Page:Trade Unions in Soviet Russia - I.L.P. (1920).djvu/13

 the then trade union movement. Similar attempts at forming unions in this improvised manner were made all over Russia and became more frequent as the end of 1905 drew near. In September a new strike wave broke out over the whole of Russia which led to the great strike and famous demonstration of October, 1905. The labour movement in Russia broke through the barriers erected by the autocracy.

The sporadic and spontaneous manner in which the trade unions developed resulted in their composition and organisation being- very diverse, but the demand for a common centre was so great that as far back as 1905 at a meeting of representatives of local trade union organisations in Kharkoff, it was decided to call a national conference. On September 24th and October 1st, 6th and 7th was held the first conference of trade union representatives. At this conference 26 Moscow unions and labour groups, and ten unions from other towns were represented, and the fundamental question which concerned the conference was the organisation of preparatory work in connection with the convening of a national conference. The question arose as to who could participate in the conference in view of the fact that there were no definitely formed unions. The conference decided that "the right to participate in the conference belongs to such mutual aid societies and trade unions as are composed of wage workers of all trades of a proletarian character and are directly or indirectly aiming at fighting capital." With regard to mixed societies it was decided that only the proletarian section of such organisations could have the right of representation. No access to the conference was to be given to the Zubatov organisations. Thus, from the very birth of the unions just emerging from the mutual aid society stage, the struggle assumed a purely class character. In undertaking the struggle against capitalism these unions immediately reached a higher level than many western European and American unions, who, even to-day still regard as their only function the improvement of the conditions of labour. The October days in 1905 gave a tremendous impetus to the trade union movement. At the end of that year there was not a single large town in Russia where a trade union had not been formed. The October political strike gave rise to a number of economic conflicts which, in their turn again, were converted into political conflicts. Everywhere, initiative groups, commissions, strike committees, trade unions, workers' delegate councils were formed and all these organisations, taking advantage of the period of liberty, extended their influence over ever newer sections of the workers. In spite of the series of defeats suffered by the workers in November and December, 1905, the trade unions continued to grow and increase in numbers and when, at the end of February, 1906, the second conference of trade unions was convened, Russia could count 200,000 organised workers.

The second conference decided in favour of the sporadic formation of trade unions independently of the permission of