Fightback's programme for action against Tories

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I WANT to stress that this isn't some far-fetched ultra left list of demands — it is based on action that women in the community, in the trade unions and in the Labour Party are already taking and have taken.

«Women with the most odds against them. Women from places like Longworth Hospital, where grandmothers and women with five or six children were "Women like Mrs Brar at the Chix factory, who couldn't speak a word of English, Elsie Broad at Royal Pride, Anwar Ditta and Jaswinder Kaur and many That was how Anne-Marie Sweeney introduced this action programme for fighting the Tories at the WomIn NUPE, her own union, she is fed up with hearing the union leaders say, "Don't blame us for not fighting the Tories - it's our women members who let us down". . It's not true that women aren't ready to fight.

There are many examples to show that we are - it's the union leaders who don't give us the support.

The Lee Jeans women had to organise their own blacking; and near the end the union leadership decided the occupation had no hope and withdrew their offThe union leadership at Grunwick also left their members adrift at the very point the struggle reached Women's Fightback has to show that we're in the business of fighting and fighting to win. That's the way we'll win working-class women to our politics, and that's what this action programme aims to do. • Mary's: women domestics in the lead in the first cupation of a general hospital to stop closure Chix: Asian women took the lead despite double oppression more. involved in a hospital occupation. en's Fightback AGM in August. icial backing.

national proportions.

THE TORY government is on the offensive, attacking the most basic rights of women. The leaders of the labour movement are meeting this onslaught by little or no organised resistance.

Since the Tories took office, however, working class women have been struggling on the front line to defeat Thatcher.

In Women's Fightback we must not only lend support to such struggles that break out but offer a lead and guidance on the kind of action women can take to stand up for their rights, drawing on the experience of women who have made a fightback against the Tories.

*A woman's right to work. In a period of runaway capitalist crisis women's (especially black women's) jobs are the first to go. We must encourage unemployed women to organise in the unions of the unemployed workers, by establishing women's sub-committees in these organisations to focus on the special problems of women's unemployment.

We should build for the women's right to work demonstration by organising at the local level as well as nationally turning the attention of the labour movement to the scale of women's unemployment and demanding what is going to be done about it.

*Action on jobs. The beacon to all women workers has been the occupation of Lee Jeans. We must organise for such occupations to prevent closures from taking place, and demand throughout the labour movement the necessary levies, blacking and strike action to support the occupation.

Every redundancy should be fought, by giving women confidence to refuse to take an extra workload and face direct controntation with the employer, demanding work sharing on full par. We LAbou WOMAN'S : 00 should never believe the employers' word, demanding like Lee Jeans, to see the accounts for ourselves, and get the unions to organise a thorough investigation of the books to prove real "bankruptcy' or not in the industry, in its suppliers and distributors. We should demand the nationalisation of bankrupt. industries, e.g. textiles.

*Health cuts. The women at Longworth Hospital. and the workers at St. Benedicts and St. Mary's, W9. showed the need for occupations to defend hospitals. We must demand supporting strike action to stop occupations being threatened and brutally ended. Women's jobs and vitally needed health care is being eroded as clinics, wards and beds are lost. We should build campaigns involving women in the community, to join with health workers to light the cuts. to black private medicine and to demand of the unions that they organise no. cover of . untilled vacancies.• *Abortion rights. Thous ands of women backed the campaign that halted Corrie's anti-abortion hit. Now action . is needed in many arcas to estend and defend VHS abortion tacilities: fight for her abortion contracepton 1) 17 NAT CHRISTINE CADIN linked to the struggle for democracy and accountability for women to represented on every union body. Fight sexism in union procedures and publications.

*Wages. Women don't work for pin money. Women workers in the Civil Service have been on strike against Tory wage policies. Only all-out strike action can win. We need wages that keep pace with inflation - at a rate correctly assessed by labour movement committees, not distorted by government figures. We should demand a national minimum wage for workers, especially including YOPs schemes, for all benefits to be based on a national minimum wage and index-linked. Full opposition to the "family wage' concept for women's financial independence.

*Black women. Anwar Ditta, Jaswinda Kaur and others have been in the forefront of thousands of black women fighting racist and sexist immigration laws brought in by both Labour Defeat the Nationality Bill! Repeal all racist legislation! The labour movement must join with the black community. in defence against racist and fascist attacks.

*Violence against women. Thousands of women have mobilised in protest against brutal attacks which are encouraged by the sexist media's sensationalist reporting. Women must organise defence against attacks. Women in unions in the media must combat sexist reporting. Women's refuges must be defended from cuts and full comprehensive systems of refuges, emergency housing, social security support and childcare must be provided for battered women.