
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
Housing safety campaign kicks off in Coventry
Far-right thrown out of Newcastle
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
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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
Socialist Party news and analysis
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
Marx's Capital at 150: an unequalled analysis
Socialist Party workplace news
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
Socialist Party reports and campaigns
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
Housing safety campaign kicks off in Coventry
Far-right thrown out of Newcastle
International socialist news and analysis
Venezuela: Capitalist offensive sharpens after assembly elections
Workers' struggles in Peru: eyewitness report
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition
How much reserves have councils got?
Global finance
Global finance: Are those storm clouds ahead?
Music review
Crunchy guitar and poignant dialogue in alt-rock homage to south Wales miners
Home | The Socialist 9 August 2017 | Join the Socialist Party
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