75 years

Jarrow to London

October 2011

Youth Fight for Jobs march

Youth Fight for Jobs march   (Click to enlarge: opens in new window)


March for jobs

Youth unemployment at nearly one million

JOIN THE MARCH!


Why we’re marching

Young people have no alternative but to struggle – unemployment sky-rocketing, jobs disappearing, tuition fees trebling.

Youth Fight for Jobs demonstration, November 2009, photo Dave Carr

Youth Fight for Jobs demonstration, November 2009, photo Dave Carr   (Click to enlarge: opens in new window)

Students, fighting against the decimation of college and university education, have already blazed a trail. Others are getting active, fighting to save vital services in their areas and organising campaigns in their workplaces to defend jobs.

Young people and workers have always had to fight for a decent life. 75 years ago, 200 workers from Jarrow demanded the right to work and marched the 250 miles from their home city to the door of 10 Downing Street to make their demands heard.

They marched to highlight the appalling situation their community was faced with after shipyards closed and unemployment rose to an estimated 70%. The trigger for this was the 1929 economic crash – a crisis not caused by workers but for which they were made to suffer.

Today, with youth unemployment likely to hit the one million mark and unemployment in the north east 25% higher than the UK average, Youth Fight for Jobs is organising a march in the footsteps of the Jarrow crusaders, to demand decent jobs and the right to education for all.

We are calling on unemployed people, students, trade unionists and anti-cuts campaigners to join us. This government has taken no effective action whatsoever to deal with youth unemployment. Instead it has slashed jobs and attacked the miserly benefits available.

Why are builders unemployed while materials lie idle and housing waiting lists grow? Why are tax collectors being laid off when the rich get away with billions through tax evasion and tax avoidance? Why, considering the huge threat of environmental destruction, are record numbers of science graduates either in low paid, casual work or unemployed? We are campaigning for investment in a programme of job creation rather than job cuts.

Marchers will be setting off on 1 October from Jarrow and marching to London via Leeds, Sheffield and Nottingham. In every area we visit we will link up with local Youth Fight for Jobs groups, anti-cuts unions, trade union branches and education activists to rally and protest to raise awareness of our cause.

Get involved and help fight back against this government’s entire cuts package!

Ben Robinson, Youth Fight for Jobs chair

How you can help

Think about whether you can march! If you would like to come on any part of it for however long, get in contact

We need £15,000! Ask your trade union branch, community campaign or student union to make a donation to help cover the costs and ask your trade union’s national conference / NEC to make a substantial donation. Model motions are available at youthfightforjobs.com/resources

  • Organise a fundraising gig or event in your area
  • Organise a local launch meeting for your area following the TUC demonstration on 26 March. This could be either a Youth Fight for Jobs meeting or an anti-cuts or student or workplace meeting with a speaker talking about the Jarrow march. Let us know so we can advertise it. We can also provide a speaker or speaker’s notes
  • Discuss with your local anti-cuts group, student group or unemployed workers’ centre about helping to organise a local event if the march is coming to your town. We can provide leaflets, posters and other material
  • March with the Youth Fight for Jobs block on the 26 March TUC demo