Important Meeting of Trade Unions For “Unions of Workers-Not of the Employers”
For the Preparation of May 1st Strike
With the participation of trade unions and trade unionists from all over Greece, took place a meeting on the strengthening of the struggle for “Unions of Workers and not of the Employers” on Saturday, April 13, and also discussed the preparation of the May Day strike and events.
Giannis Tassioulas, president of the Federation of Construction Workers, said:
“Most of you took part, watched closely how we responded to the actions of the trade union mafia of the GSEE leadership team in Kalamata and Rhodes, who wanted to impose the participation of employers and illegimate delegates at the Congress. They did not succeed under the organized, disciplined and effective response of elected delegates and trade unions, who firmly insisted on the obvious: For a real Congress to take place without illegimate delegates and employers.
Today, openly, the employers organize, participate in the elections and are elected as representative of the workers, thus upgrading the mechanism for supporting anti-workers’ policies and anti-workers’ measures, which in the past years was utilized by the collaborationist unionists in order to cultivate complacency, to support the governments and demands of the capitalists, the overall strategy of capital.
… We also want to celebrate the 20th anniversary of PAME’s life and action, which made it impossible for the Trade Unions to become a museum exhibit. PAME that illuminated the prospect that workers must be able to enjoy the wealth they produce without the bosses stealing the sweat of their work. The slogan: “Without you no cog can turn – Worker you can without bosses” condenses and gives the meaning of this prospect for a world without exploitation, wars, poverty, without the slaughterhouses of NATO-EU, their interventions, that create refugees, so as people to live peacefully and with progress. To highlight the necessity of collective struggle in a class direction, our steadfast position to the rights and the purpose of our class, equipped with the conclusions of the struggles of our history to respond to the tasks of today.
Workers can and must put their stamp with their struggles for positive results and the biggest victories.”
In his intervention, Giorgos Perros, Chairman of the Executive Secretariat of PAME, called on the workers to remember the slander and the assault that PAME has faced in its 20 years of action, from the accusations that it is divisive, that it wants the destruction of the economy, and noted
“Be sure friends and foes that we will continue and we are not going to take a step back. It is necessary a demanding plan of action and opening up to the workers in the immediate future, with the insistence on the discussion embracing of any worker without prejudices. The next results of this action will be measured in the May Day strike and demonstrations, with thousands of strikers, with new trade unions and trade unionists in the struggle”
Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141955787@N05/albums/72157690880501183
