{"id":15202,"date":"2018-05-14T15:57:31","date_gmt":"2018-05-14T14:57:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=15202"},"modified":"2020-11-12T12:58:45","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T12:58:45","slug":"enough-enough-tuc-march-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=15202","title":{"rendered":"\u00e2\u20ac\u0098Enough is enough\u00e2\u20ac\u2122"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in London on Saturday (May 14) to demand a better deal for British workers, who are now enduring falling living standards not seen since Victorian times.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The TUC march \u00e2\u20ac\u201c supported by several unions including Unite \u00e2\u20ac\u201c gathered trade unionists and campaigners from across the UK to call for a \u00c2\u014110 an hour minimum wage, an end to zero hours contracts and proper funding for public services among other demands.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A recent TUC analysis found that real wages in the UK are still \u00c2\u014124 less than they were a decade ago when the financial crisis first hit \u00e2\u20ac\u201c that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the worst wage squeeze in 200 years, when much of Europe was ravaged by the Napoleonic wars.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Leading the march were TGI Fridays waiters, Unite members (pictured below), who will be taking part in their first ever strike this Friday (May 18). They marched alongside McDonald\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s workers who are likewise participating in their first ever UK strikes.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Protestors wound their way down to Hyde Park where speakers, including Unite general secretary Len McCluskey, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and TUC general secretary Frances O\u00e2\u20ac\u2122Grady addressed the crowds. Workers too told their stories of struggle and victory.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite rep and TGI Fridays waitress Lauren explained how in January, management pushed through a grossly unfair new tipping policy which would see servers lose 40 per cent of their card tips, amounting to an average of more than \u00c2\u0141250 a month.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The waiters complained to their bosses, she said, but to no avail.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0098Best thing we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve ever done\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bAnd then we unionised,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Lauren told protestors at the rally. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bJoining Unite was the best thing we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve ever done \u00e2\u20ac\u201c finally we have a voice.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI strongly encourage every waiter, bartender and chef to join a union and take a stand,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she added. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bTogether we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re stronger \u00e2\u20ac\u201c together we will be heard.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite rep and Bombardier worker Gaye Partridge (pictured below)told of how she and her fellow colleagues took on Boeing \u00e2\u20ac\u201c and won.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe pulled off an amazing win against the largest aircraft manufacturer in the world,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she explained, detailing how Unite lobbied against punitive tariffs threatening Bombardier\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s C-Series jet, which if implemented by US trade authorities would have risked thousands of jobs in Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But thanks to Unite and its members\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 relentless pressure, the US authorities ruled against imposing the tariffs which Boeing had used all its corporate might to push through.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bAll along we were told we would never win,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Gaye explained. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt was like David fighting Goliath. But we didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t give up and we did win. My message to you is that there is strength in union membership \u00e2\u20ac\u201c always keep up the fight.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite members from across the UK shared with UNITElive why they were marching on Saturday (May 12).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite Community member Liz Byrne (pictured below) said that even though she isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t working because of her disabilities, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s come out to support those who do.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve come to support the unions \u00e2\u20ac\u201c I think people who work so hard should get fair pay for their jobs,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

NHS worker and Unite rep Alan Dobbie (pictured below), from north London, told UNITElive he was out marching in support of the NHS and other public services now at breaking point because of government policies.<\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bDespite what the Tories are saying, austerity still exists; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still killing people,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve got to stand up and say no more.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite shop steward and bus worker Kenny McKay brought his wife, Josephine and their seven-year-old grandson Daniel (pictured below) to the march.<\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI want to teach my grandson that he must stand up for his rights and how best to contribute to society,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe are also standing in unison with the Windrush generation \u00e2\u20ac\u201c it is a travesty what is happening to them and it is a travesty what is happening with this government under austerity. We just want our voices to be heard.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite general secretary Len McCluskey\u00c2\u00a0 (pictured below) addressed protestors at the rally as he urged working people make their voices heard against the forces oppressing them.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0098Enough of the toxic Tories\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bEnough is enough,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bEnough of the toxic Tories. Enough of poor pay; enough of food banks; enough of a system that is rigged for the wealthy who don’t believe in people before profit.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He slammed \u00e2\u20ac\u0098the spivs and speculators\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 who don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t pay their taxes and caused the financial crisis; the same people who demonise those who actually \u00e2\u20ac\u015bcreate the wealth of our nation\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 \u00e2\u20ac\u201c workers.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bLet’s continue fight that we have,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he told the cheering crowds. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI want you to believe in our strength. It is our time. It’s time to end zero hours contracts and create decent paid jobs. It’s time to invest in our communities. It’s time to save our NHS. It’s time for a \u00c2\u014110 minimum wage. It’s time to build decent homes. It’s time to give hope to our children. It’s time for Labour and our trade unions. It’s time for the many, not the few.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (pictured below) likewise galvanised the tens of thousands of working people, their families, friends and supporters who stood out in the rain to stand up for fairness and equality.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"tuc<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThis demonstration is about worker\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s rights,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Corbyn said.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about collective endeavour. But above all, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a declaration that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re around to campaign for as long as it takes to bring about social justice and a decent society.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in London on Saturday (May 14) to demand a better deal for British workers, who are now enduring falling living standards not seen since Victorian times.   The TUC march \u00e2\u20ac\u201c supported by several unions including Unite \u00e2\u20ac\u201c gathered trade unionists and campaigners from across the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15212,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[76,915],"wps_subtitle":"Thousands call for a better working deal at TUC march","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15202"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15202"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15202\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26196,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15202\/revisions\/26196"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}