After the Clapping Finishes
58% of care workers in the UK are paid less than the Real Living Wage. They are four times more likely to be on zero-hour contracts. Clapping is not enough – it’s time for better pay and conditions.
4306 Articles by:
Billy Anania
Billy Anania is an art critic, editor, and journalist in New York City.
Care Workers Don’t Need Badges, They Need Proper Sick Pay
New research shows that 80% of care workers believe they will lose wages if they self-isolate. The time for tokens is over – the government needs to act today to improve working conditions.
The Great Virgin Train Robbery
After rail privatisation, Virgin Trains were presented as an engineering triumph – but they amounted to nothing more than a sewage-scented rebranding of British Rail’s managed decline.
Socialise the Food System
Capitalist food production exploits workers, leaves millions hungry and destroys the planet. It’s time to imagine another model that focuses on human need instead of private profit.
The Invisible Seams: Scottish Lithuania
The migrant labourers of industrial Scotland were part of an intricate system of extraction and exploitation, which now exists mostly in the memory, but one group of workers has disappeared from that memory – Lithuanian migrants.
The Blairite Roots of the Leaked Labour Report
The conduct revealed by the leaked Labour report isn’t just a few bad apples – it’s the result of a Blairite project to hollow out the Labour Party and put power in the hands of right-wing bureaucrats.
Peter Mandelson Defends the Labour Report – And it’s No Surprise
Peter Mandelson intervened today to defend the conduct of the staff in the leaked Labour report. It should come as no surprise – his clique established the culture of contempt for party members that it reveals.
Labour’s Leaked Report Is a Betrayal of BAME Communities
Many Labour members feel betrayed by the contents of the leaked report – but none moreso than its BAME supporters. Unless the party takes serious action, it risks losing many for good.
Coronavirus Could Lead to the Next Wave of Automation
A recent survey of global executives found that more than a third were investing in automation in response to the coronavirus. If workers are going to weather this economic shock, they’ll need to get organised.
Right Now in the UK, Strikes Are Effectively Illegal
Britain’s trade union laws require designated agencies to process strike ballots in person – but coronavirus means they can’t. Workers’ rights shouldn’t be left up to chance: the laws need to be repealed.
Capitalism Will Survive the Coronavirus Crisis – Unless We Build an Alternative
Coronavirus has exposed capitalism as a fragile system incapable of meeting many people’s basic needs. But crises alone have never been enough for the Left – if we want an alternative, we’ll have to organise one.
Notes from an Apocalypse
Just before coronavirus, author Mark O’Connell wrote a book about the apocalypse – here he discusses billionaire bunkers, libertarian ‘preppers’ and why socialists need to have faith in people’s resilience at moments of crisis.
Your Boss Is Spying on You
With millions of people now working from their homes, frantic bosses are buying high-tech surveillance software to track their workers’ every keystroke.
“Physical Distance, Social Unity”: How India’s Red State Got on Top of Coronavirus
India’s Communist-run region of Kerala has received praise from the Washington Post and New York Times for its coronavirus response. Its secret? A government that puts the public interest before private profit.
What Bernie Sanders Meant for the American Left
Bernie Sanders’ campaign put working-class interests back on the political map. It brought communities together – and clarified friends and enemies. It won’t be forgotten in a hurry.
The Economy Will Not Simply Bounce Back
Yesterday’s OBR projections that Britain would rebound spectacularly from the coronavirus crisis are wildly optimistic – and will be used to advance the case for harsh spending cuts if they go unchallenged.
‘It Became a Kind of Show Trial’: An Inside Account of Labour’s HQ
A former staffer on Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership campaigns describes the hostility he faced when he went to work in Labour’s HQ – and says members need to act to prevent an unaccountable clique from taking control again.
We Can’t Afford Big Pharma’s Greed
Big Pharma is dependent on public research – but when a crisis like coronavirus comes around, it does everything it can to keep its products for a select few. It’s time to rethink how our medicines are produced.
After Coronavirus, There’s No Going Back to ‘Normal’
The coronavirus recession will change the world, and we can’t afford to repeat the mistakes of 2008 – it’s time for a new economy that expands public wealth, empowers workers and is sustainable by design.
An Open Letter to Labour’s NEC
“Labour’s members – who dedicate their lives to campaigning for the party – will not tolerate staff on six-figure sums undermining their efforts from within.” A CLP chair calls for an investigation and decisive action.