[OccupySheffield] [Occupy London] Fw: [oh15] Fwd: agenda: unemployed/other workers union

Tue Dec 27 14:41:32 GMT 2011

+ 1

Thank you Anna !  a really important contribution.  So much of the most important work is unpaid and, officially at least, unacknowledged.

On 27 Dec 2011, at 13:00, marknbarrett at googlemail.com wrote:

> please see below from Anna Harris. hopefully some will link up over this in Sheffield :-) ( hi Anna .. And Thx for the email. And, maybe we will need to re-define the meaning of work to explore common ground on this! ) Mark
> Sent from phone
> From: Anna Harris <anna at shsh.co.uk>
> Sender: oh15 at googlegroups.com
> Date: Tue, 27 Dec 2011 12:30:59 +0000
> To: <oh15 at googlegroups.com>
> ReplyTo: oh15 at googlegroups.com
> Subject: Re: [oh15] Fwd: agenda: unemployed/other workers union
> 
> Hi Mark and all,
> 
> 
> I will be at the national meeting in Sheffield, and I would definitely support this call for an 'Occupy-driven unemployed and diverse 'other' workers union'. This needs to include retired like myself, plus all those whose work is not considered 'employment' because it is not paid, eg mothers, housewives, carers, voluntary workers, etc. These activities, such as child rearing, cooking, cleaning, etc, actually form the core of our economy, though it is completely unrecognised and unacknowledged. Without this unpaid work, particularly on the part of those involved in child-rearing, our economy could not function.
> 
> Personally I am not so sure about the 'right to decent, liberating and well
> paid work for everyone'. This can only be a real choice when people are not pressured to work in order to sustain themselves and their families. Work is a totally natural activity when there is no pressure, witness how young children want to be involved- 'Can I help? Can I do it?' is what I constantly hear from my grandchildren. That desire needs to be fostered, by allowing children to play an active part in activities that make a real contribution. And that is what we all want to do, make a real contribution, but it needs to be separated from being paid a living wage. The 'living wage' is everyone's right whether they work or not.
> 
> 
> On Tue, Dec 27, 2011 at 9:13 AM, Mark Barrett <marknbarrett at googlemail.com> wrote:
> Hey Everyone
> 
> Please can this idea ( for an Occupy-driven unemployed and diverse
> 'other' workers union) be raised at the national gathering ?
> 
> Mark
> 
> some more responses to the union for unemployed / other thread
> 
> "From: Mike Evison <sunset74 at btinternet.com>
> Date: 24 December 2011 23:16
> Subject: Re: [OccupySheffield] I think this warrants serious consideration
> 
> If funding is required then the TUC should levy the other unions for
> financial and material assistance in the interests of fraternity. One
> day those who are now unemployed will be looking for a union."
> 
> From B2B: "Thanks for this uplifting contribution!  Yes, a lot of us
> who are long term
> unemployed, the fact that some of us have additional needs/challenges should
> be beside the point...
> 
> The thing that puts me personally right off, is groups such as the DPU focus
> almost solly on the fact that: 'dis-abled people are having their benefits
> cuts, rather than, portraying us as able"
> 
> Hey Rick B and Mike - I agree 100% with this. It's exactly what Occupy
> UK should be focusing on imo. The right to decent, liberating and well
> paid work for everyone goes to the very heart of what will one day
> make a great, productive and enlightened society. I know there was an
> unemployed workers union of some kind (possibly of SWP origin) coming
> out of Salford and Manchester a while back but what's needed now is
> something high profile, ambitious and r'evolutionary -  just the kind
> of thing Occupy should be generating on a national level. Personally I
> would happily flier at my local job centre and do other local
> activities on this front. Also the universal benefit initiative of IDS
> will need a collective response. Mark B  PS I wrote a short piece on
> the future of work ( in a real democracy ) earlier this year, here:
> http://righttowork.org.uk/2011/07/real-democracy-and-the-future-of-work/
> which people may or may not agree with!   ;-)
> 
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Mike Evison <sunset74 at btinternet.com>
> 
> The following email from Rick B needs serious consideration because at
> present the unemployed and the disabled have no official
> representation and have become the whipping boys for the Con-Dem
> government who are the 1% representatives.
> 
> They are all in vulnerable situations and have no way of defending
> their rights, what ever they may be at this present time. If they are
> left to wither and die through ignorance from those who are still
> fortunate, then another group will be chosen to be picked off and so
> the process will go on until we have no rights in this country.
> 
> Mike
> 
> Rick B email:
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Rick B <soisthesun at gmail.com>
> Subject: [OccupySheffield] unemployed workers union
> To: occupysheffield at email-lists.org
> 
> Hi camp,
> I'm fed up with being unemployed and disabled and being pushed and
> pulled by rich politicians. I'm trying to make contact with someone
> from the Unemployed Workers Union, do you have any contacts? If there
> are no Sheffield branches, it is something I am considering setting
> up. Would there be support for such a union within your camp?
> It strikes me that the unemployed and disabled are getting trampled on
> more than any other group in society due to not having adequate
> representation. The mainstream unions are pretty much looking after
> their members and not representing the interests of the less well off.
> The mainstream political parties are all 'in it together' with the
> bankers and multi-nationals. Maybe 3 million angry unemployed and
> disabled people in union and on a mission will send them a message
> hard to forget.
> Thanks, happy Xmas
> Rick
> 
> 
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