Tag Archives: GMB

By Alec Thraves, Swansea Socialist Party and Swansea Trades Council Steelworkers in Community and GMB unions  are awaiting the results of a vote on whether to accept a settlement with Tata Steel. Unite the Union representatives decided that the terms were not good enough at that point to be put to the vote. Up to 2,800 direct-employed jobs will be ...

By Alec Thraves, Swansea Socialist Party and Swansea Trades Council As negotiations between Tata, the steel unions and the new Labour governmentcontinue, Tata has started the process of ‘seeking expressions of interest’ from thosesteelworkers considering whether to accept the re-confirmed enhanced voluntaryredundancy package.In a blatant attempt to impact on negotiations and to pressurise and bribe workers tosell steel jobs, Tata ...

By Alec Thraves, Swansea Socialist Party and Swansea Trades Council Update 15.45 July 1st This article was posted before Unite’s suspension of its all-out strike action that was due to start next Monday, which has forced talks with the company. We will post further updates. 09.30 July 1st: At the time of writing, Unite members in Port Talbot and Llanwern steelworks are ...

By Alec Thraves (Swansea Socialist Party and Swansea Trades Council) In a bold and decisive escalation of industrial action, Unite the union has announcedthe beginning of indefinite strike action at Tata’s Port Talbot and Llanwern plantsfrom July 8th.This move will be welcomed by many steelworkers, community campaigners and thewider trade union movement who are determined to retain primary steel production,secure ...

By Alec Thraves, delegate from Swansea Trades Council With a rebranding its name, on the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the Wales TradesUnion Congress (TUC), the 2024 biennial congress of ‘TUC Cymru’ in Llandudno was arefreshing and largely combative event, which took up the key issues facing the trade unionmovement in Wales.A big factor in this changed mood, compared ...

Strike to fight the jobs massacre – Nationalisation not devastation By Alec Thraves (Vice President, Swansea Trades Council) Seven months of fruitless ‘negotiations’ between the steel unions and Tata’s deaf, brutal and intransigent bosses have resulted in the widely expected rejection of both the Unite and the Community/GMB alternative proposals to retain primary steel making at Port Talbot. With a ...

By Alec Thraves Unite has announced a significant ‘Yes’ vote result in their ballot for industrial actionat Port Talbot and Llanwern.All four bargaining units, across the two sites, returned a ‘Yes’ vote showing thedetermination of the majority of the1,500 Unite members to defend their jobs andsave the industry and protect the local communities.With the average age of a Unite Port ...

By Alec Thraves (Swansea Socialist Party and Swansea Trades Union Council) Tata Steel bosses are now stepping up their ‘non-negotiable’ plan to shut the two remaining blast furnaces at its Port Talbot site, something the Socialist Party has consistently raised is on the cards. This means the loss of almost 2,000 steel jobs and a knock-on affect to thousands more ...

Nationalisation Not Devastation! By Alec Thraves (Vice President, Swansea Socialist Party) Hundreds of steelworkers, trade unionists and Port Talbot residents marched through the town today to demand that Tata Steel steps back from its threat to sack 2,000 workers as it scales down the Tata plant at Port Talbot. Also today Newport workers marched to prevent job losses at the ...

By Alec Thraves Tata Steel bosses have declared the start of a legally obliged, 45-day formal consultation process which could culminate in the initial loss of 2,423 jobs across the UK, with 1,929 of those in Port Talbot, representing exactly half the workforce. Tata’s phoney war is over after TV Narendran, the global chief executive of Tata Steel and the ...