By Ross Saunders Unison members in Barry Hospital have launched a campaign to save the Sam Davies ward from closure. Cardiff and Vale University Health Board plans to close the acute rehabilitation ward as part of its latest round of cuts, which it has dressed up as a reorganisation of services for older people. Ward East 2 in Llandough Hospital ...

By Ross Saunders Train fleet maintenance workers in the RMT union are celebrating in South Wales after scoring what looks like a complete victory without having to fire a shot. With a turnout of 80%, 98% of members voted in favour of strike action, sending an unignorable message to franchise-holder Transport for Wales Rail Services (TfW RS) that worker would ...

By Ross Saunders RMT members in train fleet maintenance in Wales are planning to begin industrial action this June against a threat to their job security, pensions, pay and terms and conditions. A resounding 98% voted in favour of strike action on an 80% turnout, which should give confidence to union members everywhere that with the right approach it is ...

By Ross Saunders Statistics show that austerity has created terrible suffering in our communities. Life expectancy – stalled. Infant mortality – up. Children in poverty – up. Suicide rates – up. And now a new report has confirmed that it has also seriously damaged the economy. The New Economics Foundation has said that cuts by Tory-led governments in the last ...

By Ross Saunders Cardiff Tory Councillor Kathryn Kelloway has sparked outraged by calling on social media for the tents of homeless people in the city to be “torn down”. Kelloway challenged Labour Council Leader Huw Thomas on Twitter to remove the tents for reasons of “safety”, “prosperity” and for “a better image for Cardiff”, sparing not a word for the impact on ...

By Ross Saunders Comrades in South Wales are mourning the loss of Beth Roper, who was suddenly taken from us in an accident on a train on Saturday 1st December at the age of just 28. Everyone who knew her will feel her loss. Beth was one of those rare people who always seemed kind and sincere. People remarked that she was ...

By Ross Saunders, Secretary Cardiff Against The Cuts This year, Cardiff’s Labour-run Council plans to short-change Cardiff schools by another £3.5 million in real terms, as well as slash £19.4million of funding from services. This includes £1 million worth of “reduced levels of community support” for people with mental health problems and learning disabilities. Council tax is to rise by ...

By Ross Saunders The volatility of the political situation is obvious in Wales: by the time this year ends, every political party in the Welsh Assembly will have replaced their leader at least once. Even the Lib Dems – who only have one Assembly member and no MPs – changed their rules in order to put a new face at ...

By Ross Saunders Uber Eats riders staged their second action in Cardiff on Monday against low pay and insecure work. Protestors gathered outside the company’s Cardiff office on the appropriately named Vanguard Way to boycott the latest meeting managers had organised under pressure from their angry workforce. To date no progress has been made on the demands of the riders, ...

Support workers at Bron Afon Housing Association in Cwmbran have ended their strike after accepting a much-improved offer from management. The Unison members were set to lose an average of £3000 a year but after 9 days of strike action, forced management to agree to hand over an extra £1500 a year per worker, consolidated, as well one-off cash payments. ...