Singing for a fairer future

The TUC have put together a public services campaign song ahead of the November 30th Day of Action against the government’s savage public sector pensions cuts.

The workers’ cover of the Wilbert Harrison classic features nurses, midwives, clinical engineers, social workers, physiotherapists, probation officers, teachers and firemen from all parts of the country, who will all be taking action next Wednesday in support of a fair deal on pensions.

Watch it:

Approximately 40 per cent of the sale price will be donated to Age UK, the national charity working to improve later life for everyone by providing life-enhancing services and vital support. They currently help more than five million people a year and are aiming to increase that figure to 7.5 million by the end of 2012.

As The Workers say:

“Public services help support communities, help people back into work, help give our children the best start in life and help care for our sick and elderly. In councils, the civil service, the NHS, education and the emergency services, millions of people around the country are dedicated to helping all of us, in ways we often take for granted.

“What’s more, when times are as tough as they are right now we need good local services more than ever. Public services are the safety net that our most vulnerable people can fall back on, and provide much of the infrastructure to getting them back on their feet again.

“Our public services have already felt the effects of the recession themselves. Government cuts nationally and locally have meant closures and reductions for many important services. And demand for public services is being stretched all the time as workers in the private sector are laid off.

“The last year has also seen the loss of hundreds of thousands of public sector jobs, something set to continue in the months ahead, with the workload and stress on remaining staff increasing as colleauges attempt to get the work done with smaller resources.

“The latest blow to public servants has been an attempt by the government to make major cost increases and benefits cuts to the pensions they can expect after a lifetime’s service. For many low paid public service workers this is a cut they can’t afford.

“The Workers feel it’s important to show some solidarity with those delivering Britain’s public services.”

You can download the single here.

See also:

• Message to Cameron: Talk to us, not TV news – Sally Hunt, November 25th 2011

• Hutton repeats his big fat lie on public sector pensions – Alex Hern, November 4th 2011

• Cable falls in line with Beecroft’s anti-worker voodoo economics – Alex Hern, November 23rd 2011

• Scottish union chief accuses government of behaving like a “Victorian millowner” – Ed Jacobs, November 22nd 2011

• Hit anti-cuts song to battle X Factor winner for Christmas No. 1 – Shamik Das, November 29th 2010