The modern railway network turns 200 this month and is currently one of the greenest forms of transport. But unless focus shifts from profits to people, Britain won’t benefit from it, argue ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT

WHAT began as a struggle by workers in Chicago Haymarket in 1886 on the key issue of an eight-hour day took on an international significance following the deaths of four workers.
The struggle for an eight-hour day and the importance of collective action around organising within the trade unions became a worldwide phenomenon.
In the age of globalisation, in the 21st century, 132 years after Chicago, the issue of the working conditions of workers on a global scale has lost none of its relevance.


