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A dossier of weekly information published by the ----- Introduction A few days after the conference of the ILC in Geneva on Saturday, June 6, we publish several documents: - The letter of invitation to the meeting Italy: You will find a report on the slate in the provincial elections, supported by 300 signatories. "Unity for the Prohibition of Layoffs," held a meeting of a hundred participants. Several speakers noted: "There is a lack of political representation of the working class. " Belgium: You will find an interview with Philippe Larsimont, coordinator of the Movement for the Defense of Workers (MDT). From Liège to Antwerp, thousands of jobs are threatened. Hungary Hungarian Steelworkers show their solidarity with workers at the shipyards in Gdansk (Poland).
----- Table of Contents: p. 1: Introduction. ----- Contact Informations internationales ***************************
Maison des Associations, 15,rue des Savoises 1205 Geneva To all workers delegates at the ILO Conference LETTER OF INVITATION Dear Sisters and Brothers,
Each one of us is confronted, in his or her country, with governments that are hammering away on the theme that the trade union movement should be more "understanding" of the needs of the bankers and corporations, our supposed "partners" in the effort to address the consequences of the global economic crisis. We are all supposedly "in the same boat."
No trade union, on any level, can avoid this question. It is raised everywhere.
But what is all this about? Why this last-minute modification to agenda of the 98th Session of the International Labor Conference?
Having said this, we feel justified to issue as of now this warning: At the precise moment when governments are trying everywhere to co-opt trade unions and associate them directly in the implementation of plans that destroy our jobs, isn't it dangerous to draw up and adopt a Global Jobs Pact in conjunction with the IMF and other financial institutions, the transnational corporations, and the governments as "a necessary component of the process launched by the leaders of the G20 countries"? Isn't this all the more dangerous given that the stated aim is to implement versions of this Pact on a national level and in the "free trade zones"? The International Liaison Committee of Workers and Peoples calls on you to meet with us on Saturday, June 6 at 11 a.m. in Geneva at its 16th Meeting in Defense of ILO Conventions and Trade Union Independence so that we can discuss together the options facing the trade union movement:
The International Liaison Committee of Workers and Peoples, which has just published, along with activists from 44 countries, an appeal for an "Open World Conference Against War and Exploitation" (to be held in Berlin on May 21-23, 2010) invites you to join us in Geneva on June 6 to take part in this important discussion.
***************************** Memo: Concerning the "Global Jobs Pact" Contribution by Vincent Doret The crisis is deep. It has already caused immense destruction, as everyone acknowledges. The report of the Director General of the ILO ("Confronting the global jobs crisis: Renewed focus on decent work") expresses the magnitude of the crisis:
The same report notes:
What was the conclusion of the G20? The G20 has decided to pursue a "monetary and fiscal effort" to rescue the financial sector with the largest bailout program in modern times; the cost of this financial rescue plan is expected to reach $5 trillion globally by the end of 2010. At the same time, there are 50 million layoffs expected around the world during the same period. Among the decisions taken is the strengthening of the role of the IMF. The IMF, whose resources were hitherto about $250 billion, has been allocated an additional $500 billion.
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By HAL SUTTON The carrot and the stick. In 1886, Jay Gould boasted that he "could hire half of the working class to kill the other half." Times have certainly changed. The Obama administration's auto industry task force is now seeking to hire nearly half of the workers at two of the nation's largest automobile manufacturers to simply go away. Do the math. The Obama administration has provided Chrysler with $3.5 billion in Debtor in Possession financing while the company remains under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and has promised another $4 billion once it emerges as a restructured company under the management of Fiat. Chrysler is seeking to entice seven thousand workers to voluntarily leave the company with buyout offers of roughly $100,000. The Obama administration's auto industry task force is seeking to restructure the industry to accommodate a market of 10 million to 12 million vehicle sales per year in the United States, rather than the 17 million to 18 million sales per year that were achieved in the not-so-distant past. This is why Chrysler is seeking to pay seven thousand workers $100,000 to simply go away. The carrot and the stick. This is also why the Obama administration's auto industry task force is seeking to effectively nationalize General Motors at a cost of approximately $70 billion. General Motors wants 21,000 of its workers to simply go away. However, the carrot (reportedly a paltry $25 thousand) is not yet nearly as enticing as the one offered to Chrysler workers. This is certainly likely to change as General Motors follows Chrysler into Chapter 11 bankruptcy at the behest of Obama's auto industry task force. With the nation's, indeed the world's, financial institutions in a continuing state of disarray, the Obama administration has assumed the responsibility for operating the nation's auto manufacturing industry and delegated it to its auto industry task force. This assemblage of financial experts has been forced to assume effective control of a multinational corporation that, in the not so distant past, was the largest manufacturing concern in the history of the world. Obama's auto industry task force has already forced the resignation of the CEO of General Motors as well as key members of its board of directors. With the imposition of vastly more stringent fuel economy standards (the CAFE standards) upon the nation's auto manufacturing industry, the Obama administration has also effectively dictated the sort of vehicles that will be produced in the United States by all concerns. In a classic example of "lemon socialism," the United States is expected to own roughly 70 per cent of General Motors when the company has emerged from its anticipated restructuring under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy code. The UAW presently has 60,000 members at General Motors. Obama's task force is seeking to reduce this number by about 21,000, once the dust has cleared from the company's bankruptcy proceedings. The carrot and the stick. The 200 or so workers who occupied the facilities of Republic Windows and Doors in Chicago last December were offered no carrot. Only the stick. The pioneering UAW members who occupied much of General Motors' facilities in Flint, Mich., for more than a month from December, 1936-February, 1937, were offered no carrot. Only the stick. As they gazed across the street into the barrels of machine guns deployed by National Guard troopers, the sit-down strikers must have felt secure in the knowledge that machine-gun bullets could not penetrate the sturdy walls of factories that were built in their time. Or perhaps they didn't really care. In any event, those heroic forebears of contemporary auto workers held fast in their resolve, refused to budge, and struck a blow for human dignity that asserts a tremendous force to this very day. The enormity of the carrot that has been offered to Chrysler workers reflects the enormity of the fear of the ruling class of the enormous power of the UAW. It also exposes the enormity of the betrayal of the leadership of the UAW International Union in refusing to mobilize this enormous power in the face of the onslaught of international finance capital upon its members. The UAW members who accept the carrot are heading into a future that is absolutely uncertain. Along with continued job insecurity, they will face sweatshop conditions every day that they are on the job. The attendance policy in their renegotiated contract is so Draconian that many UAW members feel that it is designed to facilitate the company's efforts to terminate the employment of a large number of highly paid workers, enabling it to hire new workers at a wage scale that does not support a middle-class existence (which includes all workers hired following the ratification of the 2007 contract). Once the carrot has been removed, having completed its task of removing 7,000 workers from a restructured Chrysler Corporation, the remaining workers will confront only the stick. It was murderous sweatshop conditions - particularly a lethal heat wave during the summer of 1936 - that induced the UAW pioneers at General Motors and Chrysler to conduct their historic sit-down strikes in the months that followed. Perhaps the grueling working conditions that should prevail in America's restructured auto industry will provoke a similar response. The entire labor movement must support any sort of action that is taken by UAW members in defiance of the absolute no-strike clause that is contained in the renegotiated contracts. Finance capital's assault on America's auto workers is the spearhead of an assault on the entire working class, as the world's ruling elite attempts to shift the entire burden of its crisis onto the backs of the toiling masses in all countries. The working class must answer this assault with the struggle to advance an economic program that meets the needs of all of society, rather than the requirements of business enterprises that depend upon the profitability of a bankrupt system for their survival. In the United States, workers must demand that their union leadership call a Congress of Labor encompassing all labor organizations to formulate a program that meets the needs of all workers, agree upon a plan of action to advance its demands and establish a Labor Party in order to embark upon the struggle for the sort of true workers' government that could implement it. ---------- Hal Sutton is a member of UAW Local 1268 retirees chapter (for id only). ***************************
With workers and activists at the Fiat plants Turin and its workers are in turmoil. Thousands of people depend on their jobs at Fiat. The fate of Italy is at stake. On May 16, 2009 Fiat 15,000 workers from across Italy protested, in response to the call of the FIOM and all other federations of metal for the blocking of layoffs. The situation is dangerous for the workers: a war without thank you was expressed to their union by the banks and the U.S. government. Trade unions were encouraged to become shareholders to implement the destruction of jobs and collective contracts. It began at Chrysler: the union of the American automobile sector became a shareholder at 55% and 20% in Fiat. This is under way with General Motors and Opel. In this regard, Vittorio DeMartino, Secretary of the FIOM-CGIL at the Mirafiori plant in Turin, gives his views on the situation: "The union cannot become a shareholder, as the union did in the United States. It's against our constitution. However, Bonani, national secretary of the CISL (Catholic), has called for just this. If he comes to tell the workers, he will see their reaction! This is what divides us. I am for negotiations with the leadership of Fiat, but on the real problems: the blocking of the layoffs, wages. The union must retain its independence. " It is in this situation that was held on May 28 at the call of the list of candidates in provincial elections a public meeting with a hundred people present. Capitalists and the European Union want to push the working class into chaos, but activists have come together to organize resistance. ---- Discussion at the factory gate of Mirafiori "If they close Mirafiori, the heart of Fiat stops beating" We are at the door of Mirafiori, where the excitement is palpable: there is both the one hand, all the delegates of the FIOM, and, secondly, the electoral slate "Sinistra e liberta ' which was doing publicity for the European elections. We promoted the discussion for unity for the Prohibition of Layoffs. A FIOM union activist for more than 20 years: "The division of the unions is linked to the demands defended. There is division because two unions signed the reform of national collective agreements. We have not signed. The capitalists have pushed the Maastricht Treaty. This allowed the layoffs and relocations. I do not understand that the left-wing parties do not speak. A turn is needed! " Other delegates came to the discussion. One delegate, Nina, was introduced as a fighter by his colleagues: "The leftist parties are split. This division has deserted us. There is the right government, which transmits the selfishness of people. We need a strong left, which can put its differences aside and looking for points of agreement such as the ban on redundancies and no plant closures." Ugo, his colleague, who said he was also an activist of the Communist Refoundation Party, concurred, adding that his party would have to fight also for the prohibition of dismissal: "It's not because it is difficult that we should not try. " The next day we met again with Passarino Pietro, a member of the management of the FIOM-CGIL in Turin. Though he was very busy, he took the time to talk. He said in summary:
"The Agnelli family (owners of the Fiat group) wants to get rid
of the car. About 2 million cars are produced annually, only 600 000
to 700 000 are manufactured in Italy. They can therefore be produced
elsewhere. The FIOM led the CGIL to change position and to reach a common independent framework by refusing to sign the reform of the national labor code. This has changed things, because there was a risk of integration of the CGIL. This position enables us to resist. "Civil society" has wreaked too much havoc in the labor movement. We must understand that this leads to consensus with the bosses. For those who are proponents of "civil society", there are no conflicting interests of classes, for them, the Fiat boss and the workers have the same interests! It is not only the PD (Democrat Party, NDLR), which states that the capitalists and workers have common interests, but also other parties on the left. We must therefore return to the class struggle. It is clear that the union cannot become a shareholder. It must remain in the field of negotiation and not co-management." "What political representation for the working class?" One hundred participants in the meeting for the provincial election In the meeting held on Thursday evening, there met trade unionists, parents, many young people ... In short, a sample of this working class that is rising up! Amongst others among the activists who were present, there was a shop steward, a militant communist candidate on the slate of his party, a worker on strike for two months against the closure of his plant, candidates from the slate ... This was a small-scale meeting of the political forces that are being germinated in the depths of the working class. Lorenzo Varaldo explained the framework of this meeting: to adopt, based on 1,300 signatories around the appeal "Unity for the Prohibition of Layoffs," an open letter to all parties claiming the defense of workers to launch a call to mobilize for a ban on layoffs. This would pave the way for a committee to build an independent party of workers, opening a way out of all these union activists, who noted that the working-class lacks a political representation. It was Andrea, a worker at Saint-Gobain, who began. Since March 17,
when the management decided to close its plant, all workers have occupied
it, in unity with their trade unions. Andrea says: At the end of the meeting, Andrea signed the open letter to left-wing parties for the Prohibition of Layoffs and joined the committee for the construction of an independent workers' party: "I do not accept the division of left-wing parties, I want to fight for unity." Alberto is a trade unionist in education, and this did not prevent him from discussing the problem of Fiat: "Obama has set up a task force. It is a military term that aims to compel the unions in the auto sector to sign agreements for the destruction of workers' rights. Marchione, head of Fiat, is the agent of American capital to make unions in Europe accept the same type of agreements. We are building support for a policy to help trade unionists to resist. " Albert Dal Pozzolo explained the political contribution of the ILC concerning the struggle for unity led by the POI from the first national conference for the unity on December 7, 2008 to the conference of May 15 and 16, 2009. Kristian is militant of the PDCI and a candidate in provincial elections on the slate of his party. He explains the meaning of his approach: "I'm here because there is a basis for achieving unity: the prohibition of layoffs, the defense of public schools, the defense of national collective agreements, the defense of the Constitution." At one point, he insists on the question of Europe: "The European Union is capitalist, a union of banks and speculators. In Europe, there is no room for movement and it is no longer possible to believe in a good Europe. " Finally, he wondered what could open a way forward: "It could be unity of all political forces who oppose this European model. There is an emergency: the treaties of Maastricht and Lisbon destroy working conditions and workers. They should therefore be repealed. They cannot be reformed. We cannot act within the framework of the European Left, which has adapted to the Maastricht Treaty. " He signed the call for the parties of the left and looks after the elections to join the Committee for an Independent Workers Party. Dario is a shop steward at a sub-contractor of Fiat. He is also one of the initiators of the Committee for the construction of an independent workers' party: "I attended the April 4 event in the Rome of the CGIL for a block on layoffs and the defense of national collective agreements. But there is a risk to the CGIL, because there is not left a political force that represents the workers. We must return to the traditions of class struggle, as workers struggled in 1945. That's how we can build a party that defends the working class. " Betty is a teacher and a candidate on the slate. She explained that she was engaged as a working woman. She found that "in talking with workers to gather signatures for the submission of the list, the problem arose of building a political representation for workers." She also noted that "the action does not find a political outlet." She believes that "to organize unity for the Prohibition of Layoffs opens a way forward. The party of the workers that we want to build is not just one more party, but a party that brings together all those who are in the camp of the class struggle, unity and a break with the European Union. "
"From Liège to Antwerp, thousands of jobs are threatened" Interview with Philippe Larsimont coordinator of the Movement for the Defense of Workers (MDT) ILC: The Committee for Unity organized on May 30, together with activists from various backgrounds, a conference for the Prohibition of Layoffs. What is the situation in Belgium? PL: Between January 1, 2008 and May 8, 2009, nearly 25 000 layoffs were announced. Temporary unemployment has risen by 97% between April 2008 and April 2009. In late April, 23% of workers were unemployed at least one day a month. And it's not over! Under the Plan, between 2009 and 2011, unemployment
is expected to increase by 194,000 in three years from 11.8% to 15.2%,
a record since the Second World War. Dozens of companies are already
destroyed. Hundreds are restructured. No sector is spared. All regions
of the country are affected. ILC: How do workers respond to this situation? PL: A few months ago, in a subcontractor company that works for the steel industry, the boss gathered the workers to tell them: in three days, I will have no more work for you. Three days later, they were unemployed. Since then, they have all been laid off. One of the concerned workers said: "We have found billions for banks and for us there is nothing." This is unacceptable! At this rate, the whole country is faced with social and economic collapse. The will to fight is real. It has been demonstrated in many companies where actions took place against restructuring or closures. It was shown again on May 15, where 50,000 workers responded to the call of their unions and demonstrated in Brussels. But there is no solution if our struggles remain disconnected, worksite by worksite. A union delegate explained: "I do not understand. The workers and their delegations are left to themselves. If we continue like this, we will all fall one after the other. We need a united action to prevent layoffs." ILC: What role can the conference for the Prohibition of Layoffs play? PL: Today it is the responsibility of all who claim to defend the interests of workers to take a clear position. Now is the time to build mobilizations to prevent layoffs. That is why our conference calls for the widest possible unity to prepare a national demonstration for the ban on layoffs. The FGTB has all along stood for the "socialization of major banking and industrial trusts." But the Maastricht Treaty prohibits the implementation of this position. What needs to disappear, is not the position of the FGTB, which is a burning issue, but the Treaty of Maastricht! ****************************** HUNGARY One Hundred Hungarian Steelworkers address workers at the shipyards of Gdansk (Poland)
In their appeal, they say: "They hid from us and from workers across Europe what happened on April 29 in Warsaw. On April 29, 2,000 workers in the Gdansk shipyards with their trade union Solidarity demonstrated in the center of Warsaw, against the wishes of the Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, and the European Commission to close the shipyards of Gdansk. The police had brutally beaten us, sprayed us with tear gas and chemicals by water cannons. Twenty-five members were sent to the hospital. That is the fate that is promised to workers and unions who reject layoffs. That is the fate that is reserved for those who reject the dictates of the European Commission, which requires the closure of the shipyards of Gdansk in the name of "free and undistorted competition", because they were "using the State "which was consider" illegal" under the Treaty of Maastricht-Amsterdam! On June 4, in Gdansk, the shipyard workers will demonstrate with their
Solidarity local to say: A Hungarian worker will join the delegation of the ILC who will bring to our solidarity to Polish workers. We are in solidarity because, in Hungary, we also demand: - Stop all the layoffs! ***************************
Letter from the Peruvian Amazon Dear friends, The Peruvian government signed in July 2008 a "free trade" treaty with the United States. This agreement, authorizes the Peruvian Amazon to be delivered to the operation of multinationals. Today, 44 million hectares of the Amazon have been given over in concessions, particularly to the major oil companies. For 35 days, the peoples of the Amazon, organized in the Association of Defense, have mobilized for the cancellation of the decrees implementing the free trade treaty. Last week, the control commission of the Constitution of Congress said that Decree 1090, which allows the "free use" of the Amazon rainforest, is unconstitutional. The government, in an attempt to break the mobilization of the people of the Amazon, has filed a lawsuit against the main leader, Alberto Pizango. The Minister of Justice stated that the "mobilization calls into question the application of the free trade with the United States." El Trabajo, the newspaper of militants linked to the ILC in Peru, informed us of this mobilization and the appeal of the peoples of the Amazon and rural workers' organizations across the country for support. They point out that the Amazon forest, which includes Brazil, Venezuela and Peru, contains 30% of the world's tropical forests, 25% of the world's freshwater and 40% of biodiversity. The uprising of the peoples of the Amazon demands the abrogation of Free Trade Agreement. It is a movement for the defense of the whole nation. Support for their just demands also requires the repeal of the state of siege that the government has ordered to try to crush the movement. The privatization of the Amazon is combined with the proposed regionalization of the eight regions in Peru to provide a legal framework to this privatization. Correspondent of "El Trabajo" (Peru)
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Open World Conference of Workers