Spanish Syndicalism (1) CGT Strike in Unipost

CGT DECLARES UNLIMITED STRIKE IN SPANISH 'UNIPOST' OVER HOLIDAYS


      The following is a translation from a Spanish language article at Rojo y Negro, the organ of the Spanish anarcho-syndicalist union the CGT. I have had to rather "freely translate" as the particulars of Spanish labour practices are quite different from here in the Anglosphere. Any mistakes are my own responsibility.

CGT UNIPOST CALLS INDEFINITE STRIKE FROM 13-D

     The stoppages will be for 24 hours (from 00:00 to 24:00) and Saturdays, Sundays and holidays are not included. The schedule is as follows: December 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 27 and 30 and the 2 and 3 of January 2014. If the dispute is not settled we reserve the right to call further stoppages which will be conducted according to applicable legal provisions.

     There are two principle objectives of this strike. On the one hand the breaches of agreement on the part of management, salary cuts and non-payment of summer bonuses. (Such bonuses are a regular part of Spanish labour practice...mm) On the other hand an end to layoffs.

     Thus the CGT, having consulted both general assemblies and workshop assemblies, has decided to carry out the strike to show important solidarity with the workers to carry it out.

     We want to thank those who have expressed their support in favour of your decision and we want, secondarily, to encourage the rest because everyone together will have more force and power to achieve the objective marked out.

     We also inform you of the suspension of the December 2 hearing by the High Court about the pay cut that we applied for in August 2013. It was going to address three charges of non-compliance and misappliance, one of them not cited by the works council, on procedural grounds. To avoid a full trial it was decided to postpone the hearing until January 28, 2014. On that day the hearing will hear the complaint of unpaid summer bonuses. At the same time some unions have been in negotiations with the company and have reached a possible agreement to agree to the suspension (of the bonuses...mm). This is something the CGT does not agree with given the negotiating intransigence of the company.
AGAINST LAYOFFS AND INSECURITY IN UNIPOST !
FOR DIGNIFIED WORK IN UNIPOST...A SUFFICIENT CAUSE !
UNLIMITED STRIKE FROM 13D !

CHOOSE THE CGT, JOIN THE CGT - THE UNION THAT DARES !
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @cgtunipost

INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-SPAIN:

CONGRATULATIONS ANARCHOSYNDICALISM FROM THE CGT:

As mentioned before on this blog this year marks the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Spanish Confederación Nacional de Trabajo (CNT) in Barcelona. All of the Spanish anarchosyndicalist groups are planning events to mark this centennial. The CGT have recently published the following congratulatory note in their paper Rojo Y Negro. As can be seen from the article Rojo Y Negro plans to have a continuing series with historical documents and how they relate to the present time. Molly hopes to be following this series and translating at least some of the essays. To my knowledge the article below is the first time that it has appeared in an English translation.

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Congratulations, Anarcosindicalism:

2010 is the centenary of anarcho-syndicalism, that is, each and every one of the organizations. groups and individuals who declare themselves as such. And each and all deserve a fraternal greeting, congratulations for having held to type, congratulations to one of the most rebellious critical and constructive currents for liberty and equality which we could provide to human beings, congratulations to each and every one who in his or her life built anarcho-syndicalism.

And congratulations, then, to all anarchosyndicalist organizations : the first historical CNT of course , and now the CNT-AIT, the Solidaridad Obrera, a splinter or separate CNT in Barcelona, the CNT France but also all sections of the AIT, and other unions outside of Spain that claim anarchist syndicalism (SAC in Sweden, the two USIs in Italy Workers’ Initiative in Poland, the Greek ESE, etc.), and including that this is also the centenary of other anarcho específicos many groups, mainly Latin American, who largely subscribe to the anarcho-syndicalist ideas that emerged from the historic Congress 1910 in Barcelona.

And obviously, despite the current divisions of some anarchosyndicalist sectors , the non-dogmatic anarchonsindicalist backbone, wide and pluralistic, of the CGT, the General Confederation of Labor. Of course.

Its self-organization, its struggles, its popular assemblies, its self critical ability, and its construction of a society open to the horizontal movements of the social base, and especially to all workers , in every sense of the word, testify to a path and a practice that, with its errors and contradictions, is the most genuine expression of anarcho-syndicalism: the constant search for the self-emancipation of the exploited classes.

Rojo Y Negro is reporting the early acts of this anniversary, opening a page that will be revisited over the next eleven months, in which part of an historical text on a specific theme (of the many that have been directly or indirectly been treated by anarcho-syndicalism) will be used for another consideration of the matter and updating of the points made in the historic document. Each page will be accompanied with an original illustration that, with artistic freedom, express an image of what is being "discussed" in the current and historical texts. This is the particular contribution of Royo Y Negro to the centennial.

I cannot but emphasize another fact which was duly reported in the pages of Rojo Y Negro, and coincides with the centennial, and what it means for reflection and updating of libertarian principles, with the formation on the confederal level of the "Jóvenes Anarcosindicalistas-CGT’ (Anarchosyndicalist youth), certainly a historic milestone for the Confederacy, small now but it will hopefully enhance its presence and importance in the not too distant future. That a youth group, affiliated to the CGT, has decided to be called "anarcho" is not trivial. It indicates a clear intention to necessarily follow a path open to innovation, self direction, and self-management of their own lives. The precariousness, both social and in employment, and conditions of manipulation, exploitation and repression in which we live are directly suffered by women and men, and therefore it is up to us to confront this reality, deal with it, and build from solidarity and mutual support an alternative which is urgent and necessary to radically transform the oppressive and unjust world. They are the CGT.

Antonio Carretero,

Rojo Y Negro

THE GENERAL STRIKE IN SWEDEN: THE MISSING REPORTS:
Molly has previously reported on the attempted general strike that the Swedish syndicalist union SAC (see AnarchoSyndicalist Links in the contact section of this blog) called for Nov. 15th. This call was, of course, widely publicized in the press and electronic sites of the world's anarchist movement. Numerous messages of solidarity were sent to our Swedish comrades. The strike, of course, has come and gone, and what is missing from the public face of anarchism is any analysis of what the strike call actually achieved. The SAC may have reported on the results, but little or none of this of this has been published in languages other than Swedish. The exception is an article published in Royo Y Negro, a journal of the Spanish CGT. Published on Nov. 17th, two days after the strike, it was entitled, 'La Huelga de la SAC asusta a patronal y sindicatos mayoritarios en Suecia' (Molly trans: The SAC's strike frightens management (or the bosses' organization) and the majority unions in Sweden).
Royo y Negro made no estimates of the total number of people who heeded the call of the SAC, but they made three observations about the benefits of the strike call. The first was that many affiliates of the majority union, the LO, were so disgusted by the manoeuvres of their union bosses that they joined the SAC demonstrations on their own initiatives. The second benefit was that the strike call reawakened public interest in the existence of the SAC in Sweden. The third is that the call reinvigorated the activity of the locals and industrial sections of the SAC.
All of this is undoubtedly true and to the good, but actual numbers would be much more to the point. Without them one relies on factors that are more than a little subjective. When and how to issue a strike call is an important question as international anarchosyndicalism competes with bureaucratic unions across the world. Success should be judged by objective criteria so that lessons can actually be learned. subjective criteria should be followed over time to see if initial impressions were indeed true.
Still waiting for same...
Molly
PS:The graphic above is the logo of the SAC.