Derby SWP Weekly Update #6

After a slight delay caused by lots of tiredness from the excellent demonstration in Manchester yesterday, welcome back to your essential guide to the week in Derby!

SWP Branch Meeting

There is no branch meeting this week.

The next branch meeting will be on Thursday 10^th October at 7 pm in the West End Community Centre, Derby, where the topic will be 'can unions make a revolution?' All welcome.

Teachers' Strike TOMORROW

The two largest teachers' unions will be on strike tomorrow in large parts of the country. Thousands of teachers in Derby will join teachers across Yorkshire, Humberside, the Midlands and the East of England in a day of action against the disastrous changes being foisted upon them by the Tories. There will be a march assembling at 9.30 tomorrow in the market place and a rally at 10.30 at the Spot. All welcome. Send solidarity messages to cityofderbynut@gmail.com and follow events @cityofderbynut on Twitter.

Demonstration Against the Tories

Sunday's march against the Tories in Manchester saw 70,000 people march to defend the NHS and public services. Teachers, firefighters, public sector workers, environmental campaigners, anti-bedroom tax campaigners and many more marched to show the Tories we want them out. Now.

Unite the Resistance conference 19 October: Organising to win
Build the protests, build the strikes, build the unions: Organising to win.
Speakers include: Billy Hayes, CWU general secretary; Jeremy Corbyn MP; Ronnie Draper, BFAWU general secretary, Frank Morris, blacklisted UNITE shop steward who was reinstated after determined campaigning; speakers from the One Housing Dispute and the Boris Bikes dispute.
Unite the Resistance has called a national conference for 19 October. The Tories continue their assault on working class people. Alongside huge cuts in public spending and an onslaught on benefits, workers face pay cuts, attacks on their pensions and job losses. Millions of workers want to see a fight back.
This conference is a unique opportunity for those new to organising in the workplace and their communities as well as those who have experience in the trade unions and campaigns, here and internationally, to come together and discuss how we can organise to win.
We need a strategy to build bigger and more effective trade unions. Across the public and private sector protests, campaigns and strikes are being planned for this autumn. This conference will address how we build as much support as possible for these and provide an alternative to austerity that can give hope to all those resisting the government’s assault on working people’s lives.
There will be a number of workshops introduced by trade unionists, campaigners and activists at the cutting edge of the struggle against austerity.Click here to download leaflet

Weird Weather – Climate Change Coalition meeting

There will be a public meeting of the Climate Change Coalition on Thursday 3^rd October at 7 pm in St Peter's Conference Centre on St Peter's St in Derby.

Derby SWP Weekly Update #5

Hello everyone,

After a slight hiatus, welcome back to your essential guide to the week in Derby!

SWP Branch Meeting

There is no branch meeting this week or next week. Instead there will be a social at the Greyhound pub on Friargate from 7 pm.

The next branch meeting will be on Thursday 10^th October at 7 pm in the West End Community Centre, Derby, where the topic will be the possibilities for union actions to overturn austerity politics - title to be confirmed.

Demonstrate Against the Tories

On the 29th September the Tories will be holding their conference in Manchester. The trades unions and campaign groups have called a massive demonstration against them and their policies. Coaches have been put on by several trades unions. If you would like to join in and need transport, let us know by replying to this email.

The Tory assault on working class people is gathering pace. Our public services are being destroyed, jobs lost, benefits cut and wages driven down.
Increasingly claimants and migrant workers are being scapegoated for the economic mess, not the bankers and politicians who are to blame.
The Cameron government wants to make us pay for the crisis.
We face the fight of our lives to turn things around.
The Tory party conference starts in Manchester on Sunday 29 September.
UNISON, UNITE and the GMB are calling for a protest at the conference to defend the NHS and this is backed by the TUC. Bedroom tax and benefits justice campaigners who have been organising across Britain have called for people to join a protest at the Tory conference too.
We should demonstrate at the Tory conference in our tens of thousands.
http://uniteresist.org/2013/06/marchonthetoryconference/Click here for transport details

FBU to strike on Wednesday 25th September
The Fire Brigades Union has a called a strike of all firefighters in England and Wales on Wednesday 25 September. The strike is over attacks to their pensions and will be a four hour strike. This comes after 78 percent of firefighters voted to strike.
Unite the Resistance urges every trade unionist to show solidarity with the Fire Fighters by sending messages of support and visiting picket lines.Click here to read the FBU statement
Solidarity with Hovis Strikers

Hovis strikers returned to work on Wednesday following their second week long strike.
They scored more successes in the strike with 2 early morning pickets which saw hardly any delivery trucks leaving the depot. Solidarity is building up with supporters joining the pickets from around the North West.
Leicester and Belfast plants are balloting for industrial action and Bradford has already won a yes vote by 70 percent for industrial action.Pickets at Hovis pile pressure on bosses – again!
Early morning Hovis picket stops deliveries leaving the depot

Rush messages of support to region4@bfawu.org

Unite the Resistance conference 19 October: Organising to win
Build the protests, build the strikes, build the unions: Organising to win.
Speakers include: Billy Hayes, CWU general secretary; Jeremy Corbyn MP; Ronnie Draper, BFAWU general secretary, Frank Morris, blacklisted UNITE shop steward who was reinstated after determined campaigning; speakers from the One Housing Dispute and the Boris Bikes dispute.
Unite the Resistance has called a national conference for 19 October. The Tories continue their assault on working class people. Alongside huge cuts in public spending and an onslaught on benefits, workers face pay cuts, attacks on their pensions and job losses. Millions of workers want to see a fight back.
This conference is a unique opportunity for those new to organising in the workplace and their communities as well as those who have experience in the trade unions and campaigns, here and internationally, to come together and discuss how we can organise to win.
We need a strategy to build bigger and more effective trade unions. Across the public and private sector protests, campaigns and strikes are being planned for this autumn. This conference will address how we build as much support as possible for these and provide an alternative to austerity that can give hope to all those resisting the government’s assault on working people’s lives.
There will be a number of workshops introduced by trade unionists, campaigners and activists at the cutting edge of the struggle against austerity.Click here to download leaflet
Click here for b&w leaflet Save Our NHS – March on the Tory Conference

NASUWT and NUT confirm next phase of industrial action
The two largest teacher unions, the NASUWT and the NUT, representing nine out of ten teachers, are today confirming the next phase of their jointly coordinated campaign to Protect Teachers and Defend Education.
Following the continued refusal of the Secretary of State to genuinely engage with the NUT and the NASUWT to seek to resolve our trade disputes with him, plans are in place for the next stage of industrial action which will include
1st October – strike action in the Eastern, East Midlands, West Midlands, Yorkshire and Humberside regions
17th October – strike action in North East, London, South East and South West regions
There are also rallies in Cambridge and Exeter on 21st September.
http://uniteresist.org/2013/08/teachers-prepare-rallies-and-strikes-for-the-new-term/http://uniteresist.org/2013/09/nasuwt-nut-announce-next-regional-strike-dates/

For contributions from speakers at last week's Rally for Education in Nottingham, check out the @CityofDerbyNUT twitter feed!

“Get organised” day school, Sunday 6 October

Get Organised! SWP Industrial Dayschool: For new members, young workers and those organising at work for the first time Sunday 6 October, 12 – 4.30pm, Venue will be emailed out

12 - 1.30pm: Revolutionaries and the unions

1.30 – 2.15pm: Break

2.15 – 3.45pm: The Working Class Today

3.45 – 4pm: Break

4 – 4.30pm: Get Organised: Building in the Workplace

Please let the industrial department know as soon as possible if you yourself can attend or not, and if you are aware of other comrades going from your branch/ district/ union fraction.

Weird Weather – Climate Change Coalition meeting

There will be a public meeting of the Climate Change Coalition on Thursday 3^rd October at 7 pm in St Peter's Conference Centre on St Peter's St in Derby.

Rally for Education THIS SATURDAY

This Saturday in Nottingham there will be a rally for education, organised by the NUT and NASUWT unions.

This rally is ahead of the next round of strike action.

Derby and most of the North and Midlands will be on strike on 1st October.

The Nottingham rally will be at the Crowne Plaza Hotel from 11am to 12.30.

Speakers include Chris Keates, General Secretary of NASUWT and Kevin Courtney, Deputy General Secretary of the NUT.

It is open to anyone who wants to show support for teachers as they take action against Michael Gove and his disastrous policies.

We need to make the action as strong as possible - make sure you attend!