Conference launches day of action for jobs

Ady Cousins, of the Counter Fire site, has swiftly posted videos of speeches at the 'Fight for the Right to Work' conference in London.

Pat Phelan, from the Waterford Glass occupation in Ireland, clearly inspired people at the 'Fight for the Right to Work' conference yesterday with his recent experiences of taking collective direct action to save jobs. Ron Clark, a former convenor at Visteon, talked about how he and his workmates were inspired by the occupation in Belfast to take militant action themselves.

Jose Stalin Bermudez, who also spoke, is currently at the epicentre of a battle for decent pay that has also become a defence of migrant workers and their right to work. Some of his fellow cleaners are now, disgracefully, threatened with deportation.

The conference, initiated by Wateford Glass and Visteon union organisers and backed by various union branches plus a number of student unions, called a nationwide day of action for early September, which will involve protests at job centres. It also put a call out to build the planned demonstration for Labour Party Conference on 27 September, and for 'Fight for the right to work' public meetings in cities throughout the country to help build it.