Workers of all countries un- idea of international working ty embraced in that slogan ni oY forces of imperialism Our ad of the revolutionary ust be to strengthen idcline arity: all down the line as ine $ Not only to defend gains W Victories. In conditions of 3 Ace of the transnationals the | Ein: a set itself off into ‘ nts. bbvttitions of increased aggres- ,? Mperialism, Communist and Teas cannot limit inter- 0 relations of equality and bes “© only. Internationalism en- ~~ International solidarity and imam Of cooperation ‘and co- es “Hort around common Y calls for ever greater co- among Marxist-Leninist par- lism es for peace and against Vital € believe such coopera- ed © Cope with an increasingly Ps al, dangerous situation. Athe wy differences should not ch ay of what is decisive today . 7p OM against the threat of nuc- q se ideological differences ' ay With in ways which can Wo = unity among Commu- Iti TKers parties on the basis of . development of Marxism- Rk & [county we face the ever pre- hy Otegrating Marxism-Lenin- fall Toad labor movement. This Mhas More pressing because i Not yet secured that supre- hry ; Penance which is absolutely he : S revolutionary theory is Orin terial force. nie in this direction Marx's jou, s to be a guid and inspira- fid the ad and for all working thanpe, Tuggle for fundamental flise o: Marxism is all power- , Se It Is true’’. lence By MIKE PHILLIPS - GUELPH — The only real cure for the worst depression facing Canadians since the Dirty 30s is to break the political and economic ‘power corporations wield over society and put that power in the *s hands. Pen en the recurring theme of the 1983 biennial United Electri- cal workers (UE), conference, here, April 21-24 as delegates de- bated and adopted a series of hard-hitting and detailed policy papers that condemned capitalism and pointed the way out of the crisis. The ruthless power of the transnationals, particularly those head- quartered in the U.S. was targetted as the root of the current, unprecedented economic crisis gripping the capitalist world; iden- tified as the source of inequality and super-exploitation of women; and exposed as the prime threat to the very survival of life on earth. The economic policy paper, delegates adopted, not only looked at the current crisis, but thoroughly analyzed the causes of the de- pression, and detailed a radical program to turn the economy around for the benefit of the Canadian people. The 1983 conference endorsed a four-point economic alternative plan with the accent on breaking corporate power and U.S. control over the economy while fleshing out immediate programs to protect the victims of the crisis, reverse the harmful effects of government licies, and create jobs. Sereseine the ae for workers to see socialism as the only long- range solution to the current crisis, and the guarantee of their rights and social justice, the paper pointed out that the ‘‘modest reforms’ long advocated by the left of the Liberal Party and the main stream of the New Democratic Party offer no solution. Break Corporate Stranglehold ‘‘ Any real alternative involves a fight with the transnationals and all their economic might’’, the paper said. ‘To pretend that we can win that fight when we are using pillows as weapons is to be naive about corporate power.”’ The most important element in the UE’s economic alternative, the paper said, was breaking the stranglehold of corporate power over our lives. ‘“‘Unless and until governments are prepared to confront the power of the. transnationals and restrict that power, they will not be able to develop an economy geared to the needs of the people’. To accomplish this the UE proposes: nationalizing the banks and other major financial institutions; bringing key corporations in such industrial sectors as manufacturing, transportation equipment, steel, electrical products, communications, food, micro- electronics, and the machinery industry — all under public owner- ship. Governments must impose controls on imports and foreign exchange, introduce real price controls and establish a workers ’ bill of rights that would be incorporated in the Canadian constitution. Such a bill of rights would guarantee the unrestricted right to strike, bargain collectively and organize, and give workers access to their employers’ financial records so they and their organizations can assess corporate plans and develop alternatives. The bill of rights would also guarantee labor's right to block adverse technological changes and to participate in decisions affect- ing the introduction and design of new technology. Workers would have the right to strike during the life of a contract as well as over technological change disputes, and corporate organization of pro- duction. The other elements of the alternative program call for immediate action to create jobs, and protect the victims of the depression. Such measures include: fully extended unemployment insurance benefits for the duration of unemployment; elimination of medicare pre- ‘miums, user fees and extra billing; and increased pensions that will pay out 80% of the average industrial wage upon retirement. Wage controls at whatever government level they’re imple- mented have to go, the UE says, and other disastrous government policies must be reversed with action taken to end all tax loopholes for the wealthy, introduce a ceiling on interest rates, and end all cutbacks in social service, education and health care. Create Jobs Now The UE’s job creation program calls for: a massive, federally- funded housing plan to build quality, reasonably-priced homes; expanded capital works at all government levels including such projects as water and sewage system repairs and construction, road building, community programs for the disabled, and environment restoration. Such a jobs program should be financed in great part by slashing the $7.8-billion war budget and using the money for socially-useful and job-intensive production. The UE also called for legislation to stop plant closures and to protect workers’ rights and benefits when a corporation decides to pull up stakes and run away. : Taking its traditional place on the front lines of the fight for peace, disarmament and a nuclear-weapons free Canada, the union adopted a statement on disarmament appropriately titled: ““Labor’s crucial struggle.”’ UE delegates’ demand for anti-plant closure laws was a militant reflection of the fight waged by the trade union movement, such as these UE members in 1980 at Wagner-Tungsol who occupied their plant after the company tried to get away without paying any sever- ance. The Brampton workers forced a decent settlement out of the runaway company. TRIBUNE PHOTO — MIKE PHILLIPS It welcomed the massive expansion of the peace forces in the recent period, noting the increased activity of the trade union movement andthe reluctance of still too many labor leaders to get into action. : The statement noted that support for ending the arms race and converting military spending to satisfy humanity’s needs can’t be based on choosing one social system over another. The paper pointed out that ‘‘an end to the threat of war will only be achieved by the full mobilization and unity of the masses of people the world over who support one or other of the major social systems — capitalism or socialism.” Recognizing the transnationals and particularly the U.S. ad- ministration as the cause of the war danger, the paper warned of forces who try to confuse and split the peace movement. These are the voices which equally blame the U.S. and the USSR for the danger. ‘ Noting how some participants in the struggle for peace fall victim to this divisiveness out of the fear of being labelled “‘red’’ or a ‘fellow traveller’, the paper described such a position as ‘not only acop out from the realities of the world today, but it can only lead the struggle into a dead end.”’ Only U.S. Dropped the Bomb From the U.S. dropping of two atomic bombs in 1945, the only country in the world to date which has actually used the bomb; through the development and deployment of other weapons that have forced the Soviet Union to play catch up for its own defence; and, the long list of peace initiatives by the USSR to which the U.S. has refused to respond, including the no first strike pledge and the signing by the Soviet government of the SALT agreement; the UE paper built a strong case for where the main threat to world peace exists. The UE challenged elements of the trade union leadership leaning in the direction of ‘‘equal blame’’ to ‘‘remove their Cold War blinkers and bring their membership into activity that makes all other concems pale in significance ...”’ Workers are entitled to demand where the major sections of the Canadian trade union leadership are in this crucial struggle, the paper stressed. The conference also dealt with a paper on the struggle for equal rights for women in industry and another dealing with the intro- duction of new technology in the workplace which focussed on workers’ rights to control its use and development. The equality statement rooted women’s oppression in the work- place and society in general in the drive for profits by the corpora- tions. ‘‘Lower wages for women spell higher profits for compan- ies’’, the paper stated. ‘““So the greater the wage differential, the greater the profit’. It called for legislation establishing equal pay for work of equal value; affirmative action programs in the private sector; free, uni- versal and quality child care; and vastly improved training oppor- tunities for women. PACIFIC TRIBUNE—MAY 6, 1983—Page 7?