November 30th Pensions Justice strike

Wolverhampton’s biggest strike in a generation. 30-11-2011

There were mass closures of services across the city.  After morning picketing from early hours in the morning, 2,000 strikers assembled in front of Civic Hall on North St.  This was over three times the predicted size.

We marched behind a 20-foot Pension Justice banner and the Azaad Dhol players with flags, placards and local union branch banners around the city centre.
Followed by a rally with short speeches from local leaders of striking unions:

Nick Kelleher WB&DTUC, Adrian Turner UNISON local government, Marie Taylor CYWU-UNITE, Bob Johnson NASUWT, Steve Whitton UCATT, Debbie Elson PCS, Stuart Grant NUT, Ken Purchase UNITE and Rob Marris NUT 

Wolf Radio‘s news coverage of Wolverhampton’s strikes, demonstration and rally

TUC’s Pensions website

Workers paying into public service pensions will have to pay more, and work longer to receive smaller pensions, under the government’s plans. 

Try the calculator to give a prediction of how much extra pension contributions will cost, on each of the five main schemes, based on your income and working hours. It will tell you more about the implications raising the pension age will have on the value of your pension, and show you how the switch to a different method of measuring inflation will reduce the value of pensions in payment, year on year. 

17,000 strong march and 13,000 filled Birmingham’s National Indoor Arena for the biggest post-war indoor rally.

BBC announced 1000 rallies nationally.

Local rallies and demonstrations took place in Walsall, Sandwell, Chesterfield, Derby, Dudley, Leicester, Lincoln, Northampton, Donnington, Coventry, Telford, Worcester and Stoke.

see further details of all Midlands rallies

Up to 3 million public sector workers, including nurses, teachers and careworkers, are expected to take part in industrial action, with 27 unions committed to strikes or balloting over government pension reforms.

Votes for strikes

GMB: 84 percent voted for strike on a 33 percent turnout
Ucatt: Backed strikes by 83 percent on a 27 percent turnout
Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists (SCP): Voted by 85 percent for strikes on a 52 percent turnout
Society of Radiographers (SOR): 84 percent vote for strikes on a 58 percent turnout
FDA: Backed strikes by 81 percent on a 54 percent turnout
Prospect: 75 percent voted for strikes on a 52 percent turnout
Association of Educational Psychologists (AEP): 64 percent vote for strikes
Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) in Northern Ireland : 77 percent vote for strikes
NAHT headteachers’ union: Backed strikes by 75 percent on a 54 percent turnout
Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP): Voted by 86 percent for strikes on a 66 percent turnoutUnison: 78 percent voted for strikes on a 29 percent turnout
EIS Scottish teachers’ union: Voted by 82.2 percent for action with a turnout of 54.2 percent
Nipsa (Northern Ireland): Balloted for strikes over pensions, pay and jobs. Voted by 67 percent for strikes on a 43 percent turnout
The Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland (AHDS): Voted by just under 60 percent for strikes on a 38 percent turnout

PCS: Live ballot over pensions, pay and cuts. Committed to November strike
UCU: Members in Teachers’ Pension Scheme will strike again in autumn. Also won ballot last week for lecturers in older universities in USS pension scheme
NUT: Committed to further coordinated strikes to defend pensions
ATL: Committed to further coordinated strikes to defend pensions
UCAC Welsh teachers’ union: Struck on 5 October and will also join 30 November
Unison Northern Ireland: struck on 5 October and will also join 30 November  

The TUC general secretary, Brendan Barber, said: “The intention will be to take the call for pensions justice for both public and private sector workers to every corner of the land on that day in the biggest trade union mobilisation in a generation.”

Barber confirmed that the 24-hour walkout – potentially the biggest since the 1926 General Strike – could signal the beginning of a wave of industrial action as individual unions and groups of public sector workers mounted their own campaigns across the UK.

“Further consideration is being given to what further action may be appropriate beyond the day of action if progress towards a settlement is not secured,” he said.