FIGHT FOR THE RIGHT TO WORK
©Trev Teasdel Coventry June 1976
Couldn’t afford to pay the telly licence,
Telly man took the telly away.
The Gasman knocked, tried to get in.
We wouldn’t let him in, said he’d have to break in.
He’d fetch in the police if we cause a breach of the peace.
“You can’t go using Gas if you can’t pay your bill,
What does the boss care if you are unemployed or you’re ill”.
Chorus
We’ve got no rights, no job and the prices are high.
It’s fight just to live, something’s got to give.
Out of work people fighting for their rights
Fighting for the rights of black and white.
Fighting for the right to work.
When your dole runs out and related supplements cease.
It’s on the SS that your living standards decrease.
Carpets worn thin, television gone,
The kids have got next to nothing on.
No prospects of work, you’re treated like dirt.
The tension and humility break the family up.
You’re nobody’s favourite, even hate yourself.
Big boss man, he say to his workforce
‘More redundancies are in line of course
Company’s made a loss, we must cut the cost‘
Men, women, white and black, ruthlessly get the sack.
While the firm supports its capital, evading tariffs and tax,
to another branch of their multinational firm
and they rid themselves of workers – like ‘Domestos gets rid of germs‘.
And those who are replaced by machines
Face speed ups and productivity deals.
The unemployed, in reserve, are the back seat of the car
and the workers who produce the wealth are the engine of that car.
And the parasites use that power to steer the car to their own ends.
and its the engine that suffers when they steer the car off the road.
The stock market idlers gamble their ill gotten gain,
While the unemployed are called scroungers for being maintained
Even though their rents are in arrears and they’re living one step up from the drain.
And for the bosses crisis they are taking the blame.
If they can’t provide jobs and things that we need, then let their system perish,
why should we bleed!