Workfare the blight of Britain

The Tories plans are for mass workfare in affect lowering the minimum wage to a new level that is below poverty wages. Working for your benefits is the new workhouse I’d say. So many people who are out of work will experience workfare at some point if they cannot find a job. George Osborne's latest idea to be presented at Tory party conference this week which his latest attacks on the poorest in society and the unemployed. His latest idea is to force everyone who is looking for a job to attend the job centre every day in a working week to sign on. This is similar to a punishment for not having a job. Anyone can lose their job through all sorts of reasons and could turn from a hard worker to being on the doll at the turn of the day. Workfare is horrible and very degrading for anyone having to work for your benefits becomes working for low pay not seen for a long long while. Workfare could be the new low pay society in this country where labour costs are driven down to a new level. This is all in order to make the UK competitive again on the world market apparently the global race for capital to become profitable once again. Take the Tories latest idea that the unemployed which are all stereotyped to be lazy work shy scroungers of course are to pick litter for their benefits. Those out working will maybe think oh good they shouldn’t be getting something for nothing as George Osborne would most probably agree. Yet cleaning litter is already someone’s job. Not a very well paid one granted but by paying someone’s benefits to pick litter is taking someone’s job further division even more. Can you start to see yet where this is all going? It is clear to me that workfare on a mass scale will likely become the norm if capital in Britain gets its way. Fighting back is a must but so many are on the verge and finding getting by incredibly hard as it is. The threat of losing their benefits which are at a low level is something many do not wish to go through with so does end up going along with it. I think this is where solidarity must come in. Those of us who are in jobs should in my view be looking to set up hardship funds for those who are possibly looking to boycott workfare to help out those who will lose their benefits as a result. I am not sure how this could work but this is certainly something I think could help if we are going to look to take on workfare with mass action. Making people aware of what workfare is and who is still involved in the scheme is key. The actions taken by boycott workfare for example calling out companies and charities involved in the scheme is a good way of targeting them but clearly bigger action is needed to really take it on. Another question is will we see workfare workers in the public sector such as the fire service, police etc? Could we see this? It’s possible I guess with the help of the private sector no doubt. This is the route we are heading unless we do something about it. This post is simply highlighting my fears and thoughts of workfare and where we are heading. I would be interested and happy to cover anyone who has been on workfare and their stories keeping your identity hidden if you so wish.

Britain needs a pay rise!

British workers have faced incredible suffering for some time now. One of the main issues behind the current struggles of working people in Britain is the fact we have a low wage economy with British workers pay often not covering their weekly out goings and more often than not leaving them down on the week. Quite often workers are having to take tax credits to top up their pay and therefore costing the welfare state pounds in benefits. If a living wage was properly paid to all workers there could be put money in workers pockets to go and spend in the wider economy. Just a thought ay? The real value of wages in the UK has fallen by 7% since 2008, more than £50billion a year. This means people have less money to spend, holding back growth and a potential economic recovery. PCS members are striking on budget day after five years of a pay freeze and the current 1% pay rise. There has been a real terms cut in the total value of Britain’s wages by £50 billion since 2007 and there needs to be immediate stimulus and improvement In terms and conditions for workers to put this money back in and restart the economy. Without drastic action there is now a very real prospect of a triple-dip-recession with many forecasters predicting a prolonged negative Outlook for our economy. Since the start of the economic downturn in 2007 the real value of wages has fallen by about 7%. This in part is because of the Depression of wages in the public sector. It has been proven time and again that putting money into people’s pockets is the most effective way to stimulate Local economies around the country and putting the lost £50bn back into the economy are the best way to foster growth. I support the PCS members throughout the country, who are engaging in a programme of industrial action starting on Budget Day to demand that the Tories take action On low pay and our faltering economy. I support them in their struggle as do the MPs who have signed EDM 1081. This post may sound quite reformist and you may ask why am I not demanding the end of the wage system and a end to capitalism well we are not at that point yet and even revolutionary socialists will fight for every possible reform capitalism can give working people and will fight tooth and nail for this. We must also point out the limited nature of reforms and concessions in that they are only temporary under this system of capitalism and ultimately we do need to change society on to democratic socialist lines. An immediate pay increase will help many workers in the short term though and it shouldn’t be something we oppose if it’s fought for and struggled for. Besides every gain breeds confidence into workers that they can struggle and gain victories. There is no reason why other unions other than the PCS could co ordinate strike action around the question of pay and the ongoing pay freeze into wider industrial action. The money is out there while we sit here over 750 billion sits idle in the vaults of big business and banks. A 50% levee on that would instantly free up cash for a wage increase and other public services we so desperately need in this country.

Fighting the cuts to tax credits

Over the last few days IDS Ian Duncan Smith has come out to say too many people are dependent on tax credits and labour fueld this boom of tax credits. In one sense he has a point tax credits were used by new labour to fuel a credit boom which meant people could have a top up on their wages. Just like myself I do not earn nearly enough to even pay any forms of tax so I can claim tax credits with a extra disabled bonus to it which still isn’t much it means I get a extra 70 pounds a week roughly this does really help and puts money back in the economy. But it’s masked the true trend of peoples wages stagnating and falling back in many cases. The government subsidises low pay hand has done for many years now both labour and Tories have held down wages while executive pay has soared beyond imagination there’s a huge huge gap now between the low pay of ordinary working people and the bonus culture and huge telephone number salaries at the top. So its not that we are dependent on tax credits its more the fact our wages are so lowland poor we have to rely on a top up to even survive in today’s economy even tax credits aren’t enough for many now with more working poor having to use food banks and the like to just feed themselves. This is the cold reality of capitalism which is failing the 99%. The wealth of the 1% is streaming ahead and all these attacks we’re facing to tax credits now next in line are seeing a huge transfer of wealth from the poorest to the rich. The majority of people in receipt of tax credits like myself are in work be that part time or even full time this gets employers off the hook and means they are not forced to pay a decent wage to their works. The labour party’s sudden fascination with a “living wage” is another smokescreen as in affect the new living wage under labour would raise wages sure but would in affect create a new higher minimum wage which as we all know is pretty pathetic and really doesn’t help many at all. In fact many companies still get away with not paying a minimum wage still till this day. I blogged about this scandal a year or so ago and this still goes on in 2013. So why the labour party think a living wage would be the answer I don’t know. What we really need is a proper true living wage which’s linked o inflation rising with inflation so our money can buy back the goods we produce. Of course under capitalism this c an never happen as our social wage can never put the capitalists profits at risk we will always be limited to a certain amount of increase in our wages but what is certain it’ll never threaten the very existence of capitalist production itself where the unpaid labour of a wage labourer is more than what the capitalist gets back. Our wages are always a percentage of the work we do as the capitalist extracts their profits from our unpaid labour and are always trying to lower wages, increase the working day make us work faster and faster or such like. Ultimately the wage system can not meet the majority of peoples needs and does need over throwing too just like the whole capitalist system too. Profits extracted for the benefit of a few rich capitalists while using government subsidies in the form of tax credits means the rich are laughing all the way to the bank. Its time to expose the capitalist system for what it is, learn its inside workings through the teachings of Karl Marx and Frederich Engel’s and learn its weakness’ and how we can best change society to meet the needs of the majority.