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The communists in Benelux and Germany make common cause

Conference of four communist parties (The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany and Belgium) on 29 and 30 March 2008 in Luxembourg.

Trade-unionists and militants also participated

The conference started on Friday 28 March at the Town Hall of Esch-sur-Alzette in the presence of the press. Jo Cottenier (PTB), Jan Ilsink (NCPN), Ali Ruckert (KPL) and Wolfgang Teuber (DKP) submitted the common programme of the four parties concerning the European flexicurity agenda.

A member of the VW worldwide Works Council, steelworkers from Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg, postmen from Belgium, trade-unionists from the German and Dutch food-supply and electronic sectors, officials from the Workers' Party of Belgium (PTB), from the German Communist Party (DKP), from the New communist party of the Netherlands (NCPN) and from the Communist Party of Luxembourg (KPL) held a conference in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg.

They were meeting for the third time in order to share experiences and effect improvements in the co-ordination of actions to be taken against the European measures in the field of flexicurity, liberalisation of public services, etc… The conference constitutes the offensive answer given by the four parties to all the attempts made to break up the workers’ movement.

The previous conferences had focused on bringing out a better understanding of the EU’s plans and of the manner in which they were being put into practice in the different countries. The European dockers, together with Niek Stam from The Netherlands, explained how it was possible to win in the struggle against European plans. The contacts made during the conference have made it possible for the PTB to contribute to the solidarity movement of the workers of VW Germany and Belgium in their struggle against the planned closure of VW Forest (Belgium).

European Workers’ Solidarity

The third conference aimed at extending such contacts to other sectors and, primarily, to those where all our parties are active. Different trade-unionists talked at length about workers’ solidarity.

Horst Gobrecht told how, during a strike at Nestlé’s, Germany, the workers of Nestlé Belgium had refused to be blacklegs. Steelworkers from Liège (Belgium), from the Saar region (Germany) and from Luxembourg presented a report on the situation prevailing in their companies, and on the work carried out by their party. On the same day, they also spoke about their wish to step up collaboration in future.

Collaboration across the borders would make it possible to thwart the plans of a multinational like VW to proceed to shutdown, declared Uwe Fritsch (DKP), member of the European and worldwide works council at VW. This is how, when threatened with a decrease in production, they obtained that no shutdown would be carried out, but that the decrease in production would be apportioned among the different plants instead.

Jef Bossuyt (PTB-La Poste) explained how the liberalisation of La Poste was being carried out in Belgium. Sonja Heyman, shop steward in La Poste gave a stimulating overview of the struggle carried out to pre-empt any move aiming at the closure of two post offices in Deurne, Her story, and the story told by François Ferrara of the Liège section of the PTB concerning successful actions against shutdowns have brought about very positive reactions from the comrades in other countries. The Dutch comrades proposed to bring them into contact with similar action committees in The Netherlands where the dismantling of the post office as a public service has already gone much further than in Belgium.

Contributions to the Conference will appear in the summer edition of Études marxistes (www.marx.be).

A Black Book on European flexicurity

During the conference, Julia Monossawa (DKP Germany) told the participants that « in Germany, if an unemployed person wants to get an indemnity, he (she) has to sell his (her) house first”. Julia described the dramatic situation in which the unemployed have been plunged since the insufferable Hartz IV reform carried out by the Schroeder government. Since then, after one year of unemployment, the unemployed fall into an inhuman system of assistance: they first have to sell whatever they possess, in certain cases they have to look for cheaper accommodation and they only get social help if their spouses do not earn enough to support their households. Furthermore, they are compelled to accept jobs with an hourly income which is barely one euro more than the unemployment indemnity. This leads to really distressful situations; it also creates a panic climate among those who still have a job: these people will go to the extent of accepting salary cuts and longer working hours in order not to find themselves in such a situation.

As Willem van der Klift, of the national leadership of the NCPN, put it, from several points of view, given the extension of interim employment, of temporary contracts and of part-time work, The Netherlands already are a European model of flexibility. And now, the Balkenende IV government wants to make it possible to dismiss workers rapidly and without motive. In doing so it is heading for a new confrontation with the trade unions.

Jo Cottenier (PTB) presented a summary report on the condition of things as far as European flexicurity plans are concerned and on the resistance which they elicit. Europe is set on Americanizing the employment market via a general offensive against labour legislation – that, precisely, is flexicurity. In order to prevent this from happening, the trade unions have to play the part which was theirs originally: unite the workers, including the ever-growing number of revocable contracts. Jo proposed to the four parties that they jointly write a black book on the crazy situations to which the flexicurity strategy is already leading now in various countries. His proposal was received with special praise.

The drawing up of this black book on flexicurity is underway and the next conference is being prepared. If you are interested in participating or want to know more about the possibilities of international collaboration in this sector, please contact the author (herwig.lerouge@teledisnet.be)