Worker’s Mail (Updated)

Resistance Hero [A]

 
During the four Trump years, nothing beyond getting rid of the Pussy-Grabber in Chief mattered. So gazillionaire Jeff Bezos, owner of openly anti-Trump The Washington Post, became a hero of the identitarian Leftist Resistance (Ed B, that’s you, among others).

Conclusive proof that capitalists – especially the really filthy rich ones – are really top blokes/sheilas and a force for progress, the guy could do no wrong.

Now US President Joe Biden – the main beneficiary of Bezos’ journalism – seems to be repaying Bezos’ support … supporting the unionisation drive in the Amazon Bessemer warehouse (in Sweet Home Alabama). Strange, uh?

Bezos, understandably, has done all in his power to quash said drive. For example, he’s long instructed how to detect union formation and how to act in such emergencies. On top of that, lately he unleashed an army of fake “associates” defending Amazon on Twitter – aka “trolls”, quite like those who defended Trump.

Understandably as well, Bezos is mightily pissed off at Biden’s political interference. So he has instructed his minions executives to tweet like crazy not against the big fish in the pond – that is, Biden himself – but against the little fishes – Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Again, strange, yes?

But then, Biden’s ostensibly public pro-union stance since the election campaign is strangely contrasting with his own record: wasn’t he the one overseeing the General Motors/Chrysler bailout, during the GFC, including a 50% wage cut to new hires? That, without mentioning his less publicised private pro-corporate stance.

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The ABC’s Sarah Ferguson reported on that. Some quotes from that report.

Jeff Bezos:

“We have very good communications with our employees [as demonstrated by the fake tweets]. We don’t believe that we need a union to be an intermediary between us and our employees but, of course, at the end of the day, it is always the employees’ choice.”

Sounds a lot like what Peter Hartcher says about Aldi and unions, yes? Funny how Very Serious ™ commentators parrot thoughtlessly the talking points of bosses.

If you can, watch her report; otherwise the transcript is good, too.

Sarah Ferguson:

“Black Lives Matter activists have got behind the campaign and they care little for billionaire Jeff Bezos’s reputation as the country’s most prolific job creator.”

To which a black Amazon worker adds:

“So were slave masters, they were job creators. The slave masters were job creators but the slaves created the wealth.”

Does that mean that workers, but not the bosses, are the ones who create wealth now? Don't get me wrong. He's absolutely right and it’s to his credit he understands that.

But that’s not what identitarians say, is it?

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Amazon comrades, 

There are some lessons in that. The first one is that just because people look like you it doesn't mean they are on your side. White bosses and commentators aren't on the side of white workers. Female bosses and commentators aren't on the side of female workers either. Are you sure identitarians black bosses or commentators are on your side?

Remember something: “every class struggle is a political struggle”, as Marx said. To have a union is good and important, but it's just the beginning; unions are only as good as you make them. Push them hard to act on your behalf. It's time to put Biden’s “pro-union” stance to the test.

Good luck in your drive.

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I suppose Australian unions are less glamorous. Perhaps that’s why Aussie journos don’t pay them much attention.

But these Australian workers, away from media attention, are fighting as well:

“On 25 February 2021, McCormick Foods workers went on strike for a fair wage increase and are asking the community to support their strike.
“These workers have gone without a wage increase for five years. In recent negotiations their employer offered a 0% wage increase alongside threats to cut hard-won conditions.”

As I write this, 1,157 persons (yours truly included) donated. If you can chip in, please do so. More info below.

Update:

04/04/2021. Things that in other places are quickly done, in the US often take a long time. Over there, apparently counting the votes of some 6,000 workers could take days or even weeks. Joseph Pisani (AP/The Seattle Times) explains. Bloody yanks are good at complicating things, uh?

Image Credits: 

[A] “Jeff Bezos at Amazon Spheres Grand Opening in Seattle”. January 29, 2018. Author: Seattle City Council from Seattle. Source: WikiMedia. File licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. My usage of the file does not suggest anyone endorses me or said usage.