The following is a translation of the first strike bulletin published in the current dispute at French Railways (SNCF) by French railworkers’ union SUD-Rail (Solidarity, Unity Democracy).
SUD-Rail calls for a broad, united railworkers’ movement to take all-out, indefinite strike action against privatisation, anti-union laws low wages and attacks on pensions.
‘Tous ensemble’ – ‘all together’ was the slogan of the French railworkers’ strike in November/December 1995, which defeated the then-French conservative government’s attacks on the welfare state.
Strike N°1 –
2 Novembre 2005 – 20 heures Fédération des syndicats SUD-rail.
‘Trade union unity for an all out strike – ‘all together’!
‘Tension mounts at SNCF. All the trade-union federations are calling on commercial staff employed by the Operating Companies to take action against job cuts on November 9.
‘Tension is mounting amongst train drivers. And the situation is no better in the Engineering, Plant and Fleet, in the Monitoring and Administrative departments or amongst Medical/Social personnel.
‘Several union federations of retired railworkers are preparing a national demonstration, which will take place on November 24. The railway catering workers are on strike against job cuts.
‘A great national demonstration for the defence of public services has been organised for November 19.
‘Built in unity with the local collectives that won the victory of May 29 (French referendum “No” vote to the EU Constitution), it brings together several trade-unions.
‘At present, the SUD-rail and SUD-Energy federations, the Solidaires union alliance as a whole, the CGT-Energy federations and CGT-Railworkers have made the call, along with others and it isn’t finished yet.
‘In the public sector as in the private sector, wage rises are more and more strongly demanded.
‘The money is there. . . in the pockets of employers: a general increase in wages and pensions is necessary, we must put an end to the scandal of wage levels lower than the national minimum wage!
‘Let’s stop getting beaten separately – Let’s get together to win!
‘Here we are now 10 years on from November 24, 1995, when an indefinite strike began which made its mark on social history, won some gains and put the brake on harmful projects.
‘Ten years ago and the slogan “all together” is still full of significance!
‘But ten years also during which we have had great difficulty in implementing it.
‘For the SUD-rail federation of trade unions, there are no given types of action to be rejected and others to heap praise on: petitions, work stoppages, rallies, one day strikes, indefinite, all out strikes, sectoral strikes, general strike, etc.
‘It is a question above all of adapting to the nature of the subject in hand and the forces involved.
‘Faced with what is currently at stake, sectoral movements cannot be enough. Isolated fights lead to successive failures, exhausting the available forces as we saw with SNCM (Corsican Ferry Service).
‘A new day of 24 hour action would not be enough to reverse the current head of steam.
‘In view of the current situation, on the basis of the wishes of the railworkers, SUD-rail federation calls for the organisation of a national movement, run through General Assemblies and coordinated by the trade-union federations.
‘The situation with SNCF is known to each one of us: the privatisation of whole sections of the company, the acceleration of sectorisation, which profoundly puts in question the very future of the railway as a public service, the transfer of grades into subsidiary companies, multiple reorganisations of the workforce, delegations and directives, our wage claims ignored by the management and insufficient manpower.
‘Parallel with these developments, the government is organising the end of the public sector railway through various measures: insufficient investment to make infrastructure dependent on short term planning, the plan to break-up freight, calling into question the future of certain trains, the transfer of responsibility to the Regional government without the necessary financial means, increase in track access charges payable to RFF in order to allow trains to run on the tracks built by the railwaymen and railwaywomen, CONNEX private trains, European directives which accelerate liberalisation and organise privatisation, etc.
‘This situation, which we find at various different stages but based on an identical programme in all parts of the company, is bringing about a real social mobilisation.
‘The number of demonstrators on October 4 (national day of action called by the unions to protest at government policies) and the figures of the numbers of strikers at SNCF, show that.
‘It is necessary to follow-up this movement. Everyone agrees on that. It is not a question of repeating it like a slogan. It has to be built, together.
‘ “All together” . . . France Télécoms, Air France, the motorways. . . and now SNCM and EDF.
‘At the time of these previous privatisations, we did not organise our response at the necessary level.
‘Do we not as trade-union federations have a role to play, quickly? SUD-rail thinks so.
‘That was the intention of the appeal, which we sent on October 10 to all the union federations to meet with us following the success of the demonstrations and the strikes of October 4.
‘The workers of SNCM, the Marseilles Transport Authority and the Port of Marseilles were by then on strike to defend their public services, to fight against privatisation, the takeover by CONNEX of SNCM, the transfer to CONNEX of the Marseilles Transport Authority trams.
‘Time has been wasted. Since, the metropolitan transport workers of Nancy went on strike (as always against CONNEX!), the government has restarted the process of privatisation of EDF, suspended in order to allow the day of action on October 4 to pass.
‘But we will once again take the initiative, we will reverse the present course of the events, we will put back human beings and their needs at the heart of the collective organisation of society!
‘The future of the SNCF is now all to play for.
‘We will not win the retention of a public sector railway, if everything else has been privatised!
‘Employers and
governments don’t give out presents!
‘Riot police have been mobilised at Dugny against the railwaymen and railwaywomen who are fighting against the privatisation of railways, anti-commando forces of the G.I.G.N. were used against the SNCM sailors who had taken over an empty ship without violence.
‘We saw the violent intervention of the G.I.P.N. to evict the post-office workers of Bègles out of their place of work, the bringing in of private buses to break the tramworkers’ strike in Marseilles, massive increases in dismissals in the private sector. . . . the class struggle is real and is currently proceeding to roll over anyone who fights back.
‘The railworkers’ trade-union federations met on the afternoon of Wednesday November 2. Having exchanged their respective analyses of the social conditions, several federations agreed that it was of primary importance to organise a broad and united movement.
‘The trade-union federations CGT, SUD-rail, FO, FGAAC expressed themselves in favour of an all out, indefinite, nation-wide strike in the next few weeks.
‘Other federations will give their position in the next few days.
‘The federations are contacting each other again at the beginning of the week.
‘As of now the success of this movement is at stake.
‘Everywhere, trade-union teams must meet and organise to go around the workplaces and establish a permanent presence with trade-union information surgeries, in the broadest unity.
‘The pressure must be increased, the government and management must understand that they have to get ready once again to face railworkers ready to fight to defend their collectively won rights (starting with the railway in the public sector!) and to conquer new rights!
‘Railwaymen and railwaywomen, let’s organise an all-out, indefinite strike in unity!’
