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Party Statements: Mobilize To
Support Auto Workers |
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Mobilize To Support Auto Workers
by Matthew
Andrews, Chair Labor Commission of the SPUSA
On Saturday September 24th over 73,000 UAW workers across the country
walked out in the first nationwide GM strike in 37 years. The Socialist
Party USA calls upon its members and allies to demand a decisive
victory for striking UAW workers and upon the entire labor movement to
mobilize in solidarity.
The UAW has shut down production at more than 80 facilities owned by GM
in 30 states. An economic ripple effect will likely spread
through the industry up and down the supply chain causing more
stoppages at other North American facilities which either supply or
depend on GM components. The eminent large-scale halt of
production
brought on by the strike marks a watershed moment for class struggle in
the US not seen since the Teamsters struck UPS in 1997. The
outcome of this strike will impact not only the quality of life for
workers at GM, but the disposition of workers toward militant class
struggle throughout the United States and Canada.
This strike repeats the themes raised in recent years by other major
strikes, namely job security, the cost of health care, and equality for
new employees. The Socialist Party supports the UAW’s demands at
a minimum in order to hold on to hard won wage rates and job security.
In particular, the Socialist Party condemns GM’s attempt to offload its
responsibility for retiree health care to the UAW through a notoriously
insecure Voluntary Employee Benefits Association (VEBA), while funding
it at only 60-70% of the total cost. We urge striking UAW workers
to reject any contract that includes VEBA, two-tier wages, supplements
to be negotiated after ratification, or any cuts in pay or
benefits whatsoever.
In the 1940s, the UAW led the union movement by winning full health
care benefits from auto industry employers. Today, that incentive
to join a union is quickly evaporating as employers roll back decades
of struggle. The Socialist Party USA joins UAW workers to demand
that GM honor its commitment to provide complete health care insurance
at no cost to its employees and retirees. We also call for the
labor movement to join us in demanding universal socialized health care
for all.
We applaud the Teamsters for their speedy pledge to not cross or work
behind UAW picket lines. For this strike to succeed, collective
action must not be limited to GM employees. The labor movement’s
history has shown us that major battles are rarely won without support
from fraternal labor organizations and popular forces in affected
communities.
The US auto industry has suffered from a competitive disadvantage in
the increasingly global market for various reasons. Cheap labor
in Korea, our lack of a universal single payer health care system, and
the failure of US automakers to innovate are just a few of the major
causes. As GM’s market share dropped, the company shed employees
to only a fraction of the number it employed a decade ago.
Nevertheless, in the past year GM has rebounded with $207 billion in
revenue while paying $10.2 million a year to its CEO alone. The large
shareholders
and executives of GM should not be allowed to fleece such profits from
the labor of GM workers. Their reckless mismanagement of the company
and its finances is just one more reason to remove these parasites and
let the workers manage production for themselves!
Accepting the framework of the modern capitalist economy severely
limits the ability of trade unions to make substantial gains of any
kind. The UAW’s leadership has openly recognized this fact,
agreeing to many concessions in recent years in the vain hope of
bolstering the competitiveness of GM as well as Ford and
Chrysler. The UAW’s impressive $900 million strike fund has done
nothing to encourage militant collective action. While corporate
mismanagement and US government policy each have a share of the blame,
as socialists we
recognize that capitalism places an inevitable downward pressure on
workers, beyond the control of any particular institution. Only a
movement that abolishes both markets and the private ownership of
production can ensure full economic security for workers.
Because of the central role of the automotive industry in the US, GM
employees have the potential to pave a new way forward for the US
working class. We must unite behind this strike to take
initiative away from the bosses and reinvigorate the union movement
with the basic principles and demands of socialism. The Socialist
Party’s
Labor Commission will coordinate Party solidarity and serve as a
clearinghouse for information and analysis about the strike. We
also suggest supporters contact your nearest Socialist Party local for
details on particular actions in your area.
September
24th, 2007
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