Working Class and the Party of the Working Class

Hemalata

THE Modi led NDA government reportedly intends to notify the Labour Codes, probably in April 2025, and has started preparations for this. Soon after coming to power for the second time in 2019, the Modi government identified the so-called ‘Labour law reforms’ as one of its top-most priorities. It merged 29 existing labour laws into four Labour Codes and utilising its majority, got them passed in Parliament in 2019-20. But the government could not notify the Labour Codes and formally implement them till now, mainly because of the stiff resistance from the working class represented by the joint platform of central trade unions and independent all India federations.

After returning to power for the third time, though with highly reduced numbers, the Modi led NDA government is fast proceeding to implement the Labour Codes. The regional parties, particularly TDP and JD (U), who provide the crutches for the Modi government to survive at present, obviously support these measures. Thus, the BJP led government is emboldened to ignore the opposition of the working class and trample underfoot the basic rights of the workers.

It is pertinent to remember that ‘labour law reforms’ are a major component of the neoliberal policies and have been on the agenda of the government since the official advent of these policies by the Congress government in 1991. Successive governments at the centre, whether led by the Congress or the BJP have been trying to amend the labour laws to curtail the hard won rights of the workers, for the benefit of the capitalist class. Barring the LDF government in Kerala, several state governments, led by BJP, Congress as well as some regional parties, have amended the Industrial Disputes Act and Factories Act to facilitate ‘hire and fire’ by the employers and increase working hours up to 12 hours a day, even before the Labour Codes are formally notified.

OPPOSING LABOUR LAW REFORMS

It was only the Left parties which have been consistently opposing the anti-worker labour law reforms and the neoliberal policies, inside the Parliament as well as outside it. The Left parties, particularly the CPI(M), also firmly stood by the struggles of the working class, including the 22 general strikes conducted by the joint trade union movement against these policies during the last three decades.

The recently released Draft Political Resolution for the 24th Congress of CPI(M) has specifically mentioned the increased exploitation of the working class under the neoliberal regime. It noted the ‘all out assault on the hard won rights of the working class,’ and observed that ‘Although the implementation of the notorious four labour codes has been stalled by the strength of the united trade union struggle, the Modi government and many state governments have, through their policies ensured exploitative changes in the methods of hiring labour. The process of contractorisation of labour, an essential component of neo-liberal policies, has intensified with the percentage of contract workers in the formal manufacturing workforce.’

The Draft Political Resolution also points out how the governments led by the bourgeois parties are siding with big companies in the name of ease of doing business by not ensuring minimum wages, arbitrarily increasing working hours without overtime and attacking the right to unionise, leading to increasingly precarious working conditions for the workers. As an example of the anti labour practices of the central government, the Draft points out that the scheme workers- the anganwadi employees, ASHAs, midday meal workers etc, large majority of whom are women, are not even treated as workers.

The Draft Political Resolution of the CPI (M) calls upon its committees and cadres to prioritise organising the working class, giving importance to the contract workers in the organised sector and workers in the manufacturing and strategic industries. It directs them to build sustained mass and class struggles for alternative policies, focussing on the right to livelihood, gainful employment, fair wages, housing and social security, universal old age pension, equal rights for women including equal wage for equal work, stringent measures on crimes against women, recognition of trade unions through secret ballot, representation of workers in management and most importantly, repeal of the four labour codes. The Draft proposes stepping up campaigns and struggles against the neoliberal economic policies, intensification of struggles of the working class, rural and urban poor, on their livelihood issues, along with campaigns and struggles against Hindutva communalism and authoritarian attacks on democracy.

The clear position of the CPI(M) in opposing the Labour Codes and the neoliberal policies that are meant to increase exploitation for the profit maximisation of the big capitalists needs to be taken to the mass of the workers, today, when the workers are again preparing for a big struggle to resist the implementation of the Labour Codes. The joint trade union platform has decided to conduct a national convention in Delhi on March 18 and announce the date of the country wide general strike. Active support to the campaign and the strike will strengthen the Party among the working class and in turn the people’s struggle against the neoliberal policies being aggressively pursued by the present corporate communal nexus in governance.

Being a Party of the working class committed to Marxism and Leninism, the Party has to create awareness among the working class about the inherent exploitative character of the capitalist society and how it has further aggravated during the ongoing systemic crisis of capitalism. It has to project alternative policies as well as an alternative society, socialist society, and motivate the working class to play its role in achieving these.

CAMPAIGN AMONG WORKERS GETS GOOD RESPONSE

There is a general perception that the working class is interested only in its immediate economic demands and averse to politics, particularly the Left. This perception among the Party cadres and activists discourages them from approaching the workers with the policies of the Party. However, recent experiences in different sectors and on different occasions show that this is not the fact. The workers, most of whom are unhappy with the present policies being pursued by the bourgeois parties in power, get frustrated as they do not find any credible alternative. But, when they are approached and the Party’s stand on their issues is explained to them, many are getting interested and have been responding to the calls of the Party.

The magnificent response of the workers to the call for funds for the Telangana state conference of the Party is one such example. Party leaders who have been leading unions in several industries, including multinational companies in Sangareddy, where the conference was held were overwhelmed by the response of the workers. Meetings were held displaying Party banners and the Party’s policies, its attitude towards the issues faced by the workers and its fight against the anti-working class policies of the ruling classes were explained. It is reported that the workers, who earlier used to donate one day’s wages or Rs 1000 or Rs 2000, donated Rs 5000/ Rs 10000 with some donating one month’s wages for the conference. 30-40 workers from the industrial area participated in the door-to-door collection for 38 days. Some union leaders perceived to be close to other parties including some of their active cadres not only donated liberally but also participated in the fund campaign in their villages along with the Party cadres, with the Party flags on their shoulders.

In the multinational Japanese company, Toshiba, with multiple unions and where CITU won the recognition election, our Party district secretariat member who became the president of the union wrote a letter to the workers saying that it was the Party’s policy and ideology that motivated him and other cadres of the Party to fight for the rights of the workers and appealed for funds for the Party state conference. Responding to his appeal, 3000 out of the total 3600 permanent and contract workers in the factory, donated Rs 20 lakhs for the conference. Workers of a small company, Charminar Breweries, with only 114 permanent workers, donated Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000 each and also collected Rs 21 lakhs. Workers of Synergy, where recently an agreement was signed, donated the entire increased amount in their monthly wage amounting to Rs 19 lakhs. In addition, they worked overtime and donated another Rs 5 lakhs that they earned as overtime wages. Workers in many other companies like United Breweries, Mahindra and Mahindra, Crown etc also responded in a similar manner.

Not only the organised sector workers, scheme workers and unorganised sector workers also contributed funds in a big way. One Village Organisation Assistant not only donated her one month’s salary but also collected Rs 1 lakh from the SHGs in her village. Many ASHAs donated one month’s wages. What is significant is that the target to collect funds from workers in every union led by Party cadres was fully achieved.

Similar is the experience among the IT employees in Karnataka. KITU, the registered trade union of IT employees in the state has been actively working among the IT employees, taking up their issues related to the policies as well as their working conditions, mobilising them for protest actions in front of their offices. Simultaneously it is also taking the Party’s policies and programmes among the IT employees with good response. It is reported that the IT employees, particularly the young employees, are enthusiastically joining the Party’s calls and supporting the Party in various ways. Similar experience is reported from West Bengal too, where such efforts are made to take the Party’s policies to the IT employees.

The anganwadi employees and ASHAs, who have been participating in militant struggles on their demands in many states across the country, are also responding in a similar way, wherever the Party has actively supported their struggles and efforts are made to create awareness among them about the Party’s policies.

These are no doubt highly insignificant numbers compared to the total number of workers in the country and even those participating in militant struggles against the impact of the neoliberal policies on their livelihoods and living conditions. But they do indicate the possibilities of strengthening the Party among the working class with conscious and consistent efforts and changing the correlation of class forces in favour of the toiling masses. The Draft Political Resolution for the 24th Congress of the Party should be taken to the vast sections of union activists and common workers to help them understand the Party’s stand on various issues that affect the common people and its policies.

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