The Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions call today on working people in the private and public sectors to protest against further cuts in public services and for policies which protect and create jobs in all sectors of the economy.
Congress and its affiliated trade unions are organising a series of protest rallies across Northern Ireland which will occur simultaneously at 1pm, Friday 6 November 2009.
At present, rallies are confirmed for Belfast, L’Derry, Magherafelt and Newry. Other locations will be confirmed over the next few days.
Announcing the series of protest rallies, ICTU Assistant Secretary, Peter Bunting said:
“Recent revelations of cutbacks to maternity services, hospital beds and even school nurses for children with special needs are part of a bigger and very disturbing picture. They are symptoms of a trend whereby the public services have been subjected to so many so-called ‘efficiencies’ that there is nothing left to cut except vital front line services.
“This is incredibly short-sighted. The fact that we have lost 43,000 jobs in the past year means that the private sector can no longer play its full role in adding stimulus and demand to the economy. The fact is that the private sector is now hugely dependent on the public sector. Private sector suppliers to the public sector will suffer from cuts in the schools and health budget. Retailers depend upon the spending power of public sector workers.
“Action is required now for offering protection for workers who have lost their jobs, such as a Workers’ Protection Fund which places their right to a fair redundancy settlement first in the queue when companies go bankrupt. Similarly, no worker should be threatened with homelessness, especially from banks which depend upon the public’s generousity.”
“The NI Executive Budget for 2008/2011 introduced cuts of £1.604bn across all Departments in Northern Ireland. The Executive is now planning for an additional £370m in cuts before the end of the current financial year. In the Belfast Trust alone this will mean an extra cut in the order of £25m and the closure of 150 beds in the two largest hospitals in Belfast. The threat of additional water charges has been raised again.
“Now is the time to make known the public opposition to these cuts in services and the loss of jobs in the private sector. Join with the trade unions in showing your opposition to the cuts. Rally with us on the 6th November.”