Martin Blank
8th April 2006, 11:56
Note: The following is the text of a new Bulletin from the Communist League, addressed to workers at the Delphi Corporation. Placement of subheads in the text are noted by a double-angle quotation mark (""). This Bulletin is also available in a PDFed Special Edition of Working People's Advocate at the following URL: http://www.communistleague.org/wpa/wpa200604a.pdf -- Miles
Communist League Bulletin No. 5:
The Stark Choice Facing Delphi Workers... Strike or Surrender
The latest move by the management of Delphi Corporation to cancel the current labor contracts has made it very clear that they have no intention to bargain with the workers or their organizations.
Ever since last October, when Delphi bosses announced their demand for a 63 percent pay cut and major concessions on health care, it was clear that, barring one side or the other backing down, a confrontation was inevitable.
Now, it appears that time has come.
By going to the courts, the arbiters of the bosses order, CEO Robert Steve Miller and his fellow managers intend to impose the cuts to wages and benefits. As far as the workers themselves, and their unions, Miller & Co. have two words: drop dead.
This was confirmed on April 3, when Miller spoke to the Detroit Economic Club.
In between cheap shots by him and Visteon CEO Mike Johnston aimed at the picket organized by the Soldiers of Solidarity outside of the event, Miller spoke about how he is following an agenda first developed during his tenure at Bethlehem Steel in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
During that time, Miller oversaw Bethlehems filing for bankruptcy, the restructuring of union contracts (a euphemism for slashing wages and benefits, laying off thousands, etc.), and ultimately the sale of the company to the International Steel Group.
The ISG is owned by the same corporate conglomerate that also owns the Sago Mine in West Virginia, where 12 coal miners were killed earlier this year.
Together, we have to face marketplace reality, said Miller ... both then and now.
You should always remember that marketplace reality is used every time that the capitalists want to cut our wages and benefits while creating golden parachute benefits packages for themselves.
Millers performance at the Detroit Economic Club, however, was not merely a defense of his decisions as head of Bethlehem and Delphi. It quickly became an educational session for the attendees.
Much of Millers time was spent talking about pensions and health care benefits in the context of globalization.
The content of his speech was a series of talking points strung together to sound relatively coherent. Miller began by declaring globalization to be a fact of the modern world.
In well-worn language that could have been borrowed from any neo-liberal or neo-conservative capitalist speech made over the last 15 years, Miller blithely declared globalization to be the only game in town. This set the tone for what was to come.
For Miller and the capitalists, globalization offers a boom of opportunities for greater exploitation of world markets, but only if the burden of social welfare and maintenance sits squarely on the shoulders of working people.
Pensions, health care and other benefits burden the capitalists in their competition with other capitalists, according to Miller.
Therefore, the capitalists should not take responsibility for maintaining the health and well-being of those who made the goods from which the bosses extract their profits.
What Miller does not say, however, is that the capitalists always seek to shift a greater burden on to the backs of working people in order to free themselves to maximize profits whether in a period of globalization or protection.
However, Miller is not alone in being silent on the reality of protectionism.
The officials of the three unions that represent workers at Delphi the United Auto Workers, International Union of Electricians and United Steel Workers are well known for their pushing of protectionism as an alternative.
Protectionism means curtailing international trade and competition with rivals from other countries, and the bolstering of domestic production.
The union officials, and some of our brothers and sisters, read this and think to themselves, Well, bolstering production means more jobs, and that is good.
In a sense, this is true. But it is also short-sighted and a narrow view.
Who really benefits from protectionism? For the bosses, protectionism provides opportunities to attack working people just as globalization does. Under protectionism, the capitalist can plead poverty or shed tears about competition just as often and easily as they do now.
The only difference between the attacks working people face under protectionism and under globalization is the reason.
For example, under both systems, the capitalists will demand massive cuts in wages and benefits or massive layoffs. Under globalization, as we have seen, the reason is staying competitive in a global marketplace.
However, under protectionism, the reason can be a saturated market or even remaining competitive in the domestic marketplace.
This is the reality of the protectionism that some capitalists, and most of the officials of the labor unions, advocate.
It is the Tweedle-Dum to globalizations Tweedle-Dee. Together, they present themselves as polar opposites, but operate as a system when implemented in series.
They are alternative ways to intensify exploitation and maximize profits; no matter which system is in place, working people suffer.
The reason this is not mentioned, that both the bosses and the union officials see protectionism in roughly the same light, is because if it and globalization were seen as two sides of the same coin by most working people, it might raise uncomfortable questions ... including the most uncomfortable question of all: Is there a real alternative for working people?
And what of the unions, especially the UAW? Will they fight against the concessions and attacks? Will they call a strike?
When the bosses at Delphi first announced their intentions last fall, the response of the UAW International leadership was one of fear and hesitation.
When they did finally respond to the companys declaration of war, the response left much to be desired.
While it talked of the possibility of a strike sometime in the future, the UAWs statement was more about the need for the bosses to bargain in good faith and otherwise play nice.
Shortly after, the UAW leaders began working together with the capitalists of both Delphi and its parent company, General Motors, to slash health care and pensions for retirees.
This attempt to divide the unionized membership failed for the most part, with large sections of the retired membership rejecting the concessions deal.
Nevertheless, many of the provisions were implemented anyway, over and against the will of the majority.
In the days and weeks preceding Delphi's latest petition to the bankruptcy, more noises were heard seeping from the union headquarters, often called Concessions House or Sacrifice House by sections of the membership (it is formally called Solidarity House).
However, after Delphi made its appeal to the bosses courts, we began to hear again the same fear and hesitation among these officials.
Again, there was noise about a strike. Again, the emphasis was still on appealing to Miller & Co. to play nice.
It is more than likely that there will be no strike that is called by the current UAW International leadership against Delphi or GM.
Instead, if the pattern set by these labor lieutenants of the capitalist system these agents of the boss in our class holds, the union officials will forge a historic agreement that saves their own skins while sacrificing thousands of union members.
Moreover, the UAW officialdom will do everything in its power to suppress, disrupt and otherwise sabotage any attempts by workers to organize any local-level actions, including wildcat strikes.
Regardless, we are already beginning to see stirrings of such action at the point of production taking place.
In Flint, Mich., and Peoria, Ill., Delphi workers have staged small protests and actions on the shop floor, including a mini sitdown, as one dissident union newsletter put it.
In Coopersville, Mich., workers walked off the job after hearing their plant was going to be closed.
These spontaneous actions are happening in the wake of the organizing efforts of the Soldiers of Solidarity and Delphi Workers Committee.
Organizers for the SoS and DWC have criss-crossed the country in an effort to win their brothers and sisters to the perspective of fighting back against the bosses of Delphi.
Educational meetings, rank-and-file conferences and informational pickets have shown working people in this country and around the world that the agenda of Miller & Co. is being fought.
However, many Delphi workers are still fearful for their future, and that is making it easier for the bosses to implement their plans.
We understand that our brothers and sisters are scared. They are fully justified in being scared. The issue, though, is whether they are going to be scared and do something or be scared and do nothing.
Yes, brothers and sisters, you have every right in the world to be scared. Nevertheless, being scared is not going to slow down or stop Millers plan. Neither will being passive and doing nothing. He has made that clear.
You have nothing to lose by fighting that you would not lose anyway by doing nothing.
As the situation heats up, as talk of a strike becomes more open and tensions sharpen, a number of issues will come up that will have to be resolved.
Without question, many of these questions will be related to what it will take to win a strike against a corporation that has already made it clear it has no concern for workers livelihoods.
To this end, we have some views we would like you to consider as you talk among yourselves about these questions.
First, we believe that any plans for a strike have to be done fully, not partially, and with full participation of the membership.
Historical experience has shown that only organizing part of the way, or organizing only some of the workers, in advance of the strike can be more damaging than full, unrestricted organizing.
If you believe a strike is necessary, then there is no sense in hesitating.
Moreover, strike organizing done without the participation of the membership can be damaging; it can isolate and alienate before even one picket line is raised.
Every effort should be made to include as many of your brothers and sisters in the organizing process.
Second, we believe that strike organizing should be more than scheduling pickets and printing signs.
Obviously, if a strike is to take place against Delphi, it will be a long fight. Preparations should be made to make sure Delphi workers and their families can survive while on strike.
Food banks should be organized and communal meals for striking workers and families should be planned out.
The strike fund should not only cover weekly pay, but also should strive to cover basic bills like rent/mortgage and utilities.
Third, we believe that support from other working people, in unions and in our communities, should be central to organizing efforts.
It is in the interests of all working people to see the Delphi workers succeed.
It would not only make other bosses think twice about trying to do the same thing to their workers that Miller & Co. are doing to the Delphi workers, it would also ensure that those workers who are employed at businesses that are dependent on the money Delphi workers spend keep their jobs.
Neighborhoods and communities around Delphi factories and where Delphi workers live should have active support organizations that can help with everything from organizing solidarity demonstrations to staffing meal service.
Unions in sympathy with the Delphi workers should be organized into an ad hoc federation that can act as fundraisers, supplemental pickets and even defense of workers if they are attacked.
Fourth, we believe that the organizing and direction of the strike itself should be in the hands of the membership.
It is obvious to anyone paying attention that the union officials do not want to strike, and would rather pressure the members to accept the concessions than fight back. This kind of cowardice can become nothing short of scabbing in a strike situation.
The workers themselves should coordinate the strike, organize strike committees and pickets, and oversee contract negotiations with the management. Decisions should be made democratically by the membership, including whether or not to accept a proposed contract.
(In addition, not one picket line should be dismantled until a contract has been ratified by the membership.)
Fifth, we believe that the scope of any strike against Delphi should not be confined to the borders of the U.S.
Delphis management is looking for the cheapest possible labor to do the job that workers here are doing. Any opportunity they think they have should be taken from them.
Agreements should be worked out between working people here in the U.S. and their brothers and sisters working for Delphi in Latin America, Europe and eastern Asia, which would make it clear that not one item that was being made by workers here would be produced where they are.
(This kind of agreement could also lay the basis for a greater level of solidarity and unity among working people that could reverse the race toward the bottom that capitalism provokes between workers of different countries.)
Sixth, we believe that the demands of Delphi workers should present an alternative vision, not just be a reaction.
In the final analysis, the battle between the workers and bosses at Delphi is about the future of the auto industry. The demands working people raise should reflect that and present an alternative view of what it will look like.
When Miller & Co. talk about plant closings, the strikers should talk about confiscating those facilities and re-opening them under the control of the workers themselves.
When the Delphi bosses cry poverty and talk about shared sacrifice, the strikers should talk about organizing an independent audit of the company and eliminating the layers of useless management and administration at the top including the Board of Directors.
Finally, we believe that workers should be prepared to fight this out on the political battlefield also.
Miller and the rest of the Delphi bosses would not be able to get away with these kinds of attacks if they were not confident that the government and its armed agents would come to their defense.
In order to really win this battle, the Delphi workers must be prepared to make their fight political. This means getting involved in building a working peoples political movement that fights for the interests of all workers against exploitation and oppression.
The Communist League is fully prepared to work with you to build this movement, if you choose to do so.
We see such a movement as necessary, but impossible to create without you. If you are interested, we invite you to contact us.
Central Committee, Communist League Adopted: April 6, 2006
Communist League Bulletin No. 5:
The Stark Choice Facing Delphi Workers... Strike or Surrender
The latest move by the management of Delphi Corporation to cancel the current labor contracts has made it very clear that they have no intention to bargain with the workers or their organizations.
Ever since last October, when Delphi bosses announced their demand for a 63 percent pay cut and major concessions on health care, it was clear that, barring one side or the other backing down, a confrontation was inevitable.
Now, it appears that time has come.
By going to the courts, the arbiters of the bosses order, CEO Robert Steve Miller and his fellow managers intend to impose the cuts to wages and benefits. As far as the workers themselves, and their unions, Miller & Co. have two words: drop dead.
This was confirmed on April 3, when Miller spoke to the Detroit Economic Club.
In between cheap shots by him and Visteon CEO Mike Johnston aimed at the picket organized by the Soldiers of Solidarity outside of the event, Miller spoke about how he is following an agenda first developed during his tenure at Bethlehem Steel in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
During that time, Miller oversaw Bethlehems filing for bankruptcy, the restructuring of union contracts (a euphemism for slashing wages and benefits, laying off thousands, etc.), and ultimately the sale of the company to the International Steel Group.
The ISG is owned by the same corporate conglomerate that also owns the Sago Mine in West Virginia, where 12 coal miners were killed earlier this year.
Together, we have to face marketplace reality, said Miller ... both then and now.
You should always remember that marketplace reality is used every time that the capitalists want to cut our wages and benefits while creating golden parachute benefits packages for themselves.
Millers performance at the Detroit Economic Club, however, was not merely a defense of his decisions as head of Bethlehem and Delphi. It quickly became an educational session for the attendees.
Much of Millers time was spent talking about pensions and health care benefits in the context of globalization.
The content of his speech was a series of talking points strung together to sound relatively coherent. Miller began by declaring globalization to be a fact of the modern world.
In well-worn language that could have been borrowed from any neo-liberal or neo-conservative capitalist speech made over the last 15 years, Miller blithely declared globalization to be the only game in town. This set the tone for what was to come.
For Miller and the capitalists, globalization offers a boom of opportunities for greater exploitation of world markets, but only if the burden of social welfare and maintenance sits squarely on the shoulders of working people.
Pensions, health care and other benefits burden the capitalists in their competition with other capitalists, according to Miller.
Therefore, the capitalists should not take responsibility for maintaining the health and well-being of those who made the goods from which the bosses extract their profits.
What Miller does not say, however, is that the capitalists always seek to shift a greater burden on to the backs of working people in order to free themselves to maximize profits whether in a period of globalization or protection.
However, Miller is not alone in being silent on the reality of protectionism.
The officials of the three unions that represent workers at Delphi the United Auto Workers, International Union of Electricians and United Steel Workers are well known for their pushing of protectionism as an alternative.
Protectionism means curtailing international trade and competition with rivals from other countries, and the bolstering of domestic production.
The union officials, and some of our brothers and sisters, read this and think to themselves, Well, bolstering production means more jobs, and that is good.
In a sense, this is true. But it is also short-sighted and a narrow view.
Who really benefits from protectionism? For the bosses, protectionism provides opportunities to attack working people just as globalization does. Under protectionism, the capitalist can plead poverty or shed tears about competition just as often and easily as they do now.
The only difference between the attacks working people face under protectionism and under globalization is the reason.
For example, under both systems, the capitalists will demand massive cuts in wages and benefits or massive layoffs. Under globalization, as we have seen, the reason is staying competitive in a global marketplace.
However, under protectionism, the reason can be a saturated market or even remaining competitive in the domestic marketplace.
This is the reality of the protectionism that some capitalists, and most of the officials of the labor unions, advocate.
It is the Tweedle-Dum to globalizations Tweedle-Dee. Together, they present themselves as polar opposites, but operate as a system when implemented in series.
They are alternative ways to intensify exploitation and maximize profits; no matter which system is in place, working people suffer.
The reason this is not mentioned, that both the bosses and the union officials see protectionism in roughly the same light, is because if it and globalization were seen as two sides of the same coin by most working people, it might raise uncomfortable questions ... including the most uncomfortable question of all: Is there a real alternative for working people?
And what of the unions, especially the UAW? Will they fight against the concessions and attacks? Will they call a strike?
When the bosses at Delphi first announced their intentions last fall, the response of the UAW International leadership was one of fear and hesitation.
When they did finally respond to the companys declaration of war, the response left much to be desired.
While it talked of the possibility of a strike sometime in the future, the UAWs statement was more about the need for the bosses to bargain in good faith and otherwise play nice.
Shortly after, the UAW leaders began working together with the capitalists of both Delphi and its parent company, General Motors, to slash health care and pensions for retirees.
This attempt to divide the unionized membership failed for the most part, with large sections of the retired membership rejecting the concessions deal.
Nevertheless, many of the provisions were implemented anyway, over and against the will of the majority.
In the days and weeks preceding Delphi's latest petition to the bankruptcy, more noises were heard seeping from the union headquarters, often called Concessions House or Sacrifice House by sections of the membership (it is formally called Solidarity House).
However, after Delphi made its appeal to the bosses courts, we began to hear again the same fear and hesitation among these officials.
Again, there was noise about a strike. Again, the emphasis was still on appealing to Miller & Co. to play nice.
It is more than likely that there will be no strike that is called by the current UAW International leadership against Delphi or GM.
Instead, if the pattern set by these labor lieutenants of the capitalist system these agents of the boss in our class holds, the union officials will forge a historic agreement that saves their own skins while sacrificing thousands of union members.
Moreover, the UAW officialdom will do everything in its power to suppress, disrupt and otherwise sabotage any attempts by workers to organize any local-level actions, including wildcat strikes.
Regardless, we are already beginning to see stirrings of such action at the point of production taking place.
In Flint, Mich., and Peoria, Ill., Delphi workers have staged small protests and actions on the shop floor, including a mini sitdown, as one dissident union newsletter put it.
In Coopersville, Mich., workers walked off the job after hearing their plant was going to be closed.
These spontaneous actions are happening in the wake of the organizing efforts of the Soldiers of Solidarity and Delphi Workers Committee.
Organizers for the SoS and DWC have criss-crossed the country in an effort to win their brothers and sisters to the perspective of fighting back against the bosses of Delphi.
Educational meetings, rank-and-file conferences and informational pickets have shown working people in this country and around the world that the agenda of Miller & Co. is being fought.
However, many Delphi workers are still fearful for their future, and that is making it easier for the bosses to implement their plans.
We understand that our brothers and sisters are scared. They are fully justified in being scared. The issue, though, is whether they are going to be scared and do something or be scared and do nothing.
Yes, brothers and sisters, you have every right in the world to be scared. Nevertheless, being scared is not going to slow down or stop Millers plan. Neither will being passive and doing nothing. He has made that clear.
You have nothing to lose by fighting that you would not lose anyway by doing nothing.
As the situation heats up, as talk of a strike becomes more open and tensions sharpen, a number of issues will come up that will have to be resolved.
Without question, many of these questions will be related to what it will take to win a strike against a corporation that has already made it clear it has no concern for workers livelihoods.
To this end, we have some views we would like you to consider as you talk among yourselves about these questions.
First, we believe that any plans for a strike have to be done fully, not partially, and with full participation of the membership.
Historical experience has shown that only organizing part of the way, or organizing only some of the workers, in advance of the strike can be more damaging than full, unrestricted organizing.
If you believe a strike is necessary, then there is no sense in hesitating.
Moreover, strike organizing done without the participation of the membership can be damaging; it can isolate and alienate before even one picket line is raised.
Every effort should be made to include as many of your brothers and sisters in the organizing process.
Second, we believe that strike organizing should be more than scheduling pickets and printing signs.
Obviously, if a strike is to take place against Delphi, it will be a long fight. Preparations should be made to make sure Delphi workers and their families can survive while on strike.
Food banks should be organized and communal meals for striking workers and families should be planned out.
The strike fund should not only cover weekly pay, but also should strive to cover basic bills like rent/mortgage and utilities.
Third, we believe that support from other working people, in unions and in our communities, should be central to organizing efforts.
It is in the interests of all working people to see the Delphi workers succeed.
It would not only make other bosses think twice about trying to do the same thing to their workers that Miller & Co. are doing to the Delphi workers, it would also ensure that those workers who are employed at businesses that are dependent on the money Delphi workers spend keep their jobs.
Neighborhoods and communities around Delphi factories and where Delphi workers live should have active support organizations that can help with everything from organizing solidarity demonstrations to staffing meal service.
Unions in sympathy with the Delphi workers should be organized into an ad hoc federation that can act as fundraisers, supplemental pickets and even defense of workers if they are attacked.
Fourth, we believe that the organizing and direction of the strike itself should be in the hands of the membership.
It is obvious to anyone paying attention that the union officials do not want to strike, and would rather pressure the members to accept the concessions than fight back. This kind of cowardice can become nothing short of scabbing in a strike situation.
The workers themselves should coordinate the strike, organize strike committees and pickets, and oversee contract negotiations with the management. Decisions should be made democratically by the membership, including whether or not to accept a proposed contract.
(In addition, not one picket line should be dismantled until a contract has been ratified by the membership.)
Fifth, we believe that the scope of any strike against Delphi should not be confined to the borders of the U.S.
Delphis management is looking for the cheapest possible labor to do the job that workers here are doing. Any opportunity they think they have should be taken from them.
Agreements should be worked out between working people here in the U.S. and their brothers and sisters working for Delphi in Latin America, Europe and eastern Asia, which would make it clear that not one item that was being made by workers here would be produced where they are.
(This kind of agreement could also lay the basis for a greater level of solidarity and unity among working people that could reverse the race toward the bottom that capitalism provokes between workers of different countries.)
Sixth, we believe that the demands of Delphi workers should present an alternative vision, not just be a reaction.
In the final analysis, the battle between the workers and bosses at Delphi is about the future of the auto industry. The demands working people raise should reflect that and present an alternative view of what it will look like.
When Miller & Co. talk about plant closings, the strikers should talk about confiscating those facilities and re-opening them under the control of the workers themselves.
When the Delphi bosses cry poverty and talk about shared sacrifice, the strikers should talk about organizing an independent audit of the company and eliminating the layers of useless management and administration at the top including the Board of Directors.
Finally, we believe that workers should be prepared to fight this out on the political battlefield also.
Miller and the rest of the Delphi bosses would not be able to get away with these kinds of attacks if they were not confident that the government and its armed agents would come to their defense.
In order to really win this battle, the Delphi workers must be prepared to make their fight political. This means getting involved in building a working peoples political movement that fights for the interests of all workers against exploitation and oppression.
The Communist League is fully prepared to work with you to build this movement, if you choose to do so.
We see such a movement as necessary, but impossible to create without you. If you are interested, we invite you to contact us.
Central Committee, Communist League Adopted: April 6, 2006