THE UNITE trade union leaders yesterday were in full flight praising Toyota workers for taking their advice and assisting the bosses by accepting a 10 per cent wage cut and a ten per cent cut in the working week.
Unite, whose leaders have given the Brown bankers government £11 million since 2005, now sees itself as a junior partner of the Brown government and the bosses.
Simpson and Woodley have long ago given up the ideas of socialism and are now working round the clock to help the bosses and the bankers survive the crisis of capitalism.
Trade unions were built to advance the wages and conditions of workers. Simpson and Woodley have turned Unite into an organisation that cuts wages and jobs for the bosses, telling the workers that the best thing that they can do is tighten their belts and put their faith in capitalism.
The Unite statement said yesterday: ‘Responding to today’s announcement from car manufacturer Toyota that production at its UK plants would be cut by 10 per cent, with an associated cut in wages of 10 per cent, Peter Tsouvallaris, Unite representative at the plant said: “Our members are reminded daily of the tremendous insecurity this recession has brought to our industry.”’
This is why trade unions used to fight for the nationalisation of industries, to defend wages and jobs and put an end to capitalism – but not Unite under Simpson and Woodley.
Without a blush of shame that statement continues: ‘The proposals put to the workforce today present a real opportunity to restore some measure of stability to Toyota in the coming months, and we will be recommending them to our members.’
Unite is concerned about the stability of Toyota, not the suffering that a 10 per cent wage cut will bring to Toyota workers and their families.
Unite adds: ‘Unite’s priority is to secure jobs and give our members a fighting chance of coming through this economic turmoil with their jobs and livelihoods intact. . .
‘Once again, workers in the car industry are demonstrating that they will sacrifice in the short-term to ensure that they, their friends and colleagues can have a future in the years to come.’
This is tripe. Unite leaders concerns are to secure Toyota and support Premier Brown.
They know that this is a bigger crisis than the 1930’s, and that if capitalism remains it is a deep slump, trade war, mass unemployment and a new world war that lies ahead.
Accepting a wage cut is not giving yourself a fighting chance to keep your job. It is just encouraging the boss that as the crisis worsens, a union leadership that has recommended wage cuts will help the boss close the plant and sack the workforce.
The only way for the working class to have a future, in a situation where the crisis of capitalism is deepening by the hour, is to defend every job, reject all wage cuts, occupy plants when they are threatened with cuts and closures and demand that the plants are nationalised under workers control.
This is the only way that the interests of the working class can be defended.
Instead the Unite leaders continue to bankroll the Brown government that is saving the bankers and privatising the Royal Mail for the benefit of the bankers and bosses.
For the working class to emerge relatively unscathed from this deepening crisis:
• All union leaders who serve the bosses and the Brown government must be sacked and replaced.
• All attempts to close factories and plants and cut wages must be met with occupations and national strike action to have the banks and the major industries nationalised and put under workers control and management.
• The trade unions must be prepared to bring down the Brown bankers government and bring in a workers government and socialism.
This is the only way forward. The Unite leaders’ road is the road to the ruination of the working class.
