John: Well this is certainly a rather more thoughtful reply than your one line dismissal from on-high of May 4 (#41646 by John O’Brien.) Thank you.
My original point had been not to necessarily praise the WSWS. I have said before on the list however that their reporting is frequently well researched, insightful and thorough. (Does it need to be said that I am far from being a follower of Trotsky?) Anthony and you are right: The WSWS ultimately always picksup the sectarian edge however. Anthony characterises their attitude as "They think that the AFL-CIO is an organ of the capitalist state (I am not joking.) ... the Chicago Teachers Union leadership, the real heart of My Day Strong, is not made up of a bunch of ordinary pie-card union bureaucrats. … I cannot just write them off as worthless parasites on the working class.. ( #41654 )”. Anthony - Yes I agree to dismiss the whole of that CTU Chicago layer as “TU bureaucrats” is unlikely to be correct and a “slap” that would be felt by the majority and honest members of the CTU. Yes - there are often unions that are more class aware and acute in their approach than the rest of the class. For example in the UK the NUM were always at the lead. But Anthony and John: This does not take away that as the reality of the Trumpite enabling of the billion-ocracy, and the cutting of whatever crumbs for social care (the Obamacare care enablement) begins to bite in earnest, some more struggles of the rank and file rise. I mean labor share income has fallen drastically over the years to 2017 and I think the curve must be steeper now - best I found was only up to 2017. ( https://www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/economic-fact/thirteen-facts-about-wage-growth/ ). And mostly it is still union workers that make up the strikers of tofday. See: ( https://www.ilr.cornell.edu/faculty-and-research/labor-action-tracker-2024 ). As cited, the Cornell ILR data suggests to me that: (i) Rate of growth overall has been increasing; and (ii) In 2024 a 24-8 % (i.e 1/4) of strikes were “non-union” but they only accounted for 1.6% workers on strike. In summary the Cornell report says: Some notable trends are emerging over the last four years from our data. In 2024, workers’ top three demands in work stoppages were better pay, improved health and safety and increased staffing, which remained the same the last two years. Also like in 2023, accommodation and food services still accounted for the largest number of work stoppages by any industry (23.6%), though less than the approximately one-third of all work stoppages this industry accounted for in 2022 and 2023. Third, unlike in 2023, the vast majority of striking workers came from educational services (32.7%) and the highest number of strike days from manufacturing (40%). Fourth, there was a slight increase in the percentage of work stoppages organized by nonunionized workers (24.8%) as compared to 2023. Fifth, in terms of region, the West accounted for more work stoppages (40.7%) and the overwhelming majority of workers involved in stoppages (66.8%) compared to any other region in the United States. Overall, the total number of work stoppages, approximate number of workers and strike days did not reach 2023 levels, but the number of stoppages, workers involved, and strike days in 2024 exceeds those of 2021 and the number of workers involved, and strike days exceeds those of 2022." So Anthony & John: Returning to the WSWS reporting - they do seem to show a number of strikes being terminated by premature agreements made by the trade union leadership. Like the WSWS or not… There is I believe, more than a grain of truth in that. I’ve run out of time in between ’stuff’. I’ll return to the rest of your commentary John later. Cheers, H -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#41663): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/41663 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/119101600/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
