London IWW open forum: casual and migrant labour

London GMB is proud to present the first of a series of forums on various labour-related topics...

Organising the Unorganisable? Casual and Migrant Workers in London and Beyond

Throughout its life, the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) has prided itself on organising the workers other unions did not dare to organise. It was the first union in the USA to organise amongst women, unskilled workers and immigrant communities, and is nowadays organising in coffee shops, 'illegal' immigrant workplaces, and other places where mainstream unions do not.

The forces of economics are pushing more and more people into casual work, with virtually none of the rights and security of permanent employment. As a result, wages and employment conditions have fallen, hitting the most vulnerable people hardest. Even jobs that were traditionally secure, such as teaching or medicine, have become increasingly casualised, resulting in falling quality of life for the workers and increasing profits for bosses.

In many cases, it is migrant workers who suffer the most from casual labour, and are also regularly victimised by the media. In the run-up to the Olympic Games, we only need to glance at the newspaper headlines expressing fears over an ‘invasion’ of Eastern European workers to see this in action. On the other hand, we can look back to the Athens Olympic site where 20 workers died during its construction, to see the harsh reality of casual labour.

This, the first of a series of workshops and forums hosted by the London IWW branch, will encourage people to share experiences, discuss the causes and crossovers between migrant and casual labour, and how radical workers might work together towards common aims. Speakers from the IWW and the No Borders network (a radical immigrant and detainee support group) will give brief introductions on the background to the issues, before an open discussion takes place on experiences and practical organising ideas around these incredibly important issues.

The workshop will be made from what people bring to it, so please do come along and participate in what promises to be an interesting, inspiring and challenging evening.

Afterwards, everyone is warmly welcomed to join us for a drink and less heavy conversation!

The meeting will begin at 3pm and continue no later than 5pm. Nearest tube is Russell Square.

 We will also be picketing Greenwich Starbucks (nearest underground: Cutty Sark) from 12pm. Please do come along, and bring your friends!