[Cc-webedit] Roundabout News

[Richard Braude]

This update from Vestas just came round the Workers' Climate Action list,
Would make a good blog post.
It's from Robin Sivapalan (cc'd).
r.
________________________

Roundabout News

Take Back the Power

The "Save Vestas" campaign set itself big goals which we are still fighting
for.  Over the last months, events in Newport have brought together people
from all walks of life and have inspired literally thousands around the
world. The Magic Roundabout camp outside Vestas, which grew up over the
summer, is still going strong as a social and environmental campaign centre.


The 18 day occupation of management's offices by a group of Vestas workers -
the weekly marches on the island, the petitions, public meetings and actions
around the country - highlighted that neither the Vestas management, the
local Tory council and MP, nor the New Labour government were really
prepared to defend, let alone extend, socially useful, public-sector work in
renewables at a time when the capitalist system has created global-scale
social, economic and climate crises..

Banks are bailed out, coal and nuclear plants are given the go ahead,
bonuses and private profits are defended while working-class jobs,
conditions, housing and services come under attack. And the planet continues
to be destroyed.

11 of the occupying workers, who gave voice to the views of so many, remain
sacked; denied their redundancy money. It was a key aim of the Blade
Blockade to force Vestas to reinstate these workers whose actions deserve
awards not punishment. Actions

As a result of the stand made at Vestas, ordinary workers, trade unionists,
climate and anti-capitalist activists are increasingly standing up, taking
back control over our work-lives, communities and resources, working
together for a just transition to a sustainable world.

Green Jobs

Pressure finally got Pugh, Turner and  Ed Milliband (Energy and Climate
Change Minister)  round the table...

....on October 15th,  with help. from the local Labour councillor Geoff
 Lumley. The report on the Ventnor blog site suggests that progress is being
made on the green job creation front: 300 new 'rotawave' jobs and a
potential 1,000 more in offshore wind production.

But it isn’t enough. It's all vague, no time frame, no guarantees, and no
mention of the elephant in the room: what happens with the Vestas site in
Newport. There's still no openness about why the council approved Vestas'
new development on Stag Lane (on the same day it instructed the police to
evict the Blade Blockade on the council-owned tow-path). What are their
plans, and why should we allow Vestas to trample on local workers with the
cooperation of the council elected to represent them?

“If you want green jobs, stop sacking green workers”
Whatever the council and government do to secure investment and job creation
locally, we do not accept that local people "should just be grateful for a
job" which seems to sum up their attitude towards workers. The Vestas
workers have opened up a long rumbling discontent; people are insisting that
it is our right to work, not a privilege, and that we want a society where
there is meaningful and socially useful work that workers' control
themselves.

We will welcome moves on the part of the powers that be to create green
jobs, but as one placard says, “if you want green jobs stop sacking green
workers”. For local workers to accept companies like Vestas, then they need
to do what's right, reinstate the occupiers and sack Paddy Weir who's
responsible for so much of the anger. And withdraw the offensive 70k bonus
he's getting for throwing people into poverty. We will continue to target
Vestas until justice is done.
Contrary to the Gazette's report, Pugh has not visited the camp at the
roundabout, and other council officers invited to talk over tea have
pointedly refused, now only to go on to argue in the press that mainland
protestors are the ones putting jobs at risk!

Green MEP for the region, Caroline Lucas, came to the Roundabout for lunch
had a more positive take...

She met workers, wind turbine campaigners, local trade unionists and
community campaigners - and the activists, some already known to her, from
the national climate movement. She understands the strength of this
coalition as being just the kind of social action that is needed to face the
challenges of climate change, describing the group of people as "amazing".

Caroline Lucas addressed the Green Party conference championing the trade
unions' role in a just transition, as both a matter of necessity and
principle. The Tory Council and Milliband, whose speech at the Trade Union
Congress was interrupted with a standing ovation tribute the Vestas
occupiers, could learn a thing or two from her.
The Vestas workers' campaign has called a Green Jobs Fayre on 21st November
in St Thomas' Sq.

When the festive light go on in Newport, it’s worth remembering that this
will be a difficult winter for many, with no money for fuel let alone
celebrations. This day will promote the creation of socially useful public
enterprises, where workers' rights, and our ideas and creativity are valued.


We'll be promoting union initiatives on  'greening the workplace' and
hearing from campaigners for a “just transition” at Heathrow and Kingsnorth,
where climate change protests seem to have worked in stopping these harmful
projects for now, but alternative secure employment for local workers still
needs to be created.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.aktivix.org/pipermail/cc-webedit/attachments/20091028/e8d66115/attachment.htm>