As my old friend Jack Heyman rightly pointed out in his recent posting , if the EU-Parliament votes to accept the Conciliation Committee’s proposals on the 17th November then this could have some severe effects on organised labour on the docks worldwide. For anyone interested in the document in question, I’ve placed a pdf-version, with some bookmarks I put in, on the ILWU-group’s file archive.

This text on which they are voting is the absolute final version - it’s “take it or leave it” and not even a comma can be edited. This means that if Parliament rejects any part of it then there will be no directive at all. As you know, European Dockers, leaders and, above all, the rank and file members, have been working hard at it since it started in February 2001. We’ve been to meetings all over the continent discussing tactics, been lobbying politicians, organising strikes and demonstrations - you name it, it’s been done. We’ve had a fair measure of success too in so much as that the proposals now on the table have been watered down somewhat although still unacceptable. This is why we are going to have another big push leading up to the 17th and any help or support we can get will be much appreciated.

If Parliament kicks it out, it will be the first time they didn’t reach a successful conciliation so we will be making history! It is I think, also the first time unions from so many countries have organised a concerted effort that has cut across so many barriers. At the Rotterdam and Barcelona demos you could really feel the solidarity and nobody cared if you were IDC or ITF - everyone was a docker with the same goal - keeping the docks union.

Whatever the outcome of the vote, the employers will of course still be after us, but now we know that we have got friends and are certainly a force to be reckoned with - and that feels good!

Yours fraternally Peter Shaw. Swedish Dockworkers Union