I am going to make this short. I am at work talking with co-workers about the specific ways the new corporate world order has taken over in my workplace.
I am a nurse/front line worker in a hospital. They tell me I am a professional- I am different from an autoworker or a carpenter for instance. They do this to split me from my brothers and sisters in the working class-to separate me from my class. To take away my solidarity with all workers. So far they have been unsuccessful with me but over all they have been quite successful with my co-workers in various degrees.
This a topic for discussion in itself.
Since the economic crisis in 2009, just like everywhere else in the developed world , the Ontario Government unleashed austerity measures on public sector workers and on public services. They have been doing this since the 80's on and off to various degrees. In the mid-90's the provincial Tories went on a binge-closed and merged hospitals, contracted out support services, restructured jobs and forced workers to reapply at half the wage and decreased benefits etc.
The recent economic crisis has been a windfall for the corporate elite and their lackeys in governments. It has given them an excuse to escalate their attack on workers and on public services. They bailed out the rich capitalists with our money and now they are laughing in glee. What an amazing opportunity to escalate their attacks and drive back all the gains made by the organized working class over the last 70 years. So far all public sector unions have felt the bite of the rabid capitalist dogs running in packs.
In March this year the Province of Ontario announced a wage freeze on one million non unionized public sector workers. They will lay off 3500 government workers in 2011. We have been warned that unionized workers will not make any financial gains as their contracts are renegotiated starting in 2011. This means they will demand big concessions from our unions and I will not even begin in this blog to speculate on the results given the failure our respective leaderships to organize a fightback.And there will more layoffs which of course means that our union tops will do the dirty work of the bosses and implement them "according to seniority."
All big bad stuff.
But what i want to talk about here is less obvious and yet a sign of what is to come.
I expected it and predicted it and warned workers but now they are feeling it.
To some it may seem like small stuff but it has been an eye opener for the nurses on my unit. Every day now our manager who is not a nurse but has a business degree and her designate who is a nurse with an MBA- all part of the hateful team concept where no has any class interests - where we are told we are all part of the team-where everyone is equal - sits in our nursing station at 0730 hrs and watches the clock to make sure we are not late for work. OK I know that many workers punch in and always have and I am sure that is coming soon. But we are told we are "professionals." In a strange way it is BS like this that can make nurses who have difficulty seeing themselves as part of the working class realize differently and see themselves in solidarity with all workers. Lots of work to be done but like I said nothing like a BAD BOSS.
Closing up this little blog I have to ask though, even if I know the answer
WHAT KIND OF ALIENATED HUMAN BEING : WHAT KIND OF BLOODLESS person will drag themselves out of bed one and a half hours early than she needs to just to make we are on time.
My co-workers are coming to me and asking me "what are we going to do." One worker said to me the other day when I was talking about standing together and not allowing ourselves to be split over petty issues while we strategize and come up with ideas among ourselves - "Oh you are talking about solidarity right."
In the mean time I just remind them again the we are but economic units to our bosses and to our governments and to the capitalist class - some refuse to believe this _NOW. Others are half way there and a few get it.
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