Workers Solidarity Movement

The Amber Women’s Refuge in Kilkenny was set up to support women facing domestic violence.  Although the Centre has never been as busy it is now facing massive cuts.  The workers at the Centre are fighting to save the service.  Earlier this week the workers, members of SIPTU, placed a daily two-hour picket at the Centre to highlight the situation they are facing.  They are looking for support.  Following the intervention of the Labour Relations Court, talks have taken place between the workers and management.  Although daily pickets have been suspended pending the outcome of these talks, the fight for the Centre is still very much on.  In this interview Claire O’Neill talks about what has happened and the background to the dispute.

A report on the sucessful Campaign against the Household and Water Taxes (CAHWT) public meeting in Kildare:

Upon arriving at the meeting in the Derby House at around 7:30pm I found a number of members of the Kildare CAHWT branch making final preparations in the function room. A projector was playing a recording of an interview describing the continuing mismanagement of the Irish economic crisis.

At half past one on Saturday March 10 there were 4 members of the Newbridge Campaign Against Household and Water Charges assembled in the driveway of the Patrician Brothers monastery.We had two megaphones and a placard between us. Needless to say we were eagerly looking around for other members and people to bolster our numbers as the start of the march was scheduled for 2pm.

On Tuesday January 31^st 2011 a public meeting took place in the Hotel Keadeen in Newbridge, Co. Kildare. The meeting was organised by the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes and with around 200 local people in attendance, many having to stand at the back and sides, the meeting was a great start for the local campaign. The video below was recorded just before 8pm when the meeting was scheduled to commence and does not capture the people that continued to file into the hall after it was taken.

This is a version of the text of a leaflet distributed by the Save Loughlinstown A&E Campaign.
For a longer analysis of the health system from the WSM please see our pamhlet "Towards a Cure" :
 

St.Collumcilles 24-hour A&E in Loughlinstown due to close on 1st of November:
Don't let it happen!

Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Minister Joan Burton have begun the process of preparing the way for further attacks on the poorest sections of Irish society. As part of the governments strategy for dealing with the economic crisis there will be further cuts in welfare dressed up as reforms.

In an important gesture of solidarity in the face of media attacks on student protesters and the attempts by the USI student union leadership to undermine effective protest university teachers who are members of the National University of Ireland Maynooth IFUT Branch Committee sent the letter below to NUI Maynooth Student Union President congratulating the students on demonstrating in defense of Irish education and expressing grave concern at the Garda attack on the studnents that took place on the Wednesday November the 3rd.

A group of 50 protestors, mainly asylum seekers, has gathered outside the Mosney Centre in Co.Meath to protest at the planned movement of some of the internees to other facilities in the country.

MANDATE Trade Union is hosting a support rally for four of their members who were dismissed by their employer without any notice, just cause and without compensation. Their employer, Connolly Shoes in Dun Laoghaire has closed its doors to the workers so the union is hosting the rally at an another shop belonging to the employer, Connolly’s Footwear in Bray. 

The rally will take place at Connolly Footwear, 2 Quinsboro Road, Bray, Co. Wicklow, at 1:00 p.m. Friday, 9 July 2010.

This is the first May Day festival in living memory in the welcoming and historic town of Athy, Co. Kildare. It is taking place at a time of great uncertainty within our country and where a biased media whips up anti-trade union sentiment almost on a daily basis.