Campaign against Immigration Controls

Saturday 20th June, 2pm - 5pm
SOAS School for Oriental and African Studies, room G 20
(nearest tube Russell Square)
All welcome, wheelchair accessible, free creche available

On the university site where last week nine cleaners were taken into detention and where the director's office was taken into occupation for two and a half days, join us to discuss how we end immigration controls and to hear from cleaner activists and occupiers.

Many of you will know Alberto, a Colombian activist who worked as a cleaner at Schroders in the City of London who has recently been involved in the Mitie/Willis dispute and has spoken at various union branches and forums in recent months including the NSSN.

This morning after attending a construction workers' demo at the Olympic site he was called to a meeting at his employer, the cleaning contractor Lancaster, at 9.15am. Upon arrival he was met by four policemen, inxcluding immigration police, and arrested on suspicion of working under false papers.

We have come together to demonstrate today because we believe that the demand for regularization is necessary to improve the lives and working conditions of all migrant people.

But why , as has been pro posed, should t his apply only to some ?
Why divide communities and families into legal and illegal, good and bad immigrants? Everyone has the right to live and work in this country.

Download Leaflet

The recession and increasingly stricter border and immigration controls in the UK mean that migrant workers, both undocumented and documented, are paying the highest price for this crisis. In the last few months increased document checks and raids by immigration officers in the
workplaces and the use that employers make of migration controls have increased threats against migrant workers across different sectors.

Download Leaflet as pdf

5 members of Unite the union have been sacked from the Willis building by the contractor Mitie for organising for better conditions.

1PM on FRIDAY 27 MARCH at THE WILLIS BUILDING, 51 LIME STREET EC3M 7DQ

The cleaners say: "We are 4 women and one man dismissed from your building because we were trying to get better conditions for all the MITIE Cleaning and Support Services Ltd. workers ...

Angered by the rejection of the sacked migrants appeal, one of the workers and people from oxford, bristol and south wales no borders made a right racket outside Amey's Oxford HQ.

Mel Ewell, Chief Executive of Amey plc arrived at Kingston University on 2 December to be awarded a place on the Wall of Fame, a university honour for twenty selected famous graduates.

A protest picket of 80 students and staff turned out in support of the 5 Colombian cleaners Ewell's company sacked at nearby National Physical Laboratory (NPL). Days before, Kingston's UCU lecturers branch wrote to Ewell urging him to reinstate the cleaners.

More than twenty protestors entered the offices of Amey Plc in High Holborn on Friday in protest at the sacking of five Colombian cleaners and the rejection of their appeal. The protesters entered the office building to give a petition letter to an Amey representative but were blocked by security in the lobby and were told Amey did not want to see them. After the occupation Julio, one of the sacked cleaners, stayed behind to give the letter but Amey still refused to see him.

Friday 28th November :

Protest outside Amey offices in central London against negative decision on appeal against dismissal1-2pm Meet 12.45pm @ Chancery Lane tube on the Central Line (Grays Inn Road exit)for protest at 1pm at Amey, 5th Floor, 1 Waterhouse Square, (Leather Lane entrance) London EC1N 2ST

November 2008

Following the latest government reshuffle, Phil Woolas, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, was made minister for Immigration. He used this occasion to deflect attention away from the then-daily collapse of the banks by attacking migrant workers.