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Retreat encourages more attacks....

Stand up to bullying bosses and the Tories

E
vents at Grangemouth in Scotland are a chilling warning to every worker. The workforce at the Ineos petrochemical plant voted for a strike over the victimsation of a union rep. So Ineos said they were temporarily closing the plant and demanding a pledge of no strikes and massive cuts in pay, pensions, union rights and job security before they would reopen it. The workers rightly rejected the bosses blackmail and bullying Ineos then said they would close the plant for ever, with dire implications for thousands of other workers at the Grangemouth complex and across Scotland. For a while the workers Unite union held firm and denounced the company. Rightly they told workers not to surrender and demanded nationalisation of the plant. But then as the bosses dug in, Unite general secretary Len McCluskey announced that it would accept the companys demands warts and all. Ineos, headed by billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, has acted in the most disgusting manner. It has used peoples fears of unemployment to discipline them. Unions exist to halt such vile tactics. Unite did have an alternative to surrender. It could have called demonstrations and pickets at Ineoss four other plants in Britain. It could have said you close us, we will close you. It could have organised an occupation in Grangemouth. In 1971 when shipyard workers in Glasgow took over their threatened plant it electrified the labour movement across Britain. Grangemouth could have been the focus for a fightback. Of course such a fight was not guaranteed to succeed. But the retreat in face of the blackmail will encourage every boss across Britain to use the same tactics. It will encourage further assaults on pay and pensions and jobs and union rights. We need to turn the tide. called off a planned strike across England and Wales last Saturday (19 October) without getting a deal from the government over the attacks on pensions. And leaders of the civil service union PCS, who headed up resistance earlier in the year, are planning only limited strikes and no national action before Christmas.

Resistance

Anger

In Britain today there is immense anger at the Tories and the bosses. We see it in every strike and protest - from the 29 September demo of over 50,000 in Manchester to the teachers strikes, to the huge vote for action in Royal Mail. We see it in the support for strikes in Higher Education and the firefighters strike. But in nearly every case the union leaders dont match the mood. Firefighters union leaders

We need to build the resistance, but also to build the rank and file networks that can deliver solidarity and action when the union leaders wont. With Labour committed to Tory spending plans if they are reelected we cant just rely on them to save us. Our unions have to fight. On 5 November the Peoples Assembly (backed by the TUC) has called for direct action against austerity. Everyone who can should get involved. But alongside the protests we need strike action that can defend jobs, services, pay and pensions too.

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