Trade unions, free trade and the problem of transnational solidarity

Resistance against free trade agreements has increased since the demonstrations at the WTO ministerial conference in Seattle in 1999. Positions by trade unions on free trade agreements are, however, ambiguous. While trade unions in the North especially in manufacturing have supported free trade agreements to secure export markets for ‘their’ companies, trade unions in the Global South oppose these agreements, since they often imply deindustrialisation.

Dangerous illusions in the top tier - Part 1!

As a result of the cut-backs to Universities’ teaching budgets by up to 80 per cent, it is likely that Higher Education in the UK will be split into a two-tier system. The idea that top tier institutions and members of staff working at these institutions are unaffected by these cuts is, however, a dangerous illusion. Only joint resistance against these cuts across all institutions in Higher and Further Education, organised through the University and College Union (UCU) which organises the whole sector, will provide an opportunity to prevent or at least obstruct these developments.