Tue, 22 Oct 1996 08:09:26 +0200 (MET DST)

CockRoach Extra 
Swedish Trade Unions take on anti-union laws!
Sweden, October 22,1996

With the anti-trade union laws that the Social Democratic and its bougeois 
partners
pushed through in the National Parliment only a week old the first trade 
union has taken up the battle.

The electricians have implemented a blocade against one company with 50 
electricians and a warning that in a weeks time all electrician can be drawn 
into the battle!

The laws that have been put through by the government involve some of the 
very basic trade union principles like the rule "last in,first out" and the 
right to collective bargaining between the bosses and the trade unions 
without government interference.

The actual struggle is about the first company that wants to wrip up an 
agreement reached between the trade union and the company saying that the 
new reactionary laws implemented by the Social Democratic Government and 
their bougeois allies make any earlier agreements between the company and 
the trade union null in this area.

This could mean a very quick National confrontation between on the one hand 
the electrician union and the bosses and on the other the trade union 
movement and the Social Democratic government and their bougeois partners. 
The electricians union has a history of being militant and can quickly close 
down many industries because of the key position they play in production in 
most factories.

However the trade union movement is split between the loyal bureaucrats in 
the trade union who accept anything that the Social Democratic Government 
serve them and the traditionalists who find themselves in the role at 
present of being the left opposition!

This is a key fight around some very basic issues facing all trade unions 
and workers in Sweden today.

Only complete support from the entire workers movement and if neccessary 
shutting down a good part if not the majority of industries in this country 
can push back the general attack on the trade union movement by the right 
wing pro bougeois Social Democratic Party leadership who has time and again 
turned its back to the workers movement for carrying out and extrodinary 
dismantling of the pillars of the welfare state, a general attack on the 
basic rights of the trade unions and are responsible for the fact that over 
a million adult Swedes are on the dole, in other words permament mass 
unemployment along the lines of the depression in the 30ties. This in an 
attempt to become respectable members of the common market and to join the 
monetary union of the capitalists of Europe.

The one weapon that the Social Democratic goverment and its bougeois allies 
fear most and for good reasons is a big strike and mass mobilization of 
workers to defeat not only the present reactionary laws on the trade unions, 
but the cuts and dismantling of large parts of the welfare state which has 
thrown tens of thousands of women workers on to the streets with 
unemployment checks and welfare as compensation.

The electricians trade union and the unuions in general must link these to 
struggles
into a nationwide shutdown and protest to bring down the Social Democratic 
governmernt and its bougeois allies. The central demands of a general 
mobilization should be connected to the anti trade union legislation and the 
general rollback and dismantling of the welfare state and mass unemployment.

A new government with representatives from the major National trade unions,
The womens worker organisations and trade unions and the unemployed and a 
20% representation of foreign nationals of poor and working class background 
should be proposed as a government prepared to struggle in their interests 
against the present Social Democratic leadership and its bougeois allies.

A shut down of the factories by the electricians connected to mass 
mobilizations of the tens of thousands of poor and working class people on 
the dole is what the present government fears most. This is also the only 
thing that can stop the present trend which has had and continue to have 
disasterous consequences for the entire workers movement.

Victory to the electricians!

Roll back the anti trade union laws!

Roll back the dismantiling of the welfare state and extend it!

Mobilize the tens of thusands of unemployed!

Mobilize the foreign nationals!

Down with the Social Democratic Capitalist Ministers!

Fight for a workers government that represents our interests!

Bob Malecki

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http://www.kmf.org/malecki/


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