Workers Memorial Day is Friday 28th, a day we remember those who have been killed at work.
Here is a list of at least some of the events planned for around the country.
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4 COMMENTS
It is as real measure of the weakness of the labour movement that it ceases to commemorate May Day with big marchers, banners and floats as was the case as recently as the ’90s in Auckland, and instead focuses only on memorialising deaths at work.
What about commemorating May Day on May 1st which celebrates the victories of workers struggle in history? If it were not for those victories we would have many more casualties at work like Pike River.
Consider ANZAC Day. Workers around the world condemn all wars as class wars and take a side in these wars against the bosses who make these wars. The Russian revolution took place when workers refused to fight Germany and executed the officers who threatened them with the firing squad.
That is what May Day celebrates.
Whereas the bosses who make wars and send workers to kill one another, glorify war hiding behind the sentimental poppy, futile heroism, and the tragic and totally unnecessary losses suffered by families of the fallen.
That is what Memorial Day look like to me.
This is not some ‘after the event’ solemnity and ‘tea or stronger’ plus wordy speeches.
How supine can you be?!
There are blokes out there dying on the hill for lack of training, supervision, intelligent management that knows when to stop pushing tired people for ridiculous quotas.
Be damned to the commemorations. Ramp up the action on restoring sound supervision and inspection: enough boots on the ground to cover all the work sites. Enough independent and honourable inspectors to face up to the ‘tough bosses and businesses’.
And ensure that the conditions where people can down tools to require higher levels of safety without being handed an exit ticket or even being blacklisted are reinstalled and strengthened.
Get this cleaned up. This year for preference. And let’s start remembering how easy it is for rights fought for to be eroded or lost without vigilance and adaption to changing work methods.
Money and competition make some of the worst masters. Remember that, as well as the increasing numbers of unnecessary deaths and disablings.
It appears that the MSM aren’t even aware of it.
Heck, we have a real on-to-it MSM in this country, don’t we??!!
It is as real measure of the weakness of the labour movement that it ceases to commemorate May Day with big marchers, banners and floats as was the case as recently as the ’90s in Auckland, and instead focuses only on memorialising deaths at work.
What about commemorating May Day on May 1st which celebrates the victories of workers struggle in history? If it were not for those victories we would have many more casualties at work like Pike River.
Consider ANZAC Day. Workers around the world condemn all wars as class wars and take a side in these wars against the bosses who make these wars. The Russian revolution took place when workers refused to fight Germany and executed the officers who threatened them with the firing squad.
That is what May Day celebrates.
Whereas the bosses who make wars and send workers to kill one another, glorify war hiding behind the sentimental poppy, futile heroism, and the tragic and totally unnecessary losses suffered by families of the fallen.
That is what Memorial Day look like to me.
This is not some ‘after the event’ solemnity and ‘tea or stronger’ plus wordy speeches.
How supine can you be?!
There are blokes out there dying on the hill for lack of training, supervision, intelligent management that knows when to stop pushing tired people for ridiculous quotas.
Be damned to the commemorations. Ramp up the action on restoring sound supervision and inspection: enough boots on the ground to cover all the work sites. Enough independent and honourable inspectors to face up to the ‘tough bosses and businesses’.
And ensure that the conditions where people can down tools to require higher levels of safety without being handed an exit ticket or even being blacklisted are reinstalled and strengthened.
Get this cleaned up. This year for preference. And let’s start remembering how easy it is for rights fought for to be eroded or lost without vigilance and adaption to changing work methods.
Money and competition make some of the worst masters. Remember that, as well as the increasing numbers of unnecessary deaths and disablings.
It appears that the MSM aren’t even aware of it.
Heck, we have a real on-to-it MSM in this country, don’t we??!!
Thanks for sharing
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