The oppression of national minorities and women is an everyday feature of the imperialist system. It exists in every aspect of capitalist society. This pamphlet looks at such oppression and discrimination at the place of work. Black and women workers face general and systematic oppression and discrimination on top of the exploitation suffered by all workers in the capitalist system.
Black and women workers are discriminated against in getting work. In the 18 months leading up to May 1975 unemployment rose by two thirds for the general population, among national minorities it trebled. As a result, when they do get work, they are forced into lower paid industries. Often within a company they are forced into lower grade jobs. Frequently the night shift is operated only by black workers. Women too are forced into low paid industries and the lower grades. Despite the fanfare of the Labour government over the supposed introduction of “equal opportunities” and “equal pay”, the reality of continued oppression can be seen in the following table which compares the average weekly gross pay of men and women in different industries:
INDUSTRY......................Men..................Women
Printing.............................£89.90...............£46.81
Sugar..................................86.55.................51.52
Chemicals..........................80.97.................49.65
Biscuits.............................72.48..................45.55
Chocolate..........................64.08.................45.14
Bread/Confectionary.........64.08.................36.96
Textiles.............................62.98.................42.69
The racist immigration laws also impose particular oppression on many national minority workers, who work in Britain under the repressive work permit system. Recent struggles in London’s catering industry show how the bosses use racism and immigration laws as a weapon against national minority workers in particular and the working class in general. On the 26 January 1978 catering workers at the Garners steak house chain went on strike for union recognition. More than 4 out of 5 of the workers are members of the T.G.W.U. Most of the Garner’s workers are national minority workers. Racism and lack of rights have been used to keep wages down and hours long. A waiter takes home about £28 for a compulsory 55 hours week. Many of the workers are on work permits, which have to be renewed every year. It is the boss who has responsibility for renewing them. Garners bosses of course uses this to try to break the workers fight. The way this racist weapon is used against black workers in particular is obvious, but it is also a weapon that effects all workers as it is used in an attempt to force some of the national minorities back to work and to break the strike, and so keep down all workers wages and conditions.
In the case of Garners the workers are fighting hard despite the difficulties and are still on strike at the time of writing – 6 months later. The hypocritical opportunism of the Labour “Lefts” was seen when Labour M.P.s went on the picket line to show their “Left” face. These same M.P.s refused to stand against the very immigration controls which are used by the bosses as a weapon. On the contrary they support them! This struggle shows just one of the reasons why we must demand an end to all immigration controls. In the final analysis they are a weapon against the working class.
We must fight all oppression and discrimination at the place of work suffered by national minorities and women workers. “Unity is Strength” is the most basic lesson of working class struggle. If our class, as a whole does not fight the particular oppression suffered by sections of our class, we will remain divided. We will be weak. The only ones who gain are the capitalists and their lackeys.
Our opportunist Trade Union leaders, of course, do not lead such a struggle. Frequently they oppose it. In 1973, for example, black workers at Mansfield Hosiery in Loughborough went on strike, because of bad pay and because only white workers were given higher grade jobs. After their militant stand their union was forced to make the strike official, but only called out the black workers and told the white workers to cross the picket line! The union connived with the bosses in dividing the workforce into two camps, black and white.
Another famous example was the 1974 Imperial Typewriters strike in Leicester. Again Asian workers struck against discrimination. They were not supported by the white workers, and again the union aided the division of the workers. The upshot of this is an object lesson in the need for working class unity. Several months after the strike, Litton Industries who owned the factory rationalised its U.K. business. In the Hull factory, the workers occupied the plant against closure. In Leicester the divided workforce was unable to put up effective resistance.
Workers at Trico in Brentford clearly understand the need for working class unity between men and women when they went on strike in May 1976 for equal pay. The whole factory was low paid, but the women workers were on even less money than the men. In their strike bulletin they pointed out: “The key to better rates is for women to get equal pay. Otherwise they will continue to be used as cheap labour which keeps other rates low”. The opportunist misleaders in the union tried to get them to rely on the “Equal Fay Tribunal” set up by the Labour Government. The workers refused to attend saying: “We don’t intend to hand over our power to Civil Servants and Lawyers”. They stayed on strike. They were proved right when the Tribunal found that there was “no case” for equal pay! The picketing workers replied on placards: “Tribunals do not work for us, we don’t care what they say. Outside Trico we will stay till we get equal pay”. In October, after 5 months on strike they won.
The Grunwick strike has been an excellent example of working class struggle. Black and white, men and women, the workers have fought side by side receiving good support from workers all over Britain and Northern Ireland. In this struggle, yet again, the T.U.C. – despite its militant words – of support at the 1977 T.U.C. Congress – has played the hatchet man for the bosses against the strike.
In fighting the bosses we need unity. We must oppose oppression and discrimination at the place of work. We must demand the unions take up this struggle – not just in hypocritical words, but in action. We must identify our enemies clearly. The enemies of black workers are not the whites. The enemies of women are not the men. It is the bosses whose system is based on exploitation, oppression and discrimination, who are the enemy of all workers. It is the Trade Union misleaders who sabotage and divert the struggle into dead end roads, who only serve the enemy.