Anti-Atos Banner Making And Meeting

Thursday 22nd September
5.30pm-8.30pm

STUC,
333 Woodlands Road,
Glasgow G3 6NG

The next National Day Of Action Against Atos event will happen in Glasgow on Friday 30th September between 1.30pm and 2.30pm outside the Atos Medical Assessment Centre, Corunna House, 29 Cadogan Street, G2 7RD.

We will be handing out leaflets to those attending sickness assessments on how to deal with the medical. We will be giving advice on how to appeal against being turned down for Employment Support Allowance with the aim of reducing the profit Atos makes from forcing sick and disabled claimants off benefits. We will also be leafleting workers on their lunchbeak in nearby offices to publicise how Atos and the government are cutting benefits to pay for the greed of bankers and the inevitable booms and busts of capitalist economics.

We need a new banner for the leafleting sessions, so please come along this Thursday and help out and bring new ideas for fighting Atos.

The Crutch Collective

Facebook event page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=285154621495028

Report of the Atos Recruitment Evening Picket Glasgow

Over a period of 2 1/2 hours on Monday 6^th June around 50 people joined the picket, called by the Crutch Collective and Black Triangle, of the Atos Recruitment Evening in Glasgow. Some had travelled from Edinburgh and as far away as Berwick. Some officials of the PCS union were able to attend at the start and took away some leaflets. The admin. staff at Atos are members of PCS.

The police were present from early on and stopped people from blocking the doors. With a couple of exceptions most of the 20 or so doctors and nurses going into the Recruitment Evening ignored the request not to take jobs with Atos. This was despite being told of the people with cancer and terminal illnesses having their benefits cut by Atos and the suicides caused by the stress of the relentless and constant reassessment by Atos. They were also given leaflets detailing the fatal consequences of benefit changes as documented by several mental health charities. The leaflet also quoted a former Atos employee in Scotland who quit, because the medical assessments are designed to catch out disabled people.

A nurse heckled those inside through a megaphone. The leaflet was read out through the megaphone to the doctors and nurses waiting in the lobby and at the presentation.

John McArdle of Black Triangle spoke to the crowd of the need to keep the campaign going until the medical assessments are carried out by a public body again. Plans were made for the next demo. A representative from Citizens United, another direct action orientated anti-cuts group in Glasgow expressed their desire to work with us in the future.

We got a clearer idea of the future some of us face as we chatted to some homeless people waiting for the Salvation Army food van who had also had their disability benefits cut despite having serious physical and mental health problems.

A handful of the doctors and nurses who attended the Recruitment Evening were escorted by the police through the crowd when they left by the main entrance. Debates were held about whether we should call them scabs or not. The rest had to sneak out via the staff exit like rats. No one was arrested and we were able to make our presence felt for the whole of the event. We are getting substantially bigger. We see the picket as a victory. Atos now know that any future recruitment evenings will need extra security and the presence of the police. The doctors and nurses who chose to forget their medical ethics and any social conscience had to endure the most unpleasant environment possible. The myth of the Atos PR about the ease and convenience of the Atos professional employee lifestyle has been destroyed.

Thanks again to everyone who attended and helped promote the picket.

STOP ATOS CUTTING DISABILITY BENEFITS

Picket Atos Recruitment Evening

Atos Medical Assessment Centre

Corunna House

29 Cadogan Street

Glasgow G2 7AB

Monday 6th June

5.30pm – 8.30pm

Who are Atos?

Atos Healthcare are a part of a private, profit making corporation. On behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), they carry out the medical assessments, now called 'Work Capability Assessments (WCA), for Employment Support Allowance (formerly Incapacity Benefit).

What do they do?

Atos are currently recruiting more medical professionals to carry out new assessments on all people on sickness benefits.  They are actively carrying out the Government’s plan of cutting sickness benefits by £2.5 billion.  The process is driven by cost cutting not objective medical opinion. In recent trials of their largely unreliable new computerised medical test 29% of claimants had their benefits cut, but most people win their case when they appeal with the help of an advice centre.  Atos will be also recruiting more staff to carry out these distressing and degrading tests on all people on Disability Living Allowance for the first time, where the plan is to cut the budget by 20%.  The Government are cutting these benefits to reduce the debt caused by bankers gambling on the financial markets.  The most vulnerable in society are being made to pay for the greed of the rich and the inevitable booms and busts of capitalist economics.

More info: The Crutch Collective on Facebook

 thecrutchcollective@gmail.com
 

Facebook event page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=188876404494450

 

Planning meeting for Picket of Atos Recruitment Evening

Thursday 26th May
7pm
@ The Free Hetherington
The Glasgow University Occupation
13 University Gardens
Just off University Avenue
Glasgow University Campus
http://freehetherington.wordpress.com/find-us/

Atos are currently recruiting more medical professionals to carry out new assessments on all people on sickness benefits.  They are actively carrying out the Government’s plan of cutting sickness benefits by £250 billion.  In recent trials of their largely unreliable new computerised medical test most people have their benefits cut, but most people win their case when they appeal with the help of an advice centre.  Atos will be also recruiting more staff to carry out these distressing and degrading tests on all people on Disability Living Allowance for the first time, where the plan is to cut the budget by 20%.  The Government are cutting these benefits to reduce the debt caused by bankers.  The most vulnerable in society are being made to pay for the greed of the rich and the inevitable booms and busts of capitalist economics. There is a recruitment evening at the Atos Medical Assessment Centre, Corunna House, 29 Cadogon Street on Monday 6th June between 6pm and 8pm.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Crutch-Collective/132893236781931?sk=wall

Facebook event page:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=229065417107163

Picket of Atos Glasgow May 12th

Over a dozen claimants and supporters managed to get our message out about Atos, that 'They Rob From The Poor To Give To The Rich' to hundreds of shoppers and people going home from work outside the Atos offices at 45 Gordon Street in the centre of Glasgow between 5pm and 6pm. Banners proclaimed that 'Atos Are Making The Sick Pay For The Greedy Bankers Debt. 'Atos Make A Profit Out Of The Misery Of The Sick' was screamed out to passersby. Many people were supportive and stopped to ask more about Atos. Many others who stopped to talk already knew about Atos having been through the distressing process of the medical assessment themselves or they knew someone who had been in the same situation. Passing postal workers said that they supported us 100%. Even a Community Support Officer stopped to ask for advice. New people signed up to take part in the next anti-Atos demo on Monday 6^th June between 6pm and 8pm at the Atos recruitment evening at the assessment centre, Corunna House, 29 Cadogan Street. Hits on our website are going through the roof again.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Crutch-Collective/132893236781931?sk=wall

Picket of Atos Glasgow May 12th

Over a dozen claimants and supporters managed to get our message out about Atos, that 'They Rob From The Poor To Give To The Rich' to hundreds of shoppers and people going home from work outside the Atos offices at 45 Gordon Street in the centre of Glasgow between 5pm and 6pm. Banners proclaimed that 'Atos Are Making The Sick Pay For The Greedy Bankers Debt. 'Atos Make A Profit Out Of The Misery Of The Sick' was screamed out to passersby. Many people were supportive and stopped to ask more about Atos. Many others who stopped to talk already knew about Atos having been through the distressing process of the medical assessment themselves or they knew someone who had been in the same situation. Passing postal workers said that they supported us 100%. Even a Community Support Officer stopped to ask for advice. New people signed up to take part in the next anti-Atos demo on Monday 6^th June between 6pm and 8pm at the Atos recruitment evening at the assessment centre, Corunna House, 29 Cadogan Street. Hits on our website are going through the roof again.

http://thecrutchcollective.blogspot.com/
thecrutchcollective@gmail.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Crutch-Collective/132893236781931?sk=wall

Picket and Picnic at Atos Glasgow 12 May 5pm-6pm

Picket and Picnic at Atos

Thursday12th May

5pm-6pm

Ca'D'Oro Building,

45 Gordon Street,

Glasgow,

G1 3PE

Bring food to share.

Part of the National Week of Action Against Atos

http://benefitclaimantsfightback.wordpress.com/

http://thecrutchcollective.blogspot.com
thecrutchcollective@gmail.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Crutch-Collective/132893236781931?sk=wall