Rowdy Mob Confronts Workfare Conference and Spoils Their Lunch A rowdy mob gathered outside today’s welfare-to-work conference as part of the Week of Action Against Workfare and Sanctions. The annual conference is organised by ERSA, the trade body established to lie on behalf of the workfare industry. Whilst vile workfare supporters like Esther McVey and the hard right Tax Payers Alliance gave speeches inside, people outside brought pots and pans, musical instruments, sound systems and megaphones to ensure the delegates could hear the anger at their exploitation of people in receipt of benefits. Up t0 50 people joined the protest which began outside the main entrance to Senate House, the venue for the conference. The group then set off for a walk round the building to hunt down the workfare exploiters only to find them having lunch just around the corner. There then followed a cacophony of noise as protesters whistled, jeered and made as much noise as possible right outside the window ensuring that the poverty profiteers tax-payer funded lunch was as unpleasant as possible. Meanwhile scores of people took over the #ERSA2013 hashtag for the day, ensuring that any attempt at white-washing their dirty little forced labour schemes on twitter was a dismal failure. Elsewhere people contacted the sponsors of the event demanding they end any association with workfare. The main sponsor, who paid out a whopping £6000, were @learndirect. In an expensive marketing disaster they were singled out and their facebook page bombarded after they were found to be workfare exploiters themselves. Keep up the pressure and make sure they bitterly regret every last penny they spent supporting forced unpaid work. Protests are planned around the UK as part of the week of action with upcoming action in Reading, Wrexham, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Cardiff along with four more protests in London. Online actions will continue everyday this week so keep an eye on Boycott Workfare’s website for the latest announcements. A video of the protest along with a further report is available at: http://www.katebelgrave.com/2013/12...ating-with-the-political-class-or-corporates/ The Void http://johnnyvoid.wordpress.com/201...s-workfare-conference-and-spoils-their-lunch/
Day 2: Stop Traineeships – workfare for young people Day 2 of the Week of Action Against Workfare: from Boycott Workfare Day One of the week of action against workfare and sanctions was great – with a LOUD noise demo at the workfare industry’s annual conference, hijacking its hashtag and actions in Cardiff and Germany! On Day Two, target the companies profiting from making young people work without pay on Traineeships. Traineeships are about providing cheap labour, driving down wages, massaging unemployment figures and conditioning our young people for a life of poverty and jumping through endless hoops in search of a job. They’re a fairly new scheme that targets 16-24 year olds with more unpaid work. Traineeships involve a work placement of up to six months for which the employer is not even required to pay travel expenses. The promise at the end of six months’ unpaid work? You may then be eligible to work for £2.67 an hour as an apprentice. Used together, traineeships and apprenticeships have the potential to massively undercut the minimum wage on the high street and elsewhere. The government is of course rolling out compulsory education for 17-18 year-olds and unpaid work looks set to make up an increasingly large component of that education. Benefits cuts for 18-25 year-olds are also threatened. There are many companies happy to take advantage of young people and profit from their lack of opportunity and today let’s take action against them. Contact them by phone, email or on social media. Kwikfit Kwikfit’s hit the headlines for expecting 39 hours of unpaid work a week from its traineeships and advertising them across the UK. It’s already faced huge public criticism on social media. Let’s make sure it knows the pressure hasn’t gone away and it needs to pay the people who work for it. You could comment by phone or email, on its Facebook page or Youtube channel. They are on twitter @Kwik_Fit Subway This multi-national brand with $18.1 billion in sales in a year, is recruiting multiple traineeships in Blackpool to “prepare food and serve customers” for 21 hours’ work a week each. currently advertising for at least three placements, this shop is saving itself £3180 on the wages bill in the next two months. Let’s hope the young people weren’t planning on buying any Christmas presents. Share your thoughts on Subway’s Facebook page or take a look at their contact details. They are on twitter @SUBWAYUKIreland Toywatch Here is a luxury watch shop offering unpaid work for six months in its store in Westfield to young people when clearly it should and could offer them paid work and on the job training. You can contact Toywatch and let them know what you think on shop@toy-watch.com, comment on their Facebook page, give them a call on 020 3301 8744 or pay them a visit. They are on twitter @ToyWatchWorld Novotel Novotel’s 4* hotel in Southampton is also profiting from 42 hours of unpaid work in its kitchens each week. Its contact details can be found here. Got a few more minutes? The Viod http://johnnyvoid.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/day-2-stop-traineeships-workfare-for-young-people/
Day 3: Target the companies replacing paid work with workfare Workfare hands companies free labour which means fewer jobs and paid hours for everyone. But direct action and online pressure mean tens of brands now steer clear of it. Let’s step up the pressure on companies who still think they can profit from unpaid work! Take action today to shame these companies and make them realise that exploiting unemployed people might just mean fewer customers this Christmas. There’s new online action every day this week so please keep checking back! Marks & Spencer Marks & Spencer’s use of workfare hit public awareness when they announced 1400 new placements in their stores and a benchmark of 2% of the workforce to be unpaid. But this isn’t the brand’s first encounter with workfare. Despite their CEO earning over £2 million a year, they are also profiting from unpaid work through another workfare scheme in Scotland, which targets single parents. It’s likely their involvement is much more widespread – we also heard from someone sent on a 4 week placement at one of their outlet stores. Last time we took action, M&S was forced to disable comments on their Facebook Page. Several pickets and walks of shame will pay a visit to their stores this week. Please feel free to contact them with your thoughts as well: By email: Using their online form By phone: See this useful list of numbers Facebook: Marks and Spencer Twitter: @marksandspencer B&M Stores In May, B&M won an award from the workfare industry for its involvement. But the reality of this involvement is harsh. One person has reported: “B&M stores have started using workfare Jan 2013. Receiving free labour and stopping overtime for employees with contracts. The people forced to do this free labour are not happy and neither are the employees!” Boycott Workfare has had reports of workfare at B&M stores in Bangor, Glasgow, Manchester, Southend and Northern Ireland. Show them they can’t keep cutting their wages bill with unpaid work! By email: enquiries@bmstores.co.uk or customerservices@bmstores.co.uk By phone: 0151 728 5400 or more numbers here. Facebook: B&M Stores Twitter: @bmstores Asda Asda has been at the heart of workfare in the UK, helping the government relaunch its “Work Experience” scheme last year. We have had reports that one of their stores in Manchester uses disabled people on workfare on the night shift. They are frank about their involvement here. Asda contact form: Click here Facebook: Asda Twitter: @asda The Void http://johnnyvoid.wordpress.com/201...-companies-replacing-paid-work-with-workfare/
