26 August 2003
Building Working Class Power
Comrade National Office Bearers of SATAWU, ANC, SACP and COSATU leaders, local and international guests, comrade delegates, uma abasebenzi bakamjantshi behlangana siyajabula njengamakhomanisi uma nathi sikwazi ukuthi sithole ithuba lokubeka izimvo zethu ngemizabalazo yabasebenzi njengoba sibhekene nezimpi ezinzima njengehlelo labasebenzi.
Through this input, the Communist Party is attempting to pose a discussion for consideration by this SATAWU Congress regarding how we deepen the relationship between our Party and the trade union movement as the basis for advancing working class struggles in the transport sector and in general. This is not a moot question or said out of fashion.
In the view of the SACP, ongoing workers' struggles around a living wage, fair working conditions, retrenchments, outsourcing, workplace transformation, workplace health and safety are important as part of the overall struggle against capitalism. These struggles are informed by the accumulation regime in our country which continues to benefit the owners of capital at the direct expense of workers. However, it is not clear to what extent are we harnessing these struggles with our overall goal to build socialism now. To what extent has the trade union movement approached these daily working struggles from a consistently socialist perspective. What role has the Communist Party played in this regard? What is the role of the SACP, as the political vanguard of South Africa's working class, in deepening the socialist outlook, consciousness, confidence and unity of all sections of the working class? Can we say that we have engaged in these daily struggles fully advancing the relevance and absolute necessity of socialist ideology, strategy and organisation?
We ask all these questions in order to underline the importance of the relationship between the Communist Party and the trade union movement and not just approach it as a formal debate.
1. THE EMERGING WORKING CLASS MEDIUM TERM VISION
As we speak, structures of our Party are preparing to start a debate on the Party's medium-term vision discussion document. Simultaneous with this is a COSATU discussion and preparations for the 8th National Congress and the 2015 vision document. The Party's medium-term vision discussion document seeks to develop a working class vision for the next 10-12 years. It asks what kind of society do we want to see in South Africa by the end of the second decade of our freedom in 2014? At its last CEC (16-17 July), COSATU received and extensively debated the "Vision 2015" document. Why are the primary working class formations in our country concerned with the next decade and pre-occupied with a medium term working class vision?
Nearly a decade after our 1994 breakthrough it is critical that the trajectory of what has been achieved and the trajectory of where we are going, or of where we should be going, are assessed strategically from a working class perspective.
The 1994 democratic breakthrough secured state power for a fundamentally progressive, multi-class, national democratic power bloc in which the working class has been a significant factor. Over the last decade, as a direct consequence of the breakthrough, very significant constitutional, legal and institutional power has been shifted towards the working class. There have also been major, if uneven, resource transfers (housing, electricity, water, telecommunications, health-care, education, social security, land) to the working class and to working class dominated communities.
However, in other respects, working class power has been weakened and diluted in this period, especially by the staggering number of jobs lost in the formal sector (more than 1 million), and by other drastic restructuring measures directed at the working class (casualisation, informalisation, etc). This major and brutal restructuring of our economy, in which the working class and working class communities have borne the brunt, has, in fact, been under way in our economy since the mid-1970s. But, in many respects, the process has been accelerated and also extended into new sectors (retail, finance and, critically, the public sector) since 1994. However, two and a half decades of labour-shedding restructuring has left a persisting legacy of systemic, structural unemployment with levels of unemployment around a staggering 40%.
The trajectory of post-1994 transformation has been contested by a variety of class forces, including from within the Alliance itself. There has been a notable, if still relatively weak, emergence of new black capitalist and upper middle strata closely related to and dependent upon the new democratic state and the ANC-led alliance. These developments have, naturally, impacted upon the policy perspectives and internal contradictions within the new democratic state, and our movement.
The majority (black) sector of the working class and these emergent upper middle and bourgeois strata have shared interests, not least in the consolidation of an effective, powerful, non-racial, democratic state capable of intervening and strategically directing the economy, whose commanding heights continue to be dominated by established domestic capitalist forces, and by transnational corporations (who would prefer to see a lean state whose principal activities would be limited to creating an investor friendly climate and protecting existing bourgeois property rights). Our multi-class ruling bloc also shares a general vision of and a common interest in regional and continental development, overcoming the existing patterns of imperialist accumulation and underdevelopment.
However, the strategic nature of the democratic state's interventions into the economy, the region and continent are, themselves, contested within the Alliance itself, and this contest reflects different class interests. Should BEE be narrowly or broadly defined, not just in theory but in practice? Should our objective in regard to support to township survivalist operations be transforming them into formalised, market effective businesses (i.e. enterprises based on labour exploitation and profit maximisation), or should we be trying to de-link entrepreneurship from labour exploitation and the "laws" of the market? Is the restructuring of state owned enterprises geared to consolidating a more effective development state and parastatal sector, or is it, again, about creating business opportunities for emerging elites?
In many ways this is an expression of the fact that whilst this democratic multi-class bloc of forces has attained state and democratic power, economic power still remains with the same old white capitalist class. This is the fundamental contradiction of the first ten years of our democracy. For any qualitative advances to be made in the national democratic revolution, significant breakthroughs on the economic front, and to the benefit of the workers and the poor, needs to be made on the economic front. The capitalist class is incapable of realizing such a breakthrough. Only, and only the working class is capable of leading this necessary advance in our national democratic breakthrough! It is the only class with the necessary muscle and revolutionary traditions and capacity to make this decisive advance.
However, while working class strategies face serious challenges, there are important positive factors upon which we need to build. Our ANC-led liberation movement, while contested, remains fundamentally rooted amongst the working class and poor. The working class forces, at the point of production and in communities, unleashed in the struggle against apartheid, while partially destabilised by objective and subjective factors, remain a significant national factor with important organisational and mobilisational revolutionary experience. The emergent capitalist and upper middle strata remain weak and highly dependent on state power, which, in turn, depends upon electoral success and therefore a relatively unified and mobilised mass base. The globally dominant ideological prescriptions are totally incapable of addressing the socio-economic challenges of our society.
In response to these developments, what does the medium-term vision discussion document of the SACP say? To quote: "We cannot ... guide, lead and grapple with the current period and all its developments, as well as the second decade of our freedom, unless we develop a medium term vision... The fundamental goal of the SACP for the next 10-11 years should be that the working class by then must be having a decisive and qualitative impact on all key sites of power and influence - particularly political, mass and economic sites of power - such that no significant centre of power in society can ... exercise that power without a significant input from, and centrally taking into account the class interests of, the working class" (Bua Komanisi, July 2003, Volume 3 No.1 p.3).
In relation to the ideological struggle, the SACP's discussion document on the medium term vision calls for: "Building a conscious cadre able to impact on state institutions and policy, economic and mass formations in favour of the workers and the poor." Most critically, the document states that: "In the same way that the locomotive and bedrock of the struggle against apartheid was the organised power of the working class, any further qualitative advance in the NDR is dependent on the power and political consciousness of that working class" (Bua Komanisi, July 2003, p.4).
The COSATU CEC document ("Consolidating Working Class Power for Quality Jobs - Towards 2015") argues: "We need a 2015 plan because it has become clear that only deep-seated restructuring of our economy and the state can bring about the aims of the National Democratic Revolution" (p.1). Of fundamental importance in achieving this goal is the fact that: "Our assessment of the past ten years suggests a complex pattern of gains and setbacks. On the one hand, the 1994 transition brought major political and social gains, with the introduction of democracy... and extension of government services to our communities... On the other hand, whilst the democratic forces have entered political office, the economic ruling class has remained the same. Our economy remains in white hands, dominated by the mining finance complex in alliance with foreign capital" (p.3).
Through this ongoing discussion, the Party intends to make it possible for the trade union movement to grapple with current challenges from a consistently working class perspective in order to tilt the balance of class forces in favour of poor and working people. To reaffirm, the realisation of the emerging working class vision, let alone winning the struggle to build socialism, is not possible without deepening the socialist outlook, consciousness and confidence of the working class in order that the working class turns its daily struggles into a general offensive against capitalism.
Trade Union and Working Class Unity
Given the massive challenges we will face in building the working class as a class in and for itself, working class unity is absolutely central. We must consciously nurture and deepen the unity of the working class, its ideological perspectives and programme during this period. Central in achieving this is the unity of the trade union movement itself. It is important that we politically and ideologically defeat opportunism and sectarian tendencies within the trade union movement, and ensure that we develop and strengthen. Trade union unity is a critical factor in broader working class unity.
We are therefore calling upon all transport workers to strengthen and jealously guard their SATAWU against any form of weakening. This also requires that SATAWU must, as all unions must, ensure that excellent service to workers is provided on an ongoing basis and that workplace union structures are strengthened.
However we need to guard against one of the biggest dangers facing the trade union movement today, business unionism and transformation of our cadres into agents of business rather than loyal and dedicated cadres in the service to the workers. We must all understand that from a capitalist point of view unions are sources of business, from the mashonisas and agents of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. These forces would seek to recruit from our ranks their agents, thus destroying the very soul of not only the trade union movement, but the working class and the struggle of socialism as a whole. We must defeat this tendency towards business unionism, if we are to defeat poverty, joblessness and capitalism in our country. We can have no unity under these circumstances.
In this Savings Week for our country, we are instead calling for the creation of financial institutions owned and controlled by the working class itself. We are calling for the formation of savings and credit co-operatives as an important step towards a workers' co-operative bank, providing savings and affordable credite and other services to the workers of our country. These co-operatives are critical in beginning to build working class power in the financial services sector. As the working class and poor communities we are already controlling billions of rands through our stokvels and burial societies. Let us convert these into a viable savings and credit co-operative movement as part of defeating the mashonisas and elements pursuing business unionism. We call upon SATAWU to form its own savings and credit co-operative as part of this overall offensive to build the financial muscle of the working class.
The Trade Union Movement and the SACP
One of the central strategies of the enemies of the working class is to drive a wedge between communists and the labour movement, thus aiming to weaken the working class as a whole whilst strengthening the capitalist character of our society. Consequently, the role of the trade union movement in building the SACP has been under discussion for some time in COSATU structures and affiliates including SATAWU. Many COSATU affiliates have resolved to build industrial units of the SACP, to start socialist forums and to mobilise for the debit order campaign. How far have we gone to grapple with this question in practice? Where have we succeeded? What challenges are there in building Party units in the various transport workplaces? What resources and programme has SATAWU put in place to build these Party units? What role are these units supposed playing or can play in strengthening SATAWU? In turn, what role has the Party played in discharging its tasks to SATAWU? What challenges has the Party faced in this regard? What is SATAWU's assessment of this Party role? What complimentary role does SATAWU believe that the Party should play in the building of SATAWU and in working class struggles in the transport sector?
Indeed, many workers belonging to COSATU affiliates have signed the SACP debit order campaign and the Party continues to receive important support from COSATU affiliates. However, we cannot say the same of the building of industrial units and socialist forums which should be the lifeblood of working class political life in the workplace. We are raising these in a self-serving manner BUT if the working class is to really build its confidence and deepen its socialist outlook and consciousness, then we all have to pay honest attention to these issues.
Very few Party districts and branches have succeeded to build industrial units and socialist forums despite the fact that many workers in COSATU love and respect the Communist Party. In our assessment this is due to a number of reasons: · One, the political and organisational tasks of the industrial units and the socialist forums are not commonly understood by Party structures and union structures · Two, the many day-to-day challenges facing union structures and Party structures on the ground has limited the space for thinking and action in building the industrial units and socialist forums · Three, workplace restructuring has negatively affected trade unions through de-politicisation of key layers of the trade union movement
These are formidable challenges we dare not under-estimate. We strongly believe that building SACP workplace units is one concrete way through which our Party can work closely with the labour movement and as part of the arsenal of tools the working class must use to realise its objectives. Through these we can conduct political education and cadre development, and bring the Party closer to organised workers. We need to jointly look at ways of putting more effort into this task as part of working to consolidate and achieve the working class medium-term vision.
2. WORKING CLASS STRUGGLES IN THE TRANSPORT SECTOR: FROM THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT TO A TRANSPORT INDUSTRIAL SECTOR SUMMIT?
Following the Growth and Development Summit held in June, government announced massive investment in transport and other infrastructure. Much as this is welcome, but do we have sectoral and overall transformation strategies for the transport industry in our country?
As the grimly death of our comrades on May Day in Bethlehem reminds us, a central challenge in such a transport sectoral strategy is the need for an efficient, high-quality, affordable and accessible public transport system.
The SACP has joined with COSATU and the ANC in welcoming the Growth and Development Summit and the general direction of its key resolutions. The GDS marks an important step forward in the economic debate within our country, and within our Alliance. In 1996, GEAR endeavoured to centre the economic debate on the macro-economic. Government's economic role, we were asked to believe, was to "create an investor friendly" climate that would attract major flows of foreign investment. It is no secret that GEAR failed to achieve major investment flows (in fact, more money was taken off-shore in the liberalised climate, than money flowing in).
In the face of this failure, government tended to shift to privatisation as the principal means to attract major flows of foreign investment. In this period, for instance, 20% of our national air-carrier, SAA was sold to Swissair. It was also argued that we needed foreign managerial expertise, and Coleman Andrews was brought in as CEO. We all know what a disaster he caused. As for Swissair, the great private company that was supposed to come to our rescue - it went into liquidation, and we have had to re-nationalise their 20%!!
While GEAR macro policies and privatisation have not disappeared off the agenda, the GDS marks an important potential shift as to where the heart of the economic policy debate should be located. At the GDS we were not asking as the main question: "How do we attract foreign investment?" We were asking: "What economic resources do we have as South Africans - as the state, as the parastatals, as the trade union movement, as the private sector, as the community sector?" We were asking: "How best do we mobilise our own resources for job creation and job retention, for growth and development?"
This is an important potential shift. It is also important, because it begins to locate the economic debate much closer to the real economy in which working people are active. Much of the success of the GDS was based on preceding sector summits - like the Financial Sector Summit (in which the SACP played a very active role), and the Mining Charter process, as well as industrial sector policy processes in auto, in clothing, etc. Trade unions, shop stewards, production line workers are potentially much more empowered when policy-making is rooted in practical issues around the real economy - rather than a very abstract discussion about macro-targets.
We are aware of the very important role that SATAWU played in engaging government around the proposed restructuring of Spoornet. Government brought in foreign consultants, at considerable expense, who told us to concession off the two money-spinning freight-lines - Coallink and Orex. The consultants told us how concessioning was the new fashion and they held up the example of New Zealand. (It is interesting to note that just a few weeks ago, the New Zealand government was forced to re-nationalise rail in that country because the concession company had gone bankrupt!!) We are aware that SATAWU played a leading role in asking probing questions of the concessioning plans. In the end, facts in hand, the concessioning proposal was sunk through solid technical arguments. Perhaps, in future, government should just go straight to SATAWU for consultants, instead of flying in Coleman Andrews, Halcrows and Rothchilds!!
We are aware that SATAWU is currently engaged with government in a similar vein in regard to port restructuring. We believe that SATAWU agrees with us that we must not allow restructuring of key transport parastatals to be based on dubious fashions, or on the assumption that the private sector "can always do it best". We must also prevent cherry-picking, the tendency for the most profitable sectors of a transport system to be concessioned, without an understanding of the implication of doing this for the entire network. In transport, more than in most sectors, we are looking at networks, the idea that everything should be turned into an atomised "cost-centre", that must generate profit or go to the wall, is absolutely irrational in the transport sector. The so-called "profitable" lines in a rail system, or profitable terminals in a port, are dependent on the whole logistics system working effectively, and smoothly.
Apart from challenges like these in freight transport, there are also the complex challenges of public passenger transport. I think that we must admit that this is an area where we have not done very well since 1994. We have not invested sufficiently in commuter rail, in buses, and the taxi recapitalisation programme has been very, very slow to take off. Part of the problem is that there have been other priorities. We have built nearly 1,5 million new, low-cost houses since 1994. But these houses have almost all been located in the same distant dormitory townships - unintentionally contributing to an increasing commuter load on a largely untransformed public transport system.
We were very pleased to note that, in this year's Transport Budget speech, acting minister of Transport, cde Jeff Radebe, called for a Transport Sector Summit. We think this is an excellent proposal. There are many questions that should be asked at such a Summit - is the competitive tendering system for buses working? What will be the impact of taxi recap - will it result in many survivalist taxi owner-operators losing out? Is taxi recap too ambitious a plan? Do we have a coherent approach to Transnet? How do we use the potential advantage of a massive public transport entity to drive a much more effective, coherent approach to logistics, to public transport, and to job creation in the sector? What do we mean by BEE in transport? Is it mainly about creating a new black transport capitalist stratum? Or is it mainly about empowering workers and commuters?
There are many questions like this, which you will, in any case, be asking at your Congress. One thing is certain, the success of any Transport Sector Summit will depend a great deal on the active involvement of transport workers, and on SATAWU itself.
Comrade President, we are pleased that SATAWU has begun work in the organisation of taxi drivers. We must definitely intensify work on this front as a necessary component of transforming and building an efficient, safe and affordable transport system.
The Restructuring of the Road Accident Fund
What has received little attention from working class forces is the restructuring of the Road Accident Fund following the recommendations of the Satchwell Commission. There are many problems with how this RAF functions which have resulted in a situation that is inequitable, unsustainable and highly prone to fraud and inefficiency. More than 50% of the R3 billion received by the RAF from the fuel levy is paid in professional fees to lawyers BEFORE any award is made. Lawyers often then also take a further cut out of awards made to applicants. The payment system is class-biased and punishes the poor.
The main proposal of the Satchwell Commission is to ring-fence the current Fund, allowing it to run-down over time. He Commission recommends that a separate Road Accident Benefit Scheme (RABS) should be established as part of a broader Comprehensive Social Security System. The new RABS would be a "no-fault" system, in which the focus would be on serious injury. Payment would be made on a case-by-case, monthly installment basis, and would be based on out-reach work done by health and social workers, rather than being dominated by the legal profession.
The many progressive proposals made by the Satchwell Commission are facing stiff resistance from anti-working class forces: · Fiscal discipline is important but we must resist the temptation towards a narrow concern with fiscal discipline could undermine the long-term transformation of the fund. · Changing the payment system would shift the middle classes to the private insurance industry. This should not be a major problem however this could redirect resources away from a public road accident benefit scheme which is part of a comprehensive social security system. · There is major resistance to significant change from the legal profession, sectors of the health profession, and also from the existing RAF senior management. We cannot allow these professionals to use their positions to continue private accumulation at the expense of the majority. We need to challenge these parasites directly by turning our mass power against them. The SACP calls on this SATAWU Congress to condemn these parasites.
It is imperative that government and the alliance must have a clear and agreed way forward based on redirecting public resources to the poor through a comprehensive social security system. SATAWU has an important role and this Congress can be used to ensure that the working class puts its imprint on the restructuring of the RAF.
3. THE IMPORTANCE OF THE 2004 ELECTIONS
An immediate task facing workers is to ensure an overwhelming majority for the ANC in the elections next year. As workers, it is in our deepest interest to return the ANC government overwhelmingly. The ANC is the best-placed organisation to take forward transformation in our country, and the only government best capable of addressing the interests of the overwhelming majority of our people.
But the working class cannot approach this election as if it does not see it as part of its overall anti-capitalist struggle. Comrades, this means that we must pay attention to the need for ANC victory in the elections. We must also pay attention to the content of the ANC election manifesto by ensuring that working class interests are prominent in it and how it is implemented after the elections. This will overcome the problem of tensions that sometimes arise out of the interpretation of the implementation of the manifesto. This is also important in order to ensure that joint Alliance work does not only happen during the election campaign and not after it.
We also need to use these elections in a way which strengthens the ANC, our unions, the Party and other allied formations. The elections campaign is an important opportunity not to be complacent but to rise from above our challenges and use it as part of recognising our medium-term vision.
It is therefore important that as a matter of urgency we ensure that workers fully participate in all the ANC election structures. The immediate task is to throw our weight behind the ID campaign. It would be crucial that this Congress adopts specific resolutions on how SATAWU is going to be part of this important electoral effort.
We need to ensure that we reach out to the millions of workers to ensure that they come out and vote. Particular attention needs to paid to the urban African working class, particularly in areas like Durban and Pietermaritzburg in order to ensure that we win that province. Part of the problem is that our people in these areas have in the past not come out in the numbers we need. What is the role of SATAWU in this regard?
Another key challenge is that of focusing on the Coloured working class in the Western Cape. How can we reach out to the Coloured section of the working class?.If a union like SATAWU, and all the COSATU unions, can throw its weight behind this effort, our job will be half done in the Western Cape.
Let us get down to work to ensure a convincing victory for the ANC next year!
4. CONCLUSION
Moving towards a conclusion, this SACP input to your Congress has highlighted the following: · The importance of the emerging working class medium-term vision · The need for a working class vision and programme on the transport sector · The need to build the Party and the need for the Party to discharge its responsibilities to the trade union movement · Importance of building a strong SATAWU and trade union movement · The overriding importance of beginning now to work towards an overwhelming ANC victory in the elections
This SACP message may end up just being a message of support. As the Party we believe that both the Party and SATAWU are in a position to energetically and systematically take forward the above challenges. Therefore the Party proposes that this Congress should thoroughly debate all these issues and where necessary pass relevant resolutions. We hope that our delegates to the Congress will help contribute to Congress discussions.
But the Congress debates and resolutions should not be the end. We believe that post-Congress, more than ever before, the SACP and SATAWU should be ready to hold a full political bilateral meeting. Such a bilateral could help focus our collective attention on the following matters: · Developing a working class approach on the transformation of the transport sector in our country including a focus on the convening a sectoral summit, the organisation of taxi drivers, the building of co-operatives in the transport sector, the mobilisation of commuters and the restructuring of the Road Accident Fund · Addressing the twin challenges of building the Party within the trade union movement and ensuring that the Party is able to discharge its responsibilities to the trade union movement · How to strengthen the ideological and political capacity of workers in the transport sector
With these words and on behalf of the Central Committee and the entire membership of the SACP, I wish and know that you will hold a successful Congress which must discharge its task of taking forward the working class struggles in the transport sector.
BLADE NZIMANDE
GENERAL SECRETARY
SOUTH AFRICAN COMMUNIST PARTY