The Socialist 9 August 2017

Striking back against poverty pay

Venezuela shows battle Corbyn would face

Striking back against poverty pay

Rashan Charles death: End police racism and austerity

Coventry: march following racist police killing

Government's tribunal fees defeat

40% of England's psychiatric wards are 'unsafe'

Marx's Capital at 150: an unequalled analysis

Angry Birmingham bin workers enter fifth week of strike action

Barts strike: Keep up the pressure on Serco and the trust!

Steel workers at Rom Ltd strike for a pay rise

Coordinated action needed to break pay restraint

End poverty pay for sleep-in care workers

RMT condemns Welsh government rail privatisation

Young, angry and fighting back

Young Socialists off to a flying start in Cardiff

Campaign fights closure of Chatsworth rehab ward

Support for Socialist Party campaigns at biggest ever Leeds Pride

Northern Pride's a success

Housing safety campaign kicks off in Coventry

Far-right thrown out of Newcastle

Postie paper sale

Venezuela: Capitalist offensive sharpens after assembly elections

Workers' struggles in Peru: eyewitness report

How much reserves have councils got?

Global finance: Are those storm clouds ahead?

Crunchy guitar and poignant dialogue in alt-rock homage to south Wales miners

PO Box 1398, Enfield EN1 9GT

020 8988 8777

[email protected]

Link to this page: https://www.socialistparty.org.uk/issue/958/25916

Search the site	Printable version

Home | The Socialist 9 August 2017 | Join the Socialist Party

Subscribe | Donate | Audio | PDF | ebook

Rom steel strikers, August 2017, photo by A Tice (Click to enlarge)

Sheffield: Steel workers at Rom Ltd strike for a pay rise

Alistair Tice

No pay rise for ten years! That's why 18 steel fabricators in Sheffield are on strike for a rise. They are members of Community union and work for Rom Ltd, one of many companies owned by Spanish steel multinational Celsa.

They started a two week strike on Tuesday 25 July, and have a picket rota covering two gates from 6am to 6pm. There's only agency staff working and they don't know what they are doing without the contracted workers.

I talked to Chris, Keith, Brian and Andy on the picket line. Between them they have worked there for 136 years! They've never been on strike before, or not since the national steel strike in 1980.

Chris explained that when the economic crisis hit in 2007 the company said: "Don't come asking for a rise for the next two years, then another two years, etc".

As the placards say: "We helped Celsa"; but Celsa has kept taking advantage by eroding terms and conditions. Brian said: "They've even take our £15 Xmas voucher, £15!"

The strikers have just heard that workers at another Rom site in Newport who were going to ballot for industrial action have had an increased pay offer to 2%. They are sure it's because the bosses didn't want two sites coordinating strike action. This has only made them more determined and they will strike for another fortnight if Celsa doesn't shift.

This version of this article was first posted on the Socialist Party website on 1 August 2017 and may vary slightly from the version subsequently printed in The Socialist.

In this issue

What we think

Venezuela shows battle Corbyn would face