[Marxism] All wheels come to a halt, if our strong arm wants it!

[Lüko Willms]

On Fri, 12 Oct 2007 10:29:04 +0200, Johannes Schneider wrote:

> Negotiations collapsed after train operator Deutsche Bahn's (DB) 
failure to improve its wage offer, the GDL union said.

  But BBC did not mention that the GDL signalled readyness to compromise 
on the demand for a 31% raise, while stressing that their main demand 
remains a separate contract for the drives or all of the personnel 
travelling on the trains, thus breaking the unity of the DB workers. At 
the same time, they show not the least sign to work for an industry wide 
collective contract covering not only Deutsche Bahn, but all the 
competing private rail operators, too. 

  The class-collaborationism of the DGB-union Transnet is prompting this 
outbreak, which is both a step forward and a step backward. Previously 
the public service union lost the pilots and flight attendants at 
Lufthansa, and last year the doctors at hospitals. 

  What is needed, in my opinion, is a campaign for a united transport 
workers union, and for a single collective contract covering all the 
railway industry, or better still, all transport branches. At least also 
a common contract for bus drivers etc -- like many other public transit 
companies, the Frankfurt city's transit company, VGF, has formed several 
subsidiaries which do not respect the public service collective contract 
(TVöD), but another one, and thus are paying 30% lower wages than VGF. 
The union at VGF is said to have given their OK to that move. No wonder 
that many particularities try to get the best for their small group. 


Greetings, 
Lüko Willms
Frankfurt, Germany
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visit http://www.mlwerke.de Marx, Engels, Luxemburg, Lenin, Trotzki in German