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Workers Party Press Release
 national |
miscellaneous |
news report
 Tuesday November 26, 2002 21:56 by Comrade - Workers Party wpi at indigo dot ie
Workers Party Trade Union Group (WPTUG) raises issues for National Agreement The Workers Party Trade Union Group (WPTUG) have produced a significant pamphlet "National Agreements Have they a future?" The first batch of 500 were distributed at a Dublin SIPTU members meeting to discuss the second referendum on the Nice Treaty (Interestingly the Dublin members rejected the SIPTU leaderships' support for Nice, and called for a NO vote).
This initial pamphlet challenges the conventional wisdom on National Agreements and states: "if there is to be national agreement the Workers Party Trade Union Group believe that we should prioritise a number of issues - Low Pay, Education, Housing and privatisation".
LOW PAY
WPTUG argue that low pay means that "we cannot say that we live in a fair and equitable society" and proposes "that €500 gross per week is not unreasonable". This would take the thousands of workers in both the private and public sectors currently on low pay some way towards a decent standard of living. At the same time it is essential that the Minimum Wage should be increased to €8.50 "statutorily protected", to ensure that all workers benefit.
EDUCATION
In a wide ranging critical assessment of the education system, from pre school to third level, WPTUG proposals include the demands for no more than 24 children in a primary school class, increased provision of teachers with special skills, more counsellors, rebuilding and refurbishment of schools equipped to meet the demands of the 21st century, realistic financial support for students in third level "to allow for the participation of the less well off" and a review of the working conditions and pay of people clean the schools.
HOUSING
"Today for many workers and their families having their own home is becoming an impossible dream", WPTUG calss for "a realistic and urgent local authority building programme, a Housing Regulator overseeing house prices and rents, an end to instant evictions and the control of the price of development land." They are also seeking "the implementation of the proposals in any new National Agreement."
PRIVATISATION
WPTUG attacks the thatcherite policies of privatisation and "some leaders of the trade union movement [who] are joining with the robber barons of capitalism to steal the main public service companies of the country." They claim that Bus Eireann, Iarnrod Eireann, Aer Lingus, Coillte, An Post, Bord Gais, Aer Rianta and E.S.B. are all targets of the neo-liberal economic policies of the government.
They also point out that the privatised electricity companies in Northern Ireland and Britain are 20% dearer than that of E.S.B. in the Republic! In an examination of the history of State companies in the republic, they show that "they were the engine of our economy for decades and provided hundreds of thousands of jobs when the vulture capitalists were running for cover and putting their money in offshore accounts". This did not prevent Fianna Fail and Fine Gael/Labour from selling off vital State owned assets in banking shipping and communications. WPTUG point out that State companies are not owned by government but are held in trust by government for the people.
In calling for a fight back by workers and the trade union movement, WPTUG state that, "It is a matter of great concern when we have directors and managers of public enterprises openly touting to sell-off the companies they have been entrusted to serve and build. Any director appointed by the government, who engages in such activity should be dismissed."
"It is naturally our first priority is to halt and prevent the sale of any further public companies and this can be best achieved if the trade union movement is mobilised to force the government to change its policy of privatisation and begin develop a dynamic and profitable public sector."
"National Agreements-Have they a future?" is a small pamphlet of just eleven pages. But it should be a "must-read" for every trade unionist, in fact all workers, in the country. it is a sustained attack on the neo-liberal i.e. procapitalist policies of both Irish and British and other European governments. Undoubtedly considerable more work needs to be done on this issue and the WPTUG should set about this as soon as possible. They are to be commended for their efforts, accomplished on very little resources. Branches and members seeking copies of the pamphlet should contact their Regional offices CONTACT
THE WORKERS PARTY
Dublin: 23 Hill Street Dublin 1.
tel: 01 8740716 fax: 018748702
email: [email protected]
Belfast: 6 Springfield Road, Belfast BT 12 7AG
tel: 90328652/90328663 fax: 90333475
email: [email protected]
Cork: 15 Father Mathew Quay, Cork
tel: 021 4270409 fax: 0214270445
email: [email protected]
Waterford: 58 barrick street waterford
tel / fax 051 590987
email: [email protected]
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Comments (9 of 9)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9The Workers Party was invented by Eoghan Harris, now an arse-licker of the bigot Trimble. They murdered Seamas Costello. No one shoud pay them any attention.
In a summary of a pamphlet by the WP there is not mention of any principled opposition to "partnership". The WP write a pamphlet on "partnership" and dont say if they're opposed to the very concept of "partnership"
WP say that "if there is to be a partnership deal..."
Any real socialist would oppose partnership on principle. The bosses and their friends in FF-FG-Lab-PD are not our partners. It is the task of socialist not to sow illusions in 'bargains' and comromises with the bosses. We should true to build a fighting Trade Union movement independent of bosses, and their parties. We should be concentrated on building a mass workers party.
WP, what side are you on? the bosses or the workers? from what I can see you are on the side of the bosses.
I don't see any mention of the word "partnership" in the piece attributed to the Workers' Party. They refer to "National Agreements", not partnership and had you been at the recent WP Trade Union Group meeting you would have heard vociferous opposition to "partnership"
Who would the WPers be having a 'national agreement' with then? I presume it's the government and the employers.
Could someone from the Workers' Party please clarify their position to "national agreements"/"partnership". Are you opposed to them in principle or not?
The Workers' Party has always supported the principle of Collective Bargaining - that is workers through their trade unions using their collective muscle to get the best possible deal in relation to pay and working conditions. That is after all why Connolly, Larkin and others founded and built trade unions - to improve the pay and conditions of their members.
We are strongly opposed to "consensus politics" and as a revolutionary socialist party our key aim is the creation of a secular, socialist republic; a unitary state on the island of Ireland.
For the record the Workers' Party Trade Union Group actively opposed the so-called "Programme for Prosperity and Fairness" as we regarded it as a very bad deal for workers and for society in general.
national agreements are desirable if they favour the working class; however under the present congress leadership, a sellout is more likely.
given that there is unlikely to be a revolution withinn the next few months (ok, so i'm being defeatist) we should aim to achieve the possible result.
if we succeed in defeating the burocracy, then it should not mean an emmployment by employment struggle. this will only result in the weaker, less organised workers being screwed.
what is required is collective, industry wide agreements which also allow for workers to gain extra from more profitable firms. this means opening up the books, our financial advisers examining the accounts rather than crooked auditors.
if the congress delegate conference decides in favour of a national agreement, then lets ensure its the best one possible & organise to break its terms whereever possible.
in the past the WP made mistakes in their support of some Agreements, but so did the SP in backing the second Restructuring Agreement in the CPSU. I made mistakes myself when I was on the rebound from Trotskyism and supported an Agreement.
Let those who are perfect cast the first aspersion.
The rest of us should get on with building a fightback.
You even admit it quite openly. You are not opposed in principle to doing deals with the Bosses and their friends in the FF-FG-Lab-PD establishment.
WP believe in "collective bargaining", ie you believe in a collective sell out. The key is to build TUs that will fight for the working class. A collective fight not a collective sell-out.
All socialist should want to build an alternative to capitalism, not cosy up beside it! It's not possible to call yourself a socialist an advocate doing deals with the bosses. Socialists should be putting their efforts in to building the workers' movement on it's own strengths, not compromising.
You envoke the name of Connolly. But unlike the WP Connolly was on the left of the Labour movement during his time! WP are supporters of "partnership" and "bargaining", you've supplied your fair share of bureaucrats in your time (Geraghty, Rabbitte, Gilmore, ...)
You may wish to spend your days reinterpreting what someone else writes to justify your own existence, but not everyone lives such a narrow existence. Your Trotskyite paranoia is as boring as watching paint dry.
I had a £5 note once -- signed by Cathal Goulding. Trouble was there were a couple of mistakes (Upside down, "Bank of Toytown", Stickie Back).
Do you remember the tall bloke that was in the Dail for a while? Queer cove.
How's everybody down at the Flowing Tide -- ooops!
Do you remember the bloke in Ballymun that took Dublin Corpo to court to get them to bring in English scabs to break the Lift workers' strike.
Funny how the mind trips down memory lane ...