Strikes: Towards a Summer and Autumn (Winter and Spring!) of struggle!

We are entering a period of heightened class struggle. The so-called Cost of Living Crisis has seen significant sections of the working class refuse to meekly accept pay offers that are way under inflation and therefore wage cuts. And the unions have been forced to make moves, militant noises and call strikes. And the idea of striking is proving popular. There is talk of a General Strike ( see www.anarchistcommunism.org/2022/06/21/why-a-general-strike-is-better-than-a-general-strike/ for our thoughts on generalizing the strikes).

UNISON Local Government workers in Scotland have voted for strike action in response to the ‘final’ pay offer of 2%, with nine local authority branches exceeding the required 50% turnout threshold required by the Trade Union Act. It remains to be seen if the unions will be able to avoid calling a strike.
Unite Subway (underground railway) workers in Glasgow have voted to strike, calling days when their action will impact Scottish Premier League football. A UK wide ASLEF train driver’s strike is scheduled for July 31st whilst BT workers in the Communications Workers Union (CWU) have taken action this week, and postal workers in CWU look like they will be going out on strike shortly.

Aside from the ongoing, though presently fragmented, pension fight, the University and College Union (UCU) are preparing to ballot on the 3% pay offer (effectively a serious pay cut) which has been rejected by all Higher Education (HE) unions. UNISON in HE are balloting, but there remains the possibility that despite the rejection, not all unions will take action together thereby weakening the fight.
The RMT and the ‘white collar’ transport union, TSSA, are to strike in August for two days. Like with the July 27th RMT strike, the rail system will be severely impacted.

But let’s not get carried away. RMT’s leader Mick Lynch has indeed exposed the combination of ignorance and malice that the various government representatives embody, but he is part of a union bureaucracy that has to work within the confines of legality and in a way that will not ultimately jeopardize the union’s seat at the table. 

There is anger, there are masses of workers who are ready for mobilisation and action, but there is almost no significant rank and file organization in most TUC affiliated unions so workers are dependent upon their national officials. Some are more left than others, but the fight will remain in their hands unless the rank and file take control.

There is the possibility of spreading strike action to non-unionised sectors, the strike at Cranswick Continental Foods in Bury by a multi-national super exploited workforce was organised without a union. This inspirational self-organised strike has the potential to be replicated as momentum builds and workers gain in confidence. 

But there remains a crucial need to create rank and file bodies that will control the struggles from below and extend them to ever wider groups of workers.