THE TUC, the Equality Trust, the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) and Runnymede Trust on Tuesday warned that the Strikes Bill, currently about to go to the House of Lords, will be a huge step backwards for tackling racism at work in Britain. In fact it will be a huge step backwards for the whole of the working class and will be used to destroy all of its living standards.
The Strikes Bill is set to go to the House of Lords at the end of this month. If passed, the Bill will mean that when workers lawfully vote to strike in health, education, fire, transport, border security and nuclear decommissioning, they could be forced to attend work – and sacked if they don’t comply.
The organisations say that Black and minority ethnic (BME) workers ‘are overrepresented’ in sectors affected by the legislation, and as a result, disproportionately hit by the bill.
‘BME workers represent 15% of the total workforce. But are significantly overrepresented in two key sectors – health (24%) and transport (21%) – affected by the legislation.’ The TUC adds that BME workers could be unfairly targeted for dismissal by unscrupulous employers, given the discrimination and racism in ‘every corner of the labour market’.
In fact once again the whole of the working class will be driven back to the dark ages if this legislation is passed and then implemented. No section of workers will gain out of it.
The TUC focus is that ‘BME workers are overrepresented on insecure contracts – BME women twice as likely to be on zero-hours contracts as white men.
‘And recent TUC research exposed institutional racism at work that hits BME workers – like being more likely to be unfairly disciplined at work or being passed over for promotion.’
In fact 100% trade unionism is a matter for the whole working class – whose basic slogan is ‘an injury to one is an injury to all.’ It is the great unifier!
If the TUC wants to strengthen the unity of the working class, and take the whole working class forward then it must call a general strike to smash the Strikes Bill.
The TUC is refusing to take strike action to smash the ‘Bill’. It is desperate to confuse the issue with its spectre of a working class that is already divided at the point of production and where ‘1 in 7 (14%) BME workers reported facing unfair criticism in the last five years’. The TUC is already defeated!
It adds on BME workers: ‘1 in 9 (11%) said they were given an unfair performance assessment.
‘1 in 13 (8%) told the TUC they were unfairly disciplined at work.
‘1 in 14 (7%) said they have been subjected to excessive surveillance or scrutiny.
‘1 in 8 (12%) of BME workers said they were denied promotions.
‘1 in 8 (12%) of BME workers reported being given harder or less popular work tasks than white colleagues.
‘And around 1 in 11 (9%) told the TUC they had their requests for training and development opportunities turned down.’
The TUC warns attacking the right to strike will hit BME workers’ wages by undermining their ability to win a better deal at work. In fact the abolition of the right to strike will be an unmitigated disaster for the whole of the working class.
The TUC insists that BME workers will be hit disproportionately given they are ‘overrepresented in lower paid jobs, on outsourced contracts and in insecure work’.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: ‘This Bill is a huge step backwards for tackling racism at work.
‘Ministers are launching a brazen attack on the right to strike – a fundamental British liberty.
‘And it is Black and ethnic minority workers – who are already at the sharp end of a labour market rife with discrimination – that could be hit hardest.’
The TUC must be told to stop dividing the working class, and call a general strike of all of its millions of members to bring down the Tories, smash the ‘Strikes Bill’, and go forward to socialism.
The TUC leaders know that a general strike with determined leadership will bring the Tory government down and create the conditions for a workers government and socialism.
Trade unions must demand a recall TUC Congress to unite the working class by calling a general strike to bring down the Tories and bring in a workers government and a socialist planned economy.
