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Workers'
Liberty
the emancipation of the working class must be the act of the working class
Workers Liberty Australia |
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For an ACTU special conference on Reith's 'Second Wave'!
But where Reith aims to build on his First Wave, and create a huge surge to flatten unions already bruised and breathless after being dumped by that First Wave, the ACTU's second wave is disappointingly milder than its first round of action, in August.
Then, at least, there were stopwork rallies in all states. This time, Victoria and the ACT have stopwork rallies, but the Queensland Council of Unions, for example, plans no more than an information stall outside Brisbane City Hall.
The need is more urgent than ever for the ACTU to organise a special federal conference of rank-and-file union delegates to plan further Second Wave action. This call is being promoted on a national petition by the Brisbane Defend Our Unions Committee, and winning wide support. Even where the peak union bodies are sluggish, many rank-and-file activists understand how serious a threat the Second Wave is. 500 trade-unionists turned out for a picket in Brisbane on 17 November when Peter Reith came to speak there.
The ACTU leaders are trusting the Democrats, with their swing vote in the Senate, to amend out some of the worst bits of Reith's legislation, and preparing to claim that as a 'victory' for the ACTU's 'campaign' when it happens. But Reith will have calculated beforehand on pruning down the legislation for a deal with the Democrats. He doesn't mind. What is not legislated now can be put into a Third Wave. So long as the bosses' power is continuously ratcheted up and union power ratcheted down - and Labor governments turn back the ratchet only a couple of notches, or not at all - the essential capitalist purpose is served.
September's tremendous wave of union action against Indonesian army genocide in East Timor - all illegal - showed that our trade union movement still has the power to push back the bosses' offensive, if only the leaders will mobilise it. Activists across Australia should do all we can to build up the pressure for action.
Tom Blake
The ACTU's own 'second wave' of action against Peter Reith's strike-banning, union-busting Second Wave legislation is scheduled for Monday 29 November, the day that the Senate Inquiry into the legislation reports back. After the report-back, the Government says that it wants the legislation, with whatever amendments, through both houses of parliament before Christmas, but a more likely scenario is that haggling will continue into the next parliamentary session in February.
Contact the Brisbane Defend Our Unions Committee at
defendourunions@solidarity.infoshop.org.au or on 07 3371 0797.