Betrayal! Strikers!

Scan page 1

-pages 2 and 3 *Hungary 1956-pages *Unemployed Workers Movement. formed-page 12 *St Mary's Hospital struggle -back page 5 November 1981 (CLAIMANTS AND STRIKERS 10p) 20p KITSON: at last, the general staff of the trade union movement mobilises - to sink the strike INU CURE FOR BL WORKERS have been sold out by leadership.

Last Tuesday morning, 3rd, as BL workers prepared to vote on the 3.8 percent pay offer every national newspaper gave prominence to REKERS AUEW president Terry Duffy's call for acceptance. "I am backing England", said Duffy, who had called an emergency meeting of the AUEW Executive to endorse his back-to-work call. Appearing on television after the vote to SAY return to work, he seemed to see himself as La part of BL management, saying, "We do not intend to gloat".

BL workers had been absolutely solid on Monday morning when the strike began, with virtually every plant 100 per cent out and heavily picketed. The workforce was willing to fight. Yet they had clearly been shaken by the collapse at the top.

The prospect of entering into a major confrontation with the government with their top leaders openly against them proved too much for most of the plants: and the mass meetings turned the original 8-to-1 majority for strike action into a 25,000-to-19,000 vote to accept the deal.

The sell-out began last Saturday, 31st, when Edwardes appealed directly to the general secretaries of the 11 unions with members in BL. A meeting organised by ACAS, with Edwardes and the general secretaries and Len Murray, went over the heads of the Joint Negotiating Committee.

The urge to escape confrontation stung these TUC leaders into united action such as they have never organised to support workers" HARKS. struggles, or their unions' policies against the four per cent limit.

OHMS CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

Scan page 2

Socialist Organiser, Thursday 5 November 1981 Page 2 Behinıd the BL betrayıal Slim Denham reports on the Longbridge militants' verdict "REJECT! REJECT! DUFFY OUT! DUFFY OUT!" chanted hundreds of BL workers as convenors gathered in the Birmingham AUEW hall on Monday to discuss the "improved" offer being put forward by the General Secretaries.

Three coachloads had come up from Cowley and hundreds had made their way into town from Longbridge. They vented their fury on Alex Kitson, the Acting General Secretary of the TGWU, who had managed to face both ways at once throughout the previous few days-Sell-out merchant! Scab! they shouted.

AUEW chief negotiator Ken Cure-the most open advocate of surrenderwisely avoided the lobby and sloped in round the back way.

The lobbyers burst into the main hall and refused to leave until Bob Fryer, the by Jim Denham popular Cowley convenor, gave an assurance that he would move a motion for rejection of the deal.

It was a show of rank and file involvement that contrasted sharply with the behind the scenes negotiating that had taken place over the previous days.

The lobbyers waited outside for three hours before they finally heard the outcome of the meeting-a recommendation for rejection.

As one angry Cowley worker commented, "We stand outside with no infor• JONN HARRIS Bob Fryer mation while they talk. In Poland there'd be a loudspeaker out here so we all knew what is being said." Pat AD wai for Jim ON Monday at Longbridge, the mood. after the close vote accept the "improved" offer was bitter.

Most workers, including those who'd voted for acceptance, headed straight home, glum faced.

Some bravely returned to the picket line refusing to accept defeat until the convenors' meeting later that Most gathered in the 'stewards' hut' to drink tea and carry out a post-mortem on yet another defeat.

Leadership

"We're sick as pigs," said , an inspector from the 1. "Lack of leader ship ; the number one re ison this. The media camp aign Denham reports on the l like the Mirror's headline "Go back to work says union boss Duffy" made it worse. But the weakness of Duffy and Kitson was decisive. Kitson and the TGWU were if anything even worse than the AUEW. Duffy was at least honest. But Kitson never made his position clear. It makes me sick to read the front page of the TGWU Record saying they'll support all those who fight the 4% limit. We should demand to know why they didn't apply that policy at BL."

A finisher in CAB1 agreed. "We lost this time because of the national leadership or lack of it. No-one thought the new deal was any good. But after all the secret talks and wheeler dealing over the weekend, people obviously felt confused and demoralised.

Bring to order

Over Bob, a TGWU steward from the experimental department, joined the discussion: "You can't blame the members. They showed their willingness to fight at the first mass meeting. It was when the General Secretaries stuck their noses in that the members became discouraged and confused.

Philosophical

I think Kitson and Boyd are scared of a fight with the Tories.

The only dissenting view came from Dave, a TGWU steward in CABI who belongs to the Communist Party: "No, that isn't true. You could blame the leadership last year, but not this time. You can't lay the blame anywhere but with the members. We know Duffy's no good, but the members just didn't have the lict the files and documents from the plants proves that"

Billy, a Sheet Metal Workers' steward trom the West Works, gave his analysis "We haven't yet got an organisation in the plants capable of taking an initiative independently from the officials. But the events even after the general secretaries' intervention show a substantial minority is developing who are willing to fight on regardless of the officials.

Unfortunately, the majority are still geared to officialdom. We give the Duffys and the Kitsons a power they should never have.

Logically, we've now got the ingredients for building a strong : rank and file movement in the plants. What's lacking is political answers to the closure threat"

New layer Pete, an AUEW steward

----- pull-quotes -----

INSIDE Organise *Behind the BL betrayal

Walworth Rd, London SE17