NUJ branch

T&G Elsmere Port Vauxhall workers
T&G Elsmere Port Vauxhall workers

Shrewsbury 24 Banner
Shrewsbury 24 Banner

UNITE members at the rally point
UNITE members at the rally point

Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of Unite
Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of Unite

Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite
Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite

Gerald Coyne Regional Secretary, Unite West Midlands.
Gerald Coyne Regional Secretary, Unite West Midlands.

Brendan Barber TUC General Secretary
Brendan Barber TUC General Secretary

Richard Burden MP
Richard Burden MP

Jim Sheridan MP
Jim Sheridan MP

John Featherston, Unite convenor for Ellesmere Port
John Featherston, Unite convenor for Ellesmere Port

Gale Gaertner
Gale Gaertner

Ben Riley, United Steel USA
Ben Riley, United Steel USA

Jeff Atterfield CORUS
Jeff Atterfield CORUS

Ben Riley, Jim English, Bill Ferguson, United Steel USA
Ben Riley, Jim English, Bill Ferguson, United Steel USA


I absolutely applaud the thousands of people who travelled to, or joined the march and rally in Birmingham to show their anger, frustration and contempt for this Government in power and its handling of the recession

However if they came looking for the TUC Boss or their respective union leadership to provide from the platform, an outline of a comprehensive strategy to deal with looming crisis I’m afraid all they got was bunk like “We got to make sure we vote the Labour Party back into power” and how “Not all Labour MP’s are up to their eyeballs in the expenses sleaze, so we don’t want catcalls about such”( when Richard Burden and Jim Sheridan spoke)

I'm utterly sick and fed up of union leaders continually ‘wittering “Great turnout” “We wont take this! We won’t take that!” “The Banks, the Bosses and Uncle Tom Cobley “ “Lets give a big shout so Tony Blaaa….Oh sorry Gordon Brown can hear us” “Don’t forget vote Labour”

Look my influential union friends….. Labour don’t give a flying fuck, for workers, children, old people, animals or the planet So why keep exhorting your hard pressed members to waste their time vote and effort to breath life in a moldy old corpse!

A few good apples in the barrel can’t save a rotten system, decades past its sell by date, that needs the well aimed the kick it deserves to send it into historic oblivion

Tony Woodley declared from the platform “Twenty thousand jobs have disappeared from manufacturing since this recession took hold, so we will not stand by while another two hundred and fifty thousand are swept away by this recession tide.

But we were left at a loss as what the plans were, to circumnavigate such a disaster, apart from voting Labour…. you understand

Tony also stated from the platform, in a manner suggesting a determined thorough and profound rethink on the question, that the Anti trade union laws would have to be repealed! But I strongly suspect it will be nothing more than the same old tired mono strategy of continuance with the piece meal support for the ‘United Campaign to repeal the Anti-Trade Union Laws’ legal efforts. Worthy true, but unsuccessful to date!

Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of Unite pronounced: "Billions have been spent to save the banks. But those same banks are throwing people out of their houses."

Yes Derek but you said only last week “Labour must continue to position itself as the party for jobs and social justice.” So how does that equation work then?

Union Grandee, TUC boss Brendan Barber said: “Unemployment is rising relentlessly. It will pass the 2.5 million mark next month and could hit three million by the end of the year”.
“Manufacturing, once the lifeblood of our economy, continues to suffer. Successive governments have hung it out to dry in favor of an unregulated financial services sector – and look what good that’s done to our economy”.

I’d like to know what actual good the TUC sitting on its collective backside has done its membership whilst all this was going on Brendan
Doing what members paid you to do? Organizing what was required, offering leadership and confronting the issues with steel determination perhaps?
Not quite….. Delegating your respective union PR departments to knock up a few promotions for a number of demonstrations up and down the country every now and then, a bit of Labour party cheerleading when people’s incredulity with the system has been stretched paper thin and telling members what they can see with their own eyes, would be more likely to fit the bill matey!

Calls for action from the platform of the rally were also made by a number of other speakers

Photos, Copyright Stalingrad O'Neill - permission is required for third party usage

Stalingrad O'Neill
- e-mail: robograd@tiscali.co.uk

Additions

Additional Photographs

19.05.2009 14:06

CPGB ML Banner
CPGB ML Banner

Thompsons Union Solicitors Banner
Thompsons Union Solicitors Banner

T&G's Agricultural & Allied Workers Oxford & Berks Banner
T&G's Agricultural & Allied Workers Oxford & Berks Banner

NUJ B'ham Branch Banner
NUJ B'ham Branch Banner

IWW (Wobblies) Banner
IWW (Wobblies) Banner

Landrover Solihull T&G Banner
Landrover Solihull T&G Banner

T&G Ford Dagenham Banner
T&G Ford Dagenham Banner

Child looking through bars of crush barriers at rally point
Child looking through bars of crush barriers at rally point

T&G Retired Members Assoc B'ham
T&G Retired Members Assoc B'ham

Birmingham Trade Union Council
Birmingham Trade Union Council

Unite Health Service Workers Irish Regions
Unite Health Service Workers Irish Regions

Two waitress' take a break to watch the march pass down Broad St
Two waitress' take a break to watch the march pass down Broad St

Contingent of march passing through Broad St
Contingent of march passing through Broad St

Family group participating in the March
Family group participating in the March

Another section of march on Broad St
Another section of march on Broad St

Two wee girls looking over the crush barriers at rally
Two wee girls looking over the crush barriers at rally

Corus Worker from Teesside
Corus Worker from Teesside

Socialist Party Banner at rally
Socialist Party Banner at rally

Walsall Pensioners convention
Walsall Pensioners convention

The ‘Dhol Blasters’ conclude rally with their Dhol drum rhythms
The ‘Dhol Blasters’ conclude rally with their Dhol drum rhythms

Close ups of Banners and further shots of the demonstration

Photos, Copyright Stalingrad O'Neill - permission is required for third party usage

Stalingrad O'Neill
mail e-mail: robograd@tiscali.co.uk


Comments

Display the following 4 comments

  1. Chant — Syndicalista
  2. Land not shit growth — ex pie factory worker
  3. Salma Yaqoob — Jobless
  4. All politicians are parasites — they all must go!