The UK has a Nationwide Strike!

[cultcross]

Just to round off this piece of news, the strike has been called off by the union, as a deal has been reached. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7868777.stm

I was pleased to note that:

The BBC understands no foreign workers will lose their posts as a result of the dispute at Total's oil refinery.

It is nice that no innocent families will suffer from our xenophobic posturing.

 

[Holdfast]

If they'd revoked a contract on the basis of the strike, Total would have ended up in court, and have lost.

The battle to pick here is over what people want the EU to be, on a fundamental level. Treaties can be renegotiated at least partially and fresh compromises reached, but it's going to have to come from national governments. Apply the pressure there.

Trying blackmail a company into acting illegally is just a complete non-starter of a demand, whatever way you cut it.

 

[RevdKathy]

I think you meant 'legally' there.

 

[Deks]

I think you meant 'legally' there.

But the company as far as I'm aware was not doing anything illegally to begin with.
They operate(d) within the confines of established law.
It may seem unfair (I certainly perceive it as such as I think the workforce could be divided to 50/50 ... half foreigners and the other half to be Britons) but for the moment it is how it is.

Btw, the article stated the company offered about 60 (I could be wrong though) openings for Britons specifically, even when they were not obligated to do so, and then it was stated the offer was refused.

 

[RevdKathy]

Hmmm I misread - now I'm confused. The company did indeed do nothing illegal. I read it as 'trying (to) blackmail a company acting illegally'.

Whether it was a terribly clever idea is another matter.

 

[TedShatner10]

Just because something is legal does not necessarily make it ethical and fair. Do you think that it is problematic that laws are imposed from a superstate over smaller countries without the full consent of their citizens?