MPs, full-time union officials and shop stewards committees visiting his office interests of the working class, and not management attempts to change work the first place the drive to compete on which are clearly in the interests of the FOR WORKERS' CONTROL! has increased from a trickle to a flood.
to save over 3,000 jobs at its Hull and Leicester factories. When Benn's Industry Bill becomes law, with its provisions to dispense of desperate workers and bankrupt businessmen will grow longer For the first time since the heady of 1971, the problem of unemployment and how to fight it is becoming a central question in the Porkers movement.
been amited to a verbal attack on unemployment by the 77 Mls who ane members of the Tribune group. However, their campaign for an 'entirely new' economic strategy lo defeut uneinployment accepts the argument of the social contract that theis may have to accept a tall protect jobs and other aspects of iving standards. This argument has bo been accepted by the leaders" of the TUC VAGUE TALK Despite their vague talk of turn¡ the social contract into a 'Socialist stract, the Tribunites are unable tol ride any solation on how to comemployment Such a solution es the sort of anti-capitalist plan would not only bring them into is collision with the labour ernment's social contract, but with the institutions of capitalist ke Parliament and the state Cutionary measures which will ather increase unemployment, but Tribune's opposition will remain at the level of verbal protest.
Relying on local left" MPs and -time union officials to take iction agalast closures is the road to Snaster. At Imperial Typewriters these people failed to cren get their projected lobby of parliament off the ground. With only a few days to things look grim. The first step to fight closures is the immediate ccupation of the factories. If anything is likely to screw money out of government departments it is mass militant action, not pressure politics and pleas for mercy. Occupations are a central method They can prevent the movement of valuable machinery, give access to the call for it. company's books for trade anion viction, and provide a militant as from which to campaign for larity action throughout the movement. By involving the of workers and operating ch democratically elected i committees, occupations te the workers involved in the st effective method of struggle painst factory closure, BIG FAILING meeting of 400 British Leyland shop stewards, which voted for nationalisation along with confused ideas of workers' participation' was the lack of report-backs to mass meetings in the plants. This allowed the lahour TONY BENN MUST OFTEN FEEL HE IS THE NEW SAVIOUR. AS CLOares increase, and unemployment grows the number of deputations of local Their plea is always the same-save our jobs. So far Meriden, the Scottish Daily News and Kirkby Manufacturing and Engineering Company Limited (fotnierly IPD) have begun their long and painful conversion into workers' co-operatives. Now the workers of Imperial Typewriters are demanding action reports it will probably recommend himself, to intervene over the heads of the shop stewards, Wilson 11,000 million of state aid, the queues threatened shopfloor workers that unless they cut out strikes to defend work practices and union strength, days of the workers' occupation of Up For an effective fight against redunper Clyde Shipbuilders in the summer dancies the full involvement of workers in working out poucy and action at all levels is essential.
Every time a closure is announced a united chorus of "natjonalise it"
The response of the Labour left has goes up from the Tribune group leftwards. This demand is so popular because although it appears extremely militant i has always been a part of social democratic ideology. "Workers.
. CLOSUI control is religiously tagged on to it by the International Socialists and the Workers Revolutionary Party in the belief that the magical incantation of this formula gives it added meaning. edundancy plans going into operation Meanwhile, they appeal to us to come and join the party. Unfortunately the working class can't wait until these gentlemen finish building the correct "political leadership' before it starts to defend its jobs.
By itself nationalisation does not imply a break from the anarchy of the capitalist market towards a of struggle in fighting unemployment. planned economy. Hence hoth reTormists and revolutionarjes cun The ruling class was willing for sportant areas of the economy to be nationalised after the Second World War when it was no longer possible for private industry to make a profit out of coal and railways. Private industry was thas guaranteed the continuation of eneray and transport at cheap prices.
DIFFERENT MATTER Bankrupt firms are a different matter. We demand nationalisation of A big failing of the recent national ati firms declaring redundancies not because it is better for the capitalists" state rather than private firms to run certain industries, but lo guarantee jobs.
The Labour Goverament must nationalise these fiers and, seeing it was right-wing, headed by Harold Wilson elected on the votes of the working to make sure that they are run in the the capitalists who. complaining bitterly about C4 million being given to the workers' coops, receive I2 million a day in state hand-outs.
When the Ryder Commission that at least C50 million or more of state aid be given to prop up British Leyland's crumbling fortunes, while at the same time insisting on lower staffing levels, speed-up and the then mass redundancies would follow. Opposing hand-outs in private industry, trade unionists should demand the nationalisation of all firms declaring rodundancies with guarantees of no loss of jobs-this to be enforced by the workers.
Increases the power of the capitalist class by giving its members money lo invest in more profitable sections of the economy. Sach money should NO CLUSURES OR LOSURES he spent guaranteeing wages and carrying out the reorganisation of industry which is necessary if it is market.
Ne bionalisation must be trans formed from a method whereby the state props up bankrupt sectors of the economy in the overall interests of capitalism into the first step towards an alternative to capitalist a planned socialist cconomy the key has in this process. Il is not just super-miltant trade waionist as the International Socialists sugeest Recently (Socialist Worker in an article headlined What Nationalisation Means 8/2/75) they wrote the sueCesstul day-to day struggle to resist practices and reduce manning levels, would give workers a greater deal of control than the | workers'| co-operatives over could. Workers" control is thus presented by IS as a purely defensive reaction to management atlacks. It boils down to saying-after nationalisation, trade unionism as usual.
It is not enough to launch arguments and ideas, as IS suggest, for in alternative to the anarchy of capitalist production. The seeds of this alternative have to be sown in class, it should make the cash available practice in the present struggles, wholesale chopping of the workforce.
impossible.
No compensation should be paid to stewards should make their own the former owners. Compensation just calculations of the amount of work to serve the needs of the working class instead of the dictates of the capitalist WORKERS' CONTROL Workers" control over production is force. through wurkers control.
Take a relatively simply problem like no job-loss guarantee. Who en forces it the workers or the manage ment? The shop stewards should not only keep watch on the management but carry out their ow work study in concede to the previous boss, and order to lighten the load of various jobs, force the management to take on before the closure was first announce extra labour and reduce the number of unemployed outside the factory This would also allow a permanent reduction in the length of the working workers about the possibility of week and the abolition of night-and shift-working except in industries where the workers considered this In factories and industries already hit by short-time working a thinly disguised form of unemployment -the typewriter market ?Similarly, car available and dile it up amongst the workforce with no loss of pay.
For the unemployed the demand should be 'work or full maintenance' COULDN - capitalism created the crisis and capilalisnt can pay for it.
CO-OPS It is oaly by putring across an active, offensive concept of workers!
control, as upposed to defensive measures that remain at the level of mililant trade unionism. that it is possible to cut across the illusory appeal of workers co-operatives These have caught the imagination of the wotting class.
DE many trade unionists because they appear to offer working people control over the major part of their everyday life. It is perfectty true that you can run factories without the boses But no matter whut happens inside the factory, outside it will still have to compete on the same capitalist market which sends firins bankrupt in the first place.
This will give rise to two results. In to use state cash to finance projects the cupitalist market will re-assert Itself inside the factory This is what has happened at NVT Meriden, where houses and hospitals could be built the projected workforce of the co-operative is 800, less than half of the original 1750 strong labour wale in occupation the workers carried out modifications on the ijor product, the Trimaph Bonneville 750 twin", to allow sales on the American market. Production will be 24,000 bikes a year-nearty the old production figures-but with half as many workers, This is a productrity mcrease of 80 per cent! The workers have also agreed to end "restrictive practices", end the piecework system and have paid back thei redundancy money.
What the workers had refused to fought several militant strikes over has now been eagerly conceded.
Secondly, if the workers co-ops flop completely this could demoralise controlling their working lives and discredit the idea of workers" control What if the workers at Iraperial Type writers established a workers co-op erative and four that the hottom really had dropped out of the world workers know very well that it is the world shump in the car market which & at the root of the present crisis in the British car industry:
Given this the position of the Communist Party on the crisis in British Leyland is a scandal. A recent issue of the Morning Star (3/2,75)
called for complete nationalisation under workers participation: Overall responsibility for policy and plannung should be invested in a single committee which comprises represenracives of the BI.MC workforce, delegates from the official crade unam move ment: govertment nominees and a string voice from the local costumunity.
This is quire like the troika system that operated in industry in the Soviet Union after the revolution. But what the Morning Star forgot was that capitalism had been overthrown in thi Soviet Union, whereas British Leyland will still be operating in the capitalist market. even it it is completely nationalised, The CP policy, if adopted, would Jeed carworkers to making the rope for their own necks. What is true for carworkersis true for workers through out industry, Even where a market still exists the products produced are often of no use to workers now, or would only he necessary in an adapte form under a planned, socialist In an industry ike cars, where pollution and wastage of energy the first moves must he laken by national stewards mectings to draw up an overall plan to use the machinery and the workers" skills in social:
Weful ways. Workers control over production must be used not only to defend jobs. but also to put the resources of industry at the service With 150,000 construction wetkers on the dole and the NHS, the education system, and the social services falling apart for lack of fucilities and staff, a valuable proprance of pale wants coni be initiated by Labour councils in agreement with the unions involved.
Where money is not available the Labour Government should be forces working class. As an alternative to the anarchy of capitalism, schools with the resources available in a socially useful way, instead of giving nore state hand-outs to bankrupt capitalist firens in the false beliet chat this maintains employment.
The imposition of such a workers' solution to the capitalist crisis would both combat employment and defend living standards, It would also unite the whole Class and open the was for the future planned, socialist societ
SOMETIME THIS WEEK the Spanish courts are due to hear the appeal of ten workers leaders against the vicious prison sentences that were meted out to them fifteen months ago Imprisoned in the notonious Carabanchel prison in Madrid since June 1972 (the Spanish dictatorship took almost 18 months to bring them to trial), the Carabanchel Ten are ANNESTY SPANISH POLITICAL PRISONER ******* 16 FEBRUARY, 1848: The Communist Manifesto, writter by Marx and Engels, was first published. This seminal work of
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