The radical electricians block ‘the Sparks’ continued their campaign against sweeping pay-cuts  across the industry with a march on Wednesday 26th.

A construction site in Blackfriars London  – run by Balfour Beatty site was shut down for the day (and no they didn’t turn up and wander around scratching their chins and saying, between sucks of teeth, “Blimey guv, the cowboys you’ve had in ‘ere...”)

There are signs that the trade as a whole is becoming more militant in reaction to the the big eight construction companies taking advantage of the recession to try and hammer home a 35% pay cut. There have been packed meetings in Liverpool, Glasgow and London.

So far action has been grass-roots - ‘the Sparks’ exist outside the conventional union structure and dodge the bullet of the anti-union laws enacted by Thatcher. There’s been a welcome cross over with the Occupy London and radical student movement; student activists unfurled a 10-metre banner across Cannon street during the action declaring “All Power to the Sparks”.  

We at SchNEWS are always ready to give ‘em a big plug too.