Advertisement

Thousands march in London over wages

Tens of thousands of people have marched through central London to protest against falling real wages and public spending cuts introduced to tame Britain’s deficit.

Organisers the Trades Union Congress (TUC), a federation of the country’s main trade unions, estimated that around 80,000 supporters had gathered on the banks of the River Thames.

Murder charge after fatal Melbourne assault
Church to keep doors closed to gays and divorcees
Jakarta the focus of Australian foreign policy
Ebola the humanitarian crisis of our lifetime: Oxfam

Led by TUC chief Frances O’Grady, other union leaders and a marching band, the demonstrators set off from Waterloo Bridge at noon before snaking past Trafalgar Square on its way to Hyde Park, where it was to end.

The “Britain Needs a Pay Rise” march organisers are calling on the government to take action to increase wages in both public and private sectors, claiming they have slumped by STG50 ($A91) a week since 2008.

“This is the worst I’ve known it,” said Keith Martin, a 49-year-old labourer.

“Everyone in public services has been hammered for the last three or four years, I’ve had a 25 per cent pay cut and they’re (the government) still not saving the money they need to save.”

Teachers, nurses, firefighters, chiropodists and museum workers were among those shaking football-style rattles and blowing whistles in protest.

“These are the worst cuts in history to our service,” Matt Wrack, chief of the Fire Brigades Union, told AFP.

“We’ve seen about 5000 firefighter jobs go, we’ve seen 39 fire stations closed, 65 fire engines axed, and our pensions are being destroyed.”

Some wore T-shirts demanding “Save Our National Health Service”, others called for the “super-rich parasites to pay their taxes”.

Despite the huge numbers marching, the British public has largely accepted the need to trim public spending, and both major parties vow they will not radically increase spending if they win next year’s general election.

Despite enviable growth figures, Britain’s economic recovery has yet to deliver significant wage rises.

A recent study by the New Economics Foundation found that households had suffered a 15 percent decline in their real incomes over the last year, while the Institute for Policy Research reported that wages had failed to keep pace with inflation since 2008.

“Everybody seems to be working just to pay the bills and not really to live,” said a 61-year old carer, who asked not to be named. “Family life is going downhill.

Stay informed, daily
A FREE subscription to The New Daily arrives every morning and evening.
The New Daily is a trusted source of national news and information and is provided free for all Australians. Read our editorial charter
Copyright © 2024 The New Daily.
All rights reserved.