[rad-green] The Robin Hoods of France: Electrical Wor kers Cut Electricity to Sell-Out Union, Reconnect for Country ’s Poor

*https://www.leftvoice.org/the-robin-hoods-of-france-electrical-workers-cut-electricity-to-sell-out-union-reconnect-for-countrys-poor
<https://www.leftvoice.org/the-robin-hoods-of-france-electrical-workers-cut-electricity-to-sell-out-union-reconnect-for-countrys-poor>*


*Left Voice          January 28, 2020*

*The Robin Hoods of France: Electrical Workers Cut Electricity to Sell-Out
Union, Reconnect for Country’s Poor*
*By Juan Andrés Gallardo
<https://www.leftvoice.org/author/juan-andres-gallardo>*

In the past few months the electrical workers of France have taken up the
mantle of Robin Hood by cutting power to the rich and reconnecting the
poor. Most recently, on January 20, the power was disconnected to the
headquarters of the French Democratic Confederation of Labor (CFDT) union,
which has refused to call a strike and is working with French President
Emmanuel Macron to legitimize his incredibly unpopular pension reform.
*Image: Karine Pierre / Hans Lucas/AFP*

Over the past few months French electrical workers in the CGT-Énergie have
become known as “The Robin Hood”: they cut the electricity to businesses,
police stations, and government buildings, while reconnecting power to poor
households that cannot afford to pay the rates. A week ago, these workers
took action against the CFDT, the country’s oldest and most conciliatory
union which refused to call a strike since the actions against the pension
reform began December 5.

This isn’t the first time French electrical workers have engaged in these
kinds of actions. On Christmas, they engaged in a similar action,
reconnecting power to homes in the impoverished suburbs.

This is part of an ongoing strike by workers against President Macron’s
pension reforms. On Friday, over a million people all over France took to
the streets and even more sectors joined the strike. The workers of the
Paris Metropolitan Transport (RATP) and the railway workers of the country
(SNCF) have been striking indefinitely, supported by intermittent strikes
by other workers, energy workers, workers at refineries and ports and
teachers, among others. In many cases, these strikes have taken place
against the trade union leadership.

Despite this historic strike and the mobilization of millions of people,
CFDT leader Laurent  Berger was at the negotiating table with the Macron
government from day one and defended most of the pension reform, including
the clauses that attacked his own members.

The anger against this union grew to the point that a group of strikers
coordinated by the RATP and SNCF occupied the central hall of the union’s
headquarters. The occupation had a lot of support from workers and from the
streets, even though the media, the government and most of the union
leaderships condemned it. Then, the workers shut down the power to this
sell-out union.
*Class Collaboration in the Dark*

In a press release confirming that the action was carried out by a dozen
branches of CGT-Énergie in the Paris region, the electrical workers pointed
out the reasons for disconnecting power to the CFDT headquarters.

“Against the pension reform: The Robin Hoods deprive Berger of
electricity,” the text begins. “Berger negotiates the terms and forms of
our future chains and those of our children, without ever having
participated in the indefinite strike against the pension reform. This
morning, Monday, January 20, 2020, the electricity was cut off at the
CFDT’s federal headquarters in Paris, and it was the class collaboration
that went into darkness.”

The statement ends with a clear statement: “We work, we produce, we decide.
Resistance.”

The CFDT came out publicly against the action that took their power. In a
statement, it said, “The CFDT headquarters was again the victim of an
intrusion on Monday morning. Some 15 hooded individuals entered the
building to cut off the electricity. This new attack, which several CGT
energy unions have claimed responsibility for on social media, is
unacceptable.”

While the population maintains its support for the strikers, Berger’s
popularity is dwindling. The same goes for Macron, who is finding it
increasingly difficult to take to the streets or hold public events. Last
week, a demonstration inside and outside a theater forced the police to
urgently “extract” the president from the event he was attending inside.

On Monday morning, while Berger sat in the dark at his union headquarters,
Macron could not get to an event at a factory in the town of Dunkirk. He
was “welcomed” by 200 strikers and demonstrators who were picketing on the
highway leading to the site.

This action by CGT-Énergie workers also put CGT Secretary General Philippe
Martinez in a difficult position. Martinez has supported the strike from
the beginning, and although he did not call for its extension, he also did
not accept the “Christmas truce” demanded by the government. Yet, he
repudiated the action of the strikers who entered the CFDT headquarters.
His statement was rejected by many CGT sections who supported the action.
Sectors further radicalized, cutting off power to the sell-out union
without consulting their own union leadership. The actions by CGT
electricians shows the radicalization of the working class base and the
growing disconnection with their leaderships, even the “left” leaderships.

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