'UKIP is not an isolated phenomenon, but a nationalist response to the unfettered globalisation which has been the dominant ideology since the mid 1990′s. Though much of the left argued that the global world order needed global rules to protect people’s livelihood, it is in the main the regressive and nationalist right that is the political beneficiary of the chaos that has ensued,' writes Giampi Alhadeff former European Parliamentary Labour Party Secretary General:
http://alhadeffgp.com/2013/05/07/ukip-globalisation-and-the-labour-party/
Over 50 million people are estimated to be taking part in protests all over India against the Government plans to open up the economy to multi national companies such as Wal Mart:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-19658146
The strikes and protests called by the trade unions, the opposition party and the Communist Parties are in opposition to the government`s policy of allowing Global Retail firms to buy up to 51% of existing retail firms, essentially allowing them to take over the sector.
A new study by the McKinsey Global Institute confirms the remarkable expansion taking place in the global workforce. In 2010 the number of workers worldwide was 2.9bn compared to 1.7bn in 1980. By 2030 the total will have risen to 3.5bn with China and India being the main centres of economic development. Pressures on workers' living standards in advanced (western) economies will continue to intensify - between 1980 and 2010 workers' share of overall income fell by 7% - a result of rising corporate profits and declining wages - leading to growing income and wealth inequality:
http://www.economist.com/node/21556974
The International Labour Organization (ILO) has warned that the global employment situation is "alarming" with youth unemployment rising in both developed as well as developing economies. The UN agency is critical of the austerity measures taken by Europe's economies, saying not only had they failed to bring down deficits but they had hurt economic growth and as a result worsened unemployment levels:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17890575
The Guardian reports an under-current running through the budget which exposes the duplicity of the Lib Dems who are complicit in a budget settlement that will take money from the poorest to subsidize a £20 billion tax bonanza for bent businesses that avoid paying UK taxes.
In determining their response to the crisis, trade unions must not only think about short-term policies but also long-term strategy. Although it may be easy to point out that the crisis showed that the balance of power between labour and capital needs to change, it is far less easy to elaborate how this change can be brought about. LSE Academic Richard Hyman writing for the Global Labour Column looks at how capitalism and economic democracy have tried – and failed – to coexist:
http://column.global-labour-university.org/
