For The Left (déi Lénk), it is time to redistribute wealth to those who they say have produced it through their labour: “The Left Party is the only party that’s not going to drive this country into a wall!”
This declaration, which was made by one of The Left’s candidates during an event held at ‘Sang a Klang’ in Pfaffenthal, marked the launch of the final phase of the party’s election campaign, with just three weeks to go before election day.
Currently holding two seats in the Chamber of Deputies, The Left aims to provide fresh perspectives through their electoral programme. Their agenda includes safeguarding social achievements while simultaneously pushing for progressive change.
Key priorities for the party encompass implementing a minimum wage that ensures individuals live above the poverty-risk threshold and introducing a “real” reduction in working time, that being described as a 32-hour workweek.
Line Wies, lead candidate in the south, underscored their determination to challenge a system they believe has long reached its limits. She asserted that “those vehemently opposing reduced working hours today, and by that we mean above all the major employers, are living in the past. And that is where they should stay, because we’re overtaking them from the left. Because we have no time to lose. We actually have nothing left to lose. We only have everything to gain.”
“Everything to gain” (Alles ze gewannen in Luxembourgish) is the official campaign slogan of the Left Party.
David Wagner, lead candidate in the centre, lamented the support “those who live well off other people’s work” receive from “employer parties” and criticised their stance against reducing working hours.
Wagner argued, “and what do they say all the time, ‘oh that’s not possible, we are in a crisis,’ or, ‘we are just coming out of a crisis,’ or, ‘we will soon be in a crisis again’. In short – for the major employers and their parties, it’s never the right time to do something for the people.”
The former MP refuted the argument that working hours cannot be reduced in times of crisis by citing historical precedent. In 1918, shortly after World War I, working hours were reduced by as much as 24 hours per week, he pointed out.
The Left Party highlighted that it often acts as the only advocate of the trade unions in the Chamber of Deputies. Marc Baum noted that his party was the only one to fight alongside the Independent Luxembourg Trade Union Confederation (OGBL) against a manipulation of the wage indexation scheme in 2022.
The Left Party also emphasised its commitment to combatting climate change, with Mara Stieber, a candidate in the centre, noting that “in the context of the climate crisis, we often talk about the future, but it’s not about our future, it’s mainly about the present. That’s why it’s also a good thing that we, as the Left Party, are greener than the Green Party.”
Finally, the Left Party expressed its dedication to mitigating climate change without burdening the most vulnerable. Baum stated: “As the Left Party, we do not intend to combat climate change at the expense of the poorest among us.”
