A-Infos (en) France, Monde Libertaire - Ideas and Struggles: Knowing How to Start a Strike (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr) [machine translation]

Definitely not to die! ---- Factories closed, rust attacks the 
infrastructure, women and men thrown away like objects because employers 
and international capital always want more profits. The 
deindustrialization of France has been an economic and social reality 
since the aftermath of the Second World War. It resulted in the decline 
of arduous but well-paid jobs like those of miners. In some sectors, one 
in two lives is affected. Social ills reflect a political and social 
defeat favoring the far right. What becomes of these workers? ---- 
Romain Castellesi draws on sectors and companies that are symbols of 
this crisis, such as La Chapelle Darblay, Decazeville, Carmaux, Dim in 
Autun, and Bourbon-Lancy in Romans, to evoke the shock of life and the 
struggle waged with their backs to the wall in the face of contempt from 
the leaders of these companies, as well as from governments, including 
those on the left. His book, published by Agone, "Savoir commencer une 
grève" (Knowing How to Start a Strike) presents workers' resistance to 
deindustrialization in contemporary France.

How to resist?

The announcement of the closure of a company that has been a fixture in 
the local landscape for decades brings scenes of dismay, despair, and 
anger. After accepting degraded working conditions, shorter hours, lower 
wages, and the trying constraints of maintaining employment, the shock 
of this disruption in isolated areas cannot be mitigated by pointless 
rhetoric. How can we resist, and is it possible to resist the power of 
money? It's difficult to navigate. "The nature of these struggles, which 
react to the prospect of uncertainty, downgrading, or even the 
disappearance of a world of solidarity and sociability sometimes 
centuries old, blurs the markers of the labor movement as it existed 
before deindustrialization, namely the mass organization aimed at 
overcoming the differences within the group and organizing the 
collective emancipation of the working class." The question always 
remains: how did we get here? But beyond the struggles, the mobilization 
aims to restore damaged dignity, unite a working-class collective, and 
make people pay for their humiliation.

In the aftermath of the 2007-2008 financial crisis, France became the 
most deindustrialized country in Europe. "Since the 1970s, France has 
lost 50% of its industrial workforce, across all professional 
categories. Industrial employment represented 37% of the labor force in 
1975 (8.2 million workers), 25% in 1980, and 20% in 2020. This collapse 
causes real upheaval for those who remain in the factory and are 
subjected to job pressure, further weakening their existing assets. 
Romain Castellesi draws on eyewitness accounts of these changes. I 
particularly appreciate Ponthus's account, taken from his book "A la 
ligne" (Editions de la Table ronde).

A societal shock

We have seen this situation coming since the Fourth Republic. Regional 
planning policies were preparing for its effects, but there is nothing 
concrete for those who will have to change their profession or their 
life. You will read these pages of testimonies, which highlight 
short-term social policies and long-term strategic dismantling. 
Activists can use these analyses to assess the behavior of current 
employers. One could argue that contempt is even more blatant today. The 
wear and tear on workers, union repression, and obscene promises from 
public authorities make any action more difficult. Beyond women and men, 
the regions are weakened. Cities are falling into disuse, depopulation, 
the decline of Black countries, and the devaluation of these countries. 
Note the book's extensive developments on the role of women, 
particularly at DIM in Bourbon-Lancy.

After the fight and the closure of the factory, how do we live? Some try 
to take legal action before the labor courts, but for everyone, it's a 
great void, the development of pathologies, and activist exhaustion. 
Fortunately, some actors are taking up writing, and we often report on 
this in this column and on the program "Au fil des pages." A hopeful 
conclusion for Romain Castellesi: "Fragmented by sector, socially 
isolated, politically disaffiliated, workers clearly don't want to die, 
and the renewed interest they are generating continues to resonate with 
their stubborn presence in French society."

* Romain Castellesi
Knowing How to Start a Strike
Worker Resistance to Deindustrialization in Contemporary France
Ed. Agone, 2025

https://monde-libertaire.fr/?articlen=8336
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