Grunwick: Race, class and solidarity. 40 years of migrant workers’ struggle

Amrit Wilson (Writer, activist and member of South Asian Solidarity Group), Consuelo Moreno (SOAS Justice for Cleaners Campaign), and Sujata Aurora (Grunwick 40). Chaired by Dr Parvathi Raman (SOAS Centre for Migration and Diaspora Studies)

Forty years ago a strike led by Asian women at the Grunwick factory in NW London gave rise to one of the biggest mobilisations in labour movement history. It was the first time that the predominantly white, male trade union movement gave significant support to a dispute involving foreign-born workers and was seen as marking a sea-change within workers’ movements in Britain. With migrants facing increasingly precarious employment and a rise in post-Brexit racism we will examining today’s struggles and asking how we can rebuild that solidarity.

We will be screening the film ‘The Great Grunwick Strike 1976-78 (1.04 min, Dir: Chris Thomas, 2007) followed by a panel discussion on the legacy and the impact of the strike. We will be joined by the SOAS Justice for Cleaners Campaign, a group of predominantly Latin American cleaners and ancillary staff who have been waging a 10-year struggle against outsourcing and for better employment conditions.

Panel members

Amrit Wilson (Writer, activist and member of South Asian Solidarity Group)
Consuelo Moreno (SOAS Justice for Cleaners Campaign)
Sujata Aurora (Grunwick 40)
Chaired by: Parvathi Raman (SOAS Centre for Migration and Diaspora Studies)

Organiser: Centre for Migration and Diaspora Studies

Contact email: cb92@soas.ac.uk