Chapple Strikes Again

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EETPU member

THE Executive Committee of the EETPU has decided to break up the London Central Branch of the union, which it suspended in April.

Branch members have already lost their rights in the union for almost six months because they refused to obey an executive diktat that broke union rules.

The branch was instructed to appoint John Lees, a member who hadn't attended meetings for 14 years, to a local Labour Party management committee, in order to help Chapple's plans to put discredited right wing councillors back in control of the Southwark Labour Parties.

Now the Executive has decided to 'amalgamate' the London Central, West and North East Branches into a huge 10,000 member branch for contracting electricians that will be run by a fulltime official.

Broken EETPU activists know full well what these "amalgamations' mean - the branches that cover huge areas and few people attend meetings. Existing branch leaderships are broken up so the full timers have a clear run, and members have no real chance what is going on.

At last year's conference a resolution opposing further amalgamations was carried, against the advice of the EC. But Chapple is so anxious to stamp on London Central that this means nothing.

Branch members have been successful in winning a lot of support for the campaign to reopen London Central, as well as actively backing the People's March for Jobs and joining the fight for an investigation into the death in police custody of one of their members, Winston Rose.

Union activists like these who won't stay quiet are a real threat to Chapple and he is prepared to trample every vestige of democracy left in the union to smash them.

He's roped the TUC in on the act too. Southwark Trades Council circulated London Central's case to all its branches and for this "crime' the TUC has threatened to withdraw its credenfials.

Chapple's campaien to support the Labour Right threatens to take away effective union organisation for thousands of electricians, to disband a Trades Counci, and to disrupt the three local Labour Parties in Southwark.

Campaign He has to be stopped. Trade union and Labour activists everywhere should campaign to get their organisations to back the members of London Central.

*Details of the "Campaign to Reopen London Central EETPU" , c/o Lansbury House, 41 Camberwell Grove, London SES. NGA printworkers facing lock out threat from 1 Financial Times were 1 week stabbed in the ba by top officials of 1 larger print un NATSOPA.

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