This weekend a great many people will be taking part in the Blackpool Marathon.
Nothing unusual in that, but one person in particular will have the Isle of Wight in mind as his trainer clad feet hit the ground in Blackpool.
Luke Evans is an engineering student at Liverpool University. Last year during the Vestas’ occupation he spent a great deal of time on what became known as the ‘magic roundabout’.
This weekend as he attempts the Blackpool marathon, he is doing so with the former Vestas’ workers in mind.
Here’s what he had to say …
On Sunday 11th April, I will be running the Blackpool Marathon to raise funds for the ex-Vestas workers who occupied their Wind Turbine Blade factory on the Isle of Wight in the summer of 2009.
The workers took a bold stand to demand that not only does the UK invest in green energy, but that it also supports the people working in the industry which they believed to be a job for life.
The factory which shut down made over £5 Million of profit, showing that the factory was not closed for reasons of loss, but chasing after bigger subsidies which could be gained from moving manufacturing to the US.
The workers who remained in occupation until the end, to save their green jobs, have been denied their redundancy pay. Some of the workers have managed to find jobs, a number have chosen to retrain, which means forfeiting any kind of monetary assistance from the government.
For the workers who are retraining, and those who have been unable to find work (the recession has hit the main land hard enough, imagine how this is on a small island), I believe it to be a political necessity to show solidarity not just during their brave actions, but until they are in a position to continue with their lives.
The experience the occupiers have gained has been shared with others who find themselves faced with similar choices, wouldn’t it be a much easier choice if they were also being told that the support continued until each worker was no longer struggling financially?
If you would like to pledge your support or send a message to Luke you can do so via the [email protected].
Image: infomatique under CC BY 2.0
