The struggle continues for the workers’ trade unions against the policies of the employers, their parties, their people in the trade union movement

On Tuesday 25/2, hundreds of unions, elected representatives, trade unionists from every industry, along with thousands of workers, took part in an important andexceptionalbattle, inside and outside of the ‘congress – parody’ organized by the leadership of the General Confederation of Trade Unions of the private sector of the country (GSEE) at a luxury hotel outside of Athens.

The police-state which existed inside and outside of the hotel where the GSEE "conference" was taking place was unprecedented, recording one of the darkest pages in the history of the trade union movement, with the responsibility of the disgraced GSEE leadership.

By Monday afternoon police forces had stationed officers along all the streets around the hotel, in an unprecedented mobilization of the state repressive mechanisms.

Outside the hotel, thousands of workers rallied all day long, demanding class unions that will constitute the base of workers’ struggles, not the governments and the employers.

The demand of hundreds of trade unions across the country for a genuine  workers' congress to take place, with meaningful discussion and debate, without corruption, employers and the police, was conveyed in the contributions to the “congress” by DAS, the grouping supported by communists and other trade unionists which rally in the All-Workers’ Militant Front (PAME), in response to the coordinated efforts of the reprehensible and corrupt maneuvering of PASKE(grouping of the old Social Democratic Party PASOK), of DAKE (grouping of the liberal ruling party ND), and the new social democracy, SYRIZA.

DAS requested that:

• The police leave the conference room.
• The unacceptable entry ban imposed on all media be ended.
• One by one all the serious allegations concerning dozens of illegal representatives and agents arising from the overt interference of the employers be discussed in the Congress assembly.
• At least a two-day conference be conducted in order to enable a meaningful discussion and debate on the orientation of the labor movement.

With provocative objections and without allowing any discussion among the participants, the GSEE leadership rejected DAS’s proposals.

The results of the voting

Despite all the maneuvering, DAS managedto get 66 votes and to elect 9 seats in the elections for the new governing body of GSEE.

This result was achieved despite the fact that 65 blatant cases offraudulent representatives were legitimized by the GSEE leadershipwhich with all its maneuvering, also excluded 5 elected DAS representatives, elected by large and highly active trade unions.

The results, more specifically:

347 representatives voted, 65 of which were illegitimate.

• PASKE: 130 votes - 17 seats
• DAKE: 78 votes - 11 seats
• DAS: 66 votes - 9 seats
• EMEIS - ARKI: 23 votes - 3 seats (SYRIZA sympathizers from the PASOK space)
• EAC (SYRIZA): 17 votes - 2 seats
• "UNITY": 14 votes - 2 seats (2nd grouping from the ND space)
• "INDEPENDENT WORKERS’BALLOT": 9 votes - 1 seat (grouping from DAKE)