Speaking today (Tuesday) in support of the RMT and their members who are taking industrial action to protect their pay and conditions ALBA Depute Leader Kenny MacAskill MP said:
“ALBA stands full square behind the RMT and its members. I was proud and honoured to stand with the rail workers yesterday at the demonstration outside the UK Government offices in Edinburgh.
“It is in the interests of everyone who uses our rail services that we stand up for the workers who are essential to its running and its operation.
“But let’s be clear nobody wants to go on strike. It is forced upon workers when they’ve got no alternative. The pay offer is derisory, the attack upon terms and conditions of employment are unacceptable and the negotiations that have taken place have been nothing short of farcical.
“I say to the RMT. Your fight is our fight. It is not just that the rich are getting richer and that fat cat bosses continue to pocket eye watering salaries and bonuses. The fact is inflation is running at 11%. People getting 5% aren’t even keeping pace with the cost of living. People are not going to be able to heat their homes and are already struggling to feed their bairns.
“This is about solidarity with those in the front line. This action is essential to our public services and essential for our society. We cannot have a society where the rich get richer and the poor are left to go to the dogs.
“So despite the inconvenience to the public the fact is that this action is unavoidable. It is about protecting rail workers and their families from an effective pay cut, it is about opposing compulsory redundancies and it is about ensuring safety in our railways. For all of these reasons ALBA is on the side of the RMT and the workers in this dispute.”
Fine words, Kenny. Can’t dispute a word of it. It’s time for strikes.
Another form of people power and sovereignty of the people.
Respect.
You know things are bad when lawyers are threatening strike action
Alba supports working people. That’s what we like to hear! A great political Party.
Soar Alba, just what we need, I am sick of the SNP and their colonial administration’s compliance to Tory Facist Rule. Nodding dogs to the Union one excuse after another. We need a champion for the people of Scotland and thats not the SNP, dead beat quislings the lot of them. Dissolve the Union. Alba Rising.
It’s a fine state of affairs when workers who remained working throughout the pandemic are being threatened with redundancies and job cuts. Why is it that the chiefs never appear to have to tighten their belts? Inflation will not run rampant if pay rises occur because it is already running rampant, and paying workers more will let them spend more and ease inflation. How can the railways run with even fewer services that usual? They can’t, so it will be rural area lines and the smaller lines that will disappear a la Beeching. The big cities will continue to have services, pared maybe, but still operational, while the rest of the UK can go hang. Scotland has lost over 90% of its total rail operation, and we are a bloody country, not a county. Many areas in Scotland have no bus service at all either, so people are forced to use their cars, costing them dearly. Extremely well-paid managers sitting in London have not a clue.
Whoever believes inflation running at 11% is talking nonsense, you shouldn’t always believe what the UKG minions tell you or their thinktanks who are paid to think for UK and spout their propaganda.
You just have to look at what you’re paying at the pumps, super markets and for Gas, electric to know inflation is nearer 30%.
Even if the RMT got a pay rise of 11% they’d still be well out of pocket, the UK government must be in a real panic and why wouldn’t they be, they have lost total control of the UK economy, but what does the Labour leader do tell tells his RedTories not to show support for these on the picket line.
Well done Alba and Kenny.
This new Alba party could catch on, I’m thinking! Well said, Kenny MacAskill.
That’s the spirit Kenny/ALBA . Not before time some concerted resistance was mounted against the ongoing obliteration of Worker’s Rights and the right to use withdrawal of labour as a legitimate defence against attack from pernicious management/Government . In this instance it appears the management are being hampered in any attempt a reconciliation by this mob of Tory savages , happy to see public annoyance at any inconvenience as a tool to damage Labour . They actually have the sheer brass-neck to blame Labour for this dispute despite the latter not being in power . A narrative predictably reinforced by the rabid UK MSM : BBC online full of * stories * of poor commuters suffering terribly , unbelievable hardship , on a scale hitherto unseen . Aye , nae bother
Very refreshing to see RMT Leader Mick Lynch taking no shit from the lackeys in MSM or Tory bawbags , telling it like it is and calling them what they are ie ” liars ” . * Our * SNP pussyfooters could learn a thing or two from his directness . People are responding positively to him for these qualities of honesty and strength of commitment . No doubt many are just pleased to see that is still some fight left in the working class and it’s representatives .
How long before Mr Lynch is * cancelled * * de-platformed * or otherwise made inaudible/invisible ? Not long I fear . He’s too raw for MSM tastes . You know the real thing when you see it eh ?
Also – very – refreshing to see
* excuse the typo/repetition at the end of my comment *
Perhaps worth considering the wider issue here in that Inflation affects everybody, not just state railway employees, and inflation effects are worse the poorer you are. Not everybody works, or works in the bloated public sector, or has a trade union organisation to lobby governments and represent them.
On a related matter, would British trade union organisations still be permitted to function in an independent Scotland, i.e. still operate a branch office in our country taking its instructions from London?
So let me get this right. The oil and gas companies are making absolutely super profits as the price of oil and gas soar. But not the place of the government to impose windfall taxes on them or price regulation.
Meanwhile inflation soars due to not just the oil and gas price increases but also due to shortages arising out of economic sanctions.
And with inflation now surging at around 10% the train companies all elect to freeze pay increases way below inflation whilst cutting other employment emoluments such as pensions. Euphemistically described as new modern employment conditions the unions unable to gain agreement do not like what is being imposed on them. The government then say publicly that it is nothing to do with them as it’s up to the train companies.
They do however say that the unions are bad and in striking are just trying to make things difficult for ordinary people. They say also that in the near future they are going to introduce legislation that will make it illegal for workers like rail staff to go on strike. They also say that they are going to make it legal to strike break. Quite interesting from a government who declare the rail strike, and the super profits of the oil companies is nothing to do with them.
And then comes the coup d’etat when yesterday Downing Street announced that workers “ should brace for real terms pay cuts “
And in that statement we have it all. This is the new Brexit Britain. Low wages, reduced terms and condition, a Great British sweat shops on the edge of Europe.
And we voted for it. Lock stock and barrel we voted for it. Fuel poverty, low income deprivation, a declining NHS soon to be privatised. And a war, let us not forget that as we crank up our military into physical engagement. Let us eat cake.
That’s what we need, a politician standing up for the workers; well done Kenny. The SNP are too busy with their gender shit to even care about what’s going on.