Who Is Alex Mashinsky, the Man Behind the Alleged Celsius Crypto Fraud?

By Reuters

|

Jan. 5, 2023, 

Who Is Alex Mashinsky, the Man Behind the Alleged Celsius Crypto Fraud?

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FILE PHOTO: Alex Mashinsky, CEO of Celsius Network, gestures as he talks about bitcoin speculation during an interview with Reuters in New York City, U.S. in this still image taken from video, January 5, 2021. Reuters TV via REUTERS/File PhotoREUTERS

By John McCrank and Hannah Lang

(Reuters) - Alex Mashinsky, a co-founder of bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network who prosecutors allege bilked investors out of billions, is a serial entrepreneur who has portrayed himself as a modern-day Robin Hood.

Mashinsky, 57, fraudulently promoted Celsius as a safe alternative to banks, while concealing that it was losing hundreds of millions of dollars in risky investments, according to a lawsuit filed on Thursday by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The civil lawsuit seeks to ban Mashinsky from doing business in New York and have him pay damages, restitution and disgorgement.

James' lawsuit is the latest black eye for the crypto sector, which has been rocked by accusations against FTX crypto exchange founder Sam Bankman-Fried. The former mogul, who has been accused of cheating investors and causing billions of dollars in losses, on Tuesday pleaded not guilty.

Mashinsky, a native of Ukraine whose family emigrated to Israel, decided to move to New York after he took a trip to the city in 1988, he told a Forbes podcast.

"I looked around and I'm like, I'm never going back," he said.

Since then, he has founded eight companies, including Arbinet, which went public in 2004, and Transit Wireless, which provides Wi-Fi to the New York City subway.

Mashinsky claims to have created Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), a precursor to ride-sharing app Uber, as well as an idea for a cryptocurrency that preceded bitcoin.

Mashinsky became involved in crypto in 2017, when his venture fund Governing Dynamics brought on blockchain company MicroMoney as a strategic partner. He founded Celsius the same year.

In his teens, Mashinsky bought confiscated goods like hairdryers and VCRs from customs auctions at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport and resold them for a profit, according to a 1999 article in the defunct tech publication Industry Standard.

Mashinsky had aspirations at the time to start a business for whole-body transplants: "Give an old person a new body - keep the head, keep the spine, and re-create the rest," he said.

The executive served in the Israeli army from 1984-1987, where he trained as a pilot and served in the Golani infantry units, according to his personal website.

Mashinsky has raised over $1.5 billion for various ventures that generated more than $3 billion when he and other investors cashed out of them, according to his website, which also says he holds more than 50 patents.

"The greatest risk is not taking one," the home page reads.

In hundreds of interviews, blog posts and livestreams as the public face of Celsius, Mashinsky promised its customers that they would receive high returns if they deposited digital assets on his platform, with minimal risk, according to the New York AG's lawsuit.

Neither Mashinsky nor his lawyer immediately responded to requests for comment on Thursday.

Celsius pledged investors would obtain returns of up to 17%, among the highest in the industry. "We take it from the rich," the lawsuit quoted Mashinsky as saying.

By early 2022, it had amassed $20 billion in digital assets from investors. But the company struggled to generate enough revenue to pay the promised yields and moved into much riskier investments, according to the claim.

The company extended hundreds of millions of dollars in uncollateralized loans, and invested hundreds of millions more in unregulated decentralized finance platforms, the lawsuit said.

Mashinsky, who wore t-shirts with slogans such as "banks are not your friends," continued to falsely represent to investors that Celsius was generating high yield through low-risk investments, according to the legal filing.

In an "Ask Mashinsky Anything" YouTube video on June 10, the entrepreneur said "Celsius has billions in liquidity." Two days later, it paused investor withdrawals "in order to stabilize liquidity and operations."

Celsius filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors last July 13, listing a $1.19 billion deficit on its balance sheet.

(Reporting by John McCrank in New York and Hannah Lang in Washington; Editing by Lananh Nguyen and Matthew Lewis)

Bed Bath & Beyond Reportedly Plans Bankruptcy As Meme Stock Crashes Amid ‘Substantial Doubt’ Business Can Continue

Jonathan Ponciano
Forbes Staff

Jan 5, 2023,

TOPLINE

 

Bed Bath & Beyond is reportedly preparing to file for bankruptcy in the coming weeks as the struggling brick-and-mortar retailer faces persistent economic challenges plaguing efforts to turn around its business—further piling on to abysmal losses for a stock that more than tripled amid retail-trading mayhem during the pandemic.

The firm, once coveted by retail traders, is exploring options including restructuring and ... [+]

MOMENT EDITORIAL/GETTY IMAGES

KEY FACTS

Bed Bath & Beyond is in the early stages of readying a chapter 11 bankruptcy filing that could come within weeks, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday afternoon, citing people with knowledge of the matter and noting the bankruptcy filing is not a certainty.

The report comes after Bed Bath & Beyond shares crashed nearly 30% Thursday to $1.69—pushing shares down to lows last seen almost 30 years ago—after the firm warned recurring losses in its latest quarters have contributed to “substantial doubt about the company’s ability to continue.”

The retailer said it expects sales to collapse 33% to less than $1.3 billion in the latest quarter as a result of lower customer traffic and reduced levels of inventory, and it also stated it is exploring actions including restructuring, debt refinancing, selling assets and filing for bankruptcy relief.

“These measures may not be successful,” cautioned the firm, which expects to post a loss of about $385.8 million in its upcoming earnings report.

In a statement, CEO Sue Gove blamed “inventory constraints” and “economic challenges,” including reduced credit limits that barred the firm from purchasing more merchandise, for the worse-than-expected performance.

KEY BACKGROUND

As customers turned to online shopping, Bed Bath & Beyond, which has struggled to build a strong digital presence, became one of the worst-hit brick-and-mortar retailers of the past decade. However, shares of the firm began to surge early last year, at one point more than tripling as retail traders plowed into heavily shorted stocks. The frenzy cooled off but once again intensified when billionaire Ryan Cohen, who has led an as of yet unsuccessful bid to turn around fellow retailer GameStop, disclosed a $120 million investment in the home goods store. That fervor, too, was short-lived, with Cohen cashing out his stake in August.

SURPRISING FACT

Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond have collapsed 95% from a closing high of about $35 in January 2021. However, that pales in comparison to losses since the firm’s heyday in 2014, when shares peaked at more than $80. Fellow meme stock GameStop has collapsed about 80% since its peak nearly two years ago.

FURTHER READING

After 28% Drop In Revenue, Bed Bath & Beyond Stock Needs A Markdown (Forbes)

Bed Bath & Beyond Stock Skyrockets After Billionaire GameStop Chair Cohen Discloses $120 Million Investment (Forbes)

US Shootings: every day in America, 12 children die from gunfire

Guns are literally killing Americans but the powerful gun lobby insists on preventing reform

JAMES
ZOGBY

A woman waits to hear about her sister, a teacher. Jessica Hill / AP

This past week, we crossed the tenth anniversary of the day when an obviously deranged young man wielding a weapon of war massacred 20 little children and six of their teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. America has had mass shootings even before that day. But Sandy Hook felt different because the victims were so little and so many, and because then US President Barack Obama spoke so eloquently and tearfully to the nation, capturing our collective grief and the resolve that “our hearts had been broken” too many times and that something must be done to end such killings.

The powerful gun lobby went to work and a short time later the Senate voted down a modest gun reform bill by a vote of 60 to 40

.

A sign outside the National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, in Houston, on May 27. AFP

The numbers since Sandy Hook are staggering – and increasing at an alarming rate. In the four decades before Sandy Hook, there were 1,094 school shootings. But during just the past decade, America has seen an almost doubled number with an additional 948 school shootings – more than 109 of them being mass shootings (defined as an incident in which four or more have been have shot by a gunman).

But school shootings are only a part of the story. Eighty-one million Americans now own 415,000,000 guns. And we use them with regularity on each other. In each of the past three years there have been more than 600 mass shootings – with last year’s 690 being the highest on record. These annual numbers more than double the numbers of mass shootings each year of the previous decade. And this year alone, there have already been 43,000 gun-related deaths, divided almost evenly between murders and suicides.

Every single day in America an average of 12 children die from gunfire. Another 32 are shot and wounded. In fact, guns are the leading cause of death among children and teenagers in the US.

In other words, guns are literally killing Americans, and the politicians are doing nothing about it. Mass shootings have become routine. It is only when the event is so horrific, like Sandy Hook, or Columbine, or Stoneman Douglas, or more recently, Uvalde, that we become shocked. But there is a difference. When the slaughter of children occurred a decade ago, there was still a belief that real change would occur. Many people no longer believe that and have come to settle for minor reforms that amount to but a tweak in the murder machine.

Young Uvalde survivor shares what happened during the attack

It is as if the life has been sucked out of us and we no longer even dare to hope that assault weapons can be banned, that gun sales can be regulated and limited, or that communities can at least ban weapons of war from within their jurisdictions.

We know that in the face of an epidemic of gun violence such common sense measures should be implemented. But we also know that because conservatives in Congress and the courts have both a bizarre ideological interpretation of the Constitution and/or a pathological obsession with guns, saving our children is not a priority.

Michael Goldfarb: After another US school shooting, 'Why?' is the wrong question to ask

Last Christmas, a few “Christian” Republican members of Congress sent out Christmas cards featuring pictures of their families in front of their Christmas trees with each member (including their small children) proudly carrying assault weapons. One featured a note to Santa: “Please bring ammo.” This from the very crowd that rails against “godless liberals, who’ve taken Christ out of Christmas.”

As I have noted many times before, the problem of gun violence is deeply ingrained in American culture. From the mythic lore of the Old West, cowboys fighting Indians or cops chasing robbers, to the romanticisation of the mobsters of the 1920s to today’s video games featuring space invaders and fantasy futuristic weapons that enable our children to have the questionable pleasure of winning by shooting everything in sight – American society is suffering. And some Americans keep feeding its sickness with more guns and the misguided belief that they give us potency, making us strong and secure.

I remember after one monstrous mass murder in a Louisiana movie theatre, listening to a debate on CNN in which one panellist argued that if other patrons in the theatre had been armed, they could have stopped the shooter. I had heard much the same after a plane hijacking. The thought of multiple random shooters firing in a darkened theatre or in a plane at 30,000 feet is a nightmare, not a solution.

We should pass an assault weapon ban, require universal background checks, and certainly keep weapons out of the hands of children and those who are mentally ill. But we must also make a determined effort to address the root causes of our problem: our pathological obsession with weapons, the power of the gun lobby that blocks reform, and a popular culture that normalises killing with guns.

We need to constantly hold up before the gun lobby and those who support them the faces of the children who die, and name and shame those whose actions and inaction allow the slaughter to continue. They are as responsible as the shooters and should be made to feel responsible for forgetting the victims of Sandy Hook, Columbine, Stoneham Douglas, Uvalde and all the other massacres that have occurred on their watch.





The Sandy Hook Permanent Memorial in Newtown, Connecticut. AFP

UK

Having worked as an NHS nurse for 25 years, I know how soul destroying the job can be

(Alamy)

Paulette Hamilton MP
@PauletteHamilto

Working in the nursing profession for over 25 years, I know first-hand nurses are on the front line of all care given.

Nurses work extremely long hours, most shifts are 12 hours long. These heroes dedicate their lives to caring for others day in, day out. But many are still living with the after effects of having worked flat-out through the pandemic, all while trying to do the work of three or four nurses due to staff shortages, adding to workplace stress.

NHS recruitment is a huge problem. It is never helpful to look at the numbers of trainees recruited, but instead how many finish training and receive their much valued registration number. Unfortunately, dropout rate remains high and in some areas of the United Kingdom it is 50 per cent or higher. The money offered to trainees through the NHS Learning Support Fund is not enough and results in many nurses taking up second and third jobs just to make ends meet.

It breaks my heart to say that I just couldn’t do the job now

Nurses are also having to cope with increased workplace violence, due in part to the increased levels of mental health issues in the community. A&E departments are so busy that it can at times seem like a zoo. This only adds to the enormous levels of stress they’re under.

Long waiting lists are also a major issue. This problem is not new, but it is important that the government does not think it is fixed by throwing money at it without root and branch changes. They must accept that the whole system is at breaking point and will need both professionals and people that understand health to come together and have difficult conversations.
Related

All The Promises In Rishi Sunak's Big Vision Speech, And Which Have Been Made Before
By Eleanor Langford
04 Jan

Nurses' pay is struggling to keep up with the cost of living crisis, with inflation levels forcing many hospitals to set up foodbanks specifically for their staff. I’ve met nurses at my own constituency advice surgery in Erdington who simply do not have enough money to eat.

It is soul destroying when you go on duty and know you will have inadequate staffing levels for a nine or 12 hour shift. The implications on the health of staff due to stress can be tragic, leading to long term sickness, nurses deciding to give up the profession altogether, or retiring at an early age. It breaks my heart to say that I just couldn’t do the job now, and the ongoing failure to address staffing levels can be a matter of life or death for patients.

I worked with the Royal College of Nursing for seven years. I know the union inside out and, with its long and distinguished history, I know it would never have considered strike action unless it was the absolute last resort.

Nurses have not been on strike for 106 years and it is extremely important that going forward the government understands that the health service is in crisis. Giving it lip service will not solve the multitude of pressing issues it faces, and ministers need to implement meaningful discussions with the nurses’ union if they want to move forward.

Social care needs fundamental reform which truly brings together health and social care, which at the moment are together in name only. The government must understand that unless problems in social care are addressed, including introducing a workforce plan, the continued pressures in A&E will only get worse.

The power to stop these strikes, that even nurses themselves don’t really want, lies squarely with the government. How can ministers justify refusing to even talk to the unions?

Ministers must do the job they were elected to do and not kick the can down the road any longer.


Paulette Hamilton, Labour MP for Birmingham Erdington.

HE WAS A BANKER

Carol Vorderman Lays Into Rishi Sunak Following His Proposed 'Maths To 18' Plans

The former Countdown star was left questioning whether the PM lives in a "parallel universe" following his speech earlier this week.


Daniel Welsh
05/01/2023 


Carol Vorderman
KEN MCKAY/ITV/SHUTTERSTOCK

Carol Vorderman has hit out at prime minister Rishi Sunak following his proposed plans to make studying Maths until the age of 18 mandatory in Britain.

Earlier this week, during his first speech of 2023, Sunak stated that he wanted to “reimagine” the UK’s “approach to numeracy”, claiming that “data is everywhere and statistics underpin every job”.

However, in an interview on LBC on Thursday, Maths whizz Carol seemed unconvinced.

The former Countdown star – who describes herself as “politically independent” – questioned whether the PM is living in a “parallel universe”.

“People are suffering,” she told presenter Nick Ferrari. “I came from a very poor family – single parent, three kids – I was born in 1960 so I’m aged 62 now, and I was a free school meals kid all my life; I know how hard it is.

“He’s saying ‘Oh, my education was important’. Yes, it was important, you went to Winchester which is like Eton B, it’s a private school.”

Carol continued: “Does he have any conception of what real people are having to go through and the lack of opportunities for children?

“And the only way we can change this country is when children particularly are given equal opportunity. I am deeply passionate about it.”

Reflecting on the Prime Minister’s proposed scheme, Vorders stated her belief that “the system is not working for that”.

LONDON, ENGLAND, JANUARY 04: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks during his first major domestic speech of the year at Plexal, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on January 4, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Stefan Rousseau - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
WPA POOL VIA GETTY IMAGES

Instead, she offered up the idea that the syllabus switch more complicated Maths to focus more on “practical” skills.

“Let’s just take a practical view and come up with something you don’t teach to the test, you can do it online, re-do it online, where you have a little video lesson and then you have a little test after so it’s like micro-tests every day,” she suggested.

“You don’t need to teach to an exam all the time because, sadly, teachers and schools have to keep doing this.

“They spend whole terms teaching how to answer a particular question which is set by an educationist, rather than the practicality about mortgages, about your salary, about tax, about all of those practical things that will help these kids as they get older.”

Carol was previously asked by the Conservative party to lead a review into the teaching of Maths in schools back in 2009.

The former Loose Women anchor told LBC that she will not work with Sunak unless he provides more information on his tax returns and the so-called VIP lane over personal protective equipment (PPE)

Sunak’s speech on Wednesday was met with a lukewarm response at the time, with many of his critics online pointing out that he had left out many pressing issues facing the country right now – most notably the state of the health service.

Simon Pegg fumes at Rishi Sunak’s plan to extend maths study age


The Mission: Impossible actor took to Instagram to air his frustration and accused the Prime Minister of wanting a ‘drone army of data-entering robots’

By Lisa McLoughlin

Simon Pegg has shared an impassioned response to Rishi Sunak’s plan to make pupils study maths until the age of 18, branding the Prime Minister a “pr***”.

The Mission: Impossible actor took to Instagram to air his frustrations over the tentative decision to favour the subject over arts and humanities.

He fumed: “So Rishi Sunak, our unmandated, unelected prime minister twice removed, has decided it should be compulsory for children to learn maths up until the age of 18 – what a pr***.

“What about arts and humanities and fostering this country’s amazing reputation for creativity and self-expression?

“What about that? What about the kids that don’t want to do maths? I hated maths,” Mr Pegg continued.

“I dropped Maths as soon as I could and I’ve never needed it other than the skillset I acquired at the age of 12.



Pegg vented on social media / Instagram/SimonPegg

“But no. Rishi Sunak wants a f***ing drone army of data-entering robots.”

Before furiously adding: “F*** the Tories. Get rid of them. Please! F*** you, Rishi Sunak, and f*** the Tories.”

The Prime Minister outlined five promises for the year ahead during a speech in east London on Wednesday (January 4), which included halving inflation and bringing down NHS waiting lists.

Mr Sunak separately spoke about the importance of improving numeracy as he pledged to make it a central objective of the UK education system.

Speaking to an audience in Stratford, he said: “Right now, just half of all 16 to 19-year-olds study any maths at all.

“Yet in a world where data is everywhere and statistics underpin every job, our children’s jobs will require more analytical skills than ever before, and letting our children out into the world without those skills is letting our children down.”

The Prime Minister said the plan would not mean a compulsory A-level for maths for everyone and may not be achieved in this Parliament.

However, a teacher and education experts said the policy does not address major problems in the wider education system, including the already “severe shortage of maths teachers”.

UK rail workers strike over pay, job security and working conditions

Lauren Ban | U. Pittsburgh School of Law, US

JANUARY 3, 2023 

UK rail workers Tuesday launched their first day of strike action over disputes between workers and companies on pay, jobs and working conditions. The strike action is expected to affect 14 train operators from Tuesday through Friday, reducing rail travel to 20 percent of regular services.

The National Union of Rail, Maritime, and Transport Workers (RMT) announced the strike action Monday. According to RMT, close to 40,000 rail workers will strike this week against 14 train operating companies. The action is expected to shut down “most rail services across the country.” Another rail union, the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF), is also expected to stage a one-day strike action on Thursday.

RMT claims that government ministers are responsible for blocking the unions’ efforts to negotiate on pay, job security and working conditions. RMT general secretary Mick Lynch spoke to BBC Breakfast Tuesday and apologized for the effect the strike is having on UK commuters. ASLEF general secretary Mick Whelan said, “We don’t want to go on strike but the companies have pushed us into this place.” Lynch said, “All the parties involved know what needs to be done to get a settlement. But the government is blocking that settlement and doing nothing about this dispute.”

Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper, however, claimed that he had offered a new and improved pay and reform offers. Harper said that two rail unions already accepted the offer while RMT refused. Harper called for workers to “get off the picket line and back round the table” to negotiate a “fair” deal.

The rail strike comes in the midst of several other sector strikes in the UK, a country which faced serious economic downturn months ago during a shake up in UK leadership. On December 15, UK nurses went on strike for the first time in UK history over stagnant pay. On September 5, UK criminal barristers began an indefinite strike–which was resolved in October–in an effort to increase legal aid funding from the government. On October 24, UK university and college union members voted in favor of a strike because of pay disputes and pension cuts.

RMT said the union, companies and the government attempted to resolve the issue during the Christmas period but were unable to arrange any formal negotiations to resolve the dispute. Union representatives are expected to meet with government officials and heads of rail companies early next week.

Edinburgh school strikes: Teachers 'not backing down' ahead of more planned strike action next week

School strikes will take place across Edinburgh next week

By Kevin Quinn
Updated 5th Jan 2023, 

The Edinburgh local association secretary for the EIS has said her members are not backing down in their attempts to secure a better deal on pay and conditions ahead of more strikes next week, with future walk-outs planned for later in the month.

Edinburgh school teachers are scheduled to take part in a second round of industrial action as part of their long-running pay and conditions dispute with COSLA and the Scottish Government. With primary school teachers walking out on Tuesday (January 10) and secondary school teachers walking out on Wednesday (January 11). Protests are planned at COSLA’s offices at Haymarket on Tuesday and at the First Minister’s official residence of Bute House the following day.

Teachers turned down a deal which would offer most staff in classrooms a five per cent pay rise, although the lowest-earning teachers would receive a 6.85 per cent increase. The Scottish Government, however, has insisted that a 10 per cent increase for all teachers is not affordable within its fixed budget. Teachers first went on strike in November, with a large protest taking place at the Scottish Parliament.

Striking teachers protested outside Holyrood in November.

‘Our members can’t afford to live just now’

EIS Edinburgh secretary Alison Murphy told the Evening News she hopes the strike action next week will see parents and carers put more pressure on the Scottish Government and COSLA to offer a new deal.

She said: “There is no sign of a deal yet. Unfortunately the Scottish Government and COSLA have not come back with anything at all. Just the same re-hashed offers with the numbers changed around, that would have left our members significantly worse off.

"I hope we don’t have to have the strikes, we don’t want to close schools, teachers want to be in classes teaching their pupils. We hope that parents and carers put pressure on the Scottish Government and COSLA to sort this out.”

Alison said strikes will continue if no deal is reached, with teachers struggling every day in schools across the country, and pupils suffering as a result.

She said: "Edinburgh schools will be out again on January 25, with other schools across the country also walking out in a continued wave of strike action. This is going to continue as our members can’t afford to live just now. We are really struggling with the retention of staff, who are leaving in droves. The stresses and the pressures are too much.

"Pay is only one factor, as teachers are worried about bills and everything else. It’s having a real impact on children because they are not getting the education they need as teachers can’t focus because of all the worries.”

Alison also accused the Scottish Government and COSLA of trying to pit teachers against other public sector workers. She said: "The Scottish Government and COSLA need to realise we are serious about this. Our members can’t afford to take the offer on the table at the moment. So this action will continue.

"They spent a lot of time during the pandemic talking about how essential we were. We are not saying we deserve a better pay offer than other sectors, everybody deserves a fair and decent pay rise. Trying to divide and conquer by comparing us with other sector workers is a foolish tactic. We won't fall for it.”

‘Strikes in our schools are in no one’s interest’

Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville, who is scheduled to meet with teaching unions on Friday (January 6), said: “We are committed to a fair, sustainable settlement for Scotland’s teachers and continue to engage constructively with teaching unions and COSLA. We would urge unions to postpone their plans for industrial action while talks are ongoing.

“The most recent pay offer – the fourth which has been put to unions - would have meant a 21.8 per cent cumulative increase in teacher pay since 2018, but was rejected. Strikes in our schools are in no one’s interest – least of all for pupils, parents and carers who have already faced significant disruption over the past three years.”

UK

Sunak Proposes Laws To 'Sack Teachers And Nurses For Going On Strike'

Report suggests prime minister's anti-strike legislation could be announced this week.

Graeme Demianyk
05/01/2023

Rishi Sunak during his first major domestic speech of 2023 on Wednesday.
STEFAN ROUSSEAU VIA PA WIRE/PA IMAGES

Rishi Sunak is set to announce new anti-strike laws that will allow employers to sack workers who take industrial action – including teachers and nurses.

In a desperate effort to curb the wave of strikes crippling the UK, the prime minister could bring forward legislation to ensure so-called minimum service levels as early as Thursday in six sectors, including the health service, rail, education, fire and border security, The Times reported.

Strikes would be deemed illegal if trade unions refused to provide the minimum level of service, the newspaper quoted a government source involved in the discussions as saying.

Employers will be able to sue unions and sack workers under the government plans, the report added.

However, a significant pay rise for public sector workers is also reportedly under consideration as a means of ending the strikes, according to the paper.




A source told the paper: “This legislation will remove the legal immunity for strikes where unions fail to implement a minimum level of service. The strikes will be illegal. Ultimately people could be fired for breach of contract.”

The move is unlikely to directly affect the current round of disputes. MPs do not return until next week, and even if the legislation jumps hurdles in the Commons and the Lords, unions are likely to mount a legal challenge.

Sunak last month indicated he wanted to introduce anti-strike laws to protect people’s lives and minimise the disruption on their livelihoods.

The prime minister was asked on Wednesday about the wave of strikes sweeping across the country, replying that his government’s door was always open for dialogue.

He said: “You’ll hear more from the government in the coming days about our approach.

“My view is people should always behave reasonably and fairly and make sure that what we’re doing is centred around what is responsible for the country, what’s affordable for the country.

“I think that’s the right dialogue to be having, and I hope we can have that dialogue.”

He said “people should have the right to strike”, adding “that has to be balanced with the right of the British public to go about their lives without suffering completely undue disruption in the way we’ve seen recently”.

Sunak added: “And that’s why I have said we will introduce new legislation that restores that balance and crucially protects people’s lives as well as their livelihoods.”

Sunak to detail anti-strike laws soon – 

Report

Britain has faced a wave of industrial action over the last few months, with strikes crippling various sectors including the rail network set to continue as surging inflation follows more than 10 years of stagnant wage growth.

• Melvin Samuel
 
• 05 January, 2023

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak arrives to deliver his first major domestic speech of the year at Plexal, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on January 4, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Stefan Rousseau – WPA Pool/Getty Images)

By: Melvin Samuel

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak could set out details of a planned new law to curb strikes as soon as Thursday, The Times reported, saying ministers intend to make industrial action illegal in some sectors if minimum service levels are not met.

The Times newspaper said the legislation would enforce minimum service levels in six sectors, including the health service, rail, education, fire and border security, which would require a proportion of union members to continue working.

Britain has faced a wave of industrial action over the last few months, with strikes crippling various sectors including the rail networkset to continue as surging inflation follows more than 10 years of stagnant wage growth.

The strikes would be deemed illegal if unions refused to provide the minimum level of service, the newspaper quoted a government source involved in the discussions as saying.

Employers would be able to sue unions and sack staff under government plans to curb the right to strike, the report added.

The Prime Minister’s office declinedto comment. On Wednesday Sunak said the government would set out its next steps “in the coming days”.

Opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer said if his party won the next election, expected in 2024, it would repeal the law.

“We’ll look at what they bring forward, but if it’s further restrictions, then we will repeal it,” Starmer said during a question and answer session following a speech on Thursday.

“I do not think that legislation is the way that you bring an end to industrial disputes. You have to get in the room and compromise.”

Sunak told Daily Mail in an interview last month the new law would protect people’s lives and minimise the disruption to their livelihoods.

The head of rail union ASLEF, Mick Whelan, told Reuters Britain already had among the worst trade union laws in Europe.

“Surely people have a right to strike. I don’t see any pernicious legislation coming forward to deal with bad employers,” he said.

New TUC boss calls for urgent meeting with Rishi Sunak to break strike deadlock

Wednesday 4 January 2023 

Paul Nowak took up the role of general secretary of the TUC in December.

Credit: PA Wire/PA Images

The new general secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) has called for an urgent meeting with the prime minister in a bid to break the deadlocked industrial disputes sweeping across the country.

Paul Nowak, who took up his role at the TUC on December 29, called for a change in government direction, saying ministers should open pay negotiations with unions.

It comes as rail workers continue a 48 hour strike, with more stoppages planned this month in the transport industry, NHS and civil service.

In a letter to Rishi Sunak, Mr Nowak said public services were in crisis after years of “underfunding and understaffing.”

Mick Lynch (centre), RMT general secretary, joins members on the picket line outside London Euston train station.

Credit: PA

He wrote: “We can’t solve these problems without a fair deal for the people on the frontline.

“Every month experienced employees are quitting, with one in three public service staff now taking steps to leave their professions or actively considering it. This is simply unsustainable.

“But we cannot fix the staffing crisis in our schools, hospitals and elsewhere if we do not fix the underlying causes.

“That means talking in an open and constructive way about improving public sector pay. But so far your ministers have refused to negotiate directly about pay with unions.”
New TUC leader says 'ball is in government's court' to put an end to strikes

Mr Nowak said unions worked closely with Mr Sunak during the pandemic to deliver the furlough scheme and protect millions of jobs.“That’s the kind of mature approach we need now," he continued.

“Unions have already made clear their willingness to sit down with the government and talk about boosting pay. But while your ministers continue to refuse point blank to discuss improving wages, there can be no resolution.

What is Sunak’s strikes strategy?

The TUC boss said unions worked closely with Mr Sunak during the pandemic to deliver the furlough scheme and protect millions of jobs.

Credit: PA

“In the NHS, for example, appropriate structures already exist to allow the immediate start of pay negotiations involving health unions, employers and ministers. This was exactly what happened in 2018, leading to the three-year wage deal.

“We want to find a resolution to the current disputes so our public service staff can get on with doing the jobs they love. And so our public services can start to improve for everyone who relies on them.”

Around half of Britain’s railway lines are closed and only a fifth of services are running as tens of thousands of workers at Network Rail and train operators walk out on the second day of the strike, with another to begin on Friday.

On Wednesday, the DVSA driving examiners’ strike starts in London, the South East, South Wales and the South West, while traffic officer service workers at National Highways will continue their walkout.
Who is striking when? A timeline of public sector walkouts in January 2023

Meanwhile, industrial action by the UK-wide National Highways and Rural Payments Agency staff will continue.

London bus workers at Abellio will also begin a two-day strike – the first in a series of action planned by the group throughout January.

More industrial action is planned later in the month by workers in the transport sector, along with staff in the NHS and civil service.

Workers have lost £20,000, on average, in real wages since 2008 as a result of pay not keeping up with inflation, and by 2025 the loss will total £24,000, according to TUC analysis.Nurses have lost £42,000 in real earnings since 2008, midwives £56,000 and paramedics £56,000, with workers facing another year of "pay misery", said the TUC.

The government argues it has agreed to the recommendations made by independent pay review bodies and that double digit pay rises would push inflation up further.