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The Seattle Times reports <https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-councilmember-iron-workers-face-off-over-proposed-amazon-tax/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=article_left_1.1> that Ironworkers from Local 86, mobilized by that noted humanitarian Jeff Bezos, went and shouted down Seattle city council member Kshama Sawant as she tried to speak in favor of a proposed tax on Seattle businesses. The tax would be used to build housing for the homeless. What happened was that Amazon shut down a major construction project for a day so that the ironworkers could go campaign on their behalf. As led by their “business manager” Chris McClain, the ironworkers were swallowing whole the claim of Amazon that if the tax goes into effect then Amazon will build less in Seattle, causing these ironworkers to lose work. This is not only swallowing whole the claim by big business that we must help them make ever greater profits in order to have work; it’s even worse: It’s a total reversal of any sort of class solidarity. Where are these union members for the homeless or for other more oppressed layers of the working class? This thinking reminds one of the position of the building trades regarding the construction of the Oakland A’s stadium right across the street from Laney Community College in Oakland. (See this article. <https://oaklandsocialist.com/2017/10/18/oakland-as-stadium-proposal-save-laney-college-stop-gentrification/>) That it would have destroyed Laney didn’t matter. As Rafael Gonzalez, President of Laborers Local 304 said at the time: “We’re going to support wherever they (the A’s) want to build.” Where that thinking leads was shown by Abraham Parra, labor relations representative for Laborers Local 304: When asked if the laborers’ union (LIUNA) would then support building Trump’s wall if it meant jobs, he said “on behalf of LIUNA I can’t answer that.” Andreas Cluver, secretary-treasurer of the Alameda County building and Construction Trades Council, also made the thinking clear. “Yes, we are slaves in the capitalist economy to the financiers,” he said.... Read entire article here: https://oaklandsocialist.com/2018/05/06/unions-selfishness-will-be-our-death/ _________________________________________________________ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
