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The Plough
(Web site http://www.theplough.netfirms.com/)
Vol. 4- No 25
Monday 19th November 2007
E-mail newsletter of the Irish Republican Socialist Party
1) Bare Faced Hypocrisy
2) Trade unionism and Republican Socialism
3) Health Care Crisis
4) Poverty
5) In a Revolution You Win or you Die
6) Media -Dublin Bus Strike
7) What’s On?
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BARE FACED HYPOCRISY
Bertie Ahern and his government, have just committed one of the
greatest crimes of hypocrisy imaginable even from a government
representing the interests of the bourgeoisie. He and his government
have just awarded themselves, all be it on the recommendations of an
external body regarding public sector pay which could have been
declined, a 14% pay rise while, at the same time urging wage
restraint for the rest of the workers in the state.
“Tanaiste Brian Cowen said that a realistic approach to wage demands
was necessary if Ireland wanted to maintain its competitiveness and
living standards’ (Metro Friday November 9th 2007).
Firstly competitiveness does not secure higher living standards for
working class people. Ask anybody who has recently lost their job
due to competition either from other firms or other countries with
slave labour economies/ So lets destroy that myth. Competitiveness,
or so called perfect competition, means various firms compete with
each other for a share of the so called “free market”, be it in
Ireland or with companies in other countries normally where wages
are so low they are often at starvation levels.
This ultimately leads to redundancies for the workers who can not
afford to keep up with the competitive nature of the capitalist
beast and will not accept wages more in line with those paid in
Morocco or South Korea, Pakistan or India. James Connolly warned
early in the 20th century about Ireland becoming the biggest
“blacklegs” in Europe. Well if the capitalist system has its way
Irish workers stand a good chance of becoming the biggest
“blacklegs” on the planet. The argument must, therefore follow, how
can a system which denies people the right to earn a decent living
because the costs are too high for the company claim to maintain
high living standards? Or does it really mean high living standards
for the bosses at the expense, as usual, of the workers
Cowen was addressing delegates, at Farmleigh House in Dublin on
Thursday 8th November 2007 ahead of next years pay talks under the
“Towards 2016” partnership agreement. This agreement means the trade
unions accept miserably low pay increases, often below the rate of
inflation which amounts in real terms to a pay reduction, while the
bosses profits soar. The Tanaiste went on to try and explain
external factors such as rising oil prices and the weakening dollar,
both symptoms of the capitalist system called international or
global capitalism, which never appear to affect the profits and
living standards of the bosses (bourgeoisie).
He went on to sanctimoniously preach “The national partnership
agreements have served us well over the last decade and I would hope
that this well tested approach can once again be relied upon in
helping us meet the emerging challenges we now have to face”. Well
I’m sure you do Brian after all you, and any successor to you,
represent the interests of the bourgeois class therefore when you
talk of “us” that is exactly to whom you are referring. These people
when they talk of “us” are not being all inclusive or in any way
objective “us” to them means the owners of the means of production,
control and exchange be them indigenous Irish or multinational
companies, and not in any way the creators of all wealth, the
working class. Put plainly “us” does not include the working class
except, of course, at times of elections.
So why do various governments of liberal democracies continually rub
workers faces in the shit, some more bare faced than others? Simple,
because they can get away with it! They represent the interests of
high finance and if they could, in the interests of big business
introduce a law freezing pay for ten years while profits rise and
get away with it the chances are they would. Every now and again a
radical voice of trade unionism will speak out but these people are
increasingly more isolated. However the system has got in place a
mechanism and allie called the Irish Congress of Trade Unions who
will silence, to save the bosses the trouble, any rabble rouser(s)
within their ranks. With these people at the helm the employers can
rest assured that the ugly head of Larkinism and Connollyism will
never again give the workers a lead in Ireland.
However it does not mean these people will be in charge for ever
but, that said, only the dispossessed people can ultimately change
things. Only the people who are taken the piss out of on a daily
basis hold the power to bring about lasting, no, permanent change
which means a little bit more than changing the government it means
changing the system of government, it means Socialism and, in the
case of Ireland, the establishment of a 32 county socialist republic
with the working class in control. No amount of Dail elections will
bring this metamorphosis about, real change comes from below.
Exercise your right to vote, definitely exercise this right, before
they remove this last vestige of democracy from your grasp but be
under no illusions as to any serious level of change brought about
by such elections.
Kevin Morley IRSP, Dublin
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Trade unionism and Republican Socialism
The so-called expert writers of the Irish Trade Unions have no
experience of the trade union culture in Ireland. Many of these
trendy lefties have never attended a Branch meeting, or participated
in any trade union activity.
Indeed some of these people live and work in Ireland and do not see
the need to organise in their own non-union workplace. According to
the European Union half the working population in Ireland are trade
unionists -
Union density overall in Ireland had been around 50% for a number of
years in the 1970s and early 1980s, but by 1987 it had fallen to
43.5%. There has once again been a growth in membership since then,
and current union density is estimated to lie at around 50%.
These British, French, Italian trendy lefties rather than criticise
the
Irish Unions should look at their own back yard; at the very least
become involved in the trade union movement. Contrary to belief
amongst the Continental trendy left, Irish trade unions have both a
democratic content and mechanism.
Republican Socialists acknowledge the Irish Trade Union movement as
the organised working class. As such, it is our only access to
organise workers. It is not our aim to control and manipulate but
rather to give a lead with ideas and action within our specific
unions. Republican Socialists need to mobilise trade unionists on
the ground to re-engage with their trade unions by participation
within the democracy of trade unions at all levels.
However, it must be admitted that it was through this democracy that
trade union bureaucracy sets in. The struggle to transform the
unions inevitably comes up against this conservative bureaucracy,
whose jobs depend on maintaining their role as middlemen in the
struggles and negotiations between workers and bosses. The top three
officials in
SIPTU receive nearly £80,000 a year.
In 1987 the propaganda machine of the Free State government and the
bosses worked overtime to sell the Social Contract. Trade union
leaders too were keen to sell their members the idea of social
partnership, management and unions would get together to cooperate
over improving the state of the Irish economy in order to share out
the subsequent wealth generated . The Programme for National
Recovery committed these 'social partners ' to "seek to regenerate
the economy and improve the social equity of our society through
their combined efforts."
As long as workers worked harder the size of the national cake would
grow and consequently the workers share would grow to.
Today the government and the bosses yell bellicose attacks at
workers fighting to defend themselves that there must be no
conflict, no challenge to the social partnership,which has produced
this redistribution of wealth to the rich, or the whole boom will
fall apart. Is it the case that the boom was created and is
sustained by the social contract, which holds workers wages in check
while the bosses rake in super profits? The social contract has been
the cover behind that foreign capitalists have sought to boost their
profits by rising productivity, that is changing working conditions
to make us all work harder and longer
As ICTU put it partnership means moving from "the clenched fist of
confrontation to the open hand of cooperation." They are tied to the
idea of social partnership, more accurately class collaboration.
They act like referees in the fight between workers and bosses
rather than leaders. Yet they are not the ones suffering short-term
contracts or total quality management.
Nevertheless, this can change. One Republican Socialist openly
opposed this bureaucracy. Moreover, using the same democratic
mechanism was elected with more than 50% more votes under his hat
than the bureaucrat.
Revolutionary change of the unions is about a fight to change the
leaders and in many cases the structures and rules whereby all trade
union officials are elected, recallable. Moreover, to achieve this
requires the organisation of the rank and file of the unions against
the bureaucracy. Remember every vote in the trade unions are by
postal ballot. It is worth noting that in some cases for a trade
unionist to be elected on to the Executive, it takes 5 times as many
votes as a local authority councillor. Trade unions might be
“schools for socialism”, but trade union consciousness is not
spontaneously socialist.
Some have asked the question why trade unions exist. Workers are
aware what the Unions do. They know that they defend wages and
conditions, and provide legal aid both inside and outside the place
of work. These things are important. However, why was it important
to fight for them?
The answer to this question is to be found in the foundations of
trade unionism and more importantly socialism also. Workers had to
fight for these things because the employers and governments were
not prepared to give them until they were forced. That is true and
the force which they used was based upon their power to stop work,
in other words in their power to strike. For that reason, Trade
Unionists have always aimed at 100% organization, and have regarded
the non-unionist as a danger and the strike-breaker as a “blackleg”.
Why have the workers had to rely upon their power to withhold labour?
“For the reason that workers have no other power than their labour
power”. In a capitalist society, the working class is in a
distinctive position. In comparative terms, workers have no
property. It is dependent upon the class, which exploits it. The
capitalist, owns the factories, mills, mines, railways, transport.
That is why the removal of labour by the workers can be so powerful
a weapon when used on a large scale.
When Trade Unionists fight the employers on wages questions and the
conditions of labour they are really fighting against consequences f
the capitalist system. The existence of the private ownership of the
means of production means also the private ownership of the things
produced and their sale as commodities in competition one with
another.
Labour also is a commodity and those who sell their labour power,
the members of the working class, manual and brain-worker alike,
also compete like other Trade unions are the basic organisation of
the Irish working-class
However; they are much more than that. They are the kernel of the
future Irish society within the old.
Of course, since the workers organisations exist in a capitalist
Ireland they are subjected to alien class pressures. This includes
both the Irish Ruling class and US imperialism. These pressures
weigh heavily on the upper stratum and this often leads to
degeneration. We are not dealing with an ideal norm, but with the
mass organisations, as they really exist in class society. The
distortions that occur, especially in periods when the working class
is not on the move, can produce a feeling that the unions cannot be
changed. This serious mistake is contradicted by the historical
experience of the movement. Repeatedly the workers have moved to
transform their organisations into organs and schools of solidarity,
struggle and socialism.
The history of the Irish unions is not a straight line. On the
contrary,
it unfolds in an uneven fashion with various contradictory shifts in
one direction or another. It is constantly characterised by the
struggle between two traditions and two tendencies. A revolutionary
one, reflecting the unconscious will of the working class to change
society, and a subservient one, reflecting the pressures of the
ruling class on the upper stratum, that then attempts to block the
movement to change society and lead it instead like a lamb into safe
channels.
In normal periods, the consciousness of the workers is affected by
the dead weight of tradition and routine. In such times, most people
are prepared to accept the leadership of the Professionals,
Bourgeois and reformist politicians, Members of the Dail,
Parliament, councillors and trade union leaders.
The Venezuelan CTV (the old national trade union federation) sold
its soul to the old two-party capitalist system and governments it
produced.
For 40 years, the Venezuelan trade union movement lived through its
worst period, because workers were puppets in the games played by
the old parties (Copei and AD) and the bosses’ organizations.
Venezuelan still remember how AD (Democratic Action) decided the
fate of workers, bought and sold contracts and worked with the
government to control the unions and the CTV. We should remember
that the bosses’ strike of 2002-3was led by CTV and Fedecamaras (the
bosses’ organization) working hand in hand. The Irish trade unions
were doing just the same when they signed the social contract.
However, there are periods of crises and upheavals, when the working
class is shaken out of the old apathy and begins to take action,
demanding solutions, asking questions. Being close to the class, the
unions reflect this changed mood very early on. Moreover, what
happens in the unions today will be expressed perhaps as problems in
the Irish Republican Socialist Party tomorrow?
The pioneers of Irish Labour Connolly, Larkin were inspired by a
vision.
They believed that the trade union movement and Republican Socialism
would become a powerful weapon of social emancipation. This
revolutionary aspiration was, and in many cases remains, enshrined
in trade union rules and constitutions.
Through the experience of collective struggle, the working class
gradually raises itself to an understanding of the need to change
society. It develops a sense of its own power and ability. One can
see this in every strike. Marxists base themselves on this fact and
strive to develop this tendency and bring it to the fullest
expression.
The role of Marxists in the trade unions is to make conscious the
unconscious will of the working class to change society. The working
class has within its ranks a tremendous strength and resilience.
Even when it suffers a terrible and crushing defeat, it recovers and
again reasserts itself. It is like the Greek god Antaeus of ancient
mythology, who when thrown to the ground, drew strength from his
mother the earth.
Whatever obstacles lay in its path, the objective conditions of life
force it to continually struggle against the system of capitalist
exploitation. Those who argue that the class struggle is out of date
are obviously out of touch with the reality of Ireland in the first
decade of the twenty-first century. Trade unions must be organised
to recognize that all the efforts of the working class must be
directed to the goal of the conquest of political power. Their fight
in the industrial field must be linked with the fight to obtain a
Socialist Government which, backed by the might of the working
class, would transfer the ownership of the means of production and
distribution from private hands to social ownership.
(Peter Black)
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Health Care Crisis
There is a health care crisis in the British Isles. Despite huge
amounts of money being poured in conditions are gradually getting
worse. In the North of Ireland the health Minister complains that
his department is under-funded compared to the rest of the UK. In
the Republic patients dread a recommendation from their doctors to
go to hospitals dreading hospital trollies, disease, cancelled
operations and appalling services. The same can be applied to many
hospitals in the UK. Why?
Most of these problems stem from creeping privatisation and
marketisation of the public services, most notably begun under
MargretThatcher embraced by New Labour, Fianna Fail, Progressive
Democrats and all the main stream parties in the north of Ireland.
The Tories began the contracting-out of ancillary services like
catering, laundry and cleaning thereby beginning the rise in
hospital-acquired infections. More significantly, however, they
began the process of turning the NHS from a cohesive, integrated
body - in which service provision was planned to meet the health
needs of local populations - into a loose assemblage of competing
'businesses', linked by market or quasi-market transactions.
They did this, in the first instance, by making hospitals and local
doctors' surgeries independent of direct control by local health
authorities, introducing an 'internal market', in which 'purchasers'
(health authorities) had to 'commission' local services from
'providers' (usually, NHS trusts). To begin with, all the
participants in this market were public sector bodies, but they were
forced to behave like commercial businesses. Increasingly, the costs
of all the transactions between different NHS bodies made up a
significant proportion of expenditure within the service and the
number of bureaucrats, accountants, lawyers, etc. mushroomed at the
expense of the number of clinical staff. Also, part of the aim was
that, in due course, private health companies would be able to
compete with NHS trusts to sell services to commissioning bodies.
That is why the health services are in crisis
(Source Marxism Digest, Vol 48, Issue 46)
(JM)
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Poverty
Most of us when we hear the term poverty more often than not assume
poverty as being basically a lack of money. This is in part true but
for a better understanding of poverty it is we need to go further
than this clear-cut, definition of poverty.
Poverty is much more than a lack of money; it is about a lack of
wealth. During the 1950s if a person could not afford a television
that was not considered poverty but today it is. Today a television
set is large element of wealth produced. In the 1950s it was not.
Poverty is about a share of the wealth.
By the same token one could argue that there was less poverty during
the 1930s because less wealth was produced. If you were stranded on
a desert island and you had several thousand pounds in cash, but no
shops in which to spend it while those around you had things such as
food, clothing and shelter that would be poverty.You could not eat
your money.
We live in a society whereby elements of wealth also consist of
Housing, education and Health. Therefore any cuts in these social
needs must also contribute to the increasing levels of Poverty
Growing world poverty and conflict shows the barbarity of
capitalism. The last ten years there has been a major expansion in
poverty around the world. The day to day decisions of who lives and
who dies on this planet are not taken by Governments but in the
board rooms of multi-national corporations whose only reason for
continued existence is the extraction of the maximum amount of
sweat, blood and tears from the workers of this planet in order to
swell their ever increasing coffers.
Under the system of capitalism crime, corruption, and
underhandedness go hand in hand.The figures for those in poverty are
disturbing:
54 countries saw the decline of average incomes during the whole of
the 1990's
21 countries actually went backwards in terms of human development,
which is measured by income, life expectancy and literacy.
On a daily basis 30,000 children die from illnesses which are
totally preventable.
Annually, 500,000 women, that is one for every minute of every day
die in pregnancy or childbirth.
In the 1990's alone 13 million children were killed by diarrhoea
which equates to more than the entire number of people killed in all
armed conflicts since World War II.
In Zimbabwe the average life expectancy has gone down from 56 in the
early 1970's to 33.1 during the 1990's. In the UK life expectancy
rose from 72 to 78.2 in the same period.
In Sierra Leone 363 children in every 1000 or over 1 third do not
reach their fifth birthday. Just as a comparison in Norway only four
children in 1000 do not survive or just 0.4%.
These facts come from the United Nations Annual Development report
which saw more than 50 countries have a decline in living standards
during the 1990's.
Ireland
According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO) report poverty
levels in Ireland are still among the highest in the EU despite
having the second highest GDP in the EU. The Minister for Social
Affairs, Seamus Brennan T.D.said that while the eradication of
poverty in Irish society remains of the highest priority for the
Government, it is also important to state that in less than a decade
at least 250,000 people have been lifted out of deprivation and
hardship as a result of concentrated and targeted measures and
supports. Seamus Brennan is either a fool or a liar. If he believes
that he has lifted 250. 0000 people out of poverty, he has failed
even to recognise his own Governments interpretation of poverty.
People are living in poverty if their income and resources
(material, cultural and social) are so inadequate as to preclude
them from having a standard of living, which is regarded as
acceptable by Irish society generally. As a result of inadequate
income and resources people may be excluded and marginalised from
participating in activities, which are considered the norm for other
people in society.
A greater part of those lifted out of poverty were removed from one
area of deprivation to another. Forcing people off benefits on to
other benefits not used in poverty measurements. There are more than
290,000 people living in consistent poverty, those who do not reach
the more than the 50% baseline. Therefore those with incomes less
than 50% of the national average income are not considered to be in
poverty
IRSP research discovered that those on the Poverty line or just
below it have incomes less than 50% of the national average.The
worst affected are those not in a position to take up a job -- older
people, carers, lone parents, children, the long-term unemployed and
people who are sick or disabled. An EU Report on Income and Living
Conditions, from last year found that "almost one in five people" in
the 26 Counties remained "at risk of poverty"
The only cure is the eradication of the Capitalist system and it's
replacement with a Workers Republic; a democratic socialist planned
economy controlled by councils of workers, trade unions and
governments, who are subjected to the immediate right of recall by
the people at any time.
International
What we have we have to deal with is that economic power is now in
the hands of the World Bank, the IMF and GATT, which are
unrestricted by the processes of government. The making of
environmental problems is a result of the capitalist mode of
production. Consequently capitalism is unable to coexist with
sustainable development. . The poor, therefore, are by and large
ignored and not a concern to multi-national developers than the
environment itself. The poor, after all, are a reserve resource of
cheap labour.
We see on a worldwide scale greater instability, conflicts and
misery for millions around the globe.
In terms of international co operation we could set in motion a
global plan based on needs to eliminate poverty. We could introduce
education, development, and an end to the destructive conflicts that
have torn the world apart. Then we can begin to enrich the lives of
our fellow human beings and put an end once and for all to the human
suffering that currently plagues our race. We have the technology,
the knowledge and the ability to truly build paradise on Earth for
all, while at the same time living in harmony with nature, and
putting an end to the environmental destruction of our planet,
(Peter Black)
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Some key statistics on Inequality
97% of those studying ‘Home Economics’ are female compared to only
35% those studying ‘Economics
92% of the Traveller community have no GCSEs or equivalent (compared
with 5% of all NI school leavers)
Almost two in five (39%) female employees work part-time compared
with 6% of males.
The employment rate for those without disabilities (79%) is over
twice that of people with disabilities (32%).
Some 70% of social housing tenants live in communities that are at
least 90% Catholic or Protestant.
Only 17% of Northern Ireland’s MLAs (18 out of 108) are women,
compared with 33% in the Scottish Parliament and 47% in the Welsh
Assembly.
Although almost one in five persons (18%) of working-age are
disabled in NI, in 2006 only 3% of appointees to government public
appointments were disabled
The 2005 Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey (NILT) found that
25% of respondents felt they were either very prejudiced or a little
prejudiced compared to 11% when surveyed in 1994.
(Source speech byBob Collins head of Equality Commission (NI)
23/10/07)
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In a Revolution You Win or you Die
Interview with Cuban writer Ulises Estrada
Questions by Gűnther Pohl, translation and introduction by Marion
Baur
Ulises Estrada Lescaille (born 1934 in Santiago de Cuba) has Cuban
and Haitian roots. Like many people from the eastern provinces of
Cuba he was involved in the struggle against the dictatorship. After
the victory of the revolution he became deputy-leader of the secret
service which was then headed by Comandante Manuel Piñero, who was
involved in the preparation of “Operation Fantasma” in Bolivia.
Ulises Estrada went to support several national liberation movements
in Africa during later years. He was Cuba’s ambassador in Jamaica,
Yemen, Algeria and Mauritania.
During the time of the Allende –government he worked for the Cuban
embassy in Chile and became its military leader during the fascist
Pinochet-coup in 1973.
He worked for “Granma Internacional” and was editor of the newspaper
“Tricontinental”. Since his retirement from newspaper-journalism he
has been writing books, his latest one “Tanja – undercover with Che
in Bolivia” was first published in Australia (2005) and recently in
Germany. The amazing piece of literature sparked off my
writing-cooperation with Gűnther Pohl. The articles for the German
“UZ” and “Unity” (see Unity, October 6th, 2007 the article is also
on the CPI website) here in Ireland have since been reprinted by a
number of publications.
Gűnther asked the following questions, I translated the interview
into English.
Q. Ulises, there are several books about Tamara Bunke or “Tanja la
guerillera”. Why did you write another one?
A. I wrote the book “Tanja la guerillera y la epopey suramericana
del Che” as a tribute in defence of her political thinking. This
thinking has lead her to give her life during the struggle for a
just America, free of merciless exploitation. But it is also a book
in honour of Nadja’s (Tamara’s mother, MB) struggle to defend a
truthful memory of her daughter.
Q. It is being said over and again that Tamara and Che had a
relationship, some even say there are children. Is there any truth
in that?
A. Lies of this kind have been published in several books about Che.
My book was written to tear these lies into pieces. They are being
told about the heroic life of Tamara by the mercenaries of
imperialism, the enemies of the revolution, the lovers of the dollar
at all costs. Those people are not able to understand what the life
and the example of Comandante Che Guevara meant for Tamara Bunke,
his example shaped her into Tanja first, then into the guerillera.
The same example inspires those who raise the flag with his picture
today and at every corner of this planet where people scream against
injustice.
I have written the book, aiming to honour the men and women who
still fight in Latin- America today and who defend the legitimate
interests of their peoples, no matter what the revolutionary way
they have chosen looks like.
Q. You toured Germany with the book recently. Was that important for
you?
A. Tamara was Argentine but also German, her father was a German
Communist. That’s the reason why I introduced the book in 16 German
cities right across the country. The Germans need to get to know the
story of the wonderful struggle of one of their fellow citizens
during the 20th century. The presence of people from all levels of
German society at the events and talks made the effort well worth
while.
Q. What message has Tanja la Guerillera for us today, 40 years after
she has been murdered? Is there an up-to-date-relevance in a time
when the armed struggle has been given up in most places?
A. The example Tanja set when fighting side by side with Che Guevara
and his Bolivian, Cuban and Peruan comrades in the ELN, the army of
national liberation, has left an inextinguishable trace within the
political – revolutionary life of Latin-America.
These comrades have proved that whoever wants to end capitalist
exploitation, the cause of alienating human beings and stripping
them of their most basic rights, must be totally devoted to the
cause. This struggle means unfavourable conditions, sacrifices, and
the firm decision to go the path Che outlined to the very end. En
una revoluciōn se triumfa o se muere – in a revolution you win or
you die.
The armed struggle suffered many rebounds not just that of the ELN
in Bolivia and in Peru, also in Argentina and other places. Let’s
not forget that the rebound during the attack on the Moncada-barracks
sowed the seeds which lead to the victory of the Cuban revolution
during the following months.
And let’s not forget that revolutionary men and women in Columbia
are still singing the songs of freedom with guns in their hands
today, fighting a corrupt government which – side by side with the
drugs-bosses – betrays the interests of the people and is a willing
servant of US-imperialism.
It was the Guerrilla-struggle in Venezuela which developed the very
patriotism of the parts of the troops around Hugo Chavez which made
them take up the arms and rise. This attempt was defeated but just a
few years later they used different means to achieve the same
ideological and political goals. That established the Bolivarian
Revolution in this country.
President Evo Morales is now reaping the fruits of the titanic
struggle by Che, Tanja and the heroic fighters who gave their lives
in Bolivia 40 years ago: For the first time in history an indigene
person is in power. His steps are firm; he has chosen revolution as
his path.
Let me tell you: In various ways and everywhere in Latin-America,
the flame of revolutionary liberation is burning!
The political heritage of Che, Tanja, Turcios Limo, Fabricio Ojeda,
Massetti and the many other Latin-American martyrs is alive – it is
so alive that their revolutionary ideas will lead the peoples of
Latin-America to victory; in a time not far away at all.
(Reprinted from Unity newspaper of the CPI)
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From The Media
Although the Dublin bus strike has been called off the struggle of
the workers is not yet over. All republicans and socialists should
support the just cause of the workers
Ireland: Dublin Bus Workers’ Strike - their story
By P. Bowman in Dublin
Monday, 19 November 2007
Dublin Bus management triggered off a strike of 500 bus drivers last
Monday, November 11th, at one of Dublin's biggest bus depots when
the company suspended a bus worker who refused to drive a bus on a
new route. The company was trying to unilaterally impose new work
schedules on the workers in order to cut costs. The workers claim
that this would lengthen their working day by two or three hours
without compensation. The workers are located in Harristown depot,
near Dublin Airport, 11 kilometres from the city centre. When the
depot was inaugurated two years ago, the company agreed with the
workers that all drivers would start, break and finish in the depot.
The agreement, however, was verbal, and now the company denies there
was such an agreement. The company is clearly lying. That agreement
has actually been the normal work routine since the depot started to
operate two years ago. The company, however, unilaterally decided to
change that arrangement on two new routes they were planning to
introduce last Monday, 11th November. Drivers would start and finish
in the city centre, over an hour away from the depot, around which,
the unions claim, workers have developed their lifestyle. They park
their cars, start, break and finish. There, they have a restaurant,
a credit union and a gym (Irish Times, 10 Nov 07). In order to
minimize the labour conflict that this change could create between
management and the workers, the company hired 70 new workers to
manage the new routes. The idea was to create a two-tier system,
distinguishing between new and old workers. The workers and their
unions (SIPTU and National Bus and Railworkers Union - NBRU)
understood rightly that this could be the beginning of a worsening
of working conditions for all bus drivers and opposed the move. Last
week, and after nearly one year of negotiation with the workers, the
company announced that the new routes would start on Monday,
November 10th. They argued that a labour Court recommendation issued
on October 22nd had ruled in favour of the company's position. The
unions replied to this ultimatum with a union ballot (Friday,
November 9th). The majority of the workers in both unions opted for
full strike action if the company suspended workers who refused to
accept the new work schedules. Willie Noone, SIPTU branch organiser,
said that, "Our members will be reporting to work normally and will
do so, unless the company forces them to operate on the new
routes... If disruption does occur it will be because the company
tries to change rosters and working conditions for drivers
unilaterally." (Irish Times, 11 Nov 07). But on Monday the company
suspended a female junior worker who refused to accept the new
working conditions. Immediately, the rest of the workers in the
depot came out in solidarity with her. A veteran bus driver on
strike reported: "Everyone turned up on Monday morning to work as
normal. We only walked out when one of our junior colleagues was
suspended. Had that not happened, the garage would still be working,
and if the suspension is lifted and the disputed rosters put to one
side for now, the buses can be back on the street within hours. FYI,
the working week in Dublin Bus starts on Sunday, not Monday, however
junior drivers do not work Sunday, so the company deliberately held
back on starting these routes until Monday morning in order to try
to press a junior into doing the work. When she stood her ground,
the result was inevitable." (https://www.indymedia.ie/article/85040)
The whole point of the workers is that they have being suggesting
better arrangements, so the workers wouldn't have to increase their
working day and the management of the routes could also improve. The
following account, by the same worker, illustrates very well who is
to blame for any disruption created in the Dublin public transport
system and the complete lack of efficiency of Dublin Bus management.
It illustrates very well too that bus workers are much better
qualified to manage the company by themselves: "A year ago the
company called in the union reps and informed them that these routes
were going ahead and straight out asked how much money we wanted to
work them. We told them to stick it because it wasn't about money,
it was about working time. In order to be flexible, we offered them
a skite of compromises. We offered to break in the city and asked
only that we be allowed to finish where we start so as to avoid the
extra hour on our working day. When that wasn't acceptable, we
offered to redeploy staff to city centre garages to split the bases
from which we worked in order to avoid the extra hour a day. When
that wasn't acceptable we even drew up alternative schedules
conceding 90% of what we were being asked to do, and that wasn't
acceptable either. I don't know about you, but where I come from, a
90% compromise is pretty generous. "What's actually happening here
is a turf war, but it's not between the unions and management, but
between a dozen or so people at Dublin Bus HQ and everybody else,
including, I suspect, the management of the individual depots.
Dublin Bus has always been run from the depots, not O'Connell
street. Management staff there have, by tradition, always been the
kind of bright young things who spend their careers ritualistically
progressing from one promotion and pay rise to the next and never
really contributing anything of any substance to the day to day
running of either the company or the city. That's fine, and
generally they're let get on with it. The problem is that every five
or six years they take a brain storm and actually try running the
company. When that happens, chaos ensues. In this instance, somebody
in O'Connell street looked at the union's proposed schedules,
realized that they would actually work and then started worrying
that if they were accepted, Minister Dempsey might scratch his head
and wonder what the hell he was paying head office staff for. It's
the kind of thing that happens in every business, public or private,
and when it does, somebody always gets caught in the middle. The
only question is, how do you react if you're the one who gets
caught. "All that is required is that those drivers who start in
town, finish in town, and that those who start in the depot, finish
in the depot. That's it. Problem solved, and the unions have already
presented schedules that do that. These buses could have been on the
street months ago, but HQ staff vetoed the union proposals because
they were union proposals. Privately, the scheduling officers in
Dublin Bus (ie, the functionaries who actually draw up the
timetables) have admitted the schedules proposed by the company are,
in any event, unworkable. They require, for example, a driver
starting in town to leave Harristown and travel to the city centre
in 45 minutes on the number 27B (the bus which serves the garage),
the official running time of which is actually one hour. This, of
course, leaves the driver with two choices: either he can come in
early and get an earlier 27B (for which trouble, of course, he will
receive no pay, since he wasn't asked to do that) or he can leave
the garage at the official time and be late picking up in town.
Since he will be picking up on a cross city route, this means that
the driver he is relieving will have been sitting in the city centre
with a bus full of irate passengers waiting to continue their
journey for at least fifteen minutes, and probably longer. In
addition, since it will take at least an hour to get back to the
garage after shift, then every shift will finish late and every
driver will be claiming overtime, which will make a massive payroll
bill anyway. "It's idiotic, but it's being forced through because a
group of David Brent types in O'Connell Street figure it's necessary
to justify their existence." (https://www.indymedia.ie/article/85040)
The bus drivers also understand, rightly, that their best chance to
win this struggle and stop the "bullying bosses" would be to spread
the dispute to other garages. The company fears an extension of the
strike and through a spokesperson has said that they would
"seriously consider all its options" if unofficial pickets are
placed in other depots (Irish Times, 13 Nov 07). It is unclear what
"all its options" means. Since the beginning of the "lockout" the
media and the company keep reporting on the 60,000 commuters
affected by the strike and putting the blame on the workers'
shoulders. They are trying to stop any show of solidarity with the
strikers from other bus workers and from commuters. On the other
hand, the chairman of the Labour Court, Kevin Duffy, had talks on
Wednesday with Dublin Bus and trade union representatives. He warned
the unions "strongly that any escalation of the dispute to involve
other Dublin Bus garages would make an intervention by the Labour
Court more difficult (Irish Times, 15 Nov 07)." All this pressure is
affecting union leaders. Michael Faherty (general secretary of the
union NBRU) has also warned several time in the media that the
workers' strike could escalate to other garages through unofficial
pickets in the event that workers could get frustrated unless the
dispute is not resolved within a couple of days (Irish Times, 13 Nov
07). This warning was directed at Dublin Bus in order to reach a
quick agreement. But it also expressed the real fear of Faherty that
the workers might be ready to put up a real fight. Over 300 bus
drivers, actually, organised a protest in Dublin city centre on
Wednesday. They marched from Parnell Square to Dublin Bus
headquarters in O'Connell St. The bus worker Owen McCormack, one of
the organisers of the protest, said that the workers on strike are
getting great support from colleagues from other depots. He added,
"We are not going to be split and not going to be isolated." (Irish
Times, 15 Nov 07) But the problem is that both unions have branded
any escalation of the strike as unofficial. In the meantime, the
right wing TD Paschal Donohoe, from Fine Gael, said on Wednesday on
RTÉ that the bus routes, which are the centre of the industrial
dispute, should be offered to private operators. He also demanded
that the government intervene more actively in the dispute (14 Nov
07): "If these particular routes are not going to be used by CIÉ, we
should be tendering those routes out to other operators who are
going to use them, so that we can ensure that all of the passengers
on the northside of Dublin are not being held hostage to the
inability of Dublin Bus to make two routes work." This is where the
real threat lies. The state is one of the partners in Dublin Bus,
but its management is private. In the last years, according to one
of the bus drivers on strike (https://www.indymedia.ie/article/85040),
no fewer than 110 private bus routes have been authorised. However,
he goes on: "There are not 110 private bus routes operating around
Dublin, or anything like it. Indeed, many of those licences are
gathering dust in desks somewhere because having secured them, the
hackers are just sitting on them, much like the taxi drivers used to
sit on their plates and sell them on later." Private bus routes only
start to operate when the routes are profitable. Dublin Bus, with
state funding, must cover the routes that are profitable and the
ones that are not. But the long-term aim is to fully privatise the
whole public transport system. To do it, however, Dublin Bus must
break the resistance of the workers, and then worsen their working
conditions and lower their wages.
Our bus driver also understands
what is the general tendency of privatisations that the Irish
government has been implementing: "Forget the PD [Progressive
Democrats] claptrap about the forces of the market... If you think
we're bad, just wait for what follows." Another poster in
indymedia.ie added: "First they came for the bus drivers. You didn't
give a shit, you don't drive a bus. Then they came for the airline
workers. You didn't give a shit, you don't fly a plane... Wait 'til
they come for you." The struggle of Dublin workers must become the
struggle of all Irish workers against the wave of privatisations
happening to this country. We cannot let them down. From http://www.marxist.com/
Monday, 19 November 2007
Independent Workers’ Union:
Supporting the Dublin Bus Drivers
The Independent Workers’ Union extends its support and solidarity to
the workers of Dublin Bus at Harristown depot, who find them selves
standing on a picket line due to uncompromising bullying tactics of
the management of Dublin Bus (Bus Ath Cliath). By this ‘1913
lock-out’ style approach; the bosses seek to break previous
agreements reached between the Unions’ and the management. This is
the latest in a substantial number of infringements on the rights of
the workers right through Ireland. The concerns and the actions of
the workers are just. Despite the selective and censored projections
from the right-wing media.
The new rosters being forced by the bosses, force the workers to
start, break and finish work in the centre of the city. This
situation breaks previous agreements and furthermore it will add
between 2-3 hours extra a day onto the work load of those drivers
effected. These new roster have not been previous viewed or agreed
by the workers effected. This situation must be seen for what it is,
a hostile act against the workers in an attempt to break the power
of worker solidarity and union.
The biggest concern for Unions though, is the fact that Dublin Bus
bosses have openly stated that any previous agreements do not extend
to new workers. This is a direct tactic of creating divisions
between the workers and weakening the Union and the level of worker
solidarity. Yet this is an all too familiar occurrence happening up
and down the country.
We in the I.W.U. commend the actions of the drivers on the picket
line. We must also warn the workers as a class, that days of
disputes and strikes lay ahead as the Celtic Tiger implodes in on
itself. Those that will be effected will be those who created the
Celtic Tiger through their labour, those who did not see the
benefits of the Celtic Tiger, those effected will be the workers. In
the coming years, workers will be squeezed and enchained to get as
much labour as possible for as little as possible by the boss-man.
Let us unite; and end worker exploitation.
Independent Workers Union
www.union.ie <http://www.union.ie>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
32 County Sovereignty Movement.
13/11/2007
Contact: Andy Martin, Director of Publicity
Phone 07512 748 176 or Email sovereign_nation@hotmail.com <mailto:sovereign_nation@hotmail.com>
Support the Raytheon 9
The 32 County Sovereignty Movement call for all republicans,
socialists, anti imperialists and all other progressives to attend
the trial of the Raytheon 9 in Derry. The trial is due to begin on
Monday 19th November at 10am and we would urge as many as possible
to come out not only in a show of solidarity with the 9 but to
protest at Raytheon’s continued presence in Ireland also.
The 32 County Sovereignty Movement fully support the actions of the
Raytheon 9 in opposing this purveyor of weapons of mass destruction
that have caused so much devastation to communities in Lebanon,
Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine.
In opposing this multinational killing machine we do so not alone
from a moral and humanitarian position but also from a political
one. These nations right to national sovereignty, free from external
interference and aggression is being denied and Raytheon are
complicit in this denial.
It would be hypocritical for any republican organisation to fail to
condemn Raytheon’s presence in Derry considering the fact that Irish
sovereignty is being denied by a foreign government who will use
force of arms to protect their illegal occupation if necessary.
The 32 County Sovereignty Movement send special solidarity greetings
to the four members of our Liam Lynch/Patsy Duffy Cumann in Derry
who are members of the Raytheon 9.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wed 12th Dec 2007: Human Rights Day (10 Dec)
The Crying Sun (2007)
Addresses the impact of armed conflict in Chechnya through the
stories of people disappeared/ displaced from the mountain village
of Zumsoy, highlighting villager’s struggle to maintain cultural
identity and traditions. (26 min.)
*Discussion to follow chaired by Dr. Stephen Ryan*
Full details on the INCORE Conflict Documentary Film Festival are
available at www.incore.ulst.ac.uk/pdfs/filmfestival2007.pdf
<http://www.incore.ulst.ac.uk/pdfs/filmfestival2007.pdf>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A DAY AROUND
THE LOOM
*Watch crafters working!
* Enjoy demonstrations of old techniques!
* Take a valuable piece of crafts home!
On Saturday, Nov.24th 2007
At The Flax Mill, Derrylane, Dungiven
From 10 am – running all day.
Local genuine crafts only, no dealers, no products from child-labour.
Tea and refreshments.
For details phone Flax mill textiles 02877742655
Note: A day around the loom is a private event. There is no
entry-fee and the owner reserves the right to refuse admission
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No Volverán is a 90-minute documentary made by members of the Hands
Off Venezuela campaign when they visited Venezuela in December 2006.
While there they witnessed Hugo Chavez's landslide election victory
and they also spent time at Sanitarios Maracay, a factory under
co-operative workers' control.
The JCDS have been able to snag the directors of No Volverán and
convince them to talk about the documentary, so we will be
organising a showing of the film followed by a Q&A session.
This event will be taking place at 7pm on Tuesday 27 November in the
Felons' Club.
And for anyone who's wondering, the Debating Society will be
organising a debate (shock horror!) in the next few weeks on how
leftists can effect radical change in the 21st century. Obviously
the ongoing revolution in Venezuela is relevant to that debate. |
