The general strike in the South | Socialist Action 1983

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THE SOUTH of Ireland ground to a halt, 14 April, as workers staged a half day general payments increases. 150,000 workers took to the streets in protest at tax increases that will take IR£2 out of an average pay packet of IR£140, and up to IRf10 from higher wage earners. The equivalent size demonstrations in Britain would be over 3 million strong.

Workers are refusing to shoulder the burden of the economic crisis in the South. They point to the fact that the IR£260 million increase in PAYE is link exisine tax bands to account for inflation This sum is more than all of the contributions ala Dy private companies out together. It's ove live times that paid by the wealthy farmers Employers are being feather-bedded out of the pockets of ordinary workers, who want to know the IR£500 million taxes owed by big business.

To workers in Britain the organisation of such massive demonstrations may seem to snow a real fightback from the unions but workers in Ireland are getting increasing v annoved at the refusal of the union leaders to go beyond demonstrations. Waterford Glass who have told their employers to withold all their tax and insurance for two weeks in As a result of their threat to take strike action if their demands were not compiled with, management gave in and paved wages in the form of loans. This avoids the legal obligation to pay tax on all TOWEL SuDDles it any In March, the threat of a general strike to free the Rank occupation workers was enough to get them released, so it looks unlikely that the government will rush into anything hasty this time.

Workers' leaders like Matt Merrigan are talk. ing about a rolling series of strikes leading to a Speaking at the Dublin rally Merrigan got the biggest applause of the day when he said the unions should reconsider their links with the Irish Labour party — a coalition partner in the present He argued that they should try to build an Irish party of labour in the tradition of Connolly and arkin, that acted for the interests of working peorecoup the cy.

iS union theatened to bia poor