From: "Peter Jovanovic" <peterzoran-AT-hotmail.com>
Subject: RE: AUT: class composition
Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2003 10:17:23 +1000


hi all

>That's a pretty good set of links, Nate.  Anyone have any
>more?  And any other suggestions for the autopsy site?

Dauve & Nesic's Whither the World touches on class composition without using 
that term. For example they talk about the failure of the various 
experiments in reorganisation of work in car factories.

http://troploin0.free.fr/Lettre2/whithertheworld.htm

Also I remember reading a piece by Steve's mate Bruce Lindsay on class 
composition in Australia written circa 97 although have no idea where it 
would be.

Anyway here's a few scattered thoughts on things in Australia which may be 
of minor interest.

There hasn't been a big working class movement here since the wharfies 
lockout in 98. It was pretty well controlled by the union however although 
there were more antagonistic tendencies - eg according to a book on the 
dispute by two journalists some wharfies in Western Australia wanted to have 
it out with the cops on the picket line and were negotiating with a bikie 
gang to provide some extra muscle.

Smaller movements in recent years here include the anti-summit stuff 
although that's pretty much dead now; the anti-borders/detention camps 
movement both inside and outside the camps, also probably in decline due to 
state repression - new 'illegal' immigrants are now imprisoned on Pacific 
islands rather than in the Oz desert and the recent protests outside Baxter 
camp faced much heavier policing than last year's at Woomera - Angela could 
say much more on this; an increase in militancy in the building and factory 
workers unions mainly in the state of Victoria which would be well worth 
investigating; a series of mini-riots by gatecrashers at teenage parties in 
Perth over the summer with apparently some of the same people taking part in 
all of them - on the radio today I heard that the state government wants to 
introduce a curfew for under-15s - probably not unrelated to the riots; and 
of course the anti-war movement which in Canberra at least seemed largely 
composed of students (high school as much as university) and white-collar 
workers but sadly with a mostly middle-class, "peaceful protest will change 
the government's mind" sort of subjectivity. Not much compared to the 
strikes in Europe and insurrections in Latin America but I am hopeful that a 
big social explosion is coming.

Also of possible interest is the change to non-traditional work hours in 
blue-collar employment. Eg, on Sunday while waiting for my next bus run to 
start I got talking to a couple of guys putting data cables under the road - 
they work 21 days straight and then have 7 days off so that's one more day 
of work compared to the traditional 5 day week 2 day weekend although the 
guy said they try to limit their work on Sundays. Also a 2nd cousin of mine 
is a lawyer in the outback Queensland mining town of Mt. Isa, he told my mum 
that the social life of the town has been destroyed by the introduction of 
'fly-in fly-out mining', ie the miners are flown in from their homes (some 
in Bali), work 14 days of 12 hour shifts and are then flown home for 14 days 
off. An obvious barrier to off-the-job socialising and hence solidarity.

cheers
peter

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