Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
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We’re ready for a long struggle
MICK WHELAN, general secretary of Aslef, the train drivers’ union, explains why its members are on strike today
Mick Whelan, ASLEF general secretary gives evidence to the Transport Committee in the House of Commons on Wednesday July 13 2022
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
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AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
WE ARE on strike today at seven train companies after they failed to make a pay offer to help our members keep pace with the increase in the cost of living.
Now we don’t want to go on strike — strikes are always, we believe, a last resort, the result of a failure of negotiation, and a failure of management — and this union, since I was elected general secretary in 2011, has only ever been on strike, until this year, for a handful of days.
We don’t want to inconvenience passengers, not least because our friends and families use public transport too and because we believe in building the railways here in Britain, and because our members don’t want to lose money by taking action.
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