Liverpool SolFed is organising a campaign against bad working conditions in the hospitality sector. The hospitality industry, which includes workplaces like pubs, restaurants, hotels, canteens, etc. has an important presence in the city and is well known for abuses and exploitation. Our aim is to get willing workers of the sector together to fight back against abuses and for better conditions.
We all know the old saying ‘if you don't vote, you can't complain’. A better one would be ‘ if all you do is vote, you can't complain’.
Dig a little deeper into the history books and what you find at the heart of change is direct action and organisation at a grassroots level. Everything from workers rights, women's rights, decent wages and even the right to vote itself have been gained this way, rulers typically resist change until they know they have no choice but to throw a few more crumbs to the people below.
At Easter, Liverpool-SolFed made a call out to protest against working conditions at Sandemans, a company who offers “Free Tours” in Liverpool and across Europe. “Free Tour” does not mean that guides are volunteers. In Sandeman’s case they are ‘self-employed workers’ and their incomes are based on the tips that are given at the end of the tour and out of those tips workers have to pay a variable amount of money per tourist to the company. This is, according to Sandemans, a “marketing fee”.
Although Liverpool-SolFed is still a small a very recent group, we were present in the May Day demonstration in Liverpool. A few comrades join the parade from Toxteth Library to St. Georges Hall alongside with different unions and groups active in the area.
Last Monday we reached an agreement with Alpha Care which satisfies the economic demands made by a former worker.
On 23rd November 2016, the Treasury announced in the Autumn Statement that they “will ban fees to tenants as soon as possible”. So, right now fees are still legal in England & Wales, and it is not very clear when they will be outlawed.
Last weekend, Brighton-SolFed organised different activities to commemorate May Day, the International Workers Day.
Although the Working Class has not so much to celebrate these days, we used this opportunity for discussion, to give visibility to our struggles, and to invite our members and collaborators to have a good time together.
During a September Saturday Brighton SolFed held a network and skills day covering; the immigration act and healthcare, the attack on benefits, fighting wage theft and anarchists on austerity. This full day, including a mighty lunch prepared by members, maintained a constant level of debate and information, concluding in practical action points to continue agitating around Brighton and beyond.
On 19. July 1936, the Spanish state collapsed, after the fascist militar coup. The revolutionary working class expelled the military from many areas of the country and made the most developed experience of self-management that eever happened. Eventually the Spanish Revolution failed both due to its enemies and its own mistakes.
Today, almost 80 years later, our intention is not to create a myth, beautiful but harmless. We want to recover this part of the history of the Spanish revolutionaires which is the history of all freedom lovers and, of course, give tribute to those who gave their lives for the emancipation of humanity.
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.