A day of strike action is set to be unleashed today, against tax injustice, attacks on pensions and the anti-democratic manoeuvrings of Macron, writes BILL GREENSHIELDS
Workers have disruptive power: let’s use it
It’s not just about getting workers into any union wherever they work, but making sure we are not divided into different bargaining units — and thinking about which workers control the ‘choke points’ of capitalism, argues US author ROBERT OVETZ
CHOKE HOLD: Workers in industries like shipping, logistics and rail control the actual flow of goods, making them uniquely powerful - and the boss class knows this
Once again, working people have been betrayed with false promises about jobs in an industry that is actually making climate change worse, writes LINDA PENTZ GUNTER
The UN is not only in need of structural change, a fundamental mindset revolution is also required – and it’s China that points the way with its Global Governance Initiative, argues ROGER McKENZIE
The far right feels comfortable openly saying the most racist, extreme things imaginable and harassing left events in ways unseen in living memory — we desperately need an anti-fascist Labour Party to replace the current appeasement regime, writes ANDREW MURRAY
Organised workers at the notoriously anti-union global giant are scoring victory after victory, and now international bodies are pitching in to finally force this figurehead of corporate capitalism to give in to unionisation, writes EMILIO AVELAR
My time working on the Stephen Lawrence campaign taught me a lot about how racism festers in alienation and ignorance — I know first-hand why educators, especially people of colour, must lead the fight against race hate, argues MARC WADSWORTH
THE most important thing workers have is power. That power doesn’t come from having a collective bargaining agreement but from being so well organised they can disrupt business as usual to get what they want.
There are different kinds of power — and not all are the same or have the same impact. Knowing which one we have is the key to getting what we need.
Many unions over-rely on the kind of power that is located away from work. They limit their efforts to going into the streets or the halls of government for support. This kind of public support away from work is important, but inadequate by itself.
More from this author
ROBERT OVETZ recommends a case study, from the University of Leicester, in their struggle against precarization, AI, privatisation, outsourcing, and work intensification in higher education
We cannot expect either party to introduce laws that will share wealth or address the ecological damage big business does — propertied interests have been protected from actual democracy since 1789, writes ROBERT OVETZ
The severe undercounting of workers organising for strikes continues to skew the facts about the level of worker organising throughout the United States, says ROBERT OVETZ
