TUC general secretary Paul Nowak opened Saturday’s Special Congress on ‘the next steps’ in the fight against the Tory anti-strike laws proclaiming: ‘Congress, let us be clear: We won’t be quiet – We won’t be bullied: And we won’t be intimidated by this government.’
In fact, Nowak made it clear that the TUC are intimidated by the Tories and the courts, when he said: ‘We have to decide on what we are doing as a movement, right now. To fight this legislation’ before going on to tell delegates: ‘Now you wouldn’t expect me to talk tactics. Here in public where ministers and employers (and their lawyers) can hear.’
So there was to be no clear plan of action to put before the working class, out of fear of the Tories, the bosses and the courts, just a lengthy TUC statement that couldn’t be amended, which was full of pledges of solidarity with any worker sacked for refusing to cross a picket line, but which completely avoided the central issue of the TUC calling a general strike to defeat the anti-strike laws by bringing down the Tories.
Instead, the TUC statement simply said that unions ‘have no choice but to build mass opposition to the laws’ and: ‘We will not rest until the malicious, unnecessary and unworkable Strikes Act is repealed.’
The only tactic that the TUC leaders are relying on is the election of a Keir Starmer-led Labour government which, on paper, has pledged to repeal the anti-strike laws.
Until any Labour government comes to their rescue, all the TUC says: ‘But until we have a Labour government, we will take every opportunity to challenge, frustrate and resist this legislation and its implementation.’
The ‘tactic’ being pursued by the TUC is to use appeals to the courts and ‘good’ employers to frustrate the implementation of the strike laws until a general election.
Even some trade union leaders have been forced to acknowledge that any pledge from Starmer is worthless and will be shredded – torn up for the greater good of British capitalism and the profits of the bankers and bosses.
His adulation of Margaret Thatcher, who 40 years ago,banned trade unions completely at GCHQ, has not gone unnoticed by some trade union leaders.
Writing in the Guardian on Saturday, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: ‘Labour leaders say they will repeal the legislation in their first 100 days in office and I hope they will – even if Keir Starmer’s recent comments on Margaret Thatcher might make you wonder.’
It does more than make you wonder. It is an open declaration by Starmer that he stands with the reactionary union-buster Thatcher and the class interests of the capitalist class against the working class.
In the same article, Graham stressed that Unite’s annual conference in July had reaffirmed that ‘the union is not bound to always act inside the law’ when it involves fighting anti-trade unions legislation.
The determination of Unite members to take on the Tories and their laws is a reflection of the determination of the entire working class not to be shackled by the Tory laws in the drive to force workers to pay the cost of a bankrupt capitalist system.
This determination was not shared by the leadership of the TUC at Saturday’s Special Congress, which avoided at all costs the demand for the organisation of a general strike to defeat the anti-strike laws, substituting vague promises of ‘standing with’ any worker sacked or any union fined for non-compliance.
With the Tories prepared to implement the anti-strike laws against strikes on the railways, hospitals and schools in the coming weeks, the TUC must not be permitted to avoid the issue of a general strike.
Workers must demand an immediate recall of the TUC where leaders who refuse to mobilise the strength of the working class to bring down the Tories and bring in a workers’ government and socialism must be removed and replaced by a leadership that is prepared to fight to win by carrying out the socialist revolution.
Only the WRP and Young Socialists fight for this policy and programme – join today to rapidly build up the revolutionary leadership to end bankrupt capitalism and bring in a socialist society.