Anarchist Communist Orgainizing in the Workplace

I am in the process of writing a paper on Anarchism and Working Class Struggle based on discussions that have occured on the NEFAC (North Eastern Federation of Anarchist Communists) list serve. They have now published their position paper on orgainizing in unions and the role of NEFAC in working class struggles. Read on!

NEFAC Workplace Position Paper

Adopted at the eleventh federation congress,
November 5-6, 2005, Sherbrooke, Quebec

The struggle toward libertarian communism must be brought about by the whole of the working class, the workplace and labor unions are an essential point of agitation and struggle. Anarchist-communists must organize within the ranks of labor unions, active in this struggle as both advocates of social revolution and as fellow workers in a collective battle against exploitation.

Class struggle is by no means confined to workplace. Class conflict occurs everyday in neighborhood-based battles for decent housing, the fight for welfare, the battles for access to quality education, the struggle against prisons and police brutality, in the arena of popular culture, and especially against racism, sexism, and other oppressions that stratify and divide the working class. However, as anarchist-communists, we have a particular strategic interest in workplace struggles due to the ability to directly challenge the material interests of the capitalist class

Independent rank-and-file tendencies within existing unions, coupled with workplace resistance groups, solidarity networks, and, eventually, workplace assemblies and coordinating councils, provide a glimpse at the kind of self-managed workers movement needed to not only effectively challenge the employers, but also develop the unity and revolutionary class consciousness needed to overthrow the capitalist social order.

Tags
labour
libertarianism
anarchism
economics
socialism