This Thursday, hundreds of thousands of workers will be involved in co-ordinated industrial action across many areas of the public sector, against the coalition's plan to impose drastic cuts on their pensions. Important as it may be, however, the pensions issue is only one of the many issues over which workers will be taking action.
In several towns - like Birmingham, Doncaster and Southampton - local government workers will be striking against the threatened imposition of new contracts, with much lower wages and worse working conditions, not to mention job cuts.
Likewise, workers in the housing department of the London borough of Camden, will be on strike against redundancies.
Marches and rallies have been organised in most of the country's main cities, making this day the long-awaited follow-up to the mobilisation which filled the streets of London on March 26th.
Politicians line-up against workers
Predictably, the ConDems are going out of their way to condemn the union leaders' calls for industrial action, trying to drive a wedge between public and private sector workers. For some time they have claimed that public sector pensions are "unaffordable" and that this in turn, is "unfair" for private sector workers, whose pensions are "less generous" because they have to foot the bill.
This divide-and-rule propaganda is, of course, another one of their lies. In fact over a third of public sector pensioners are forced to live on £100/w or less - which is hardly "generous". Besides, public sector workers pay for their pensions by paying both taxes and pension contributions - just like everyone else.
The truth is that the ConDems are merely trying to make the bosses' wishes come true - that is, to drive pension provisions down to the bare minimum, for all workers. If the bosses could have their way, "work till you drop" would be the only "pension system" in their profit-driven society!
As to Labour, its stance against the June 30th strike was just as predictable. After all, aren't the ConDem attacks against public sector pensions based on the recommendations of former Labour pension minister, John Hutton? Besides, has Labour ever lifted a finger to stop private organisations (or public ones, like Royal Mail) from dumping their final salary schemes? Never!
No wonder, therefore, that Ed Miliband is so supportive of the ConDems' attacks. No wonder too, that Miliband and the Labour frontbench finally came out with a clear condemnation of the June 30th strike, last weekend!
All in it together... against the bosses!
Whether the politicians like it or not - and whether the union leaders are really willing to make plans for it or not - what is needed is a general fight back.
Today, it is not just workers' pensions, but all social provisions and services needed by the working class - and the jobs these services require - which are being targeted. Workers, pensioners, the youth and the unemployed are all directly concerned by these attacks.
What is "unaffordable" for any society is to allow its economy to be controlled, and pushed into bankruptcy, by a tiny number of greedy parasites. What is "unfair" is that these parasites were (and they still are) bailed out using public funds, while jobs, wages and services are being cut and workers' pensions pushed down, in the private sector first, and now, in the public sector.
Why is it, that when the productivity of human labour is at an all-time high, the wealth we produce is not enough to guarantee decent jobs, wages and services for all, and a decent pension while we can still enjoy it? Why? Because, out of this wealth, hundreds of billions are wasted on speculation and useless luxury. It is only the burden imposed by the parasitism of the capitalist class on society, which is "unaffordable" and "unfair"!
So, yes, pensions should be defended, whenever they come under attack. But, beyond this, it is the demand for a decent income for all - paid out of the accumulated profits of the capitalist class - and for a stop to all job and wage cuts that will have to be raised and fought for.
This demand will have to be put at the top of the political agenda. Taking part in the initiatives organised on June 30th is a step in that direction. But it is also a way of showing our determination to stop the capitalists' on-going theft of the wealth we produce, by using our collective strength in order to inspire fear among this class of thieves.