News of Workers Con Rol Seminar

Ken Coates The conference on Workers! Control, which has been called by the is already beginning to secure an excellent p¥ess, Last week the Socialist Leader devoted space to a call for support, and previously Tribune and Peace News had carried articles about it. This week a giant blast comes from Voice of the Unions, which is among the sponsors of the Conference. Half the papersis given over to publicity and discussion about the seminar, The by-now-famous centre= page spread of the Voice, by Walter Kendall, is entirely concerned about the Conference, This makes an excellent poster for display in factories and offices, and it is hoped that this itself will greatly extend the publicity f the seminar, "Voice of the Untors as a paper stands up for the working class and stands up for socialism, We are working class because we believe that capitalism is wasteful, inefficient, undemocratic, bloody=minded, based on privilege, inequality and cheats the worker of all that is rightfully his, We are for both working class, for socialism and against capitalism because we believe in human freedom and brotherhood and know that capitalism is an enemy of all these things. That is why we are also for WORKERS! CONTROL. Socialism is for us because it means a great expansion in human freedom. We do not believe that there are two kpnds of socialism in one of which the workers rule, in the other of which they are enslaved, .One tight as well argue "that there are two brands of freedom, one in which you are free, the other in which you are in jail." British railwaymen, British coal miners, British power station workers, British co-operative employees, all work in state or socially=-owned industriés. Yet all agree that the master-servant relationship the wage slavery system remains, Twentieth century experience of giant private monopolies, of vast state trusts, whether in Britain, or for that matter in the U.S.S.R., shows beyond doubt that whilst planning may resolve economic contradictions, it may also leave the subject status of the worker quite unchanged, As Stalin's usurpation showed, vast state power may actually enslave the worker, instead of granting him greater liberty. State ownership, state pla ming, we support both. Yet they are not enough. WORKERS! CONTROL IS ALSO NECESSARY..." After setting out a progranme for action under the Labour Government, the article concludes; 'The Nottingham Conference should be the workshop of our ideas, the foundry in which will be forged the plans for workers! control which could make Britain a true Workers! Republic, its industry socially owned, and socially planned, with its work places, an example to the noni, planned and managed by the workers themselves," Enrolments are still flooding in faster than offers + accomodation in Nottingham, both of which should be rushed to Geoff Coggan, 47 Brindley Rd., Bilborough, Nottingham, Tel: 281364.