of Turin last week.
The Fist bosses have decroed that 65,000 of their employers will suffer a two-day lockout every week from now until February of next year. This attack will not only hit the Flat workers, but will also affect the 200,000 workers employed in industries which depend on the Turin-centred Fiat empire.
SELL-OUT
The attacks come at a time when prices are rising at 25 per cent and unemployment is expected to top the one million mark by the end of the Yeat, But the trade union negotiatons, dommated by bureaucrats from the Communist Parly-led union federation CGIL, tried to sell-out the struggle before it had hardly begun. They agreed to a proposal from the Minister of Labour, Luigi Bertoldi. merely cutting down the number of days to be lost from 32 to 24. The CP bureaucrats and their fol lowers thus weakened the position of the workers precisely when they need all the strength that they've got and more to fight the effects of the enormous economic crisis.
But, despite the bureaucrats" treachery, the temperature is steadily rising. In many parts of the country Fiat workers downed tools in solidarity with their brothers and sisters in Turin, In Turin itself, the workers mounted a massive demonstration to back up their strike. The Fiat workers' "delegates" (the Italian equivalent to shop stewards) are now discussing the question of occupying the Fiat works.
They recognise that Fiat management are in big trouble. Last year Fiat made a loss of f42 million, and the two-day lockout has come as a result of overproduction" of 300,000 cars to date. This can only mean one thing: the two-day lockout is to be only a beginning.
Fiat king Agnelli has made this perfectly clear. It was he who rejected the proposals about the 24 days-he Just can't afford it. And he emphasised that Fiat was the last of the big car-makers to resort to this sort of move. He was referring to the move by the American car giants, General Motors, who have put all their workers on short-time, and some on total lock-out.
The importance of the Fat workers' struggle cannot be minimised, Today, the crisis of the car industry:
Red Weekly 17 October 1974 Page 8 A ONE-DAY GENERAL STRIKE SHOOK THE ITALIAN CITY Workers from all industries throughout the region downed tools in opposition to the savage attacks of the management against Fiat Finally, at an clectrical car comup demands for E8 per week increase.
When management sacked five of the the factory. The police then viciousClearly, international solidarity Car workers" struggles have opened up in other countries too. In the cenCOOTES the Sydney plant.
but then took back with the left hand Ageinst the first quarter of 1973 the following big companies in the first quarter of 1974 showed pro58% American Motors Seneral Motors 40% Nissan 83% Toyota British Leyland had a loss before taxes of £22.8 million as against a profit in the 1973 quarter lion as against a profit in the 1973 quarter of E22.B what they gave with the right They are now insisting on a no strike clause and a number of other deals which would effectisely take back the gains that the workers have won over the last few years NATIONALISE In Australia, British Leyland are shutting down operations aintost totally, and three thousand workers face redundancy. More workers in related firmas will also be affected A mass meeting of all 4,000 wir kers employed at the Sydney plant voted unanimously to demand that Australia's Labour Government nationalise all BLMC's interests in the The workers are also discussing the possibility of occupying The workers have said that they will stay at their benches until we are draeged away. They are showREGISTRATION DECLINE 8% 18% 22% in Italy 22.9% 31% 31% ing in practice the way in which de. mands for nationalisation can roally benefit the workers movement, and not be just another way of financing the amployers.
By occupying the plant, they can Prevent attempts by management to sabotage nationalisation by moving machinery or withholding infor mation At the sume time they are purting massive pressure on the Government to shelve their disgusting scheme of trying to help our the employers by buying the site at a price of alost £15 million.
What we're secing at the moment is only the tip of the iceberg. as far as the world crisis of the car indisTry goes, But this iceberg may soon start to melt in the face of massive worker resistance, as the Australian und Italian workers are showing During the first quarter of 1974, the figures for registration of new automobiles fell by the following percentages in comparison with the first quarter of 1973: in France in Sweden in Britain (a 26% decline for the first semester] in Switzerland in Japan in West Germany