The Thomas Cook offices at grafton st dublin are now under worker's control. Workers occupoed the building after management , who had flown in specially from the UK, announced the closure of the shops on north earl street and grafton st Dublin. The staff at the north earl st shop were told to close the store for an hour and to accompany managers to the grafton st store, they went upstairs and started laying out chairs to line the workers up and dismiss them. One of the workers who sensed what was coming shouted 'Lock In!' and, like electricity, word shot up through the other floors of the building.
The workers took the upper floors leaving management downstairs in the shop. Socialist Worker members arrived and, after speaking to a shop steward inside, we started distributing the worker's flyer about the dispute outside the shop to the public. We started chanting along with the workers who shouted along from the upper story windows 'I dont know what i been told..thomas cook aint got no soul!'. The response from the passers by was amazing, 'this is what this country needs',' they're right fair play to them'. Bin lorry drivers, Buses and Taxis continually beeped their horns and stopped to get more information.
A press photographer arrived and the workers assembled in the shop with management beside them looking uneasy, one of the pregnant workers was having her photo taken when the press officer for thomas cook management tried to block the shot, one of the union members threw the press officer out of the shop, soon to be followed by the other managers, who left in tears. They had never had to deal with workers fighting back. The workers and supporters outside began shouting, 'the workers united will never be defeated!'.
The very people who earlier that day had gathered the workers to dismiss them were left weeping into mobile phones and quietly asking could they have their bags back.
We arranged for the workers inside to exchange phone calls with the occupied vestas wind turbine factory in the isle of wight, with both sets of workers cheering one another on!
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