If we look only on the surface of the capitalist system, the wages of the labourer seem to be the remuneration of labour—so much money paid for so much labour. Labour is then treated as a commodity, the market-price of which rises and falls above or below its value. In the wages-system, the money relation conceals the gratuitous labour of the wage-worker for the capitalist. The owners of all resources and means of wealth form a class by themselves; the owners of labour power, as their only possession in the market, another. Political, judicial, educational and other institutions only mirror the prevailing system of ownership in the resources and means of production. One class—the capitalist class—owns and controls the economic resources of the world. That class, for its own protection and perpetuation in power, subjects all institutions to its own interests. On the other hand, there is a class—the working class—which is eventually to change the whole system of ownership of the means of production.
The capitalist class will forever be interested in lowering the wages and living conditions of the property-less people because it's simply in their interest. Trade unions as the first line of defence for the working class in that daily struggle. However, unions alone cannot break people free from the endless cycle of capitalist wage-slavery. As long as the capitalist system exists, the bosses will always try to take back what they have been forced to concede. They will continually try to step up the exploitation of the working class in order to boost their profits. Until the workers get rid of the capitalist system itself, the cause of all the injustices they face, they will constantly have to take up their struggles over and over again. A socialist party mobilises, educates and unifies the working class and show that every conflict between workers and bosses is part of the general struggle in society between the ruling class and its state on the one hand, and the working class on the other. It denounces all the employers or the government attempts to institutionalise class collaboration. The guiding principle and basis of action of a socialist party are that the interests of the owning class and the workers are irreconcilable.
The labour movement should drop the meaningless slogan "A Fair Day's Wages for a Fair Day's Work" since capitalism's internal nature prevents capitalists from being "fair" to the workers whose wages they must continually seek to depress and adopt the slogan: "Possession of the means of work — raw material, factories, machinery — by the working people themselves!" For many long years, the Socialist Party pleaded with the workers to organise and take over the entire means of production and distribution. Books, pamphlets, leaflets, and periodicals of all kinds were freely circulated, with a scant result, our fellow-workers indifferent to questions of supreme importance. We must skilfully seize appropriate moments and opportunities to discuss politics and socialism with our fellow- workers at union meetings and elsewhere. Our goal is to raise political consciousness to the level of a socialist understanding. What all workers must realise is that their misery is due to exploitation carried on by the capitalist class. Trade unionism merely restricts their struggle to attempts at lessening this exploitation. It does not fight to end exploitation i.e. to end the capitalist system and replace it by socialism. This is the fatal limitation of trade unionism.
We do not, of course, therefore oppose trade union struggles or refuse to participate in them. It is very essential to organise workers and help them to fight for their day to day demands. Because, it is only in the course of these fights, that the workers learn about the system of capitalist exploitation and the need to abolish it. Trade union struggles are necessary to educate the workers. What is wrong is to stop at that stage, limiting ourselves always to trade union struggles. We must urge the workers forward to transform the economic struggle into a political struggle for the seizure of power by the working class. If we do this we would be doing revolutionary work. Otherwise, we will sink into the morass of reformism. We should educate our fellow-workers sufficiently to prepare them to overthrow the system of exploitation itself. We must not only teach them how to fight for wage increases but go further to abolish the wage system itself.
The onus is on the Socialist Party of demonstrating in a way that can be understood by the workers that the theories we have so long expounded can be translated into a practical method of producing and distributing the wealth of the planet in such a way as to end forever the exploitation of the many by the privileged few. Let us capture Parliament, and carry through a social revolution that will take us out of capitalism into the new world of socialism. Money, the most powerful weapon of the capitalist is discarded. Distribution will not be according to the amount of money a person has but according to his or her need. We are now poor and enslaved not because of lack of reforms made by politicians, but because the employing class owns and control the means of production, without access to which we cannot live. So long as others control the means whereby we live so long shall we be slaves? Only by taking and holding the means of distribution can the workers be free.
If we look only on the surface of the capitalist system, the wages of the labourer seem to be the remuneration of labour—so much money paid for so much labour. Labour is then treated as a commodity, the market-price of which rises and falls above or below its value. In the wages-system, the money relation conceals the gratuitous labour of the wage-worker for the capitalist. The owners of all resources and means of wealth form a class by themselves; the owners of labour power, as their only possession in the market, another. Political, judicial, educational and other institutions only mirror the prevailing system of ownership in the resources and means of production. One class—the capitalist class—owns and controls the economic resources of the world. That class, for its own protection and perpetuation in power, subjects all institutions to its own interests. On the other hand, there is a class—the working class—which is eventually to change the whole system of ownership of the means of production.
The capitalist class will forever be interested in lowering the wages and living conditions of the property-less people because it's simply in their interest. Trade unions as the first line of defence for the working class in that daily struggle. However, unions alone cannot break people free from the endless cycle of capitalist wage-slavery. As long as the capitalist system exists, the bosses will always try to take back what they have been forced to concede. They will continually try to step up the exploitation of the working class in order to boost their profits. Until the workers get rid of the capitalist system itself, the cause of all the injustices they face, they will constantly have to take up their struggles over and over again. A socialist party mobilises, educates and unifies the working class and show that every conflict between workers and bosses is part of the general struggle in society between the ruling class and its state on the one hand, and the working class on the other. It denounce all the employers or the government attempts to institutionalise class collaboration. The guiding principle and basis of action of a socialist party is that the interests of the owning class and the workers are irreconcilable.
The labour movement should drop the meaningless slogan "A Fair Day's Wages for a Fair Day's Work" since capitalism's internal nature prevents capitalists from being "fair" to the workers whose wages they must continually seek to depress and adopt the slogan: "Possession of the means of work — raw material, factories, machinery — by the working people themselves!" For many long years the Socialist Party pleaded with the workers to organise and take over the entire means of production and distribution. Books, pamphlets, leaflets and periodicals of all kinds were freely circulated, with scant result, our fellow-workers indifferent to questions of supreme importance. We must skilfully seize appropriate moments and opportunities to discuss politics and socialism with our fellow- workers at union meetings and elsewhere. Our goal is to raise political consciousness to the level of a socialist understanding. What all workers must realise is that their misery is due to exploitation carried on by the capitalist class. Trade unionism merely restricts their struggle to attempts at lessening this exploitation. It does not fight to end exploitation i.e. to end the capitalist system and replace it by socialism. This is the fatal limitation of trade unionism.
We do not, of course, therefore oppose trade union struggles or refuse to participate in them. It is very essential to organise workers and help them to fight for their day to day demands. Because, it is only in the course of these fights, that the workers learn about the system of capitalist exploitation and the need to abolish it. Trade union struggles are necessary to educate the workers. What is wrong is to stop at that stage, limiting ourselves always to trade union struggles. We must urge the workers forward to transform the economic struggle into a political struggle for the seizure of power by the working class. If we do this we would be doing revolutionary work. Otherwise, we will sink into the morass of reformism. We should educate our fellow-workers sufficiently to prepare them to overthrow the system of exploitation itself. We must not only teach them how to fight for wage increases but togo further to abolish the wage system itself.
The onus is on the Socialist Party of demonstrating in a way that can be understood by the workers that the theories we have so long expounded can be translated into a practical method of producing and distributing the wealth of the planet in such a way as to end forever the exploitation of the many by the privileged few. Let us capture Parliament, and carry through a social revolution that will take us out of capitalism into the new world of socialism. Money, the most powerful weapon of the capitalist is discarded. Distribution will not be according to the amount of money a person has but according to his or her need. We are now poor and enslaved not because of lack of reforms made by politicians, but because the employing class own and control the means of production, without access to which we cannot live. So long as others control the means whereby we live so long shall we be slaves. Only by taking and holding the means of distribution can the workers be free.
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