“selge Since the onset of the recession in the…”

selge Since the onset of the recession in 979 the level of consumption im the South has fallen each year. Today, ordinary peo espectilly urban workers -are consuming less than they were four years apes, The basic reason for this is that take-home wages have ren bess than inflation. Worker are simp iy griting poorer zach year.

This ft fot enough for the tor the employers. They are afraid that if there is any upturn in the ecomonny, Workers will demand mapor imereases-in living standards to offset previous declines. And if there ip no economic up faing .... well then, wages will just have to be cut farther still. so the keystone of the employers and foFernment’s sconemic Strategy isto drive down Wapr THES 25 CLOSE aE possible to subsistence ievel, One of the most ‘original’ features of the Fine Gael elechion Proeramme was a stratepy for attacking wages. Fitzgerald set out to do away with ‘Incomes policies' Lt, Nalicnal Wage Agreements. Although WW As had helped ta keep wages in check during the 70's, they are no longer of any uae to the employers. The centralised nature of the agreements did not sufficdenth undermine the unity ad strength of the trades union movement. Rioreaver the NWA forced the government to grant public sector workers increases imilar ta those obtained by private sector WoOTkKETS. SCCCSSIVE POvETOby Delegates to the Annual Conference of the Northem Committee of the ICTU in Apel were stunned by the tevelation thal the Northern lreland Officer Terry Carlin had been involved tm discimlons about making the North a ‘strike-free zone’

The charge was levied by Ines MoCormick, NUPE regional officer who todd the conference that in Janvary the Labour Relathonsa Ageney hid procuced a paper which proposed that Bunk Officials have Hlapped in hefty demands.

As the 23rd rational pay Tound begins to shape up, “the etiployers and politivians Have cause to be concemed, A front ardele in the frisé Times 4.4.83, summed up the Coalition's dilemma : ‘The Comermmnenr clhiarly Jeart that developments in seerar, wikere bork tts cw ana wee PUES padelines are beng wide) disregarded, coca Acne DUee sector Warkers fo seek stneiier inert In short, the overall effectiveness of government economic ied is at Tiak. Consequently, the politicians and emplovers will go all out to defeat the latest round of pay claims. For this reason, workers need 4 nationally co-ordinated, centralised response, Different groups of workers fighting st the same tne but with cut any unity tnikes no sense. Just as the FLUE basset a coromor pul dcline for employers so the Wades Wriicna must set a realistic euideline for workthis demand. Fimaily, the anions should ensure that the maxinnuen number of workers join the tieht at the same time so as to maximise the pressure ori governmicot and employers. Hilt ;

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are - at least 30%, Equally inipop tart, je unl as industrial action to achive