Isle of Grain picket

On 11 February, around 70 workers staged a demonstration on the Isle of Grain in Kent, outside the site of a new gas-fired power station where the main contractor, Alstom, is using Polish sub-contractors with no trade union agreement on their pay and conditions.

The protesting workers say that the company is not looking at applications from UK workers - one group of laggers said they had been protesting outside the plant every week for the last two years against the company's recruitment practices.

Prospective Labour parliamentary candidate Theresa Murray, who is standing in Bob Marshall-Andrew's seat, welcomed the protest but then condemned the recent wave of strikes that resulted in the victory for the Lindsey strikers!

Her speech was met with rising anger among a section of the workers who recognised the effectiveness of the action at Lindsey. Several vehicles were turned away from the plant by the protest.

Ken Douglas