WFTU solidarity statement on the three days’ mass action in India
09 Nov 2017ASIA, INDIA
A huge countrywide three-days’ mass action against the anti-worker, anti-people and anti-national policies of the government has started at the Parliament in the National Capital of India.
The protest is organized by the Joint Platform of Central Trade Unions, comprising Central Trade Union Organizations and all major industry/establishment wise federations and tens of thousands of militant workers are attending the demonstration from every corner of India.

The Joint Trade Union Platform represents workers and employees from all major sectors of industries and services viz., coal, steel, transport, telecom, petroleum, electricity, port & docks, engineering, construction, scheme-workers etc and employees of Central government and state government, Railways, banks, insurance, defense production, etc.

This protest is intended to demand the government to concede the unanimous demands which the joint trade union movement has been raising since the last over eight years. It is a step towards preparation for the next higher phase of united struggles including indefinite countrywide strike action, if the government continues to ignore the demands of the workers and proceed with its pro corporate agenda.

The World Federation of Trade Unions and its 92 million workers in the 5 continents join their voices with the Indian working class and its militant struggle against the anti-labour policies of the government and the bourgeois class their country. We express our support and solidarity to the class-oriented trade union movement of India and we want to affirm that will stand on their side for the fully acceptance and implementation of their fair demands in favor of the popular strata and the ordinary people.

The Secretariat

A workers meeting with participation of hundreds workers was held in Kolkata, India on 10th October 2017, on the occasion of the annual WFTU TUI meeting. The following Resolution called “Kolkata (India) Conclusion” was adopted by the Meeting:

KOLKATA (INDIA) CONCLUSION

This WFTU – TUI annual consultation meeting is being held around one year after the 17th World Trade Union Congress in Durban, South Africa and around five months after the meeting of the Presidential Council of WFTU in Havana, Cuba. It is being held in a situation when the systemic capitalist crisis is deepening and the capitalist class continues its attempt to protect and increase their profits by shifting the burdens of the crisis on to the working class and other sections of the toiling people. All the hard won rights and benefits of the working class are under attack.

This onslaught has to be fought nationally and internationally. TUIs have a big responsibility in leading this fight. They have to develop and strengthen sectoral and coordinated movements in their respective sectors throughout the world under the guidance and with the support of the WFTU.

The ideology of the WFTU, the understanding of the 17th Congress of the WFTU about the world situation and the role of the class oriented trade unions have to be taken to the grass root level workers in our respective sectors.360

TUIs are major bodies of class oriented trade union movement. They have the fundamental responsibility of defending the rights of the workers in their respective sectors including the trade union rights, of linking the workplace with the WFTU.

The basic principle of functioning enunciated by WFTU, of ‘open and democratic functioning’ should be duly reflected in the functioning of all our TUIs. Hence, whatever shortcomings in the functioning of the TUIs exist today have to be overcome with a sense of urgency.

To ensure this, we have to take up the following tasks:

• All TUIs to meet regularly, discuss the developments in their industries, the conditions of the workers in their industries and their struggles in various countries at the global level. Mechanism for regular sharing of information among all affiliated unions across the globe to be evolved and effectively implemented.
• Support the struggles of workers in their industries across the world, plan solidarity actions and implement them; inform WFTU Secretariat about these struggles for broader support and solidarity
• Plan activities that would help ideological development of the working class in their respective sectors
• Review implementation of decisions and progress in all meetings and formulate activities accordingly
• Strengthen coordination among the various affiliated unions of the TUIs and between the TUIs and the WFTU to develop effective global resistance to the global onslaught of the capitalists
• The 150th year of publication of ‘Das Capital’ to be observed to spread awareness about the inherent exploitative nature of the capitalist system and raise the consciousness of the workers on the need to change the system and the role of the working class in ending exploitation.
• TUI affiliates are to take up the day to day problems of workers, analyse objectively from working class angle the cause of problems and organise struggle to fulfil the demands of the workers.
• TUIs to work for developing unity with the farmers, students and self employed people.
• TUIs have the task of promoting international solidarity with workers from other sectors and countries.
• TUIs must pay attention to the diabolical developments of political refugees and economic migrants facing inhuman atrocities internationally which is directly linked to barbarity of imperialism and capitalist crisis.
• TUIs must act as powerful lever of struggle against capitalist barbarism pursued by monstrous multi-national corporations (MNCs).
• To take precise efforts to improve the functional position of the TUIs, with specific attention to strengthen the fund position of the TUIs in order to expand their function and activities.
• To undertake study at regular intervals to trace down the development in industries with facts and figures with a view to educate the cadres and masses internationally and send the reports to WFTU Secretariat.
• To establish co-ordination between the Regional Offices and TUIs in each Regions, so as to help each other and the implementation of collective programmes.
• TUIs must continuously promote the WFTU amongst the grass root level workers and unions and bring them into the WFTU family. This should be an important parameter to judge the organisational success of all the TUIs.
• TUIs must participate in the activities of the different forums of WFTU and implement the campaign and action programmes time to time decided by the WFTU including observation of the Action Day on 3rd October every year
• TUIs must democratically elect leaders in their Congress ensuring that the new cadres and leaders are active and effective in discharging the responsibility of the office they hold in the respective TUI.

This meeting held at Kolkata, India on 9-10 October, 2017 with representatives from Nine TUIs requests the WFTU Secretariat to concretise the various proposals and action programmes by the TUIs. The Secretariat of WFTU may ensure communication to the TUIs regularly and extend class oriented ideological and organisational support to the TUIs.

The WFTU celebrating its foundation day and International Action day of October 3,2017 which is dedicated this year to the Immigrants and Refugees, has visited the refugee camp in the area of Ritsona, 100 km far from Athens and met with the Syrian Refugees families.

The WFTU delegation headed by its General Secretary George Mavrikos and the WFTU Vice President Haidar Ibrahim, Head of General Union of Palestine Workers who is officially visiting WFTU on its Anniversary day, and the Vice President of WFTU TUI Education-FISE, Soula Lampoudi, have met with the Syrian refugees and have offered 600 notebooks and 50 basket balls, footballs etc to the children of all ages.

The children are always children! They immediately showed their excitement and joy; they forgot their suffering for a while and they did what children should do: playing, enjoying and sharing with friends.

The WFTU never forgets its founding principles and reaffirms its internationalism, human feelings and solidarity in practice with our class brothers and sisters of the whole world.

We continue this legacy of joint struggles with immigrants and refugees and we fight for a tomorrow with no wars and exploitation of man by man!

On the occasion of the visit of French President Macron to Greece, PAME issued the
following statement:
The “growth” of the profits of business groups, the competitiveness of capital requires the
attack on workers’ rights and gains. Therefore, irrespective of the country and the political label
of each government, European Union and the political parties of the capital promote antiworkers’
reforms that target to reduce wages, pensions etc., and at the same time to put
obstacles (if not to totally ban) in the Collective Action and Demands of Workers, in the trade
union rights and freedoms of the working class.
Either with memorandums or without, the antiworkers’ attack across Europe is unified, lasting
and continuous.
At the time when the SYRIZA government of Greece repeats the fairy tail of the “Fair
Growth”, utilizing the visit of French President Macron, it is important to look at some indicative
measures that are promoted in France, against which the working class of France goes on
strike on September 12.
 In the name of facing unemployment, the government of Macron promotes the reduction
of compensations in dismissals.
 Servicesare being reformed to the most reactionary for the workers, e.g. reduction of the
time limits for the workers’ appeals against the employers, as well as which dismissals
will be classified as “fair” or “unfair”.
 At the same time, the reforms give companies more power to adjust working hours and
wages to market conditions on the basis of agreements between employers and workers
which are validated by a simple majority.
 As it happens also in Greece, it is paved the way for further undermining of Collective
Agreements through the essential abolition of Collective Bargaining in businesses which
employ up to 50 employees. In these enterprises the employers will create “workers’
associations” to sign contracts “freely”, without the workers’ trade unions to be involved.
This is the continuation of previous antiworkers’ reform which already allowed business
contracts to be signed with worse terms – for the workers- than the sectoral agreements.
All these antiworkers’ measures come after the announcement of the French government to
reduce taxation for businesses from 33% to 25%.
We call the working class and its trade unions to prepare our response in workplaces and
sectors against the antiworkers’ policy and the attack of the capital which is implemented unified
by the governments of all colors across Europe.
We express our solidarity with the workers’ strike in France on September 12.