Sir, - The Aer Lingus workers who came out in strike in support of their Ryanair colleagues should be congratulated. They have shown the real meaning of solidarity at a time when some claimed that such values have died. Without their action, young baggage-handlers at Ryanair would still be locked out and deprived of their livelihood.
Those who have attacked the "anarchy" and "callousness" of the action are guilty of gross hypocrisy. Workers have only one key instrument of use against capital: the power to withdraw their labour. Employers have all the power that comes with possession of vast amounts of money.
Where were those who attack the "abuse of power" when companies like Packard and Semperit closed down their factories and devastated the lives of many in Tallaght and Ballyfermot? Why is it that when workers are subject to greater suffering by speed-ups, demands for flexibility, or redundancies, this is simply put down to the logic of an inhuman market rather than an expression of greed for more profits?
As long as we live in a society where one man can make £17 million from his shares while others have to haul heavy bags in all kinds of weather for a mere £13,600 a year, we will have the type of class conflict that manifested itself in Dublin Airport. The only issue is whether our side, the workers' side, is able to pursue its interests with the same determination as those who use every method to weaken us.
Finally, let me also challenge those who imagine that the action of Aer Lingus workers is "old-fashioned" or part of a "Seventies-style method of industrial relations". They cannot be following what is happening in countries as diverse as France, Germany or Canada today where major struggles have occurred for workers' rights. The labour movement is reviving after years of defeat by right-wing politicians. It has re-learnt the old motto: the great are great only because we are on our knees; let us arise. - Yours, etc.,
(SIPTU shop steward), Waterford.