Socialist Party Wales Socialism In Wales
Trades Councils in Wales again played an important role pushing a fighting agenda forward for the trade union movement, with Socialist Party members prominent moving and seconding the key motions on the most important issues. Opposition to plans by the Wales TUC bureaucracy to reduce trade unions in Wales to mere cheerleaders of the newly elected Welsh Labour Government is building.
The overriding theme being pushed at the conference was about social partnership between trade unions and Welsh Labour who are in government in the Senedd, relying on the politicians in Wales to deliver for workers in Wales.
But opposition to this approach of just tail-ending the Welsh Labour government cropped up again and again in the conference. It was pointed out that teachers in Wales, just as much as teachers in England, had to act to force the Welsh Labour Government to back down after the reckless rush to reopen the schools in January. The scandal of the lack of PPE at the outset of pandemic was highlighted and the impact of covid-19 worsened as a result of deprivation in communities across Wales. This is a sad indictment of more than 20 years of Labour being in power as the largest party in the Senedd.
It is vital that the trade union movement in Wales develops an industrial strategy on what is needed to defend workers and improve conditions and services in our communities. These demands must be taken into negotiations across the public sector and with Welsh government. Alongside this industrial strategy, we need a serious campaign to demand the funding in Wales to address the major underfunding of our public services so they meet our needs. Wales TUC already has clear policy on these points but they have not delivered.
Rather than trying to paper over the differences under the cover of social partnership we should be making a clear call to mobilise our movement to ensure that we fight for what is needed. This was never more urgent, with the coming tsunami of cuts that the Tories will want to inflict on the working class and our services in Wales looming.
Significantly, over a third of the conference voted for Swansea Trades Council’s motion calling for a rejection of social partnership, despite it being opposed by the leadership of Wales TUC. This is a clear indication that this approach is not delivering for workers in Wales and that understanding about this is increasing.
It is clear that employers are also gearing up to use the pandemic to attack workers’ pay, jobs and conditions. There was determined opposition to employers using fire and rehire at the congress and condemnation of Stena Line which scandalously withdrew their company sick pay scheme at the start of the pandemic, forcing workers onto statutory sick pay and putting them at risk. Congress gave full support to RMT members in dispute in Holyhead and Fishguard.
Clear demands were put forward that the covid legislation passed in Wales needs to have strong enforcement powers to be used against all employers in Wales contravening this legislation. This would include employers like DVLA where PCS members were disgracefully forced to ballot and take strike action to protect their safety.
Trade councils have been at the fore in supporting the protests and struggles in our communities. After supporting the rallies called by NHS workers for 15% pay rise it was great to see the Swansea trades council amendment to include this demand in the motion on health and social care carried by the conference. We now have clear policy for the Wales TUC carried unanimously that: –
Now is the time to build a fair, equitable and sustainable future for all of our health and social care staff. As a priority step towards achieving this aim, we call on the Welsh Government to immediately implement the justifiable demands of health and care workers for a 15% pay increase.
Trades council members have also got stuck into supporting the Black Lives Matter protests over the past year and the more recent justice cases. Cardiff Trades council moved a motion on justice for the family of Mohamud Mohammed Hassan calling for an independent workers’ enquiry into his death after being held in police custody and for those responsible to be held to account. Importantly the demands were also for key democratic demands going forward for the Welsh government to establish a unit to investigate allegations of racism in Welsh police forces and for the democratic community control of policing in Wales. This motion got overwhelming support at the congress with only a delegation of 3 opposing it.
Despite the bland format of an online event where none of the participants could see or hear each other apart from the speeches it was clear there is anger building across our movement and a determination that we will not accept going back to how things were before the pandemic.
