Socialist Youth and Socialist Society members in Queens University are organising to oppose a proposal to restructure the union and commercialise (privatise) its services that will result in job losses and other cuts.

As part of the campaign a motion was put to a Students’ Union meeting at the end of last year calling for a mobilisation of students to link with university workers to oppose these changes.

The Students’ Council previously had set up a working committee to deal with this issue but had come up with nothing other than a proposal to change the name of the new Directorate of Commercial Services to something less obviously aimed at supporting private interests.

At the meeting the need for mass student participation in opposing these proposals was raised but received a lukewarm response from members of Sinn Fein, the UUP and the DUP. When it came to the vote these parties, hand in hand with the Student Executive, united to vote it down.

As a result of this meeting, two of our members have been put on the working committee to put forward the need for a petition and information campaign by the Union.

Mass student action in conjunction with the unions is absolutely necessary to defend jobs and the autonomy of the Students’ Union. Unfortunately a good opportunity to begin the campaign was missed at the start of January when the new Director of Commercial Services took up office.

We need to make sure that no other opportunities are missed before a campaign uniting students and workers against these neo-liberal cuts is begun in earnest.

On 23 November, Socialist Youth held a successful picket outside the Department of Employment and Learning. The picket was organised as part of our ongoing Fightback! Campaign for young workers’ rights.

This Campaign is highlighting the lack of rights at work for young people, the deliberate discrimination on the grounds of age and the nearly non-existent trade-union presence on the shop floor.

The Department of Employment and Learning (DEL) is heavily implicated in the shame of poverty pay across the North, as it is the body in charge of implementing and overseeing the workings of the minimum wage.

The minimum wage that deliberately punishes you on the grounds of your age, with 16 and 17 year olds being paid £3.00 an hour and if you happen to be 22 years old and over you get £5.05 an hour! What makes the DEL’s role even more shameful is the fact we regularly meet workers, young and old who aren’t even getting the scandalously low minimum wage.

The picket which was organised did help highlight the DEL’s role as slave master general for the bosses in Belfast, but it also sets a benchmark for what Socialist Youth in Belfast should be doing more regularly; exposing the conditions at work and help young people fightback!

We know the real conditions young people face in low wage, rip-off Northern Ireland. More pickets, more fightback on the way... watch this space.