The article details a strike by refuse workers in Coventry, England, who are protesting pay cuts imposed by the Labour-led city council. These cuts, described as a brutal attack on workers’ living standards, have been met with fierce resistance, including an all-out strike. Despite widespread public support and the clear ability to mobilize significant solidarity from other workers, the Unite union, led by General Secretary Sharon Graham, is accused of deliberately isolating the Coventry strikers. The article claims Graham has actively prevented other council workers and members from joining the action, effectively sabotaging the strike’s potential impact. This isolation, according to the article, is further reinforced by the collusion of the broader trade union bureaucracy, leaving the Coventry refuse workers to fight the council’s austerity measures largely on their own. The article suggests this inaction exposes the limitations and potential betrayal of the trade union leadership, leaving workers vulnerable to attacks on their wages and working conditions.
find the original article here: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/09/19/fobk-s19.html