Current Struggles OGNA is Supporting

Asset Sales: What We Didn't Vote For

The Government’s dreams of raising $7 billion by selling off 49 percent of four energy companies and Air New Zealand have come one step closer to reality with a slim win in Parliament on March the 8^th this year.  National’s partial asset sales legislation, or the Mixed Ownership Model Bill, was passed with just 61 votes to 60.  As recently re-elected Prime Minister John Key sees it, “rightfully so; the issue was voted on in the November election, and National won.” 

Striking, then, is a recent 3 News poll that revealed 62 percent of voters oppose asset sales, with only 35 percent in favour.  Compared with the 60 percent opposed to the plan in early 2011 it would seem that despite a convincing win at the November elections, National failed to get voters on side regarding the biggest issue on which they campaigned.  Such clear-cut evidence makes Key’s offhand remark that a public referendum regarding asset sales is not needed, as “We've had that - it's called an election”, seem all the more infuriating. 

In the absence of democracy being upheld by our elected leader, lobby organisation Grey Power and the Council of Trade Unions are in the process of launching a petition to force a citizens-initiated referendum.   To force such an outcome they will need signatures from 10 percent of all registered voters, that being more than three hundred thousand signatures.  Even when gained, however, the results of such a referendum are not binding – that is, it can be completely ignored by Government. 

Nonetheless this effort is being backed by such parties as the Greens and Labour in light of the dire consequences if nothing at all is done.  Primarily, Green Party co-leader Russel Norman opposes asset sales as it will take assets owned by all New Zealanders and place them in the hands of the wealthiest.  Overall asset sales will create a future that New Zealanders simply cannot afford: one where foreign ownership means profits go overseas; where partial privatisation will inevitably lead to full privatisation and an ensuing lack of control on companies that affect our daily lives.  It is not hard to see how a loss of government control on the electricity market will lead to higher prices as shareholders demand increasing returns for their investments. 

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters recent address to Parliament summed up the situation beautifully, stating that asset sales “is a process arranged by the greedy for the greedy just like this is a Government of the greedy by the greedy and for the greedy."   This blinded move for asset sales has been made by a government completely out of touch, and seemingly with no care for the opinions of, the general public. 

What we need now is to coordinate the voices that oppose this move so strongly.  So keep up to date, talk with friends and family, and get your name on that petition. 

Ports of Aukland Dispute: We Have Been Here Before

In 1951 the management of Ports of Auckland locked out the wharfies, this led to a shut-down of the whole country and bitter ideological battles that have resurfaced again today. After more than 8 months worth of negotiations, the wharfies have been locked out once more. The Maritime union needs to keep on picketing if working conditions in New Zealand are to continue improving.      

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Despite the ruling of the Employment Court, whose decision implies the Port management is being unfair, the quasi 300 workers are still on the streets, unsure when they will get their next payment.   

Unions across New Zealand have applauded the determination of the stevedores fighting for their livelihoods. The families of the workers have been able to get by thanks to the donations from other unions.        

The management of the Ports of Auckland wants to sack the current set of workers to contract new ones, without union affiliation, who will work for worse work conditions. The Ports are already dangerous enough as it is, and the job gets more dangerous further into the night- the longer the work hours. If the Ports get their way, businesses across New Zealand will have an excuse to casualize their workforce. This will mean workers will be given less holidays, there will be less job security and they will have to work longer hours. It will also drive down wages, as each worker, without the backing of strong unions, will be under more of a threat from profit-driven capitalists.    

OGNA stands behind the Maritime Union in its current struggle, and will be backing MUNZ as it comes into negotiations with Port Otago in April. Unions, as democratically-run organisations, are an example of worker solidarity. Countries with strong unions are more equal, and the workers therein earn higher wages.  If we want New Zealand to leave behind the days of unemployment and low wages- stronger unions will be our best bet.

Kony 2012

Kony 2012 may be the first slacktivist campaign to go completely viral within hours. Created by the sub-par charity, Invisible Children, the Youtube video shows how a young kid is sat down and forced to believe that violence and the military can be good. Likewise the viewer is indoctrinated to believe the out-of-date information given to us by one of the charity runners, who has filled his pockets with the money of well-meaning individuals.

Joseph Kony is the founder of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). The militant group operates in 4 countries since 1987. It is believed to have abducted and trained up to 100,000 child soldiers and has been filed by the International Criminal Court on numerous counts of human rights abuses.

The 30-minute spiel is an example to follow when it comes to marketing. That is all it is though. Some reports say that only 30% of money given to the charity ends up where it was destined. The Kony 2012 video successfully pushes an empathy button- but as many have already said, liking a status is not going to change the world. Moreover, liking a bottom that supports the US' world-domination campaign through military 'peace-enforcing' is the wrong path to take.

OGNA believes Invisible Children has succeeded in creating an awareness campaign. However, instead of buying products, nonviolent methods such as petitioning governments, demonstrating before embassies and boycotting countries and products are good alternatives. The Kony 2012 campaign has enraged many Ugandans who have already started to boycott the charity's products. If we want to change the world, we have to be more active in our fight against injustices.

Unite! The Power of Unions and the Way Forward

The Unite trade union is New Zealand’s fastest growing union gaining 600 new members every month and 25000 in the last five years. It has successfully organised groups of workers that until recently were viewed as un-organisable working in often short-term employment in hotels, restaurants, casinos, cinemas, call centres, security, malls andlanguage schools. Workers from every sector are now joining because they want a union that will work positively with their employer but will also fight for them. When Unite started a campaign in 2005 to win union contracts most members had no breaks and earned less than $10 an hour. Unite was the first union to win 15 minute rest breaks for 90% of members and won wage rises of up to $6 an hour.

Unite protests in West Aukland!

Unite fights to improve workers wages and work conditions through negations to dynamics strikes that range from lively picket lines to “Tea-ins” where workers don’t work but instead drink tea in the staffroom. Unites red flags can been seen at the forefront of any protest, marches, pickets or strikes. These are not just about workers rights but also environmental movements and anti-war movements. It has run may successful campaigns including the “supersize my pay” campaign which after a year of campaigning got the minimum wage pushed up from $9 an hour to $12; a campaign to get security hours for part time workers; and a campaign that banished workers. They are now working to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour and are planning action during the Rugby World Cup. Experts have predicted the event will pump as much as $1.15 billion into the economy and Unite union national secretary Matt McCarten said workers should share that. He was quoted in the New Zealand Herald as saying "We don't want to disrupt the games, but we have a job to get some of that wealth and share it around a bit." Hospitality workers will be required to work longer and harder than ever during the world cup and as it stands, while their bosses reap the benefits of the extra cash, they, who ensure this event can happen, gain nothing more than fatigue. Room rates in many hotels are set to go up tenfold. The wages of workers not at all.

In any employment relationship there is always more power with an employer. When workers join together it can take some of that power back. Workers create society’s wealth, but have no control over its production and distribution. A socialist society can only be built when workers collectively take control of that wealth and democratically plan its production and distribution according to human needs instead of profit. This is the first step to creating global equality. The working class is the vast majority of society and is the key to the fight for socialism. Workers’ central role in production gives them a social power to paralyze the system like no other social force: the strike. It is therefore the only part of society that can overthrow the current system and lead the struggle to end oppression for all people.

Unite is an example of what trade unions across the country and the world should look like but unfortunately many unions no longer work like this. Trade union officials often pay themselves salaries closer to the employers they negotiate with than the workers they are meant to represent and workers no longer feel that unions really represents their interests -or, perhaps more importantly, that they have any organizational input or say as to what the union does or does not do. Unite union works with a grassroots democratic model where its members have a say in how the organisation is run unlike the top-down pyramid systems inherent in capitalist society that are seen in most unions today. Union bureaucracy is inherently conservative, and therefore, as a social layer, resists not only true and large progressions for workers but ultimately, revolution. The consciousness and activeness of the working class however, can and does change very dramatically from period to period, but as a class, workers are capable of overcoming the “ruling ideas” of society and, through their own activity, becoming capable of fundamentally reshaping society.

This cannot be achieved without organisation which cannot happen without unions. The increase of membership in unions and the creation of new unions is the first thing that must happen with rising class consciousness to transform consciousness into action to create social change. This on its own cannot completely change society - to move beyond the limits of unions, the working class must build organizations—preferably organizations of workplace delegates—that overcome the sectional divisions unions take for granted (between workplaces, between different skills and between different industries).  And it must build rank-and-file organizations inside the union movement that guide the struggle forward when the union officials act as a block to further struggle.

According to the British Socialist and Trade unionist Tom Mann, “The object of the unions is to wage the class war and take every opportunity of scoring against the enemy.” One cannot imagine such a statement passing the lips of a single trade union leader today although Unite certainly comes closer than any other. Unions of the past held in common the idea that socialism must come from below as a product of working class self-activity. That commitment meant a determination to organise the unorganised. For example, the Massachusetts textile workers’ strike of 1912 involved some 23,000 strikers who spoke at least 14 different languages. The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) organised them all using mass pickets and 10000 strong daily protests to win. This is what Unite is starting to do today- however class and political consciousness in New Zealand and many western countries is at an all time low. This means that is a slow struggle, however, as history has shown many times, this could change quickly at any moment.

Socialism is working-class self-emancipation. Only mass struggles of the workers themselves can put an end to the capitalist system of oppression and exploitation. We support trade unions as essential to the gain for workers’ economic and political rights. To make the unions fight for workers’ interests, rank-and-file workers must organize themselves independent of the union officials. Organisations that will fight for the rights of the oppressed are dedicated to non-violent action and are needed to lead the struggle for equality and it is vital that their members are involved unions in their work places in order to create change.

Unite is by far the most promising union in New Zealand and is an example to follow. They are now campaigning to raise the legal minimum wage to $15 an hour. If they win, then all workers will get a pay rise – making lives for the majority that little bit easier.

J. Llewellyn

Te Mana

Hone Harawira at the Te Mana party hui

The appearance of Te Mana on New Zealand’s political scene is an exciting development for the working class and politics in general, but it has left many socialist organisations confused. OGNA believes that while it is a good thing and we must use it while it’s there, its working class identity is as much of a facade as parliamentary politics on the whole.

Hone Harawira split from the Maori party due to his former party’s relationship with National. Hone was highly critical of the Foreshore and Seabed Act and his comments, in which he called the coalition with National more important than the commitment to Maori over the issue, eventually led to his resignation from the Maori party. He had proved the only class-conscious left-wing voice in the Maori party, interested in Maori and class. When the by-election was called, he received flak from National and the media saying that it was a waste of tax-payer money. As Hone said, it is “hardly an expense in terms of democracy”. On the 25th of June Hone regained his seat in parliament as leader of Te Mana, winning the election with a significant 8% advantage. The Maori party was relegated to a mere 9% of votes.

Te Mana is needed in the current political spectrum. Hone is pro-worker and Te Tai Tokerau are aware of this. The Maori party on the other hand have started to lose their niche. Maori, in their vast majority are working class; they live in the poorer suburbs or areas of the countries and still now a disparity between Maori and Pakeha levels of education exists. The Maori party has failed to represent the working class sector of the Maori population. Hone and Te Mana however, are set to create a pro-Maori and pro-working class party. They note in their kaupapa that “ordinary New Zealanders are starving, workers are being forced into slavery by the 90-day bill, and Maori rights are being drowned in the Raukumara Basin”[1]. Te Mana doesn’t just represent Maori interests, it represents the interests of the working class, in other words the majority of New Zealanders, because Maori are an important and significant part of this working class.

There is no party in parliament currently that can actually say it truly represents the working class. National and Labour serve capital and neo-liberal economics, thus hurting the majority of Kiwis with lower pay, worse representation in terms of unions, increased fears of job loss; all in the name of recession or austerity. At the same time though we are seeing tax subsidies and tax cuts for a few, as well as a destruction of our services of education and our environment. Te Mana is focussed on rebalancing the scales, it wants to put ‘class’ back into the agenda. The Labour Party and the Greens are losing support to Te Mana. Sue Bradford, Matt McCarten, John Minto, Mike Treen and Annette Sykes have all joined Hone, they have long fought for the working class, green politics and Maori identity. Hone is also helping to set up a much-needed activist youth force, Mana Rangatahi.

OGNA stands in support of Te Mana, we must remember though that while Mana does represent the interests of the working class, so did Labour once, so did the Maori Party, the Alliance and so do the Greens. It is key that Te Mana continues its quest to protect workers and Maori but at the end of the day it is yet another cog in the system. Parliament is focussed on reform, it will never achieve full equality or justice for the working class. OGNA believes there is the danger that socialist organisations will lose their way supporting Te Mana, capitalism can only be changed through a movement by the workers and for the workers. We need to empower communities and unions that will be able to unite people in the struggle nationally and internationally. Reforms will never end up achieving economic justice; the workers do not receive what they work for, they are oppressed and forced to slave in the interest of bosses and under the duty of nationalism. We must overcome these restrictions. In order to achieve a socialist society, one that belongs to the working class and through it everyone else, workers must unite to achieve a socialist revolution, which will only succeed if it is non-violent.

 

D. F. Benson-Guiu

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[1] http://mana.net.nz/kaupapa-vision/

Kronic Escapism.

It isn’t new to anyone that we can now buy synthetic marijuana from stores down the street. Essentially it could be seen as an example as to what the effects of legalising marijuana would be. First hand I have seen people buy Kronic and all the other brands every night, spending more money than they have on getting high. As we are currently seeing with Kronic, if marijuana became legal, it would become openly accessible to people who would normally not use it. Kronic’s effects seem to be harsher than marijuana’s but little is known for the moment other than it causes “vomiting, drowsiness, chest pain, palpitations and dissociation from reality”, the ODT reports. OGNA is not against the use of marijuana or “synthetic cannabinoids”, however we are interested in the reasons why these drugs are being used.

The government profits from selling cigarettes and alcohol, undoubtedly it must profit from selling Kronic, and the fact that so little information is known and that Kronic packets aren’t labelled with contents or precautions implies the government is earning a lot of money on them. It is in the governments benefit to have the working class, or students as the future one, hooked onto drugs. They benefit economically but they can also use drugs to keep the working class under check. Why do workers drink or smoke pot? Is in search of happiness? While there are social aspects involved with drinking and smoking, the addiction to these drugs fool people into thinking that they are being liberated from the stresses of day-to-day life. Thus people use them more often, at the expense this entails, to escape in search of happiness. What are people fleeing though? If they are fleeing the stresses of education we must look into that, if they are fleeing the bad work conditions they have to submit themselves to at low wages, we must look at that too.

It is true that workers and students have stressful lives. For workers, the low-paid salaries we receive in New Zealand forces us to work longer hours in order to have enough to pay for rent, groceries, education, children etc. Having to balance this with our social lives, children... is definitely not an easy job. For students the increased workload and obligations to succeed that have been put onto us force us to slave away behind books so that we can come out the other end of the manufacturing line with a diploma and a couple of letters in our hand. Then we have to add to the mix the stress of part-time work, student loans and finding jobs. It is no wonder workers and students seek to release themselves and find fleeting instances of happiness through drugs. Here we can see employers shovelling on another duty onto us. We are constantly threatened to work hard so we don’t lose our jobs or in order to be competitive, and then do so again the next day and the next while employers or ministers reap the benefits of our toll.

Employers, under laws such as the ninety day bill, can easily sack workers who are being less and less represented by passive unions. The key to decreasing our dependency on alcohol and marijuana is to build stronger unions that can improve conditions in the work place and gain benefits for students. This can only be achieved through the initiative of the average worker or student. We have to build strong unions that won’t back down, unions concerned with the membership and run democratically from bottom-up. This way we can gain pay increses and improve work conditions which will make our lives outside the workplace happier and more fulfilling.


D. F. Benson-Guiu