No pie in the sky when you die

"The age of union militancy has passed; the age of employer militancy has arrived", according to Ross Gittins, writing in the Sydney Morning Herald. The aim of the article was to look at why "the bosses are winning".

The most interesting aspect of the article, which otherwise lacks rigorous analysis, is the frank acknowledgment that the bosses, as a class, are on the offensive. For instance, Gittins claims, "As a class, bosses are now a lot less sympathetic, a lot more hard nosed .... They don't feel guilty about making people work harder, work at 'unsociable hours' or relocate."

Notwithstanding the fact that the bosses were never known for their sympathetic attitude towards working people, there has been an offensive by big business against our living standards through the '80s and '90s. According to Gittins, over the 12 years to 1995, the average weekly working hours of full-time workers have risen by two and a half hours to almost 41 hours a week. The casualisation of the work force (which is used to undermine overall working conditions) has risen by around 9% in the last 10 years.

But the underlying sentiment of the article, despite its apparently objective reporting of the facts, is the need for us to accept this state of affairs — "the economic reality has changed" and working people need to "accept their tougher lot", goes the concluding argument.

But as Joe Hill, the militant agitator and balladeer for the Industrial Workers of the World, argued some 90 years ago, there is no "pie in the sky when you die". Green Left Weekly too campaigns against the ideological viewpoint that we have to passively accept the status quo.

This means campaigning against their economic reality, which is imposed on us. Green Left campaigns for a fundamental transformation of the economy — one based on prioritising people's needs and the environment before the profits of big business — and a society that is democratically run by the majority.

If you too reject passive acceptance of the status quo, why not become part of the Green Left project? Donate to the Green Left Weekly fighting fund or buy a subscription. Call our subscription (free call) hot line on 1800 634 206 now. Green Left Weekly — the paper that's fighting back. It's your paper.

From GLW issue 270