Workers Solidarity Movement

Up to 1,500 workers (Irish Times estimate) marched from Anglo-Irish Bank to the Dáil at lunchtime today. For a lunchtime event with very little publicity it was a surprisingly good turnout. The ICTU leaders had only planned for a stunt to get themselves on the TV news, their original idea was that a couple of hundred union officials and activists would provide a backdrop for David Begg or Jack O'Connor delivering a soundbite.

Most union members heard nothing about it. There were no circulars to shop stewards, no posters, no notices in newspapers. There was no suggestion of stopping work, so the protest as effectively limited to those working nearby who could use their lunch break to attend. To get 1,500, maybe half of whom came from jobs in the immediate area, is indicative of some appetite for resistance to wage and service cuts.

In February of last year 120,000 of us marched against pay cuts only to be sent home again while ICTU leaders agreed those very same cuts, and then promoted the Croke Park agreement as “the only game in town”. Begg and friends have no argument with the government strategy of making workers and the poor pay for the crisis, all they want is for the process to be over a longer period so that – while the same cuts are made – they happen less rapidly. As David Begg made clear today, his problem is that the cuts are "too austere”.

If the potential strength of 600,000 trade unionists across the 26 counties is to be more than a bargaining chip exchanged for some very minor concessions we need to get rid of the current leadership and we also defeat the ideas that they represent. Ideas like 'social partnership' between exploited and exploiter, ideas like accepting the most working people can hope for is some slowing down of our worsening living standards.

When the ICTU leaders folded their banners and left, and most others headed back to work, about 400 of us remained to listen to speeches from the groups who had actually publicised the protest.

Speaking to the rally, Alan MacSimoin of the Workers Solidarity Movement said

“In the good times the wealthy didn't share the gain, in the bad times why should we “share the pain”? They have their private hospitals like the Mater Private and Blackrock Clinic, while we have ever longer waiting lists for operations. They have their private schools like Alexandra College and Blackrock College while our children have to make-do with underfunded education. And they keep demanding more from us, if they had their way we would tighten our belts so much that we would cut ourselves in half.

“When they say there in no alternative to a system run in the interests of the wealthy, of spivs and speculators; we say 'yes, there is'. What's wrong with common ownership of the means of producing wealth? What's wrong with common ownership of the services we rely on?

“What's wrong with using all this to meet the needs of all? Is there no better system than one which sees growing numbers of homeless sleeping the streets while a record amount of property is left idle because speculators can't turn a profit?

“What's wrong with ordinary people having a direct say in the decisions that effect them? When they ask what our alternative is, tell them – as did Connolly and Larkin – that our alternative is socialism.”

Other speakers were Joe Higgins MEP (Socialist Party), Malachy Steenson (Workers Party), Terry Kelleher (CPSU national executive), Cllr Richard Boyd Barrett (People Before Profit/SWP), Paul Hansard (SIPTU activist) and Anne Conway (TUI activist).