Lee Jeans struggle at the

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Edinburgh workers gave the Lee Jeans women a great welcome at the end of their 'Right to Work' march. But CP members are pressTHERE ARE four members of the Communist Party on the 15-strong executive of the National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers.

But instead of using this strong position to build support for the occupation at Lee Jeans, the CP members have been arguing for the union's minimal support to be withdrawn!

At the last meeting of the executive there were several speakers who argued that the dispute was doumed. Many were unconvinced by reports that a new buyer was about the take on the remaining workforce and lift the threat of redundancy that has stood behind the determination of the workforce to occupy the plant.

But It was the Communist Party members who went further and -stating that the dispute was no longer winnable - called (unsuccessfully) for the union to withdraw its official support from the workers in struggle.

None of these debates were reflected in the pages of the Morning Star, daily paper of the Communist Party. readers have received regular and enthusiastic reports of the resistance by the 170 women workers at the Greenock factory.

The CP bureaucrats in the NUTGW, like their comrades in the Scottish TUC, have from the outset resented the fact that the occupation broke out spontaneously, from factory level, outside the direct control of the union officials.

This measure of independence was increased when, instead of giving immediate official support, the union's exeIn line for a buyer? cutive sent al fact-linding mission' to the plant, giving no strike pay until the occupation was seven weeks old.

By that point the women had recognised how unreliable are their leaders', and they had recognised also the strength of support - they can command in the labour movement.

Such direct appeals to the working class run counter to the Communist Party's conception of trade union work - which rests on forming cosy working relationships with the right wing bureaucrats.

So while the Morning Star has been forced to go along with popular opinion, lending empty verba support to the struggle, CP members at the top level of the union concerned have got together with the right wing in a bid to sell out an occupation which has become the only focus for defence of jobs in the textile industry.

Their moves was defeated at the time. And despite the pessimism of the right wing and the conscious sabotage of the CP, the Lee Jeans women stand determined not to relinquish the factory.

Whether or not a buyer emerges, they intend to stay put.

The need is greater than ever for the occupation committee to convene a labour movement conference to debate the next steps forward in the struggle to save the jobs at Lee Jeans and throughout the textile industry, as part of the fight to defeat the Thatcher government.

Members of the NUTGW should press for more active union support to Lee Jeans - and members of the CP should perhaps ask themselves (and their leaders) what kind of a party they are in.

AFTER six months of, the sit-in at the Lee Jeans factory near Greenock the workers' hopes are focussed on the possibility of finding a buyer for the factory -probably Nigel Wright of the Dickie Dirts' firm.)

Convenor Helen Monaghan spoke to SO.

HM: Vanity Fair have said they want £750,000 for the factory and machinery. Mr Wright had an independent firm do an evaluation and offered what they said the place was worth.

He's not said how much he has offered exactly, but it's about a third less than the value VF has put on the the factory as a going concern, but how can they, when they want to make us all redundant?

And when VF announced the redundancies they said it was because there was no market for jeans. But Mr Wright has offered them an order for 30,000 pairs a week,/and told them they can keep us on if they want, rather than him take the place over. So why can't Vanity Fair come to some agreement with him?

Mr Wright made his offer on 10 July and VF said they would give a reply one way or the other at another meeting held within a week or ten days at the most. But we still haven't heard anything.

SO: Have there been an discussions about pay and conditions if Wright buys the factory?

HM: We had a meeting with him straight after his meeting with VF when he made his offer. He would pay us more or less the same wages, plus the increase we were due from VF but never got.

SO: How about the size of the workforce?

HM: We've worked out who's here and who's gone, and who can do what of them that'sa here. We'd need to take on a few more people: a cutter, an engineer and a manager. But we've already had people up here who are interested in taking up these posts. With them we could start producing 14,000 jeans a week right now, and if Mr Wright wants more then he can increase the workforce.

The plans we've drawn up for running a cooperative can be used if Mr Wright buys the factoryor for setting up a cooperative if the deal falls through, so we won't need to start again from the beginning if that happens. ing to ditch the struggle.

We'd set up the co-operative in the old factory down the road, and rent the machinery in here from VF. We've approached them about this, but had no definite answers from them, because, they say, of the possible deal with Wright.

SỐ -What impact has blacking of VF products at the docks had?

HM: We've no idea how effective it's been. We've been told over the phone that some stuff is supposed to be tied up, but really we don't know what impact it's had.

SO: How about the possibility of organising boycotts of shops selling Lee Jeans?

HM: We've not made a decision about this yet. We were going to do a leaflet but never got round to it with all the talks that have been going on. We thought things would be tied up weeks ago. But we should know one way or another this week. EAI SO: What has the STUC been up to recently to help vou?

HM: The STUC is going to help Mr Wright. For example if he buys the factory then the STUC would take Mr. Wright to the bodies he'd need help from once the deal goes through. If the deal is done this week, then by the end of August we could finish off the unfinished jeans still here belonging to VF and get started on the new stuff for Mr Wright by 1 September.

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factory VF say they want to sell