The spectacle of Irish Ferries trying to sack 543 workers and replace them with "galley slaves" on €3.60 an hour should have all young workers up in arms.

The race to the bottom in terms of wages and conditions of workers in Irish Ferries, GAMA, Doyle’s Concrete and countless other examples around the country gives a glimpse of the future for young people under capitalism.

When Socialist Youth ran an "End Low Pay Campaign" during the summer, we met young people working in pubs, shops and leisureplexes on wages as low as €3.60 an hour. Not only that, in general these workers worked in disgraceful conditions, liable to be called in to work at any time, having to work extra hours cleaning for free and left with no way of getting home at night. If the bosses get their way, more of this is on the cards in the coming years, with cheap migrant labour and young people being used as a battering ram to drive down wages of all workers.

Trade unions

A recent survey conducted by Socialist Youth showed that 57% of young people felt that trade unions were relevant to young people and 76% said they would consider joining one. The difference in the figures reflects the fact that trade unions have not proved themselves to be relevant to young people by organising them to fight for better wages and conditions. But the high figure of people who would consider joining one is an indication of the willingness of young workers to fight back if a lead was given. Yet the reality is that, by and large, young workers are not unionised, and as a result, like migrant workers, face the worst that capitalism has to offer. If the trade union leaderships were serious about stopping the race to the bottom, a race to organise migrant workers and young people in unions would now be started.

Irish Ferries

All workers, young workers included, have power in the workplace. A glimpse of that power was seen in the Irish Ferries dispute, where without industrial action by the ships’ officers, and a massive show of working class solidarity of up to 100,000 people on Friday 9 December, Irish Ferries would have made no concessions whatsoever. The bosses rely on us to make their profits, which means that by getting organised together with our workmates and taking action like pickets and strikes, we can win better wages and conditions. If you’re fed up with being treated like crap by your boss and getting paid poverty wages, then don’t put up with it. Contact Socialist Youth now and we can assist you to fight back. We can organise a picket on your workplace to expose your scrooge boss and pressurise them to grant a wage increase.

As long as profit dominates our world the worst brunt of globalisation and neo-liberalism will fall on the shoulders of migrant workers and young people. That’s why as well as campaigning for a minimum wage of €12 an hour, with no exemptions, we are organising to effect fundamental change - for a socialist world where working class people democratically control the society we live in for people’s needs not profit.

Don’t put up with poverty wages and conditions! Contact Socialist Youth now on 086 1688050 or via E-mail here and we can help you to fight back!

School students take action over Irish Ferries issue

Many school students around the country attended the protests against Irish Ferries on Friday 9 December. We spoke to one of them, Eoin Dixon-Murphy, a student from Bray, about why he attended.

TS: Why did you come on the protest against Irish Ferries?
ED: One of the reasons was to support the march and the workers’ struggle. The reason is to do with my future, to benefit me, because I don’t want to face a future of low pay.

TS: Did many people from your school come?
ED: Yeah, about twenty people from my school went. They were allowed leave if they had a note from their parents.

TS: What was the reaction of the teachers?
ED: The teachers all supported it, and wanted to go themselves, but because of what the teachers’ union said, they weren’t able to go.

TS: What did you think of the protest?
ED: I thought it was great, I thought there was a great turnout, it was really well supported. I hope it made a difference

300,000 US troops passed through Shannon Airport last year. The US envoy to Ireland, Richard Hass, has stated that Shannon is crucial to US war in Iraq.

Shannon is also being used for the illegal transport of prisoners who have been kidnapped by the CIA to be tortured and illegally imprisoned. This is an indictment of Bertie Ahern’s government and exposes again their complicity in Bush and Blair’s wars on the people of Iraq and Afghanistan.

According to Amnesty International six planes used by the CIA have made over 50 landings at Shannon. The planes are used to bring prisoners to countries such as Syria, Egypt and Jordan where torture is routine. Prisoners are also being taken to secret CIA camps in Eastern Europe and to Guantanamo Bay, where the brutal conditions are well known.

An example of the treatment given to such prisoners can be found in the case of Ahmed Agiza and Muhammed Zery who were taken to Egypt by the CIA. Both men have described how they were beaten and had electric shocks administered to their genitals. Not surprisingly the Irish government has refused to board and inspect US military and CIA planes using Shannon. Instead they have accepted the denials of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that the US is involved in the torture of prisoners and that secret CIA camps exist.

Her guarantees are about as valuable as those given before the war about weapons of mass destruction. US war crimes and the Irish government’s complicity in them should be opposed and the power of the trade unions should be used to stop the US military from using Shannon.

Sixth Year students across the country are feeling the panic and pressure of the looming Leaving Cert exam and the following CAO points race.

However, the Minister for Education, Mary Hanafin, plans to rid us of all this stress - by scheduling another exam for February!

These reforms, which are due to be introduced in 2008, will greatly add to student stress levels, not reduce them. This pitiful response to calls for change shows how out-of-touch with young people the government is.

Socialist Youth calls for scraping the points system altogether. We call for it to be replaced with a system of continuous assessment and a guaranteed place in third level for all. However, this government has no interest in addressing the alarming level of stress among students. All they care about is providing cheap labour for their big-business friends.

Only through establishing fighting student action groups and a democratic students’ unions, linking up with the teachers’ unions who also suffer from the inadequate education system, can we win a fair and just education for all.