Socialist Party members in CWU
The conference of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) takes place in the immediate aftermath of the May elections, as workers reel from the tightening cost-of-living squeeze. CWU members in Royal Mail have faced attacks on terms and conditions and are now being balloted on whether to accept a new negotiated ‘Optimised Delivery Model’. In BT, members face threats from bosses to shed 55,000 jobs, 40% of the workforce, by 2030.
What kind of industrial response is needed to attacks on our members will be a feature of conference.
So too will be the question of where workers look for the political leadership to seek a route out of this mess. The debate about the CWU’s relationship with Labour is a major part of conference, which will take a special report on this issue. The debate will be essential in pointing the way forward for our members, as part of a discussion about workers’ political representation across the whole of the trade union movement.
Continuation of attacks
CWU members, along with millions of other workers, breathed a sigh of relief when the Tories lost the last general election and had high hopes of real improvement in their lives. Labour won a landslide 174-seat majority, the platform to carry out policies of real change for working-class people. But instead we got a continuation of austerity and the anti-working class policies that we suffered under the Tories.
Starmer’s government has operated as ‘New Labour Mark II’, copying the pro-capitalist agenda of Tony Blair, at home and abroad. Disgracefully, he has stood behind the Israeli regime’s murderous war on Gaza. He has been prevented from a fuller supporting role on Iran because of the overwhelming mood among ordinary people to oppose the US and Israeli assault.
The Employment Rights Bill, which is supposed to be Labour’s flagship legislation, has been watered down as a result of constant lobbying by employers. Most significantly, Starmer has not yet abolished the 50% turnout threshold for industrial action brought in by Tory prime minister David Cameron.
‘Fire and rehire’ was supposed to be abolished, but Birmingham bin workers have been on strike for more than a year over precisely that issue, a vicious wage cut of £8,000 a year. The Labour council in Birmingham has used ruthless strikebreaking tactics which have been fully supported by Starmer’s government, and the binworkers’ union Unite has been fined £265,000.
No wonder that last year’s Unite policy conference voted overwhelmingly for an emergency motion, initiated by Socialist Party members in Unite, to start the debate in their union about its relationship with Labour.
Reform seeks to fill the vacuum
These issues are the cause of the electoral surge of the ‘pound-shop Trumps’ of Reform UK, who have sought to fill the political vacuum that Starmer and co have created.
CWU general secretary Dave Ward talks of the rise of Reform and “the real threat of a deeply anti-union government taking shape in a few years’ time”. But our union continuing support for Labour while it attacks the working class and oversees falling living standards will only undermine our case, and can actually further bolster support for the right.
Dave also spoke of “a comprehensive, class-focused approach to resolving the political division that has spread across our society”. The trade union movement, with over 6.5 million workers across all communities, must lead the fight against Farage and the far-right on the slogan passed by TUC Congress in 2018 – ‘Jobs, homes, not racism’.
The call in the special report for “a significant change in the direction of the Labour government”, is likely to be supported by the overwhelming majority of delegates. Supporters of Labour Party affiliation say that it enables us to influence the Labour Party.
But at the 2022 Labour Party conference, during the postal dispute, our union won the vote to make renationalisation of Royal Mail Labour policy. Yet in the crisis in Royal Mail this hasn’t been implemented, leaving our postal members to deal with a succession of venture capitalist vipers. The CWU leadership should have been far more assertive in demanding the renationalisation of Royal Mail, along with BT, to put pressure on Starmer.
In reality, we have received no influence in return for the £100,000 we gave Labour last year.
Change the rules
Socialist Party members will support changing the rules of our union to disaffiliate from Labour. But we are opposed to non-political trade unionism. It is essential that the CWU and all unions have a political voice to strengthen our industrial muscle.
This conference voting to disaffiliate from Labour would be an important step to open up the CWU’s political strategy. The union could then support election candidates that support CWU policies or even stand its own candidates.
Imagine if the union had stood candidates in the May elections calling for the return of Royal Mail to public ownership! That would have been a far more effective use of our political fund than being limited to supporting pro-cuts, pro-privatisation Labour candidates – and would be the beginning of what is needed to cut across working-class support for Reform.
And we would argue for the CWU to go further, to play the leading role in what is desperately needed – a new mass workers’ party on a socialist programme. Along with other unions, to convene a conference on workers’ political representation, to discuss the launching of a real political alternative for workers.
Fringe meeting organised by UTAW branch
Labour Party Disaffiliation – What might the future look like?
Sunday 10th May at the Hermitage Hotel in the Clifton Suite, 6-7.30pm
