Launch of the Progressive Trade Union Alliance (PTUA)

national | bin tax / household tax / water tax | press release Wednesday November 05, 2003 14:16 by Rank and file trade unionist - Progressive Trade Union Alliance (PTUA)

Ask not what your union can do for you...

....But what you can do to make the unions fight for their members interest's.

As promised in our previous comment yesterday which seems to have disappeared (?) for some strange reason, we, ordinary workers, Shop Stewards, Branch Secretaries and Regional Organisers throughout the land have had enough with the existing Trade Union bureaucrats and the Trade Union bureaucracy generally. The bin tax is the straw that broke the camels back. The Trade Union establishment have shown their true colurs over their total inaction and indifference over the bin tax and the jailings.

Therefore we the above:
(1) Resolve to establish a new form of Trade Union organisation in Ireland
(2) This organisation will operate seperately and independently from the existing Trade Union movement as represented by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) and their allied affiliates such as the Dublin Council of Trade Unions (DCTU)
(3) This organisation will work with progressive forces within the ICTU, DCTU, and their likewise organisations and affiliates, and other progressive organisations such as the existing Independent Workers Union (IWU) and the Union of Students Ireland (USI) and other Student Bodies
(4) That therefore we resove to be refused to be bound by any so-called 'partnerships' or any other form of 'consenus' with the so-called 'partners' the bosses or the government, and thus declare any such 'agreements' to be null and void with immediate effect
(5) That we resolve to launch an immediate campaign to reclaim our Unions starting with a "Nationwide Day Of Action Against the bin tax" on Friday November 21st 2003, details of which will be supplied seperately in the "Events" section of Indymedia
(6) That we therefore call this organisation the Progressive Trade Union Alliance (PTUA)

Signed,

The Progressive Trade Union Alliance (PTUA)