A-Infos (en) Debate on Industrial Organising in Australia - Project "X" - Worker Solidarity Network Manifesto

We have a problem. Australia currently has the lowest rate of strikes and industrial 
action in history. The Fair Work legislation, and previously the Work Choices legislation, 
limits the legality of industrial action to a complicated system of "protected" action, 
where workers must vote in favour of industrial action, which can only be carried out 
during a limited bargaining period. Any industrial action taken outside of these strict 
laws can lead to union organisers and workers copping massive fines. --- At the same time, 
there is clearly a need for industrial action. Australians work the longest hours of any 
OECD country. This work increasingly includes more and more unpaid overtime. The instances 
of deaths and major injuries on building sites has sky rocketed since the ABCC was 
introduced. The system of individualised work agreements and the simplification of Awards 
mean that our work rights are continually being eroded.

Industrial action leads to better pay and conditions. It's no coincidence that Australia 
has a strong history of industrial action, and has also traditionally enjoyed some of the 
best pay and working conditions in the world.

This is where Project X comes in.

Project X is a new rank-and-file workers network that can do what unions can't or won't 
do. It's an independent network aimed at lending solidarity to workers' led industrial 
campaigns and challenge management when workers are under attack. The purpose of Project X 
is to support fellow workers to fight for decent wages and working conditions. As workers 
from different industries and unions, Project X workers can operate without the same fear 
of employer harassment in a particular dispute.

And by communicating with fellow unionists and other members of the general public, 
Project X can help win industrial struggles by generating effective community solidarity 
and support.

Project X aims to make contact with other enthusiastic, like-minded workers who are or 
wish to be engaged in industrial action and support others who are in the thick of it. 
From this we would like to see the growth of strong, active, grassroots trade unionism. 
We also wish to assist people in other areas to develop their own networks. Project X has 
no ties to any political party, group or ideology. We are not interested in seeking office 
within trade unions or engaging in political lobbying or parliamentary activity.



A Critique of Project "X" Now known as the Worker Solidarity Network



The problem with the Project "X"/Network is that it implies just a greater coordination of 
the efforts of Leftist activoids who often use the "anarchist" label. Over the years this 
activity has involved activoids tail ending various workers' industrial disputes, 
particularly helping out on picket lines, the distribution of propaganda in various forms, 
etc. Certainly the evidence is that this staple activity of various Leftist groups has not 
been sufficient to counter the employer offensive and strike major blows at employers. 
With the development of the neo-liberal "strong state" associated with more heavy handed 
policing such tactics as picket lines are becoming increasingly obsolete.

In NSW after the APEC conference held in 2007, where there was a massive display of police 
power with the curbing of various civil liberties and even an attempt by police to capture 
the remaining protestors at the end of the march, the police riot squad was used to break 
up a picket line at McArthur Express on 26/9/10. (1)

The project has of course no focus in regard to where the relatively small numbers of 
Leftist activoids who wave red and black or cicle A flags, should focus their energies. 
Particularly important would be at least some discussion of the employer offensive at 
various moments in Australian history and periods of workers upsurge and raised militancy. 
Any analysis of these moments would reveal the importance of strategic sectors in the 
Australian economy as being flash points of employer and worker offensives.

An obvious example is maritime transport in the case of the Patricks Dispute of 1998. It 
was recognised by employers and the Howard Government that by striking a devastating blow 
against workers in this industrially strategic sector, with the smashing of the MUA 
(Maritime Union of Australia) and imposing of individual contracts, that workers in less 
strategic sectors would be demoralised and their offensive greatly assisted. In this case, 
whilst the workforce was successful in fighting off these attacks, the militancy of the 
wharfies was significantly weakened and important conditions were lost. This lowering of 
the wharfies' morale has played into the hands of the MUA officials in assisting employers 
further attack wharfies' conditions via enterprise bargain agreements and other ploys. The 
"Project X" promoters have of course no notion of assisting the long range, day to day 
activism of militants in such sectors in their self organisation and rebuilding militancy. 
It would particularly involve the publication and distribution of workplace papers over 
many years. It is also of critical importance that direct action movements have bases in 
such sectors which can cut the arteries of the capitalist economy. In terms of defying 
repressive IR legislation, inspiring and assisting similar movements in other industries 
and unions. Leading to the establishing of an alliance of grass roots controlled unions. A 
key step toward the formation of a syndicalist union confederation. The "Project X" 
promoters seem to be attracted to just the exciting moments when industrial disputes blow 
up. However, the day to day class struggle and associated grass roots organising work is 
just as important.

What are the causes of this activoid approach implicit in "Project X"? The legacy of mass 
Stalinism in the mid 20th Century and the influence of identity politics within the 
general Leftist milieu in Australia, apart from the proposers' obvious industrial 
inexperience, would throw some light on this problem.

At a segment of a Conference held in Sydney entitled "See through the Empire" held in 
September 2009 where what has become "Project X" was initially unveiled this unwholesome 
influence was manifest.(2)

One topic at the segment was supposed to be a talk about the British Shop Stewards" 
movement of WWI and immediately afterwards. No analysis was provided of this movement's 
history. After a very short presentation, the segment was subverted into a bizarre "role 
play" where the pairing of attendees occurred, with one imagining they were a British Shop 
Steward and the other a contemporary union rep/workplace activist. Whilst this manoeuvre 
squashed any serious discussion of the trajectory of the British Shop Stewards' movement . 
It was also likely to be some sort of psychological manipulation ploy to

recruit to this emerging sect/Project X. When discussion was allowed during the segment, 
its free flow was precluded by the female activoid who was chairing it, with the use of a 
speakers list informed by the leftist group navel gazing of "gender balance" and desire 
for a political correctness display. Most at this conference segment appeared to express 
no displeasure with these Stalinesque antics and the nonsense of "identity politics" 
informed meeting chairing practices. However the climate of such gatherings and the 
absence of vigorous debate and stimulus to engage in research on various topics encourages 
the aimless industrial activism of the "Project X" promoters. Consequently, the holding of 
the meetings of this group is likely to become an end in itself. So as to have an excuse 
for social occasions and getting over the alienation of bourgeois society. It can also 
only lead to the wasting of the limited energies and resources of the activoids in all 
manner of side shows, and their eventual "flaking out" and "burning out". Whilst the 
employer offensive becomes ever more devastating.

Where major blows have been struck at the momentum of the employer offensive, there is 
important evidence that the alternative approach of long range strategic organising has 
played an important role in this success. An important example in NSW is the defeat of 
restructuring for privatisation in the City Rail station network in September 1999 
associated with "Customer Service Management" in which long range assistance by A SN 
militants helped militant rail workers-achieving this victory. (3) The recent resurgence 
of grass roots organisation, in RailCorp in the shape of "Members' Voice" is also 
associated with this long range, serious work.

mark

(1) See "APEC - Step Toward A Strong State RW Vol.26 No.3 (197) Oct-Nov 2007.

(2) See "Debate on Australian Shop Steward's Network" RW Vol .28 No.3 (204) Sept -Oct 2009.

(3) See "Anarcho-Syndicalist Strategy for Australia Today" RW Vol.20 No.4 (172) Aug - Sept 
2001 in the archive section of our website www.rebelworker.org
------------------------------------------------


From Rebel Worker (Paper of the Anarcho-Syndicalist Network)

Vo1.29 No.3(207) Aug.-Sept. 2010

www.rebelworker.org

PO Box 92 Broadway 2007 NSW Australia
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S  N E W S  S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://ainfos.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/a-infos-en
Archive: http://ainfos.ca/en