WE DEMAND THE RIGHT TO STRIKE!!

[RedCeltic]

Proving yet again that the United States Labor Movement if fighting against an oppressive anti Union government... last Thursday in New Jersey was marked by three interconnected events....

1) Contract negotiations between New Jersey Teachers and the school board broke down. The teachers who make just barely $30,000 a year (just above poverty level) had the nerve to ask for better health coverage... in which the employees receive little to none, and a retirement plan, which they don't receive at all. So Thursday, NJ Union Teachers walked off the Job.


2) Superior Court Judge Clarkson S. Fisher Jr., Ordered Striking workers back to work.. on the very same day the walked off the Job!

3)Thursday as more than 100 teachers who are refusing to return to work spent the night in jail cells.

In Middletown, More than 130 have been jailed, with more to be expected to be jailed this weekend.

Some, have decided to go back to work, and not disobey the law... So about 110 teachers (scabs) have crossed the picket line.

Comrades, (epically those in the US) We must fight to abolish these oppressive anti Union laws. Currently Laws in the US allow for the courts or govt. to order workers back to work, (even on the same day the walk off)

They give little or no punishment for bosses who fire union organizers...

Communists are not allowed to be union leaders.

Bosses are free to distribute anti-union material, send management to anti-union workshops, while union organizing, and material is kept under thumb.

Unions in the United States currently have no right to secondary strike. This means that if you work for one union, and a related union strikes.. Your union is not allowed to strike. It's often the case in Europe where a number of labor unions strike for the benefit of one union. This is what secondary striking is...

Imagine... a big construction project... where everyone on the job is union... Carpenters, Plumbers, Electricians, etc... And the Electricians go on strike... now... the Carpenters and Plumbers have to cross a picket line ever day to go to work...

In a Secondary strike... the all would strike for one union...That's illegal in the United States... Only the one Union will strike.. .and the Bolder will simply have a non-union subcontractor come in. A Secondary Strike prevents this.


(Excuse the lang but...) Fuck the US and their oppressive fucking laws! People should have the right to organize, to strike, and not be put in jail for it!



(Edited by RedCeltic at 12:03 pm on Dec. 6, 2001)

[Anonymous]

interesting details. Now lets look at the problem, all that is wrong and some things you mention are in my opinion inconstitutional. Like comunists not being allow in unions, that is discrimination based on beliefs. Or being able to recall strikes, that doesnt sound very constitutional either. Over here the goverment can call off strikes but only in extreme situations like if the hole contry is paralised by a strike, then i becomes sort of like blackmail and they can act. They have to do "civilian drafting" its like recurting civilians not for the army but for there normal jobs. If i get drafted for the army in a war situation and refuse i go to jail right? same principal. But as you can see it is an extreme messure and they (the gov.) have to justify it.


But US is differente.... its the land of the lets-make-lots-of-$$$ contry. So my question is do you think you can change those things you pointed out as wrong? i have my doubts that it will happen but im on the outside.

[Son of Scargill]

Just seen it on the news here in the UK,jailing teachers for going on strike?In the land of the free?
In UK secondary picketting was one of the first rights to be dismantled by the Thatcher government,and it pretty much destroyed the power of the unions here.So any comrades in countries that still have secondary pickets,fight any attempt to stop it!
Anyway RedCeltic,it won't make any difference over in New Jersey,but my thoughts go out to those who've been jailed.It is morally wrong,even the british media can see that!!!!

[RedCeltic]

Well... The United States is very anti union, and has efectivly drummed this into people's heads. In order to change how things are done, we have to change the way people think. I think educating people is the only real way we can make any kind of diffrence in the land where everyone worships on the alter of the free market.

I agree that the Govt. should have the right to mediate and to order a cool down period where workers tepararaly go back to work.

As far as those laws I mentioned, like Communists not being alowed to be union leaders etc... they had all passed as laws during the McCarthy period (anti Communist era) when everyone was afrade to go against Joe McCarthy for fear they would be labled a commie too and loose their job.