From Unity, 23 May 2009

Unity in struggle

by Lynda Walker

As the run-up to the European elections takes place, the need to fight for workers’ rights becomes a priority. The latest attack is on twenty-five traffic attendants, who were dismissed after they stopped work for half a day in protest at their treatment by the private-sector employer.
     NIPSA’s general secretary, John Corey, described the company’s actions as grossly unfair and unjustified. He said: “These traffic attendants provided an important public service to the community. They did not deserve to be treated as they have been by this private-sector company. This union is determined to do everything possible to overturn these grossly unfair and unjustified dismissals. We are calling on all political representatives, other trade unions and the public to give their support to these workers campaigning to get their jobs back.”
     Day after day the corruption of the capitalist system is exposed. Such revelations come as no surprise. In many cases the situation is personalised or examined as if these things have not happened before; individuals are singled out as being the problem. Whilst it might be hard to see the wood for the trees, the most recent blaming and naming of MPs and their expenditure and the media exposure (BBC 2 “Newsnight” and Channel 4, 18 May 2009) of banking directors’ income and pension pay-offs is really nothing more than a bluff. What alternatives do the critics offer? It is in fact the system that we live in that must be changed, and that will happen only when enough people see the ideological light at the end of the tunnel.
     The workers of the world are being held in contempt by the employing class. In country after country, multinational companies open up or close down as they see fit. Nortel and Visteon workers were sacked without notice, redundancy pay, or pension rights. Nortel workers are out of the factory and out of the loop as far as any redundancy pay are concerned, though their union is still fighting for them.
     Visteon workers walked out of their factory last Monday (18 May) after seven weeks of occupation. They walked out with their heads held high, but deep down they knew that they had won only a small amount of what they were entitled to. They wanted their job and pension back, not crumbs off a multinational employers’ table. However, had it not been for their courageous action in occupying the factory they might have got nothing. They were supported by their families, community, the trade unions, and some political parties.
     Going around the Visteon factory on Monday with one of the workers was reminiscent of the closure of the De Lorean factory some years ago. In spite of all the warning signs, the British Government gave taxpayers’ money to John De Lorean; he took it and ran.
     The trade union movement has constantly called for transparency and accountability regarding the payment of grants—taxpayers’ money—to companies. Figures were made available this week following a question in the Northern Ireland Assembly by Alastair McDonnell (SDLP) about how much Government investment had been received in the last ten years by Nortel, F. G. Wilson, Bombardier Short’s, and Visteon—all overseas-owned firms that have laid off a large number of workers here in recent months.
     Nortel got a total of £24 million in grants between 1999 and 2009 to support investment at its Monkstown site. It has already paid back £15 million in grants at the request of Invest NI after making cutbacks to its business following the collapse of the dotcom bubble. Invest NI say that “Nortel entering administration is a breach of its agreement with Invest NI and therefore a claim has been filed for recovery from the administrator.” They are asking for a further £7.4 million. Whether Nortel will pay back remains to be seen.
     The Minister for Enterprise, Arlene Foster, also revealed that Bombardier had received £45 million in assistance over the period, and the engineering business F. G. Wilson received £24 million in grants.
     The road to socialism is long and hard, but unity of the workers in these struggles will bring the defeat of capitalism closer.

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