Demands Must Be Made

In our most recent article we analysed why the TUC campaigns to promote union membership are so utterly pathetic. In short it is because they offer no programme except pathetic cringing before our class enemies. In this article we at the Class Consciousness Project present our own programme of minimum demands that a union movement which was actually interested in addressing the needs of the working class would put forward. These are what we see as the bare minimum our class should be expecting, not the feeble hand wringing of the servants of capital who lead the TUC.

Abolition of all anti union laws – The basis of the anti union laws in this country is the trade union and labour relation (consolidated) act of 1992. This is the law that put into one act a series of anti union measures taken by the Thatcher governments. It bans workplace ballots, solidarity action flying pickets and makes the process of actually taking strike action as bureaucratic and slow as possible. The trade unions should demand and build support for the removal of this law and all the subsequent laws based on it.

Sectoral bargaining to be mandatory – National agreements should be put in place covering all industries enforcing minimum terms and conditions whether there is a union present in a particular industry or not. This will stop employers trying to engage in the race to the bottom in certain industries.

Reintroduction of the closed shop – The union movement must go back to the mentality that an injury to one is an injury to all. We do not respect the rights of scabs and other renegades who refuse to join unions and refuse to act in solidarity with the rest of their class. No union. No job. It is as simple as that.

Break the link with the Labour Party – This link has bound the trade union movement to this rabidly pro-capitalist, imperialist party for over a century and has only led to the working class movement being completely captured by the labour party leadership, which means that the working class has its organisations effectively controlled by agents of the ruling class. This link must be broken and the money that is wasted on supporting the labour party must be put into strike pay funds.

The nationalisation of all energy & water companies, supermarket monopolies and transport systems – This is to be done to end the spiralling price rises of all the essentials of life which represent a war upon our class.

The nationalisation, without compensation, of all land held by the monarchy, Church of England, aristocracy and agribusiness – This land must be taken under state ownership and a democratic plan of production agreed to launch an agricultural revolution in Britain which will end our reliance on imports and provide high quality affordable food for all.

The total renationalisation of the National Health Service with all private companies being kicked out of it and their assets seized – This must be followed by the immediate stripping away of the bloated bureaucratic system which has been created to further NHS privatisation.

That legislation be brought into ensure that all pay and benefits should keep pace with the rate of inflation.

The nationalisation of all empty properties in order to urgently address the current housing crisis – All housing associations must be nationalised and the stock of housing they currently manage be assessed as to if it can be upgraded.  An urgent programme of construction of public housing be initiated in order to provide secure housing at minimal rental cost.

An end to all subsidies to private companies – If a company cannot exist without state subsidies then it clearly has no viability and it must be nationalised in order to preserve the jobs of the workers employed there.

If these aims were implemented by any government it would create an immediate crisis which would need a mass response from the working class. This programme not only represents the minimum we must expect but in itself is only the opening gambit in a revolutionary struggle because to secure any of this it would require the removal of the capitalist class from power and the destruction of their state machine.

We do not expect the likes of Paul Nowak and the other TUC leaders to embrace any of this. We are well aware of the character of these people and they are all dedicated servants of the capitalist class who know their job is prevent the working class gaining in strength. Our aim is to popularise these demands with the working class in order to show to our class that another way is possible and we do not have to be stuck voting Labour or Tory or Reform which all offer only slight variations on the same old pro-capitalist garbage.