Workers of Leicester Unite!

Today was a proud day for Leicester as a thousand plus people came together in the centre of town to show their vocal opposition to the ongoing public sector pay freeze. Many thousands more workers from the region also took part in this industrial action, making a stellar contribution to today’s united effort that successfully brought over a million public sector workers from nine unions out on strike.

City Council workers based within the Passenger & Transport Services depot — who work tirelessly to provide special needs transport for adults and children — coordinated a particularly defiant strike action. There, from 7am, around forty workers from three unions drew attention to both the low-pay of Council employees, and the ongoing attacks being made to public services by the Con-Dem’s and our own Labour Council.

Speaking to BBC Radio Leicester, workers made it clear that they were disgusted that the poor were being made to pay for the crisis when it was so clearly caused by the bankers. Union members also spoke of the need for future united strike action between public and private sectors workers, and were outraged by the lack of support that the Labour Council, and particularly City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby, has shown for their cause – as evidenced in the last full Council meeting. Their major, wholly reasonable and implementable, demand being for a £1 an hour pay rise for all local Government employees and the living wage for the most vulnerable.

After making their jubilant presence felt on Uppingham Road for three hours, the depot strikers then set off on a march to the local fire station where they displayed by solidarity with members of the Fire Brigades Union. Later at the well-attended rally in town, many of these same workers were perhaps surprised when Sir Peter Soulsby spoke to the assembled crowd. One can only imagine that they thought Soulsby had stumbled upon the rally by accident, as he informed all workers presence of his solidarity with their struggle — these being empty words that were met with a suitably tepid response.

In stark contrast to Soulsby’s mealy-mouthed Labour(ish) sounding speechifying, TUSC Councillors Barbara Potter and Wayne Naylor aroused a loud and positive response from the assembled workers.

Taking the opportunity to affirm their willingness to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with all of Leicester’s workers, Barbara and Wayne both presented concrete strategies for how they would actively use their elected positions to help workers. They pledged to use their Council positions to highlight the plight of all exploited workers, and to demonstrate that none of the cuts currently being made to public services by the Labour-dominated Council were actually necessary.