New Forms and Strategies of Working Class Resistance needed in the age of Globalization

 June 17, 2012. ‘POLEMIC’, a discussion forum of intellectuals, activists and students organized a symposium on‘Working class movement in the age of Globalization: Problems and Challenges’ in 'Brihanmumnbai Union of Journalists',D.N. Road on Sunday. Milind Ranade of Sarva Shramik Sangh, Sataym of Bigul Mazdoor Dasta, Ajay Swami of Delhi Metro Kamgar Union, Naveen Kumar of Karawal Nagar Mazdoor Union and Abhinav Sinha editor of hindi monthly newspaper 'Mazdoor Bigul' were the speakers on the occasion. Prashant, the convener of ‘Polemic’, Mumbai, while welcoming the audience , said that Polemic’s aim is to initiate an open ended discussion and debate on the real issues pertaining to the progressive movement and ideology today, and the problems of building a new revolutionary socialist alternative to the present oppressive and exploitative capitalist system. Problems and challenges before the working class movement in the age of globalization is surely one such issue. Introducing the topic Prashant said that during the period of last 5 to 6 years one can see that the lull prevalent in the working class movement for more than the last two decades has been breaking and working masses, especially unorganized workers, are forced to take to the streets due to their precarious living conditions. But on the other hand we also find the lack of a clear understanding, programs and conscious effort to organize this unorganized working population. Conventional trade union movements are still not being able to think beyond the old forms and strategies; consequently, the    working class movements have been mainly reduced to the element of spontaneity. Today it is necessary to think about the new forms of organizing this working class movements. After this short introduction speakers were invited to present their views on the topic one by one.

First of all Satyam from Bigul Mazdoor Dasta, who had been directly involved in the recent Maruti workers' struggle in Manesar, was invited to put his views. Satyam, while presenting a picture of the grass root conditions in the movement of Maruti workers said that it was a positive development that workers are taking to the street spontaneously. However, if one looks at the ground realities, they find that the demands of the unorganised workers, who fought most actively and most resolutely were completely marginalized; there was no direct involvement of the fighting workers in making decisions regarding the movement; nothing was done to advance the political conscious of workers. There were also sufficient chances to extend the movement to the nearby automoblie factories, as workers in these factories were reeling under the same intolerable conditions. But in this regard as well nothing had been done. The central trade union federations affiliated with various electoral parties could be held as the main culprits for these shortcomings and limitations. Thus, instead of getting overwhelmed in the flow of spontaneous movements and celebrating them uncritically, it is necessary to channalize these momentary outbursts in the proper direction through conscious effort.

Milind Ranade of Sarva Shramik Sangh and Kachara Vahtuk Shramik Sangh presented his views on the topic. He told that for many years unions of the parmanent workers have refrained from organizing the unorganized workers with them and left them completely on the mercy of Fascists-Corporatists Trade Unions who devide them on religion-region-caste for their electoral political benefits. Together with this he also told that  the process of organizing different types of unorganized workers has been started, like rag pickers, domestic workers, construction workers etc.

Ajay Swami of Delhi Metro Kamgar Union made the audiences aware of the plight  of the workers working in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, a symbol of the so-called India Inc. He told that in one of the premier enterprises of India all the labour laws are being flouted openly. Most of the work in Delhi Metro is of parmanent nature, but 90 percent of it is getting done on the contract basis. Contract companies also charge illegally Rs. 25 to 30 thousands for employing the workers. Heavy presence of security force and vigilence by CCTV cameras makes anykind of union activity almost impossible. Interestingly, the union of parmanent employees of the Metro Rail, affiliated with CITU, refused to organize the unorganized unions. Thus unorganized workers of Delhi Metro organized themselves under the banner of Delhi Metro Kamgar Union.

Naveen Kumar, Karawal Nagar Mazdoor Union, Delhi, also shared his views, who is working on the concept of organizing  the unorganized working masses in their residential areas. In Karawal Nagar Industrial Area around 2 to 2.5  lakhs of workers live whose occupational profile is highly diversified, from work of manufacturing of aeroplane spare parts to factories of pickles and spices. These workers do not get any kind of rights given by Indian state and constitution. Such a huge population can be organised in their residential areas instead of their occupation, factory or sector.

In the end Abhinav Sinha, editor of hindi workers' monthly 'Mazdoor Bigul', by presenting a world-historical account of the process of informalization said that after the crisis of 1973, when the world capitalist system hit a bottle neck within the boundaries of protectionism, it became necessary to make the flow of capital unhindered across nations and to make the labour laws flexible. Technological advancement and information revolution played an important role in this process. Thus it became possible to disintegrate the production process of the large scale industries, which were characteristic of the phase of Fordism when thousands of workers used to work on the same factory floor, into small units spread across the globe. Consequently, one can witness a notable decline in the factory-based union struggles. But the model of modern capitalist urban planning, inseparably associated with this process of informalization, concentrated the working masses in large numbers in their place of residence. Thus today it is not only imperative to organize unorganized working class on the basis on their neighbourhoods, but it also provides huge opportunities. Thus neibhourhood-based unions are the need of the time, which in no way excludes the concept of factory based unions.

 After presentaion by the speakers an open discussion session was organized. In the discussion including Pravin Nadkar of IFTU, Sanjay Singhvi of TUCI, S K of Ladhaku Garment Kamgar Sangathana, Vijay Kulkarni of Lal Nishan (Leninwadi), S.N. Gohil of CPI(ML) Liberation, Uddipta of IIt Bombay, Deepti Gopinath, Shirish Medhi and many other activists, intellectuals and students participated

Symposium on 'Working Class Movement in age of Globalization: Problems and Challenges'

The worldwide crisis that has been continuing since 2007 has extracted the heaviest price from the working

class across the world and the working class is still reeling under its pressure. As always, it is the working class which is bearing the brunt of the crisis of over-production and abundance of capital arising out of the greed of capitalists, in the form of unemployment and uncertainty. The bourgeois governments around the world handed out massive bail out packages to banks and financial institutions which had been ruined by the crisis, and imposed the burden of these packages on the common toiling masses in the form of inflation and retrenchment. That the bourgeois governments are the managing committees to manage the affairs of the bourgeoisie, has never been so apparent. The working class, which is the worst victim of the crisis, too, is not silent and it is taking to streets world over. In our country too, the workers have broken the lull which continued till the first few years of the new millenium, and right since 2005 many big workers' movements have taken place. From Ludhiana, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Delhi, Gorakhpur, Kolkata, Mumbai to various industrial areas of South India, workers have fought many struggles. Recently, the struggle of Maruti Udyog workers hogged the limelight in the national media. 

However, despite the bad health of capitalism, the working class has mostly suffered defeats in the recent working class movements. In such a situation, some serious questions are confronting the honest and revolutionary trade unions and political activistsorganizers active in the working class movement.

Polemic Invites you to 

Symposium on

Topic: Working Class Movement in the age of Globalization: Problems and Challenges 
 

Speakers:
 N. Vasudevan, National Secretary, NTUI

Milind Ranade, Sarva Shramik Sangh

Abhinav Sinha, Editor, 'Mazdoor Bigul'

Satyam, Bigul Mazdoor Dasta

Ajay Swamy, Delhi Metro Kamgar Union

Naveen Kumar, Karawal Nagar Mazdoor Union, Delhi

Time: 2 P.M., Sunday, June 17, 2012.

Venue: Brihanmumbai Union of

Journalists, 23-25 Prospect

Chambers Annex, D.N. Road, Pitha

Street, Above Gopalashram, Mumbai.

Organized by: Polemic

The most pertinent question is that why the unorganized workers working in the informal sector as well as the formal sector have been left at the mercy of bourgoeis, revisionist or corporatist fascist trade unions and organizations? Nearly 93 percent of the 40-odd crore industrial workers are unorganized workers working in the informal sector. However, the major trade unions of the country neither have will, nor intention, and nor any programme to organize them. In the age of post-Fordist Global Assembly Line, the share of such informal/unorganized workers in the working class is going to increase even more. According the the latest National Sample Survey, nearly 95 percent of the total rural and urban proletariat is unorganized. If we wish to see the resurrection of working class movement in the days to come, we certainly need to deliberate on the tasks and challenges of organizing this new and hitherto the largest working class in human history, to borrow from Mike Davis (the renowned author of Late Victorian Holocausts and Planet of Slums).

The second important question pertains to the direction in which the trade union movement needs to be developed today, in order to organize this huge population. Can we organize these workers merely through economic struggles? Can these unorganized workers be mobilized only through the trade unionist routinism? Is the conventional trade union agenda enough to unite them? Or, rather, do we need a significant paradigm shift within the workers' movement? Certainly, today we need to stress upon the element of change more, as compared to that of continuity. But, how are we supposed to conceptualize these elements of change?

The third significant question is that do we need new forms and strategies of the working class movement and resistance? Can we organize the workers through conventional methods in the post-Fordist era of Global Assembly line, outsourcing, etc? Or, is there a need for new means and methods, new forms and strategies of the working class resistance and struggle? Can the resistance of the workers be organized today merely through factory-based struggles? These are very important questions which the serious organizers and researchers of the workers' movement need to answer. The fourth question is that does the syndicalist, non-party revolutionist, anarchist and spontaneitist trend, born as a reaction of the past lapses and mistakes, as well as problems of the communist movement, has any alternative? Would it be appropriate to abandon the entire ideology and politics as a reaction to the mistakes committed during the past socialist movement, experiments and regimes and reify the spontaneity of the working class and celebrate it uncritically? Or, is there a need for a detailed critical assessment of the experiments, leadership and movements of the past? And the last question is that how to formulate the ideology and politics of the working class movement today? What would be the correct path of the emancipation of the working class? Would there be any role of a vanguard force in it? If yes, then what form will it assume? What will be the new forms and strategies of the working class resistance? How can they be executed?

       In our opinion, all these questions are extremely important to organize the working class movement afresh and without answering them, probably, we would not be able to advance even a few steps. Today, profound deliberation and contemplation is going on within the workers' organizations and trade unions which are thinking in a serious and different manner. With these questions in mind, 'Polemic' is organizing a symposium on this issue, where the representatives of a few trade unions and political activists active in workers' movement in different parts of the country, would share their views. 'Polemic' extends a warm invitation to you to participate in this symposium. 

With Revolutionary Greetings,

Polemic