Workers’ Memorial Day
“Remember the dead, fight for the living”
Today is Workers Memorial Day. I saw banners/lacards from UNITE, PCS, UNISON, UCATT, Prospect, GMB, Aslef, NUT, and CWU. There were many more that I may have missed. We marched from Bankside to the HSE offices at Rose Court. Many of the workers inside inside the place came outside to show solidarity with the marchers.
There were speeches from PCS, Prospect and UCATT and then Mark Serwotka spoke about the proposals of moving staff from this office relocating them to the Bootle office and the possibility of strike action.
We then continued to march to City Hall where we heard Matt Wrack (FBU), Pat Sikorski from the RMT, a speaker from the Battersea Crane Disaster Action Group about the death of her son, Michael Alexa. Michael Royston Hutin from Families Against Corporate Killers (FACK) spoke about his son Andrew, who died in a blast furnace explosion at Corus in Port Talbot, Anne Jones was there from the excellent Simon Jones Memorial Campaign. And Jeremy Corbyn spoke about the toothless Corporate Manslaughter legislation.
Just a few facts and figures to put this day into perspective:
good photos.
Comment by Andy Newman — 28 April, 2008 @ 6:01 pm
I missed the worker’s memorial day event in Birmingham cathedral today…These sort of events are relatively small scale but are key to rebuilding a sense of solidarity and awareness of the importance of trade unions in defending health and safety rights of workers everywhere.
Louises photo’s are ace… and I noticed Pat Sikorski spoke from the RMT… I believe Pat had an educational experience of trying to build the Socialist Labour Party in the 1990’s.
Comment by mark anthony france — 28 April, 2008 @ 8:13 pm
It is absolutely vital to realise that their wealth is based on stealing our health- up to 10 000 a year to die from asbestos poisoning in coming years, that’s three a day.
But also our mental health- stress is a major killer- it is also a health and safety issue so a trade union issue.
Comment by Jason — 28 April, 2008 @ 8:32 pm
mark i remeber you from ‘revolution youth’ days, revo national committee meetings in digbeth b’ham. good to know your still alive and kicking.
Comment by non partisan — 28 April, 2008 @ 9:06 pm
Jason: Thought you might be interested in Hazards magazine
http://www.hazards.org/suicide/cryingshame.htm
Comment by Louise — 28 April, 2008 @ 9:35 pm
And thanks Andy and Mark for the kind words about me pics.
Comment by Louise — 28 April, 2008 @ 9:39 pm
Interesting link, Louise, thanks.
Jason
Comment by Jason — 28 April, 2008 @ 9:50 pm
They are very good photos, Louise. Excellent post, too.
Comment by Charlie Marks — 29 April, 2008 @ 1:23 am
Re: HSE
I used to work next to the new HSE building in Bootle, and I’ve been told that it was deliberately built smaller than necessary for the current number of staff - presumably because they’re going to lay people off in the future.
Comment by McGazz — 29 April, 2008 @ 8:45 am
#4 non partisan… My god what a coincidence I was in the old bookshop in Digbeth the other day with an ex revolution youth comrade… I had a vivid flashback of distrubting a revo national committee meeting by bringing a bunch of chaps from Small Heath Youth Against Racist Attacks… on the way to a suicidal confrontation with NF Skins in the town centre…I remember Jude,and Redmond being rather annoyed with me… tut,tut.
It is good to know that we are alive and kicking…and on in this run up to Mayday with hope in our hearts we remember our dead… and keep on struggling!
respect
peace,justice,equality
Comment by mark anthony france — 29 April, 2008 @ 9:45 am
Great photos, great event. Mike Hutin from FACK - Families AGainst Corportae Killers was one of many FACK ers speaking at events across the country. There are loads of events all over UK and the world on International Workers Memorial Day, we have big events in Manchester, Preston and other places in North West.
Just a point the figs for those killed- the HSE figs are gross underestimate and shouldn’t be quoted unless in quotation mark!!
Hazards estimates for GB are: 1,500 to 1,700 killed by workplace incidents not accidents, and up to 50,000 killed by work-related diseases, 18,000 from occ cancer alone,
see http://www.gmhazards.org.uk/2008fig.doc.
Cheers
Hilda Palmer
fro Hazards Campaign and FACK
Comment by Hilda Palmer — 29 April, 2008 @ 12:40 pm
Hi Hilda,
Yeah, probably should have put those figures in quotation marks!I was impressed by the present of FACK yesterday and it is good to have that grassroots activism.
Charlie: Thanks for the kinds words about the pics..
Mark: off topic..but I recall being shown around that bkshop in Digbeth by your good self and Bob Smith. That is indeed 22 yrs ago. Time flies……
Comment by Louise — 29 April, 2008 @ 5:07 pm
louise,
I was thinking of old bob smith earlier today… I heard he died of a heart attack on a bus in Birmingham back in 1991… I remember crying… he was a good soul.. used to be a printer for the Birmingham Evening Mail. He hated sectarianism and always tried to maintain an open heart… I couldn’t make the funeral as I was in Havana… Bob was under a lot of workplace stress… with the splits in Socialist Action…with the separation from valued comrades and with a rampant imperialism crushing his fondest hopes… i guess he couldn’t take the strain anymore…
He made me hundreds of free cups of tea… and told repeatedly the story of how Peter Fryer [the author of Staying Power] spent a whole day with him in that cold bookshop in Digbeth….back in 1986 ish… about the time you got involved in the Anti Aparthied Youth Stuff.
For months afterwards everytime I walked into the shop usually dejected demoralised and nearly defunct… bob would smile through his beard and wisper “Staying Power”
I am smiling now and…so glad that you reminded me of Bob Smith
and I am so glad that so many off us appear to have gained the ‘Staying Power’ necessary to look to the future in good heart.
Comment by mark anthony france — 29 April, 2008 @ 6:01 pm
An important posting. I came across the parallel event in Manchester whilst crossing the city centre at lunchtime. It was very well supported and was very well organised. Reminded me of the strength of the trade union movement - as one of the keepers of the collective memory of `ordinary’ people, which is informed at every juncture by the willingness of people to stand up in the face of gross injustice and institutional indifference. The experience of seeing the personal photos and the attendance of families, alongside the trade unions, is both moving and invigorating.
Comment by John — 30 April, 2008 @ 9:49 am
Hi John, That’s great that you came across our Manchester event by accident and thanks for ytur kind comments! It is a joint union event with Greater Manchester Hazards Centre input and also FACK -Families Against Corporate Killers - which we set up and facilitate. We had 150 people there in pouring rain . Usually we have about 220 to 250 so think we have the biggest event in England and maybe the UK?
See Channel M, MEN and other press coverage Channel M link below - quite good coverage:
Video:
Death in the workplace - and how to prevent it
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1214105369/bctid1527698013
Hilda Palmer
GM Hazards, Hazards Campign and FACK and member of UNITE -TGWU
Comment by Hilda Palmer — 1 May, 2008 @ 5:15 pm
Well Done ! Excellent Pictures,
In Chorley we have held a workers memorial day event for the last 4 years so we feel connected to all events in solidarity.
Steve
Comment by steve turner — 9 May, 2008 @ 12:17 am
Chorley Branch of Unite and Chorley Trades Council www.chorleytradescouncil.co.uk , invite all acitivist to join our Workers Memorial Day event in Chorley , 24th April, 2009 . Please join us wer’e fighting for our lives ! . For more info contact secretarycdtc@hotmail.co.uk
Comment by steve turner — 27 March, 2009 @ 5:54 pm
IWMD 28th April 2009
Pssst! …..
International Workers Memorial Day 28th April 2009
It’s not a secret, TELL PEOPLE about it!!
Tell:
your members
your family
your friends
anyone you meet, and
don’t forget your employer
Workers Memorial Day is on the 28th April every year.
Tuesday 28th April 2009
This is OUR day, a day when workers and our families and our trade unions, focus on health and safety at work, both in our workplaces, and at events locally, nationally, and worldwide. This year more than ever we need to fight for our lives as the recession caused by a greedy, globalised financial system acting out of control under government deregulated, light touch regulation, has caused global meltdown and threatens to make our health and safety an even lower priority.
DON’T DO NOTHING, TAKE SOME ACTION, GET INVOLVED
Attend one of the local events or organise one yourself. If you cannot attend an event try to do something in your workplace – and at very least put up posters, wear a forget me knot ribbon and hold a one minutes silence at noon and tell everyone about it!
Every year there are thousands of events across the world on WMD attended by millions of people. There are hundreds in the UK.
The point of the Day is two fold:
to Remember the Dead
And also
to Fight for the Living
For resources and info See http://www.gmhazards.org.uk/events.htm
www.hazards.org/wmd; http://www.hazards.org/deadlybusiness/fackatwork.html;
http://www.hazards.org/deadlybusiness/specialinvestigation/index.htm
Comment by Hilda Palmer — 3 April, 2009 @ 4:54 pm