PMT BACK FD tt Fight The Closures Occupy! ly

The closure of Dunlop in Cork at the end of September will mean the loss of 680 jobs in a region which has _ already witnessed serious redundancies as multinationals have closed down and moved elsewhere in search of bigger profits. Accordin to one ITGWU official this latest closure ‘will have an almost catastrophic effect on the city’ and local people are very pessimistic about alternative jobs being found.

The Dunlop closure holds many important lessons for workers elsewhere. It completely demolishes the argument that plant closures are the fault of —— militant workers he workforce at Dunlop have over many years made concession after concession; they negotiated a cut in the workforce from 1,600 to 680, they agreed to various lines being dropped from production and they have accepted wage freezes while WETE 7. VDesD Ss a these sacrifices by the workers, Dun is not only scrapping their jobs but resisting the payment of redundancy terms to which the workers are entitled.

A similar fate may wefl be in store for workers at the Asahi plant at Killala. The ITGWU have accepted a rationalisation plan which the plant’s own shop stewards had recommended should be - rejected. Asahi, a Japanese multinational had threatened to close the plant and in face of this and a press’ witchunt, ITGWU officials were able to persuade the workforce to cave in. While this will allow the ITGWU to continue its ‘boast’ that not a single day’s work has been lost at Asahi due to ITGWU action, it gives a green light to the multinational to pull the plug on the remaining jobs whenever it sees fit.

Agreeing to redundancies and wage cuts will never defend jobs in the short-term or guarantee continued operation of these firms in the long run. Its because workers at Ranks flour mills and Kingdom Tubes understood this most important lesson that they occupied their workplaces and are today at the head of the fight against the austerity policies of the Coalition.

@eerls is of plants the first step in building an effective defence of jobs. But workers can't be left to shoulder the burden ona plant by plant basis. This is a problem for the whole trade union movement and we have to force the leaders to fight, to give official recognition to all occupations and mobilise the ranks of the unions in support of occupying workers. This would not be impossible! There could be a_= special conference of the Ictu to discuss and agree a national plan of action (o halt further closures and create new jobs. If the ICTU and union leaders are not prepared to give this sort of lead then those who are presently leading the fightback should take the initiative and organise a conference of rank and -file union members who. are willing to join the fi ghtback.

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| Vinny Jackson and John Magee | a ees