Migrant Workers "good" for the economy

[JoePolitix]

You're a funny guy Baldrick...

 

[tbaldwin]

How did you know she was Italian?

 

[Knotted]

and belboid the actual TUC document is not at all clear cut http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/migration.pdf

Perhaps the most overlooked issue is dealt with the in the last section of this report. It is the question of how migration effects 'old migrants' ie. those who already live here.

It follows that if there is relatively little downward pressure on wages from (low skill) immigration on 'indigenous' workers it is because there is a tendency for migrant workers to take up jobs already dominated by migrant labour. This is just a tendency of course and not a hard rule. The question is further complicated by the fact that there is no clear cut distinction between a migrant worker and an indigenous worker and different studies will use different definitions.

This is not to say that this means that there are jobs being 'taken' from other workers, but that these sectors have expanded. I am thinking in particular of agricultural labour but there may be other sectors following a similar trend. In so far as these areas are operating legally wages are held up by the minimum wage, but at the same time this is an indication that wages have not risen naturally in these sectors in the past few years.

 

[ViolentPanda]

I don't believe you.

Of course you don't.

It'd hardly serve your strictly partisan agenda to do so, would it?

 

[treelover]

Its interesting that Durriti who is defamed every day by NIno, C/R, etc, is comfortably winning the Urban P/P popular vote, while they languish at the bottom of the poll, doesn't that say something.


maybe...

 

[cockneyrebel]

Its interesting that Durriti who is defamed every day by NIno, C/R, etc

Absolute bollox. Me and durruit have totally amicable exchanges and were gonna meet at the weekend for a drink.

And congratulations to him for being top of the poll.

But I think you wanna get out of the U75 bubble if you think a dozen votes on an internet board means anything.

 

[tarannau]

Although to be fair, winning a popularity contest re. the politics forums is like winning the 'best rosy complexion' title in a lepers' colony.

 

[nino_savatte]

Its interesting that Durriti who is defamed every day by NIno, C/R, etc, is comfortably winning the Urban P/P popular vote, while they languish at the bottom of the poll, doesn't that say something.


maybe...

What nonsense. Of course, you wouldn't notice if anyone had defamed me...would you? It's all a wee bit one-sided with you lot. You're always being hard done to and you're always having to take abuse from me. Funny how when you and your clique abuse others and snipe and smear, you never notice yourselves doing it. Perfect, are you?

You're like a bunch of schoolkids playing at being grown ups.

Oh and I take it you understand the meaning of the word "defamation". I have "defamed" no one, O Melodramatic One.

 

[ViolentPanda]

Although to be fair, winning a popularity contest re. the politics forums is like winning the 'best rosy complexion' title in a lepers' colony.

 

[JoePolitix]

Comrade Newman (a fellow west country lad) explains the way forward in helping to organise migrant workers. Support the GMB's inititive by buying a rather snazzy t shirt from here:

http://www.philosophyfootball.com/new_win.html

(Scroll down to unionsmakeusstronger)

In the Southern region of the GMB, there has been a recognition that the particular problems of migrant workers go beyond the workplace, and involves non-workplace issues. In Southampton the GMB have established a Migrant workers branch, which is an interesting experiment.

My own GMB branch, Wiltshire and Swindon, is participating in project funded by the European Social Fund, that has enabled a young Polish women to be employed as an organiser. We have about 400 Polish members in the branch, about a sixth of the membership, and quite a few come to branch meetings. Our view is that the migrant workers do need a vision of trade unionism that goes beyond the workplace, so we have twice organised drop in events in the small town of Trowbridge where not only the union organisers and activists, but also solicitors and advice workers are there for employment, legal, housing and benefit advice. However, to be sustainable, trade unionism needs to be based in the workplace, and needs lay reps to trained up to do the work themselves.

We have found that the new Polish recruits have in some places reinvigorated shopfloor organisation, and provided a stimulus for the British workers. In one factory we have two young Polish shop stewards and two British shop stewards who work together. In other factories the Poles have helped recruit their British co-workers to the union.

But language remains a problem. The GMB has a policy of translating all documents, but at our last branch meeting there were about 10 native English speakers and 8 Poles. Two of the Poles had to leave the meeting half way because they couldn’t follow it well enough. However we are reluctant to have a separate branch, because that would mean workers in the same workplace would be in separate union branches. What we are trying instead is a migrant workers sub-committee, that will send delegates to the branch committee, and there will be a two way flow of information. Whether this works or not of course we don’t yet know.

For the Tolpuddle festival on 15th July we are putting on free buses from Swindon and Trowbridge, and have produced a letter in their own language for the Polish members. We have also produced these bilingual T-shirts shown in the picture, in collaboration with Philosophy Football.