Why is the fight to defend living standards, public services and personal freedoms, and the fight against imperialism, one and the same? Inspired by NZCTU President Sandra Grey’s refrain that “peace is union business”, I gave this public talk last month at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington. This article is a lightly edited transcriptContinue reading “Imperialism – What It Is and How to Fight It”
Tag Archives: New zealand
Book review: The Significance of the Waihi Strike
Review by Grant Brookes, 28 March 2026. On the eve of World War One, New Zealand’s labour movement was approaching a crossroads. Down one path lay an end to imperialist slaughter on foreign fields and liberation from colonial capitalist oppression at home. Down the other, government by two alternating parties who differed over how toContinue reading “Book review: The Significance of the Waihi Strike”
Strike Wave 2025: Reflections From a Unionist
The 23 October public sector strike was the largest industrial action taken in Aotearoa since the one-day General strike in 1979. On 28 October Te Whanganui-a-Tara branch of the International Socialist Organisation hosted a panel discussion on this historic action. Nurse and unionist Grant Brookes was among the speakers, giving his perspective on the struggle.Continue reading “Strike Wave 2025: Reflections From a Unionist”
Privatising healthcare – Kōrero at the Unions Wellington Labour Day panel
Unions Wellington asks: People may have heard that the government has increasingly outsourced hospital procedures to private hospitals in order to meet care targets, often at great expense. Why would they do this rather than investing in capacity in the public system? First up, it’s important to stress at the outset that government outsourcing in theContinue reading “Privatising healthcare – Kōrero at the Unions Wellington Labour Day panel”
The year of the strike is a year like no other
Grant Brookes 1 October 2025 “The year of the strike? Perfect pay storm looms over public sector.” This was the headline of an article back in February by a prescient Stuff journalist. This perfect storm has arrived, though it’s about much more than pay. Under conditions of today’s unprecedented political mobilisations, and an increasingly authoritarian government which has thrustContinue reading “The year of the strike is a year like no other”
