Fighting for better pay for workers

BFAWU president Ian Hodson (with megaphone) on a Fast Food Rights protest (Click to enlarge)

Ian Hodson, President, Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union

Tory chancellor George Osborne has evil plans for those on low incomes. Most benefit claimants are actually in work. Osborne's austerity measures are just a programme of wealth protection for the rich. Trusting George Osborne is fatal if you're on a low to middle income.

So why is his rhetoric not challenged? The answer is simple: we aren't being presented with a credible alternative, particularly from the Labour Party.

Just when Labour appears on the verge of some vote-worthy policies - it blows it by announcing a fiscal policy that just continues Tory austerity. Labour believes it can win the election by saying Labour arsenic is less poisonous than Tory cyanide. Good luck with that in May.

Austerity doesn't reach bankers, spivs and speculators. Bonuses skyrocket. The distribution of wealth and earnings gulf between those at the top and those at the bottom is a disgrace, and the time has come to take steps to address this.

£10 an hour

I'm proud to be national president of a trade union that not only fought and beat the use of zero-hour contracts, but is calling for a £10 an hour minimum wage. The taxpayer tops up the incomes of those whose profitable employers are too greedy and selfish to pay properly. That money could sustain the public services that people rely on.

If hugely profitable companies cannot take social responsibility, it should be forced on them. No ifs, no buts. Nobody should be priced out of sending their children to university, freeze through winter in an unheated home, or rely on a food bank or payday loan because of poor wages.

Push harder

Paying people a wage they can live on would cut the welfare bill, improve people's wellbeing and ease pressure on the NHS in one fell swoop.

You won't hear this from the establishment, as it would mean redistributing wealth, and working people enjoying confidence and high self-esteem. That in itself should encourage people to push harder than ever for better pay and equalisation of income, as well as making different political choices.

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Finance appeal

The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.

The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.

The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.

The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.