Submitted by IWW.org Editor on Sun, 03/18/2012 - 1:36pm
Headlines:
- Pizza Hut Workers Demand A Proper Slice
- Women Workers Fight Back Against Austerity In Poland
- General Strike in Nigeria
Features:
- Special: Centennial of the Bread & Roses Strike
- A Wobbly Version of Beyoncé's "Single Ladies"
- Labor Solidarity Around the World
Download a Free PDF of this issue.
Happy Women's History Month!
Submitted by IWW.org Editor on Sun, 03/11/2012 - 2:17pm
By the IWW's International Solidarity Commission - March 8, 2012
The International Solidarity Commission (ISC) of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) sends a message of solidarity to the striking workers at the Elliniki Halivourgia steel mill near Athens, Greece.
Despite a record increase in profits, the company announced its plans to cut the workers' pay by 40%. After a General Assembly of the workers unanimously rejected these cuts, management retaliated by firing 34 workers. Unintimidated, the workers went on strike, occupying their factory and demanding the re-hiring of their co-workers and the cancellation of the pay cuts.
Greece has become the centre of the global struggle against the capitalist crisis, and the flames of your struggle inspire other workers the world over. Rather then acquiesce to the official lie of a nation united in necessary sacrifice for the common good, you have exposed the truth that the working class are not the cause of the crisis and will not pay for it.
The ISC applauds the brave actions of these steelworkers and urges other workers in similar circumstances to look to the example being set at Elliniki Halivourgia.
Submitted by IWW.org Editor on Mon, 02/13/2012 - 12:25pm
Early in the morning on February 7, 2012, there was a fire in the apartments above the IWW General Headquarters in Chicago.
The damage has left the building uninhabitable and we are unable to perform everyday operations. We believe damage to GHQ's files and equipment will turn out to be quite minimal, as we only suffered minor smoke and water damage.
We are already looking for a new location and hope to have GHQ up and running as soon as possible.
In the meantime, we will do our best to respond to the needs of the greater union, but our accessibility is limited and delays will be inevitable. We are asking that everyone remain patient while we assess damages and find a new home for GHQ.
Thanks and Solidarity,
Sam Green,
General Secretary Treasurer,
Industrial Workers of the World.
Email - ghq [at] iww.org
Submitted by x359437 on Wed, 01/11/2012 - 4:25pm
By Andy Piascik
This story will appear in the March 2012 issue of the Industrial Worker.
One hundred years ago, in the dead of a Massachusetts winter, the great 1912 Lawrence Textile Strike—commonly referred to as the “Bread and Roses” strike—began. Accounts differ as to whether a woman striker actually held a sign that read “We Want Bread and We Want Roses, Too.” No matter. It’s a wonderful phrase, as appropriate for the Lawrence strikers as for any group at any time: the notion that, in addition to the necessities for survival, people should have “a sharing of life’s glories,” as James Oppenheim put it in his poem “Bread and Roses.”
Though 100 years have passed, the Lawrence strike resonates as one of the most important in the history of the United States. Like many labor conflicts of the 19th and early 20th centuries, the strike was marked by obscene disparities in wealth and power, open collusion between the state and business owners, large scale violence against unarmed strikers, and great ingenuity and solidarity on the part of workers. In important ways, though, the strike was also unique. It was the first large-scale industrial strike, the overwhelming majority of the strikers were immigrants, most were women and children, and the strike was guided in large part by the revolutionary strategy and vision of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).
Beyond its historical significance, elements of this massive textile strike may be instructive to building a radical working class movement today. It is noteworthy that the Occupy movement shares many philosophical and strategic characteristics with the Lawrence strike—direct action, the prominent role of women, the centrality of class, participatory decision-making, egalitarianism, an authentic belief in the Wobbly principle that We Are All Leaders—to name just a few. During the two months of the strike, the best parts of the revolutionary movement the IWW aspired to build were expressed. The Occupy movement carries that tradition forward, and as the attempt at a general strike in Oakland and solidarity events such as in New York for striking Teamsters indicate, many in Occupy understand that the working class is uniquely positioned to challenge corporate power. While we deepen our understanding of what that means and work to make it happen, there is much of value we can learn from what happened in Lawrence a century ago.
Submitted by IWW.org Editor on Thu, 01/05/2012 - 6:30pm
Headlines:
- Wobbly Cleaners Fight Back Against Sodexo
- Call For International Day Of Action Against Eurest
- London IWW Cleaners Occupy Guildhall
Features:
- Whose Ports? Our Ports!
- Staughton Lynd Reviews "Rebel Voices"
- Interview With Wobbly Fiction Writer Lewis Shiner
Download a free PDF of this issue.
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