Press Release
Remploy workers take second day of strike action in on Thursday 26th July in desperate bid to save 2,800 disabled workers jobs
25 July 2012
When the situation in Remploy is thought about logically and not coloured by dogma dished out by charities who have their own agenda, Remploy factories could tick virtually all the boxes to get disabled people back to work.
GMB and Unite members will take a second day of strike action from 6 a.m. Thursday 26th July 2012 to 6 am on Friday 27th July 2012. The strike action will take place in all 54 factory sites.
Strikers will be on joined by their families on the picket lines outside their individual factories. They will also be protest meetings in their towns and cities centres at all 54 Remploy factory locations.
The list of the 36 factories that were announced in March to close were:- Aberdare, Aberdeen, Abertillery, Acton, Ashington, Barking, Barrow, Birkenhead, Bolton, Bridgend, Bristol, Chesterfield, Cleator Moor, Croespenmaen, Edinburgh, Gateshead, Leeds, Leicester, Manchester, Merthyr Tydfil, Motherwell, Newcastle, North London, North Staffs, Oldham, Penzance, Pontefract, Poole, Preston, Southampton, Spennymoor, Springburn, Swansea, Wigan, Worksop and Wrexham.
The 9 of these factories to be subject to further consultation are:- Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Springburn, Barrow, Bristol, Chesterfield, Poole, Bridgend, Croespenmaen, All the others are set to close by December 2012.
Phil Davies, GMB National Secretary and Secretary of the Remploy Trade union Consortium said:
“Last Thursday's first national strike by Remploy Employees, the vast majority of who have severe and complex disabilities last week was a magnificent success. The support that was shown by the communities, and the labour movement was a big boost for the morale of workers, many of whom had taken strike action for the first time in their lives.
The second strike will build on that support. The Remploy factories are very much at the heart of the community and we are inviting members of those communities to come along and stand shoulder to shoulder with us to defend their factories”
Kevin Hepworth, Unite National Officer said:
“It is an absolute disgrace that Remploy workers should have to take strike action to defend their factories their jobs and their basic dignity against a Government that has declared a war on disabled workers.
The whole trade union and labour movement is absolutely outraged by the ill thought out and ideologically driven policy to deprive decent skilled and loyal workers of their livelihood's and dignity, with little or no chance of finding alternative employment in the worst economic climate this country has seen for decades.”
Les Woodward GMB National convenor for the Remploy trade unions and GMB shop steward in Remploy Swansea said:
“The Remploy Workers will fight tooth and nail for their factories and their livelihoods. When the situation in Remploy is thought about logically and not coloured by dogma dished out by charities who have their own agenda, Remploy factories could tick virtually all the boxes to get disabled people back to work. We can train people support people in the short medium or long term and give people skills in modern manufacturing processes. We will continue fighting until someone somewhere sees the sense in what we are saying!”
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