Updated 10:33am 11 February 2012:

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Kevin Rowan

Kevin Rowan

Comment: MPC should take a lead from the US

ICAN’T easily remember a time when the economic and fiscal environment seemed to be acting as quickly and with as much volatility.Read

Not a smart move at all, your lordship

THERE were always going to be mixed views about Lord Mandelson’s return to the Labour Government.Read

Hopefully confidence will return

ONE of the features of the current economic and fiscal dynamics is the speed of change, how quickly what appeared to be secure financial institutions have become, in what seems a matter of days, vulnerable in the extreme, from relatively small travel firms to global banks.Read

Ruling on retirement is a bad one

LAST year a very warm welcome was given to a new set of legislation which sought to outlaw discrimination on the grounds of age.Read

Millions left dissatisfied by their work

WORKERS don’t want the earth… In the constant battle to improve productivity and improve performance most enlightened employers understand the need to engage and involve workers in that goal.Read

Challenge of a rising population

LAST week’s report by Eurostat will have gone unnoticed by most, was ignored by many and raised eyebrows among a few.Read

The key to closing big divide

THE hard work of teachers and students is unquestionably the key factor affecting the success in this year’s A-level results, the overall pass rate rising to 97.2%, with top A grades up to 25.9% of entries, from 25.3%.Read

Why so many are struggling in poverty

THE new Mayor of London has agreed to continue support for the ‘London Living Wage’, an independently calculated minimum income that determines an “adequate level of warmth and shelter, a healthy palatable diet, social integration and avoidance of chronic stress for earners and their dependents.”Read

Green reps have a big role to play

THE Gathering Storm: Estimates vary on how long we have left to change our behaviour before we reach the ‘tipping point’ beyond which there can be no recovery from climate change.Read

Why make poorest pay?

A FEW months ago when striving to determine a set of characteristics that defined ‘Britishness’ the Prime Minister included an inherent sense of fairness.Read

Tough line on pay angers staff

THERE was doubtless a feeling of relief in government on Friday when the result of the Unison health service ballot on their pay offer was accepted by a significant majorityRead

We must treat all workers more fairly

A COUPLE of weeks ago the TUC’s Commission on Vulnerable Employment highlighted that around 100,000 workers in the North East were in “vulnerable employment”, many of these were in temporary contracts or employed through an agency.Read

Kevin Rowan, regional secretary, Northern TUC

Time we all curbed bad employers

THE TUC has recently published the first report of the Commission on Vulnerable Employment. The North East has one of the highest proportions of vulnerable workers, almost 100,000, or close to 10% of those in work in the region.Read

How migrant workers have helped us all

LAST week’s report from ippr, Floodgates or turnstiles? showed that around half of migrant workers that have come to the UK since 2004 have already left, most returning to their home country.Read

Learning rep role is vital

IN seeking to tackle the immense skills challenges that we face in the region, throughout Europe in fact, the fantastic role being played by trade union learning reps should not be overlooked.Read

Disabled people not suspects

IN addition to the recommendations last week aiming to help prevent workers moving from employment to benefits, the Government is also consulting on plans to improve specialist employment programmes for disabled people.Read

Equality aids profit as well as justice

WOMEN account for more than half the population and make up more than half the workforce, and this is likely to increase in the immediate future.Read

Kevin Rowan, regional secretary, Northern TUC

Small firms lead the way for training

WHAT a pleasure it was to see the North East’s own John Wright on the national web pages of the TUC.Read

Small firms lead the way for training

WHAT a pleasure it was to see the North East’s own John Wright on the national web pages of the TUC.Read

Kevin Rowan, regional secretary, Northern TUC

Praise for skills policy

WHILE the wrangling and turf wars over which public sector agency is responsible for what in terms of education, training and skills, continues to vex many, there remains a good deal to congratulate the Government on when it comes to skills policy.Read

Author Profile

Kevin Rowan is regional secretary of Northern TUC and also writes a weekly column for The Journal covering all major business issues affecting the North East. Kevin was formerly the regional organiser of the GMB where he was been involved in a series of campaigning issues. He was brought up in Cumbria and studied government and public policy at Northumbria University.

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