An East London horror story
War on Want is a respected UK charity which works to combat poverty and promote human rights around the world. Pluto Press is a respected left-wing publishing house which to its everlasting credit is the…
Smartphone apps: Where are the unions?
A few years ago, no one ever heard of a “smartphone”. A few years from now, every one of us will own one. This has implications for trade unions which we’re not yet facing up…
Der Präsident lässt peitschen
In kaum einem Land der Welt wird die Gewerkschaftsbewegung so heftig unterdrückt wie im Iran. Internationale Gewerkschaftsverbände rufen nun zu einem globalen Aktionstag auf.
World’s unions stand in solidarity with Iranian workers
Weeks before the disputed Presidential election, long before the explosion of dissent into the streets of Tehran, there were already signs that not all was well in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Mass arrests at…
iPod for Ubuntu users
Take a look at this screenshot. Click on the image to enlarge it. Do you see what I see? In the center of your screen is Apple iTunes software. But look carefully at the top…
iPhone? Who the hell needs an iPhone?
Look carefully at the image to the left. This is not an iPhone. It is an iPod touch with something that looks just like a thumbtack stuck into the bottom of it. This thing is…
Twitterfeed and RSS: Separating content from delivery of content
It seems like every day, there’s another way to publish information on the net. There are traditional websites, RSS feeds, Twitter, blogs, social networks, SMS text messages and of course email. Union members are using…
Is Israel a victim or aggressor?
That was the title of a debate held on Thursday evening at Durham University and hosted by the Durham Union Society. I was invited to be one of the three proponents. Other speakers included Jonathan…
Union book sales: A glimmer of hope
Steve Early’s article “Reading, Writing and Union Building” is an excellent overview of the state of union book sales and publishing. As he quotes from something I wrote four years ago, I thought it might…
Unionprofessionals – new website for people who work for unions
Unionprofessionals.org.uk is a new website built by the TUC for people who work for trade unions. Unlike the much-better known Unionreps.org.uk which is used by thousands of union reps across the UK, this site is…