After a rather gloomy month of May, the sun came out in Brussels last Saturday on the occasion of the second demonstration organised by the group ‘La Santé en Lutte’ / ‘Health in action’. It was a “festive, determined and demanding atmosphere,” stated the action group.
The international mobilisation of which this protest was part, united more than 60 trade unions and groups. In Italy, Spain, France and the United Kingdom, among others, people took to the streets to defend healthcare. This can lead to more international coordination.
Dozens of organisations in Belgium, including some trade union structures, joined the call for the health protest. The demonstrators demanded more public funds for healthcare, better working conditions and an increase of the lowest wages. Among those present were many care workers, but also teachers in a delegation from the ‘School in Action’ group, undocumented immigrants, social workers, feminists, housing activists, … After a whole series of speeches that illustrated the diversity of those present, the demonstration went from the Central Station to the South Station. It was the first such demonstration since 8 March 2020, when just before the outbreak of the pandemic there was a large demonstration in the context of International Women’s Day.
This was the second major mobilisation of ‘La Santé en Lutte’, after an action in September in which more than 7,000 people took part. The context was different then, before the second semi-lockdown that we are only now beginning to emerge from. The mobilisation was also prepared over a longer time then. Possibly some people also remembered the police repression at the end of the September demonstration, with violence aimed at intimidating social protest. The main reason why the protest was smaller now is undoubtedly that many health workers are at the end of their tether after more than a year of enormous efforts for which they do not get the necessary respect in return.
In an interview with our monthly paper a nurse from UZ hospital in Gent said: “As the third wave recedes, there is more hope in the workplace. Alongside the hope, there is a lot of fear. What if variants for which the vaccine does not work are spread? Will we then be back to square one? As long as the virus can continue to develop somewhere in the world, there is the danger of new variants. Also even now it remains hectic on the work floor: many operations have been postponed, so there are often greater risks. The queues for rehabilitation are longer, the pressure on all services is greater.”
When We Fight, We Win
In our leaflet, we emphasised that victories are possible when we fight. One such victory is the obtaining of a minimum wage of 14 euros per hour at Ghent University. This excellent news for staff in, among others, childcare and restaurant facilities is the result of a long struggle led by the ACOD trade union delegation, which explicitly sought the involvement of all staff and students. The ROSA Socialist Feminist campaign played an important role in this struggle, first by collecting signatures for a petition and later by helping to build towards the strike of 9 March 2020, organised by ACOD and Womens Strike UGent. We also organised a demonstration for €14/hour.
It was not a strike that was announced from above, but a strike that was prepared well in advance from the ground up in the workplace. It was not a symbolic action, but the result of building a favourable balance of forces around a concrete demand, with a view to achieving a victory and not just to drawing attention to the issue. This movement showed how we can make the demand for a higher minimum wage a reality: through unity and solidarity at work and at home, fighting against insecurity and discrimination. On 21 May, it became known that the lowest wages are also being raised to 14 euro an hour at the cleaning company that works as a subcontractor for UGent (ISS).
Also, at the supermarket chain Lidl, a sector where many women work and wages are low, there was a threat of a strike in early May, which forced the management to recruit additional staff. When we fight, we win!
Massive Public Investment in Healthcare Necessary
La Santé en Lutte explains: “To cope with the pandemic, the government lends money to the hospitals, which have to repay it. The health of the population on credit! In reality, their will to reduce the resources for healthcare remains the same. Where are the extra resources after three waves? The pressure to make a profit, regardless of the human cost, is maintained on the institutions and on the staff. As a result, redundancies and closures of residential care centres are already being threatened. In short: pressure on staffing levels, crumbs for wages and a continuation of the marketisation of the sector. Care was quickly applauded, but also quickly forgotten.”
We fully agree. What is needed is a massive plan of public investment in the care sector, with democratic control over the allocation of those funds. Let’s be clear: the needs are no different in social housing, education and other public services. There too, there is a need for drastically increased public resources.
– A plan of massive public investments in care, education and public services
– A minimum wage of €14/hour (€2,300 gross/month)
– For social rights to be provided directly to individuals, not exclusively via families, and an increase in benefits above the poverty line
– A collective reduction in working hours, without loss of pay, with compensatory recruitment and reduction of the workload
– A strengthening and development of public services: after-school care, family assistance, laundries, etc.
– A massive public plan for the renovation and construction of social housing.
We must tackle the problem at its root: capitalism is based on inequalities. A small elite of the super-rich exploits us. To continue doing so, that elite has to divide us. Capitalism must go, and make way for a society dedicated to the fulfilment of all: a socialist society.
ISA on the March
LSP/PSL, the Belgian section of ISA, was strongly present at the healthcare demonstration. Over a hundred members and sympathizers attended. We formed a lively and militant delegation at the demonstration. Our activists sold 86 copies of our paper and collected 285 euros in fighting fund.