
Keywords: Unemployment, Ireland

This article is from an Irish magazine.  Ireland
currently has 20%++ unemployment.

WITH A further massive increase in unemployment over 
the last few months there are now 243,000 signing on 
in the South. Of course we, as anarchists, are entirely 
opposed to this appalling waste of human potential.  But 
can this problem be solved?  Can unemployment be 
eliminated?  What can be done?  WSM members who 
were delegates to the recent INOU conference give their 
views.

INOU
	
"First a glaring example of how not to fight unemployment. The Irish 
National Organisation of the Unemployed is a federation (in theory) 
of unemployed groups and centres throughout Ireland.  Instead of 
organising the massive numbers of unemployed people they are 
generally more concerned with organising and attending expensive 
poverty seminars  and building service centres providing cups of 
tea and "info". 

"After 5 years in existence only now has a motion been put down to 
allow individual unemployed people (not in groups or centres) to join 
and this was, eventually, not put to the conference.  Rarely are 
they seen at demonstrations and pickets or even at labour 
exchanges - political lobbying and letter writing is more their line.

  PROGRAMME

"The INOU didn't even ask for representation for the unemployed at 
the talks on the new Programme between bosses, unions and the 
government.  This is not to say that such a deal would ever be in the 
interests of the unemployed but it does reveal the character of the 
INOU.  The organisation is really a front for the inaction of union 
officials.  It is paraded out for the odd photo opportunity to 
"highlight their concern" about unemployment. 

"They refused to condemn the new deal which was a disaster for 
unemployed people.  At an executive meeting they were quietly 
made aware that if the deal was condemned there would be no 
further trade union money for unemployed centres.

UNREPRESENTATIVE

"The Portobello and Thurles unemployed action groups conducted a 
survey which found that over 85% of the 2000 unemployed people 
surveyed believed there would be no improvement in there living 
standards or job prospects over the 3 years of the Programme.  
However an ICTU official claimed it was "unrepresentative" saying 
that it did not represent the "view of the centres".  Given that the 
ICTU funds these centres it is not too surprising that they did not 
come out against the agreement.

"We believe that unemployment is bound up totally with the 
capitalist mode of production.  It won't disappear until workers, 
employed and unemployed, take control.  The unemployed act as a 
reserve army of labour for the bosses, keeping wages low and 
making workers afraid to strike.  

THE FUTURE

"We believe that only after the abolition of class society and the 
gearing of production towards meeting need rather then making 
profit that there will be work for all.  With the use of technology the 
working week will be greatly reduced and many of the really dull 
jobs may be abolished.  One day the wheel may come full circle with 
work becoming a voluntary activity enhancing both to society and 
the worker.

THE PRESENT

"For now we believe it is essential to break the division imposed 
between employed and unemployed workers.  The bosses have tried 
hard to divide us but our common interests are obvious.  We 
campaign for full membership rights in the unions for the 
unemployed and for unemployed union sections.  Such links on the 
ground would move us closer to the time when workers use their 
economic strength to fight for socially useful work for their 
unemployed relatives and friends. 

"Union members should refuse to undertake attacks on the 
unemployed, e.g. cutting off gas and electricity because of inability 
to pay the bills.  The unemployed can reciprocate by helping on 
pickets and getting involved in strike support activity.  This is the 
way to build a mass campaign for socially useful work which 
threatens one of the very foundations of capitalist society.

THE PAST

"The Outdoor Relief (a scheme like SES) strike in Belfast in 1932 
showed what unity between scheme workers, the unemployed and 
employed workers can achieve.  The ODR strike saw Catholic and 
Protestant workers and unemployed fight hand to hand with the RUC.  
The Northern statelet was forced to make concessions to the 
unemployed.  

"In the 1950s the unemployed movement in Dublin grew strong 
enough to get Jack Murphy elected to the Dil as an unemployed 
candidate.  I'm not suggesting that this is the way to change things, 
it certainly is not ...but it does show that, given the right 
conditions, unemployed groups can gather large-scale support and 
involvement. 

FOR NOW

"We will continue to work within the INOU with such campaigning  
groups as there are.  We are also involved in Trade Unionists and 
Unemployed Against the Programme which is the sort of network 
that might, one day, form the basis for a rank and file movement of 
workers and the unemployed".



The above article originally appeared in the Irish 
anarchist paper Workers Solidarity.

The Workers Solidarity Movement can be 
contacted at

WSM
PO Box 1528
Dublin 8
Ireland.



