Only Way Out: The Working Class As Organised Force

At the beginning of 2022, work stoppages were organised in various sectors across Turkey against the low wages imposed by the bosses. In January and February, more than 100 actions took place, in which thousands of workers took part. About half of these actions resulted in gains. In the preceding period, the real wages had been rapidly melted away in the face of mounting cost of living, while the wages had been deliberately kept low. This pushed the workers to struggle. As a result, actions spread through factories like fire through dry grass. This wave of actions was important as it proved the power of labour and that gains can be achieved when united. During these actions, we made the following assessment in the 167th issue of the Workers’ Solidarity:

“Workers who stop production and take action to raise their common demands are overcoming artificial divisions and becoming brothers and sisters in the struggle against the bosses. These actions are extremely important in terms of overcoming the ethnic, cultural and belief-based identities which have long been exploited by the regime to polarise the society. This wave of action, which has taken the form of a de-facto strike, is also important in terms of showing the fact that, when they feel they are right, workers are ready to surpass the limits imposed by the existing laws. However, the workers’ actions, which arose out of the demand for a wage increase, are not organised actions. Lacking enough preparation and organising, these actions have a spontaneous character and involve non-unionised workplaces. Some trade unions stepped in just before or after the actions took place. But the struggle, which started with the demand for a wage increase, has not resulted in the unionisation of workers in general. The workers lack a culture of struggle and experience. And this constitutes the biggest handicap and weakness of the wave of workers’ actions. For, even after they go on a de-facto strike, occupy the workplace and confront the bosses, workers cannot preserve their unity unless they get unionised and solidify their organisation.”

In the same article, we said that unemployment, the cost of living and impoverishment would be more painful in the coming period. We also emphasized that the global economic crisis aggravated the crisis in Turkey. At home, we pointed to the policies of the regime which targeted the working class of Turkey: “Unless it gets organised, unites in its unions and workers’ organisations and stands against the capitalist front as a labour front, working class would have to pay a heavy price in the upcoming stormy period.”

In the 1.5 years since then, as workers, we have paid and are still paying a heavy price for our lack of organising. The wage gains melted like ice within a short span of time. Inflation continued to rise and the lira kept depreciating. The minimum wage has been raised twice a year. But this did not and cannot cure our poverty. Performance pressure in the workplaces, the lack of occupational health and safety measures, extended working hours, heavy and exhausting working conditions are all hurting us. The earthquakes of 6 February affected millions of people at the same time and hurt us even more. Tens of thousands of people lost their lives and hundreds of thousands became homeless. Moreover, the wounds of the earthquake are yet to be healed.

In May, the official inflation rate was understated through various tricks such as excluding natural gas from the inflation basket. Thus, the 34% minimum wage hike was propagandised as “protecting labourers from inflation”. Likewise, the wage increase for public labourers and pensioners in July was also based on the official inflation rate. This means that real wages and, by extension, our purchasing power will further erode, which will more and more deepen and spread the poverty. On the day it was set at 11,402 liras for the second half of the year, the minimum wage amounted to 482 dollars. Just one day later, 32 dollars evaporated and it fell to 450 dollars. Within the following week, it fell to 438 dollars. It is uncertain how much more it will erode by then. But what is certain is that Turkish lira will continue to depreciate, all prices will continue to go up, wages will continue to erode, and living conditions of labourers will continue to worsen.

The most painful aspect of our lack of organisation is our weakness in the face of the artificial polarisation traps and perception manipulations made by the regime. In fact, during the 2022 protests, we had seen what we can achieve when we overcome artificial divisions imposed on us and get united. In the aftermath of the February earthquakes, the solidarity shown by labourers from all over Turkey had further increased our sense of unity. So, what does this tell us? When the dirty hands and mouths of the rulers do not divide us, we can come side by side, stand in solidarity, unite around common demands and obtain gains. But in order to sustain our gains, solidarity and unity, we need to remain organised. Otherwise we are doomed to fall into bourgeois traps.

When the working class is not organised and the labour front not strong, the rulers set the agenda, distracting workers from their own interests. This is what happened prior to the election and it is also what is happening today. Today, self-styled “opponent” economists, writers and politicians are debating over the economic policies of the government from a capitalist perspective. What both the ruling party and its self-styled “opponents” agree upon is that labourers must swallow the bitter pill. The workers’ agenda is also dominated by these discussions. For example, the steps to be taken in the economy are discussed on the basis of the statement of the new Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek who said, “It is necessary to return to rational grounds”. Rational literally means sensible. So what are these “sensible” economic policies that also find approval among certain self-styled “opponent” economists? Rising interest rates, increasing taxes, surging unemployment, cuts in public expenditures, i.e. the wages of public labourers and pensioners, the funds allocated to public services such as healthcare, education and so on. In short, what they mean by “rational” is to make the workers and labourers pay for the economic destruction. These policies may be rational for the capitalist class, but they are by no means acceptable for the working class.

In the face of this reality, is it “sensible” for workers to discuss whether interest rates should be raised all at once or gradually? The agenda of the capital cannot, and should not, be the agenda of the workers. The truths of the capital cannot, and should not, be the truths of the workers. What is sensible for us is to discuss how to respond to capitalists and their regime who want us to swallow the bitter pill. We should talk about what we can do against the bosses who, with the backing of the regime, deny all our legal rights and erect barriers in front of unionisation in our workplaces. We should question the working mechanism of the justice system, which allows a family court to issue a restraining order against unionists who want to organise in a workplace. We should question why miners are punished when they claim their rights and why union leaders are taken into custody. It is sensible for us to organise against the trade union bureaucrats, who work in cahoots with the regime, and to turn our unions into combative organisations.

In short, we need to scrap artificial divisions and false agendas, and unite around the interests of our own class. Today what makes us workers defenceless in the face of the attacks is the weakness of our unity and organisation. Let us remember that the only way out for the working class is its organisation.