By Dr. Gyan Pathak
Two things have clearly emerged during four-days 42nd session of AITUC held during December 16-20 in Alappuzha. First, India is plagued by decent work deficit and dismal status of unorganized sector, and the second, the unity of trade unions, the only tool that can counter the onslaughts on the rights of the workforce in the fast-changing world of work. The common thread in between the two was the concern voiced in all the 60 seminars that relates to the onslaught unleased by the Modi government against the workforce in the country.
Though it was an AITUC event, what has emerged cannot be seen as the product of only one Centre Trade Union deliberations, since it reflects the observations of several other national and international trade unions and other labour organisations that participated. Every on pointed how the rights of the workers are being attacked and their welfare compromised in favour of the corporate, that too by the Union Government of India that is supposed to protect the workforce of the country against any exploitation. The People and the workforce have been divided by the divisive Modi led BJP government that is wedded to a fascist divisive ideology opposed to that of the working class, the most of the speakers pointed out.
In a rare gesture of expressing unity in of the trade union fraternity, the national secretary Radhakrishna of BMS, that has RSS-BJP affiliation, also participated and greeted the open session, in which all in unison synchronised in one voice that the trade union unity is the most essential tool to confront the onslaught on workers’ rights and welfare.
In the open session, Deputy Director DWT (ILO) India, Satashi Sasoki, shared the concerns of the ILO about the increasingly dismal status of unorganised sector workers and the explicit deficit of decent work in India.
Ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Nyugen Thanh Hai, addressing the session said that there is no alternative to united workers movements to establish a just and socialist society.
The open session on December 17, began with hoisting of the national flag by AITUC General Secretary Amarjeet Kaur and the AITUC flag was hoisted by the Working President H Mahadevan. Leaders from other Central Trade Unions participated in the event included Nation Vice-President of INTUC R Chandra Sekaran, CITU President Hemalatha, HMS Secretary Thampan Thomas, AIUTUC President K Radhakrishna, World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) General Secretary V Shankar, Pambis Kyritsis, V B Vinodh Kumar, member of the executive committee, LPF and A AAzeez, President, Central Committee, UTUC.
Pambis Kyritsis, General Secretary of the WFTU shared the deep concerns about the attacks of the barbaric capitalist system and insisted that there is dire need to strengthen the trade unions, cement the trade union unity and politicize the workers.
AITUC General Secretary Amarjeet Kaur in her report on the political and economic developments said that the capitalist system tightening its grips over the economies. There is growing obnoxious nexus between the capitalist and the ruling class with the overt and covert blessings of the WB-IMF-WTO trio, which is throwing a huge challenge to the working class of the world.
‘The situation in India has gone from bad to worse,‘ says the report emphatically, dwelling deeply upon and reflecting the intense anguish on the corporate converting of the Covid pandemic into a money spinning moment like a vulture eating into the corpse. The report carried in essence the greed of the capitalists playing havoc in the lives of the working class. The report narrates the communal agenda of the RSS-BJP combine and dissects as to how the communal and caste discrimination should essentially be fought by the workers of India to remain united to protect the Constitution and the rights enshrined in there.
On the convention of all Central Trade Unions to be held on January 30, 2023, the report said, will chalk out an intense path for concrete struggles to be taken unitedly in India. ‘Way forward’ is very crucial. The report places the challenges of strengthening and expanding, and bringing in more number of women and youth.
Issues relating to Public sector enterprises and government sector, attack on the labour rights and codification of labour laws, attacks on unorganized sector workers’ welfare and challenged for the trade unions, and organisational issues were discussed on December 19. It should be a revelation to know, as it was revealed, that 97 per cent of the workforce in India are presently in unorganized sector contributing 60 per cent to the GDP.
Twenty-five resolutions on the crucial issues such as condemning and resolving to fight the divisive communal agenda of BJP, to fight against its policies of privatisation, demanding to stop attacks on banking, insurance and financial sector, to repeal the four labour codes, to universalise maternity benefits to all women workers were unanimously adopted.
The Conference elected a new General Council – Comrade Amarjeet Kaur as the General Secretary, Com Ramender Kumar as President and Com Binoy Viswam MP as the Working President. There was a massive rally in the evening of 20th December and a public meeting.
The AITUC session has also given a call to defeat the BJP in the 2024 general election alleging that the Modi government has unleashed the communal and divisive forces of RSS-BJP combine and following the nefarious designs of the pro-corporate anti-people anti-worker agenda. (IPA Service)
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