Posted on Friday, 25 July
In line with the decision made at our members' conference in June, we are today announcing the launch of the VS Socialist Workers' Caucus (SWC) as an official party campaign. Visit SWC on Instagram —>
The SWC was established as a internal party caucus in late 2024 by a group of VS members who wanted to help connect members of the party across workplaces and discuss how to advance rank and file organising and socialist politics in their unions. At the conference in June a motion to establish the SWC as a party campaign was carried without dissent.
We know that many VS members are proud trade unionists. We also know that rebuilding traditions of rank and file organising and militancy within the union movement is crucial to the advance of the socialist movement in Australia.
Since we established the party in 2018 we've done whatever we can to support workers wherever they've been standing up and fighting for better wages, conditions and rights at work. Late last year, for instance, many VS members mobilised to support striking Woolworths warehouse workers in Melbourne's south-eastern and western suburbs.
We're proud of whatever small boost we've been able to provide to workers' efforts to push back against the pro-business and anti-union status quo of politics in Victoria, and we hope to expand this work in the months and years ahead.
SWC launch event
We're excited to announce that on Saturday 30th August at 4pm we'll be hosting an SWC launch event at the Hall of the Northcote Uniting Church, 251 High St, Northcote. You can RSVP for this event on our website. Come along to hear from VS union activists, link up with other workers in your industry, and talk about what we can do to rebuild our trade unions as a genuine fighting force for change.