“in Limerick on November 11th, Frank Roche, Dublin trade…”
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The Plough1974Trade unions and workers' strugglesThe Southern state and its partiesTrade unions and workers' strugglesThe Southern state and its parties
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in Limerick on November 11th, Frank Roche, a Dublin trade unionist and member of the Plough editorial board, stressed the need for greater publicity for workers’ struggles, with the aim of drawing on the support of other trade unionists.
Speaking at the invitation of the workers, he said that whole industries were threatened with closure, in particular the textiles and car assembly industries. It was important that workers be informed about each others struggles, so that the problems could be faced in a united and coordinated way. At a meeting in the occupied Danus factory |NDUSTRIES THREATENED Without publicity and without seeking out the support and solidarity of others workers, isolated very quickly. It was important to realise that other workers were also similarly threatened and that the possibility existed of linking up struggles in different areas.
The Genesco plant at Kinsale, Goodbody’s in Waterford and Reg Armstrong’s were given as particular examples. As the impact of full Free Trade within the EEC hits the Irish economy harder, the entire. textile and car assembly industries are threatened with closure in a very short space of time. struggles such’ as ‘he Danus sit-in could become poxtant, and there were many ways they could Frank Roche referred to the threat by O’Donovan, the owner of Danus, to send in the Gardai. It was clear that defence would be imprepare to hold off an assault by the Gardai.
Since O’Donovan had withdrawn his offer to pay them 10% of the sale of the suits they are holding in the factory, the remedy must be for the workers to sell the suits themselves. He gave the example of the Lip watch factory in France, where the workers successfully distributed the watches that they had made.
Danus have given a lead to all workers facing factory closures with their militant action of sitting-in. Their struggle must be taken further by involving other workers. The size and militancy of the march in Dublin in support of the Reg Armstrong’s workers, who are also sitting-in, shows that there is a vast amount of potential support which can — and must — be brought into the struggle against redundancies.
Messages of support and donations to:
Eddie Byrnes 18 Cathedral Place Limerick.