Another Place

In Crosby yesterday to meet up with Vicky's family for a few drinks and a chance for the kids to play.

On the way we stopped off at the beach to see Anthony Gormley's 'Another Place'.




















Another Place is made up of 100 cast iron figures arranged on the beach looking out to sea. The overall effect is really dramatic and it was a shame we couldn't stay longer, as I can imagine it'd be great to see the tide slowly encroach over the figures.

Anyway, it also brought a big smile to the face of our eldest, Joe, who was pretty amused by the anatomical accuracy of the figures!

Presents wrapped

Kids in bed (not quite asleep), food bought, fish fed (long story...), only a few hours to go.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Never a Yes Man

Just re-reading Eric Heffer's great autobiography 'Never a Yes Man'.

He wasn't perfect - who is - but Heffer was a proper 'great' of the labour movement; controversial (he is probably best remembered for walking off the platform at 1985 Labour Party conference when Neil Kinnock attacked the militant-led Liverpool City Council); robust; not an intellectual, but a real thinker nonetheless; principled; and, unusually in the Labour movement, capable of changing his mind and opinion in the face of events (Like many of his generation, for example, he was once a member of the CP and uncritical supporter of Stalin).

An adopted son of Liverpool he was also an Evertonian - so he was a sound bloke on that front as well!

Two in five check work emails at Christmas break

Are you that sad? I am.

I will no doubt justify my sloping off every couple of hours or so to check my Blackberry on the grounds that 'it could be really important/better to keep them under-control rather than go back to thousands of unread messages/I could be missing out on a unique financial opportunity linked to an arrested Nigerian minister', but really its just because checking my e-mail has become such an ingrained habit, that every time the little machine bleeps I have some sort of Pavlovian reaction, which means I MUST open the message even if deep down I know that it'll only be an e-mail alert from the New York Times (or more likely and less pretentiously and cerebrally www.evertonfc.com) .

Next week in Nowak's Neuroses: Why the milk HAS to go into the mug before the boiling water....

Irish Ferries - positive end in sight

RTE story covering the likely end of the dispute between SIPTU and Irish Ferries.

Blogged about this a week or two back, and it looks like the union have secured a deal in this landmark dispute which means that although Irish Ferries will flag its ships in Cyprus, pay and conditions will be underpinned by a binding legal agreement under Irish law. This will mean a massive wage-hike for the migrant workers that the company has hired to crew its services.

Existing Irish Ferries staff will see their pay and conditions maintained, and crew ratios will be set higher than those originally put forward by Irish Ferries.

You can read SIPTU's statement on the agreement here, and a comment from TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber here.

As Brendan Barber points out this dispute was 'more than a local difficulty' - a fact borne out by the support that SIPTU and the Irish Congress have received from around the world, including the UK, and that up to 100,000 people took to the streets of Dublin (as well as up to 75,000 in Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford, Athlone, Sligo and Rosslare Harbour), to show their distaste at a major Irish company trying to get a head start in the 'race to the bottom'.

A happy (and early) Christmas and New Year!

TUC Organising team Christmas card
Originally uploaded by unionblue.

If you missed the TUC's web animations first time round, you can find them here:

http://www.worksmart.org.uk/downloads/pupwherewebelong.php

http://www.worksmart.org.uk/downloads/comfortbreakdown.php

http://www.community-tu.org/Templates/internal.asp?nodeid=90010

Big Suze is Big Suze!

Spent the afternoon with the 4 kids (Joe, Johnny, Frances and my dad) watching 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' , which well and truly lived up to the hype; brilliant kids film, which is definitely worth catching at the pictures (or movies, flicks or cinema depending on how posh you are and/or where you live).

Weirdest bit of the film was spotting 'Big Suze' from Channel 4's 'Peep Show' pop up in the last few frames as...well, 'Big Suze' ('Queen' Susan Pevensie).

For those who don't watch Peepshow (and you should), Big Suze is the object of love/lust for both Mark & Jeremy, but until now I didn't know why she was called Big Suze, but its obviously a reference to her fleeting appearance in the film.

Another day, another conundrum solved...

Working class hero

25 years ago today John Lennon was shot dead in New York.

I was eight years old at the time, and I think it was the first time that the death of someone really registered with me.

Even at that age I thought 'Imagine' was pretty special - but I suppose that's because it has an almost childlike simplicity and naivete; commodities which are sadly in short supply in today's ever more cynical and complex world.

Like virtually every kid who joined a band in their teens (especially those brought up within spitting distance of Liverpool), I loved the Beatles - and especially Lennon.

There are lots of things about Liverpool that make me cringe - Jimmy Tarbuck, 'scouse humour', the irrational fear and loathing of all things Mancunian (hold my hand up to that one), the oversentimentality, Cilla Black, 'You'll never walk alone', people going the shops in their pajamas during the day (really), 'Scouseology' and 'Merseypride' to name just a few. But John Lennon makes all that 'scouse-mouse' crapola irrelevant. Naming the airport after him was the very least we could do!

While McCartney will forever be 'The Frog Chorus', 'Mull of Kintyre' and quorn burgers - Lennon was cool, anti-war, eccentric and just a little bit mad. For a teenager wanting to change the world (through the power of music in my front bedroom no less), Lennon was pretty much the complete package.

The Beatles split up before I was born, but one of the first records I ever bought was a 'dodgy' Beatles compilation, swiftly followed by 'Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band'; and I'm sure that virtually everyone has at least one Beatle's record in their all-time top 10.

For me Lennon's best songs are those linked to his relationship with Yoko Ono - Woman, Jealous Guy, Starting Over, Beautiful Boy - are all songs which make the hairs stand up on the back of my neck every time I hear them, and which pretty much lay-bare the roller-coaster of his emotions at the time (sorry if this is sounding more and more like a dreadful collection of the worst music cliches ever written - I don't do 'feelings stuff' all that well!).

Working class hero? To me he was. Sure he was flawed but then all the true greats are.

'Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans' - that line alone does it for me.

Any Lennon thoughts? Other favourite lines?

Winning friends and influencing people

In London today for, among other things, the launch of David Coat's Fabian Society Pamphlet, 'Raising Lazarus: The future of organised labour'.

David used to head up the TUC's economics department and is now working at the Work Foundation. His pamphlet contains a pretty good analysis of the membership challenge facing unions (as well as some of the tensions in the Labour-union link), and I agree with one of its basic propositions, namely that 'Membership decline is not inevitable, and unions remain the masters of their fate'.

On the negative-side, I thought it was bit light on practical solutions - what unions can actually do in the real world to turn round membership decline. It also contained a few unnecessary personal digs at some key union figures, such as Derek Simpson and Mark Serwotka, which frankly will only serve to alienate some of the pamphlet's potential audience - which would be a shame as its a good controbution to a vital debate.

My potted review? 'Nice analysis; shame about the point-scoring'.

If you've managed to get hold of a pamphlet feel free to post your thoughts on it in the comments section.

Its a small world (if you're an Old Etonian...)













One's Grandson went to Eton as well you know....we must be related.

Are you a union rep? You are? Then read on...

If you are a union rep or steward you should be signed up to Unionreps - the TUC's online resource for reps (Sound just like one of those ads don't I? Unionreps: removes all those troublesome stains or your money back!).

Eric Lee, founder of LabourStart and union tech guru explains why you should sign up here.

TUC assessment of the PBR...

Can be found here.

In a nutshell - good overall, but concerns about public sector pay-rises being subject to a different (and lower) measure of inflation than the private sector, the need for sustainable financing of local government, and for employers to take more responsibilty for staff training.

George Bush on global warming...

As demonstrators in 30 countries call for international action on climate change, the President responds - as seen on Bore-me.

West Wing fans may think Martin Sheen would make a better US president than George Jr, but surely the world would be a better place if Will Ferrell stepped up to the plate?

Leeds - Blackburn - Everton

In Leeds yesterday to speak at a Critical Labour Studies workshop - interesting afternoon, especially the final session on the future of the union-Labour Link which featured a contribution from Steve Davison who chairs the Amicus NEC.

I was asked to speak about the Union Ideas Network which is due to be launched in Jan 2006. The UIN, which is supported by the TUC, will be hosted by Keele University and the Work & Employment Research Centre at the University of Northumbria, and is essentially aimed at helping unions, academics and policy-makers work much more closely. Doesn't sound mega-interesting I know, but I think its going to be quite an exciting initiative (well more exciting than I've made it sound anyway!). I'll post more info as the UIN develops.

Just got back on the road to get the tail-end of the footie results; Everton won 2-0 at Blackburn (the first time this season we've scored more than 1 goal!), meaning the Blues have won 4 out of the last 5 and relegation is looking less and less likely...watch out for a late surge at a Champions League place...well maybe not this year!

I've already pretty much decided that this year will be last (for a while anyway) as a season ticket holder at Goodison Park, so I'm hoping the Blues will make my last season a good one. I've had a season ticket with my dad and brother since 1995 so it'll be weird not going along every other week, but other commitments (three kids, work) have to come first.

If I'm honest, I think that football has lost a little of its appeal over the last few seasons. I know its fashionable to knock Premiership footie at the moment but 3 things have been gnawing away at me for a while now: kick-off times which seem to be at any day and time of the week except 3pm on Saturday; Everton's 'board' (Bill Kenwright) and administration who manage to combine cackhandedness, cynicism and downright manipulation of the truth to devastating effect (Fortress Sports Fund anyone?); and the overall cynicism which seems to be permeating the game from the top-down (wander along to any junior match on your local park on a Sunday and marvel at the kids - and their dads - who seem to think bawling out of the referee are part and parcel of the game).

Maybe I'm just getting old?

No doubt I'll be back, but think this year is going to be the last for a few more to come that Everton extracts the best part of a £1,000 from my wallet (combined total for season ticket, cup-games, kits for kids, merchandise, beer and pies). Oh, actually totting up the beers and pies thats probably more like £1500!

Any thoughts on all of the above?









(Pic - Everton main sponsors Chang Beer. £1,500 a years worth?)

Do widzenia Tomasz!

In Liverpool yesterday for a reps workshop with Community Involvement, and then a farewell dinner with Tomasz Laskowski and a couple of colleagues from the TUC.

Tomasz, who's an organiser with Polish union federation Solidarnosc, has been working with the North West TUC to help organise and represent newly arrived Polish workers in the UK. He's done a great job - and he'll be sorely missed - but we're hoping that his work over the last 3 months will help us build some closer links with Solidarnosc and underpin more work to provide support to a really vulnerable group of workers.

After 3 months of solid work I'm sure he'll be gald to get back to his family, so thanks Tomasz, and safe journey home!

Over 170,000 Polish workers have applied to work in the UK since Poland became part of the EU - and last week TGWU general secretary Tony Woodley wrote to the Polish Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz to ask him to support union efforts to stop unscrupulous employers exploiting Polish workers in the UK.

One of the things that the TUC and unions are keen to stress is that this is not a 'Little Englander' effort to stop Polish and other central and eastern European workers coming to the UK. Instead its an effort to stop employer's exploiting these workers and using them to undermine the pay, terms and conditions of UK workers.

A graphic illustration of this sort of abuse by employers and the agencies they use is the ongoing dispute at Irish Ferries - where the company effectively attempted to hijack their own ships in an attempt to replace UK crews with workers from Latvia (who were to be paid less than the Irish minimum wage), and to register its ships under the Cyprus flag.

You can follow this ongoing dispute at LabourStart, and read details of the Irish Congress's day of action in solidarity with the workers at Irish Ferries here.