The Meteor
Manchesters Independent Media
Just nine years old, Blut Htoo had to run for her life from a bombed and burning refugee camp in Thailand, attacked by pro-Myanmar government armed militia.
Now living in Salford she fears the current military coup and crackdown will see many more refugees suffering like her family did.
Andy Burnham met Go North West bosses last week to discuss service disruption.
While careful to distinguish the industrial dispute between GNW and its drivers from other instances of ‘fire and rehire’ practices, the mayor says issuing Section 188 notices to renegotiate workers’ employment contracts is tantamount to ‘industrial blackmail’.
Bus drivers in Manchester employed by Go North West voted 82% in favour of taking industrial action against the bus company for its ‘fire and rehire’ practices, on a 77% turnout.
Unite, represents the drivers, stressed there was still time for Go North West bosses to return to the negotiating table.
Elbit Systems, the controversial arms firm with a factory in Oldham that supplies equipment to the Israeli military, has received a contract of over £100 million from the government to supply ‘battlefield technology’ to UK armed forces.
Pro-Palestinian protestors occupied the factory on Monday calling for a stop to its trade in military equipment used in attacks that kill Palestinian civilians.
Unite will ballot 485 bus drivers on strike action if Go North West does not return to the negotiating table. The decision to consider balloting was made in response to the bus company announcing it will no longer negotiate with the union and will instead consult drivers individually.
Bringing buses under public control is ‘better value for money’ for the city region in spite of ‘severe’ impact of Covid-19 on bus patronage and revenues, Greater Manchester leaders hear at a meeting this week.
Unite leader Len McCluskey warns Go North West parent company Go Ahead Group it risks industrial action if it continues with plans to “fire and rehire” nearly 500 Manchester bus drivers, which would see each driver lose an estimated £2,000 a year.
Plans to rejuvenate the derelict Mayfield Depot offers a glimpse of hope for the city centre with promises of new homes, offices and a park to boot. But there are fears that the average resident could be priced out of the space and the green measures promised do not go far enough to protect the […]
Around 500 Manchester bus drivers will hold a consultative ballot on whether to take industrial action, after employer Go North West Limited suspended a senior Unite representative for carrying out trade union activities.
Manjeet Kaur’s life is a story of extraordinary adversity and battles. She fought tirelessly and her work led to changes in policy and practice in several key areas. Manjeet Kaur died on Saturday 25 April 2020 in Manchester, aged 41 years. Human rights campaigner and activist Manjeet Kaur was born in Afghanistan in January 1979. […]
