Nowadays, multinationals are paying workers very small wages. In the past, the worker used to earn enough to support a wife, lets say eight children and one or two members of the extended family. Now the worker can barely support himself and his family and quite often has to do a part-time job to be able to support them. We are already seeing children doing part-time jobs. I have nothing against women working, but their earnings should go for certain luxuries and not necessities.

The multinationals do not give the worker enough money for his family’s health and educational needs. Thus governments have to provide for health and education from the taxes gathered from the workers. As these taxes are not enough, as the workers can’t afford to pay more taxes, governments run up debts they can’t repay, until the whole system collapses.

The multinationals make a tremendous amount of profit, but instead of some of this profit being shared by the workers and governments so that they will be able to provide health and education services, the profit goes into the pockets of a few individuals.

And what are the unions doing? Precious little. Sometimes I feel that the international unions and some other international organisations are in the pay of the multinationals to allow them to do what they like. We have never had an international strike against the multinationals.

Nobody knows who the international unions’ secretaries are. Why? Because they do precious little, that’s why. Secretaries of international unions should be as popular as the Pope if not more. The unions should see that the multinationals’ profits should go to the workers, who would then be able to pay enough taxes to support the health and education systems.

The workers should have the power to elect the representatives of international organisations so that the workers would control them.

To revolt aimlessly is not the answer.

Josephine Gatt-Ciancio

KALKARA