Public sector unrest grows
THE PRIVATISATION of our public services has brought
cuts, worse provision and often dangerous practices, whether it is
public transport, health care, education or local and national
government services. To provide big business with opportunities to make
even bigger profits, public services are primed for selling off by
making cuts which include attacks on public-sector workers’ pay, jobs
and conditions.
These cuts also impact on the services that
public-sector workers provide. However, this year has seen a number of
unions taking industrial action against these attacks.
The longest and most bitter strike for some years
has been the postal workers in the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU),
battling not just against pay and a worse pension deal but against
attacks on conditions and the strong position of the union within the
postal service. With echoes of the fire fighters’ struggle in 2002,
there is opposition from the government and Royal Mail management to
workers having some control over their workplace and working practices.
Only by weakening the union can pay and conditions be battered down.
By deregulating the postal service, the government
wants to force Royal Mail workers to accept the level of pay and
conditions found in private post companies. Despite pleas from union
leaders and ‘left’ MPs for the government to rein in Royal Mail
management, Gordon Brown has been determined to allow Crozier and
Leighton to attack these workers. Comments that this could be Brown’s
‘miners’ moment’ (referring to how Thatcher and the Tories defeated the
miners in 1984-85 in order to weaken the whole of the trade union
movement and push back hard-won conditions and rights) could be true.
Trade union density in the public sector is considerably higher than in
the private sector with the contraction of workers in manufacturing, and
sections are fighting back with determination.
Brown made it clear when he was chancellor that
there would be a 2% pay limit for public-sector workers thereby giving
them a common battleground. On his first visit to the TUC as prime
minister, Brown preached that "pay discipline is essential to prevent
inflation, to maintain growth and create more jobs – and so that we
never return to the old boom and bust of the past". Once again he was
blaming ordinary workers for ‘ruining the economy’ by asking for decent
pay. He also said: "The price of a job should never be a substandard
wage or a dangerous workplace", when many of his own government workers
earn extremely low wages.
Despite this speech, the TUC overwhelmingly passed a
resolution moved by the left-led PCS civil service union calling for
co-ordinated action by public-sector workers against the pay freeze. The
threat of joint action against pension attacks in 2005 led to a
significant retreat by the government, confirming the need for
public-sector unions to fight together against a common attack. Union
leaders who would not usually back such a motion found it impossible to
vote against as they have been feeling the growing anger of their
members.
However, there are still just a few unions which
have shown the courage and strategy to stand up to the government. The
PCS, in which the Socialist Party plays a key role, won a partial
victory against attacks on pensions in 2005 but still faces huge job
losses, more privatisation, and the pay freeze. Having taken two
national days of action earlier this year, members are being balloted
for a further day of national action. This ballot was preceded by
meetings across the country where 25,000 members discussed the strategy
for how to defeat these attacks and most gave support for the union’s
programme and are determined to win their demands.
Few will forget the bold walkout by prison officers
on 29 August, their first action for 63 years, demanding an
above-inflation pay rise and voicing anger at their deteriorating
conditions and the state of the prisons. This was in defiance of a
no-strike ‘agreement’ with the government. Justice minister Jack Straw
has recently announced his intention to bring in laws to make it illegal
for prison workers to strike, which the Prison Officers Association will
strongly oppose.
Remploy workers have organised a very public
campaign to oppose cuts to their factories and, after threatening strike
action, have won a partial victory with the government announcing a
moratorium on Remploy factory closures.
Health workers’ pay was marginally increased but,
despite the dissatisfaction of workers in the NHS, the ballot for strike
action was defeated. The right-wing leaders of UNISON, which represents
most health workers, gave no lead or encouragement to their members to
fight back. In fact, they did not call on their members to vote for
strike action when sending out the ballot papers, arguing in their
material that the miserable 2% for most health workers (with a little
more for the lowest paid) was the best that could be achieved by
negotiations. UNISON health branches were forbidden to campaign against
the deal.
The fact that there is currently a ballot for strike
action for UNISON members in local government was down to a Socialist
Party member proposing and winning support for a strike ballot on the
Local Government Service Group Executive. If the ballot for strike
action is won, workers will take action on 14-15 November.
Unfortunately, the GMB and UNITE general unions gave no clear lead to
their members and their strike ballots for local government workers were
lost.
Although the NUT teachers’ union seconded the
composite resolution for co-ordinated public-sector action on pay at the
TUC, its strike ballot does not start until 10 December. The demand of
the Socialist Party member on the executive urging the union to ballot
earlier to coincide with other unions was not supported by most of the
executive, including all the so-called lefts (who are indistinguishable
from the right on this issue). Teachers have been offered a measly 2%
over three years. Meanwhile, sixth-form teachers are being balloted for
action but with no recommendation to vote ‘yes’ from the NUT.
At a pay conference of University and College Union
(UCU) members in further education, a pay offer of 2.55% was rejected by
54 to 34 with a proposal to ballot for industrial action if the offer is
not improved.
It is still possible that if PCS members vote to
take strike action this could be co-ordinated with UNISON in local
government if they vote to strike, and perhaps the CWU also if its
dispute continues. However, PCS is clear that, while hoping other
public-sector unions will take action with them, it will go ahead with
more strike action on its own if necessary.
This government, committed to the neo-liberal agenda
of privatisation, is determined to attack the pay and conditions of
public-sector workers. Now it has another excuse of a ‘black hole’ in
public finances to limit their pay, with the Institute for Fiscal
Studies forecasting a larger than expected budget deficit. The
consequences of the world credit crunch and beginnings of a slowdown in
the world economy have yet to impact on the British economy.
Only determined struggle by unions in the public
sector can push back Brown’s plans to keep down public-sector wages and
attacks on their jobs and conditions. While some are giving a clear lead
to their members, showing a determination to fight, others are allowing
their members’ pay to effectively decrease when inflation is taken into
account. Some union leaders, including UNISON’s Dave Prentis and UNITE’s
Tony Woodley, were holding back their unions from taking any action in
the run up to a possible general election as they did not want to
jeopardise the re-election of Labour. Now that Brown is unlikely to call
an election until 2009 they have less of an excuse, although they seem
more interested in not rocking the boat for Brown than defending their
members.
It is no accident that some of the most combative
unions, such as the PCS and RMT, are not affiliated to the Labour Party
and act clearly in the interests of their members and not the Labour
government. Public-sector workers in unions affiliated to Labour will be
asking why their unions are still financing the Labour Party, whose
government is attacking their pay and conditions. More unions should
follow the example of the Fire Brigades’ Union which disaffiliated from
the Labour Party following vicious attacks from Labour during their
strikes in 2002/03.
Brown has launched an attack on all public-sector
workers with his pay freeze and attacks on jobs and conditions. A united
response to these attacks from the public-sector unions, beginning with
a one-day public-sector strike, would give workers the confidence to
build a determined struggle for decent pay and conditions.
Jane James
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