Greek Teachers Fight AUSTERITY

Striking Greek Teachers’ Union to attend London Conference
Against Bankster's Austerity1

OLME – the Greek federation of secondary education state school teachers – is to attend the ’Europe Against Austerity Conference hosted by the Coalition of Resistance (CoR) in London this weekend, on Saturday October 1.

OLME is one of the leading Greek unions in dispute with the Government over draconian cuts to public sector pay, higher taxes and lower pension entitlements. Greek unions social and youth organisations have organised a series of protests, mobilizations and strikes against the imposition of cuts in public spending.

The cuts have been imposed by the Greek government in line with the impositions of the ’'Troika’ of the EU/IMF/ECB. These ’austerity’ measures are part of the failed attempt to get Working people to pay for the bail-out of Greece’s bankers and creditors.

Themis Kotsifakis, General Secretary of OLME will be speaking at the conference. He said,“The Greek Government and the Troika (EU-IMF-ECB) have imposed severe austerity measures, slashing our salaries and pensions, destroying public goods (education-health-public transport etc), privatizing public companies and organisations, and selling off the wealth of the country to the Banks and Capital. Greece is the point of departure as similar policies are being implemented or are under implementation across Europe – especially in the countries of the European South. Therefore, we believe that there should be a coordinated reaction of all Workers, youth and social movements across Europe. Together for another Europe without neoliberalism. People first, not profit.”

Andrew Burgin, one of the London organizers of the conference said,“We are extremely pleased to welcome representatives of the Greek workers who have struggled so determinedly against ferocious cuts. They will be joining representatives from political parties, Unions and social organisations across Europe who are uniting in the battle against cuts”

Contact: 07939 242229

Notes to Editors 1. The Coalition of Resistance is a broad national campaign uniting against cuts and privatisation in workplaces, community and welfare services, based on general agreement with the Founding Statement issued by Tony Benn in August 2010.

2. The Founding Statement can be found here

3. The CoR conference takes place on Saturday 1 October, 10am-5pm Camden Centre, London WC1H 9AU

4. OLME is the Federation of state secondary school teachers. It has been involved in a series of strikes this year and last against the cuts, as well as a series of mobilisations, demonstrations and other actions.

5. Other attendees and speakers include elected representatives from the following parties, Trade Unions and social organisations:

The Labour Party (Britain), the European Left Party, Die Linke (Germany), Left Bloc (Portugal), NPA (France), Sinn Fein (Ireland), and others UNITE (Britain), USTEC-STES (Catalonia), CWU (Britain), CADTM (Greece), OLME (Greece), NUJ (Britain), Soldaires (France), COBAS (Italy), (LAB, Basque country), RMT (Britain), CADTM (Belgium), NUS (Britain), August 80 Free trade union (Poland), nUT (Britain) CoR (Britain), Attac (Germany), BARAC(Britain), Transform! Europe, Transform (France), Stop the War Coalition (Britain), Afri – Ireland, Jubilee (Britain), London Living Wage campaign, No-one is illegal (France), CADTM (Poland), Movement for Social Justice (Poland), CND, Disabled People against Cuts (Britain), TUC Disabled members’ council (Britain), War on Want (Britain), G20 Mobilising Committee (France)

As well as a large number of representatives from specific strike actions across Europe.

Our mailing address is:

Coalition of Resistance
Coalition of Resistance c/o Housmans Bookshop
5 Caledonian Road
London, London N1 9DX

Our telephone:
07939 242229

CWA Phone Workers Stand with Postal Workers

in Fight for Survival of Job and Service

In Nashville, Tenn., CWA Local 3808 members joined the postal workers' march. Local Secretary-Treasurer Bob Cooper and President Rick Feinstein are pictured at left.

Below: Local 4108 members support postal workers in Saginaw, Mich. Locals 4008 and 4622 also were among Michigan CWA locals that rallied and marched to save the postal service.

CWA members were among thousands of union activists joining rallies for embattled postal workers at nearly 500 locations Tuesday that covered every U.S. congressional district in every state.

Seven-year-old Ryan Richards, son of Local 4252 Vice President Angel Minnick, marches Tuesday in Joliet, Ill., with CWA members and other unions supporting U.S. postal workers. Behind Ryan is Local 4252 President LaNell Piercy.

Once again using a budget crisis to attack union workers, some members of Congress want to slash 120,000 postal service jobs and close thousands of post offices, among other severe service cuts.

The national "Save America's Post Office" day of action urged lawmakers to save the USPS (US Postal Service) by supporting H.R. 1351. Introduced by Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass), the bill would help stabilize the postal service financially by reducing overpayments it is required by law to make to its pension fund.

While conventional wisdom and virtually all media coverage suggest that email and Internet services are mainly to blame for USPS financial woes, postal unions say it has more to do with over-funded pension and retiree health care plans. In 2006, the Republican-led Congress passed a bill giving the post office just 10 years to pre-fund retiree health care for the next 75 years.

No other government agency or private company is required to make such extreme overpayments, which cost USPS $5.5 billion annually. Without the forced payments, USPS could be running a $1.5 billion surplus.

Neither the pension nor health care funds were addressed by the bill Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) pushed through a House subcommittee last week, with all eight Republicans voting for the devastating postal service cuts and all five Democrats voting against them.

"This is a brazen attempt to dismantle the United States Postal Service and render it ripe for privatization," APWU (American Postal Workers Union) President Cliff Guffey said.