Economic Development

This conference notes that high levels of unemployment, wage devaluation and wage cuts, regressive taxation, reactionary labour market policies, cuts in public sector employment and increasing rents have all contributed to increasing levels of poverty and limiting the capacity of the economy to grow out of the crisis created by speculative finances and European banking institutions. Notwithstanding the efforts of the ICTU and the individual unions to urge the government to reject austerity and adopt policies based on greater redistribution of wealth by use of the tax system, a dynamic role for the semi-state companies, enhanced forms of free collective bargaining and a society with more participation in industry, in services, and in society generally.The fact must be faced by this conference that we need more than we have in correct social and economic policies, we need to do more than address the unorganised with an organising model within the trade union movement. We also need a political strategy which aims at the creation of a left of centre government which can be elected in the Republic of Ireland in order to bring about political realignment of a left right basis. The incoming Executive Council should consider ways and means of bringing about broad left cooperation whose vision would be a different type of society. One that puts at its heart trade union principles and values by seeking to bring about a shift in power towards working people and their families, by redistribution of wealth, attacking poverty, increasing the minimum wage, enhancing free collective bargaining and workers solidarity, cooperation with other left governments in Europe with a similar vision. To bring such a programme about there needs to be a dialogue between trade unions, community groups, and environmentalists, progressive political parties of the left and single issue campaigns such as Right 2 Water etc. The aim of this should be that people who share the above objectives and ambitions live in an Ireland where the government is not led by Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael. If we are serious about our policies and we want to see them implemented we must create the institutions to bring this about. Only the ICTU has the capacity to begin such a dialogue first within the trade union movement and then throughout Irish society Dublin Council of Trade