[Party Interventions, Italy] The Public Transport Workers’ Strike – An Example for All Workers

Workers,

The resolute strikes of the drivers in many cities in Italy signifies the refusal of the conservative politics of confederal unionism, which has accepted an agreement that cuts the workers’ salaries and offends their will to fight. These strikes are opposed to the entire system of industrial relations founded on salarial moderation, on the politics of surrender, on the restraining of the right to strike.

This struggle finally breaks out of the cage of the more and more restrictive anti-strike laws, launched in the last few years by Parliament under pressure from the bosses and with the collaboration of the regime unions, in hopes of obstructing the class struggle. The public-transport workers, like the workers of the Alitalia who some days before have blocked the airport of Rome, have done away with the programmed, ordered strikes, restricted in time and space / ineffective, those empty and inoffensive rituals which demoralize those who undertake them and do not impact the interests of the Companies.

Soon workers of other industries, if they want to defend themselves from the increasing deterioration of their living conditions, will have to return to the classic weapon of the strike without warning and to the end, smashing legal codes and preparing themselves to face repression, through solidarity between the various sections of the working class.

All the organizations of base unionism, transcending harmful divisions, have contributed to organizing the struggle together with the most combative workers and have expressed their full solidarity; the CUB has suspected the Commission of guarantee of planning on retaliations and punishments, and has threatened to answer with an action of general struggle.

THE NATIONAL STRIKE OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT WORKERS CALLED BY THE BASE UNIONS FOR THE 9th OF JANUARY WILL BE A NEW STEP AHEAD TOWARDS CONSTITUTING AN ORGANIZATION THAT DEFENDS WITHOUT COMPROMISES THE INTERESTS OF THE WORKERS, WHICH ARE OPPOSED TO THOSE OF THE BOSSES.

THIS IS THE ROAD TOWARDS THE CONSTITUTION OF A CLASS UNION ORGANIZATION THAT, OVERSTEPPING THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE VARIOUS CATEGORIES, THE DIVISIONS BETWEEN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS, UNITES THE GREATER PART OF THE WORKERS IN THE UNITED, SOLID FOREFRONT OF STRUGGLE.

There is therefore no choice but to reject the continuous attacks by the bosses and the State which, supported from the entire arc of parliamentary parties and by the regime unions, are intended to safeguard the pillage and profits and unload on the workers’ wages the consequences of the economic crisis.

— 3 December, 2003