SP Newsletter No.269
As the economic downturn gets worse, thousands of workers are losing their jobs or being forced to cut their hours. Big business is trying to make ordinary people pay for the crisis through unemployment and pay cuts. But one of the best ways to fight unemployment is to fight for shorter hours with no loss of pay.

Australia has some of the longest working hours in the developed world. Full-time employees are working an average of 44 hours per week and one in five workers put in more than 50 hours a week! To make matters worse many who work overtime don’t get paid for the extra hours.

We have a situation where one section of the workforce desperately wants to cut back on overtime while others don’t get enough hours. Some surveys have shown that nearly a third of workers want to reduce their hours, but one in five part-time workers in Australia want more hours than they currently get. With so many people working long hours, and others struggling to make ends meet, it makes sense to share out the work.

If a 35-hour week was implemented in Australia we could immediately free up millions of hours of work that could be translated into thousands more jobs. This would have a big impact on reducing unemployment and lead to more leisure time and a better quality of life. Among other things it would also mean healthier lifestyles and safer workplaces.

For years during the economic ‘boom’ times, company profits soared while workers wages struggled to keep up with inflation. If employers claim they can not afford to deliver shorter hours without cutting pay workers should demand to know where all the profits have gone.

Employers are opposed to shorter hours because, under capitalism, time is money. From their point of view forcing people to work longer hours means more profits. When bosses ask people to cut their hours they also want to see a corresponding cut in pay. This should be opposed.

Australian workers have a proud history of fighting for shorter hours. In 1856 construction workers in Melbourne were among the first in the world to win an eight hour day. In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) called for a 35-hour week and then even a 30-hour week! These ideas and traditions need to be retaken up by the labour movement today.

The fact that capitalism has not been able to provide people with secure jobs and that the working week has increased over the past thirty years is one indication that this system is no longer taking society forward. Alongside fighting unemployment, and the effects of the recession, we also need to fight for socialism - a system that puts people before profits and where gains in productivity would lead to a better standard of life for all.

SP Day School- Introduction to Marxism

The Melbourne Branch of the Socialist Party will be holding a day school this Saturday July 4. The school will be a good introduction to the basic ideas of Marxism and will be of interest to new members or to people who are keen to find out more about the politics of SP.

The details of the school are: 1pm – 5pm Saturday July 4 @ Trades Hall, 54 Victoria Street Carlton South. The agenda is below and prior reading is available on request.

1.00pm – 2.00pm

The method of Marxism: An introduction to dialectics and historical materialism

This session will look at the scientific method of how Marxists analyse the world. In order to implement progressive change, first we need understand exactly what is wrong with the capitalist system. Dialectics and historical materialism, along with an understanding of economics, are the bedrocks of Marxist ideas.

2.30pm – 3.30pm

What would socialism look like? What is democratic socialism and how would it work?

There are many myths about socialism. The ruling class claim that socialism has been tried and failed. We say that Stalinism was not genuine socialism. We are fighting for democratic socialism which includes public ownership and workers control and management. This session will explain what we are fighting for in more detail.

4.00pm – 5.00pm

Fighting for socialism: What type of organisation is required?

If you agree that there must be a better way of running society then the question that begs is how will we achieve this? Some argue that spontaneity will suffice, others think we will only need loose networks of people. Marxists argue that we need a clear program and a well organised party in order to challenge capitalism. This session will look at the role of a revolutionary party today.

For more information about any of the sessions or to book your place at the school, contact the SP National Office on 0396399111.

Upcoming SP meetings

The Melbourne Branch of the Socialist Party meets every Wednesday 7pm at Trades Hall on the corner of Lygon & Victoria Streets Carlton South. Upcoming meetings include:

8/7/09 – Iran: The issues behind the mass protests
15/7/09 – The history and politics of the Greens
22/7/09 – Activist workshop: Public speaking skills
29/7/09 – The Paris Commune: Lessons for today
5/8/09 – CWI world school report back

For more information or for details of meetings in other parts of Australia contact our National Office on 03 9639 9111.

News links

Britain: A rotten system!
http://socialistworld.net/eng/2009/06/2901.html

Ireland: Socialist success in Euro election
http://socialistworld.net/eng/2009/06/2601.html

Hong Kong: security guards strike against longer work hours
http://www.chinaworker.org/en/content/news/781/

Join the Socialist Party

If you agree with what you have read in our newsletter or on our website you should consider joining SP. The Socialist Party has branches in Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Perth as well as members and supporters in all other states.

We are involved in trade union work and student work. We also run community, anti-war and environmental campaigns. But most of all we want to build a party that will fight to get rid of the capitalist system, the system that is at the root of all of these problems. We fight for socialism - a system that will bring an end to wars, poverty and environmental destruction. To join SP contact our National Office on 03 9639 9111 and we will send you a membership application form.

Subscribe to ‘The Socialist’ newspaper!

Support the Socialist Party by subscribing to our monthly newspaper ‘The Socialist’. Subscription rates are only $10 per year or $20 solidarity price. You will receive 11 copies per year delivered to your door every month. You will also receive our email newsletter every week and you will know that you are supporting an organisation that is at the fore of fighting against the capitalist system. To subscribe to ‘The Socialist’ contact our National Office on 03 9639 9111 and we will send you a subscription form.

Socialist Party contact details

Melbourne: Phone Anthony on 0396399111.
Sydney: Phone Gary on 0297287727.
Newcastle: Phone Samantha on 0249681545.
Perth: Phone John on 0894020728.
Rest of Australia: Phone our National Office on 0396399111.
Rest of the world: Phone our International Office on ++ 44 20 8988 8760.

The Socialist Party is the Australian section of the Committee for a Workers’ International (CWI). The CWI is organised in over 40 countries across the world.

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