Workers Solidarity Movement

Labour's Gilmore says we must all share the pain. A water charge of 200 euros a year, wage cuts for the low paid courtesy of Minister Bruton, house reposessions by the bailed-out banks, emigration for school leavers, overcrowding for prisoners, fee hikes for students, cuts in hospitals... none of this really affects the life style of the wealthy, whose very wealth insulates them against the worst effects of the recession.  Not many bankers, newspaper editors, company CEOs or government ministers are suffering in any real sense.

The reality behind the new beginning to policing was once again revealed on the streets of the North yesterday when children returning from a bus trip to Dublin where terrorised by heavily armed PSNI members for up two hours. The bus trip organised by the Republican Network for Unity contained 13 children and 6 adults were returning from a trip to Kilmainham Gaol was stopped and searched allegedly for explosives just outside Banbridge by up to 60-70 PSNI officers with a forensic lab and helicopters.

The population of Greece are in revolt again the IMF /ECB austerity plan that is being imposed on them.  WSM member Con who is a migrant to Ireland from Greece tells us what it is like to follow the struggle by home from Ireland and especially the extraordinary events yesterday when many police, who for months have been attacking demonstrators, instead joined the demonstrations.  Presumably they will soon be bought off and return to business as usual but all the same perhaps such an usual event is close to a miracle.

 A 19 year old who died by suicide at Hydebank Wood young offenders centre in south Belfast last year had been locked in his cell for around 22 hours a day because of short-staffing. Allyn Baxter took his own life after disgracefully spending three days on remand for not paying his TV license.

 A Union drive in computer giant Apple retail is breaking new ground. Apple showroom employee Cory Moll who works in an Apple computer store in San Francisco has started a drive to unionise retail workers in a rare move at the company. He wants to unionise his fellow workers to fight for better wages and conditions. Unfair practices at the company have spurred him in this struggle.

Our rulers at Stormont are living in fantasy land if they believe a reduction in corporation tax will results in thousands of jobs being created. It will open the floodgates to profit driven bosses resulting  in workers rights and conditions being further eroded with a further escalation in cuts in essential public services such as health and education. 

The June bank holiday weekend saw hundreds traveling to Erris for the Party Against the Pioe festival organised by the Rossport Solidarity Camp. The festival was held beside the Shell construction compound at Aghoose, where the tunnel for the last stage of their controversial experimental raw gas pipeline is to be started. This compound has been the site of many protests, including one earlier in the week when security punched a female Shell to Sea campaigner in the face.

Overcrowding, slopping out, TB infection, pathetic education facilities, Irish prisons are in deep crisis.  Judge "Padlock" Patwell recently retired after 52 years on the bench. He was notorious for his hardline attitude and sent many a man and woman to jail. It was on the subject of  Cork prison that he remarked whilst being interviewed on radio the other day, he was bemaoning the temporary release system, but refered to the 40 prisoners currently sleeping on matresses on the floors of the recreation room.

Around 60 anti-water tax campaigners placed a picket on the water metering conference at Croke Park this morning. Such a large turnout at 8.30 am must have caused concern for the attending companies who view the government plan to charge for and meter water as an easy way for them to make a fast buck.  It has been announced that 600 million euro is to be spent imposing the plan. It's fast becoming clear that the introduction of water charges will face serious resistance and those attending must be aware that the previous attempt to impose a water tax was defeated by such mass resistance in the 1990's. 

"They want to cut the wages of lowest paid workers, to boost the bosses profits", that was one workers reaction to todays announcement of an all out assault on the wages of low pay workers.  The mask is well and truly off, Fine Gael minister Richard Bruton revealed that workers across the retail grocery, hairdressing and security sector will have their wages, terms and conditions attacked. The government is anxious to row back agreements under the JLC (Joint Labour Committee) system which had set minmum rates of pay in the sectors and insured fixed rates of extra pay for Sunday work, anti social hours and overtime.