Previous articles in Socialist Voice, as well as our Party Programme, have explained and outlined what is meant by a transformative strategy to build socialism and replace capitalism as the mode of production, means of exchange and political, cultural and social relations of the State in Ireland. In essence it is putting forward demands that alter the balance of power in a structural and long-term way that develops the political class structures to achieve socialism. The strength of the organised and unionised working class is, obviously, key to this. Specifically articles in the Socialist Voice has said of the transformative strategy:
It has to be an evolving thought process and a way of looking at the crisis and formulating demands and struggles.
Fundamental to this strategy is identifying the weak points of capitalism here and putting forward demands that bring about long-term change through the mobilising of working people and in so doing affecting the balance of power between labour and capital in a direction favourable to labour. So these are not quick fixes or superficial wins.
In terms of organised labour core to this strategy is not short-term reforms or quantitative wins like, for example, improving the minimum wage or sick (as important as these are) but rather political and qualitative changes that empower the working class and alter, to our benefit, the balance of power between labour and capital on the island. The Party has previously, correctly, identified the restrictiveness of the 1990 IR Act as an impediment to organised workers and made progress in getting this onto the agenda of a number of unions. However, a more fundamental challenge exists for most private sector workers and that is forming and organising a union in the first place before any consideration of action in pursuit of demands might be restricted. And mindful of another observation made recently in these pages … While communists should lead, they should not lead so far ahead that those they wish to lead remain too far behind … a ‘right to organise’ for workers more generally might tactically be a better starting point to build from to strengthen the campaign to abolish the 1990 Act. If more workers are organise and demanding action the 1990 Act will clearly come into sharper focus and we now have an unprecedented opportunity to achieve this. These are building blocks towards a structurally stronger union movement a key component of the transformative strategy for socialism.
Specifically, the transposition of the EU Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages (and Collective Bargaining) into Irish law provides a massive opportunity to remove barriers to workers organising and to protect and support activists and union reps who step up to start the incredibly tough job of organising their colleagues in a hostile environment with few rights and emboldened employers. The Minister, obviously not a neutral actor on this, has still stated that ‘The EU Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages seeks to reduce working poverty and inequality by improving the adequacy of statutory minimum wages as well as the promotion of collective bargaining’ and Article 4 of the Directive states:
“With the aim of increasing the collective bargaining coverage and of facilitating the exercise of the right to collective bargaining on wage-setting, Member States, with the involvement of the social partners, in accordance with national law and practice, shall:
a) promote the building and strengthening of the capacity of the social partners to engage in collective bargaining on wage-setting, in particular at sector or cross-industry level;
b) encourage constructive, meaningful and informed negotiations on wages between the social partners, on an equal footing, where both parties have access to appropriate information in order to carry out their functions in respect of collective bargaining on wage-setting;
c) take measures, as appropriate, to protect the exercise of the right to collective bargaining on wage-setting and to protect workers and trade union representatives from acts that discriminate against them in respect of their employment on the grounds that they participate or wish to participate in collective bargaining on wage-setting;
d) for the purpose of promoting collective bargaining on wage-setting, take measures, as appropriate, to protect trade unions and employers’ organisations participating or wishing to participate in collective bargaining against any acts of interference by each other or each other’s agents or members in their establishment, functioning or administration.”
We know that employers will lobby heavily, with a friendly Government and civil service, to water down and weaken the application of the Directive here and so we as communists within the labour movement but fight for a campaign to counter this and achieve the best possible transposition which focusses on the right to organise for workers as the best way for collective bargaining coverage to be extended and for wages to be negotiated. The demands we can put forward should include:
- Collective bargaining attached to all public procurement;
- Statutory rights for Unions Reps to organise their colleagues even where the union isn’t recognises;
- Much stronger anti-victimisation measures; and
- The right of access to unions to organise workers in companies there is no union.
All communists active in their unions should start requesting their unions support the right to organise and should start building momentum for a strong pro-worker transposition. Not ignoring our analysis of the EU, this Directive exists and is coming, therefore, it is a site of struggle and an opportunity for qualitative change in class forces here.
