Newcastle SolFed have won a substantial wage theft claim from a large call centre in Newcastle. The company in question has substantial relationships with the Unions and members of the Labour Party shadow cabinet. Worryingly we have uncovered illegal working conditions, dodgy apprenticeship schemes and dubious work practices. A fuller report will be published in the following days.
I work in admin at one of the universities in the city. Recently, one of my colleagues left the department for a new job. It was expected that I would take on some of their workload. This was not something I could really do, and when I started to be asked, I found it stressful. I talked about it at the drop-in, and a number of useful suggestions were made.
Sun 19 Apr 7pm, Edinburgh Benefit Gig & Cinema shows in Solidarity with Anarchists Against Repression in Spain. Banshee Labyrinth EH1 1LG www.facebook.com/events/579856092149684/
also join us Fri 17 April 12noon - Edinburgh Solidarity Protest against Ley Mordaza and to demand all 'Operación Pandora' charges in Spain are dropped www.facebook.com/events/796730227077630/
• to raise awareness about the repressive reforms such as Operación Pandora, Operación Piñata, Penal Code Reform (more anti-union laws) and Ley Mordaza (the Gag Law) which will attempt to criminalise working class self-organisation and self-defence in favour of capitalism and state coercion.
Solidarity Protest
MEET: Spanish Consulate, 63 North Castle St, Edinburgh EH2 3LJ
FRIDAY 6 March 2015 – FROM 12:00noon
13 people facing trial just for being anarchists.
On 16/12/14 the Catalan police broke into 14 houses and social centres, destroying and stealing everything of value. 11 comrades were charged by a high court and 7 spent more than a month in prison.
On 29/01/15, the 7 imprisoned comrades were released but the state accuses all 11 (plus the 2 anarchists locked up for more than a year) of being members of a terrorist group, thus reaffirming its intention to treat everyone who questions it as a terrorist.
Addresses of the imprisoned comrades:
Solidarity Protest
MEET: Spanish Consulate, 63 North Castle St, Edinburgh EH2 3LJ
FRIDAY 6 Feb – FROM 12:00noon
HARASSED! CHARGED! IMPRISONED! FOR BEING ANARCHISTS! by ‘operación Pandora’ in Spain
‘Un movimiento que olvida a sus presos está condenado a la derrota’
‘A movement that forgets its prisoners is doomed to defeat’
Solidarity Protest - Free the 7 Anarchists detained for their political beliefs by ‘Operación Pandora’ in Spain
MEET: Spanish Consulate, 63 North Castle St, Edinburgh EH2 3LJ
FRIDAY 23 JAN – FROM 12:00noon-2pm
We will begin handing out flyers and raising awareness about the prisoners before and after - please get involved and join us!
On 16/12/2014 the Mossos, Catalan police stormed 14 homes and community centers, destroying and stealing everything they could find of value. Without making any specific accusations and acting in complete secrecy, 11 anarchists were transferred to the National Court in Madrid. 4 were released two days later - and 7 have ended up in prison, one is a member of the CNT-AIT Union. They are all facing secretive Court proceedings.
On 16/12/2014 the Mossos, a specialist police squad in Spain stormed 14 homes and community centers, destroying and stealing everything they could find of value. Without making any specific accusations and acting in complete secrecy, 11 anarchists were transferred to the National Court. 4 were released two days later - and 7 have ended up in prison, one is a member of the CNT-AIT Union. They all facing secretive Court proceedings.
Join the South London Solfed roaming anti-workfare picket in Lewisham this Saturday, 4th October, in solidarity with Boycott Workfare's week of action.
Meet us at Lewisham Clocktower at 1pm.
We will be targeting a number of organisations on Lewisham High Street who continue to exploit unemployed people as free labour.
Workfare is an attack on us all. It does not save money, does not create jobs and does not help the unemployed. The government is trying to divide us by pitting those in work against 'scroungers' who supposedly need to forced into work. But workfare is as much an attack on those with jobs as those without. It drives down wages and disciplines those in waged work not to rock the boat lest they be replaced by workfare labour and end up unemployed themselves.
Elena has received her remaining wages! Thank you to everyone involved.
Elena left her job at Green Eco Plus in February as she wasn’t being paid. She managed, through her persistence and some help from friends and Solfed, to get back an initial £300 over a couple of months. After this the director of the company (Chris Rose AKA Kyriacos Pitsillos) told Elena that the company was liquidated (it wasn’t) and he wouldn’t pay the remaining £250.
After a short but intense campaign, Marta, a receptionist at the Speak Up London language school, has won a week’s unpaid wages and a glowing reference.
Marta was sacked without reason and without the required one week’s notice. She got in contact with Solidarity Federation who quickly organised over a dozen people to March into the bosses’ office with a letter demanding she be given a week’s pay in lieu of notice and a positive reference.
After Speak Up failed to respond to Marta’s letter, SolFed and other supportive individuals and organisations organised a massive blockade of the Speak Up Facebook page. Hundreds of post appeared within the 45 minutes. An hour and half into the action, Speak Up shut down their Facebook page entirely to all UK users.