Backing for Barking

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Unions are non-existent. They have nothing prepared, but are rumoured to be favouring • an all-out strike call (with no prior mobilisation). If it fails, they will blame the rank and file.

Spineless

In contrast to this bureaucratic and spineless approach, the four London Area Committees of CPSA have called a London-wide conference of branch and workplace delegates from all unions to plan possible all out strike action, including fund-raising for hardship, setting up of strike centres, and organisation of picket lines.

The SCPS area committees, with the covert approval of their EC, have called a demonstration on April 1st, the day the pay settlement should be made. There are also calls for a strike and lobby on April 19, the day the arbitration hearings begin.

The official leaders of the civil service unions cannot recognise the growing feeling for action, and to show their contempt for the membership the COCSU are signing a national new technology agreement on Wednesday March 17 which gives no protection at all against job loss.

Now only the rank and file can organise and lead the fight for a decent pay increase in 1982. AN ESTIMATED 4,000 people turned out on March 10 to support the Barking teachers in the fight against job loss.

A lobby of the council rate-fixing meeting had been called on the day of the LT strike. The local NUT association had asked the Exec to call for half day strike action, at least in the London area if not nationally, as back-up.

Wisdom The Exec in its wisdom had instead invited Associations to send delegations. And the invitation was wilfully ignored by many association secretaries.

However, the response on the day showed the support that is there both among the local people and other NUT members. There were many banners, and the lively gathering showed what they thought of the council's plans to axe jobs and decimate the education of the local children.

However, this display did not shift the cguncil from its policy of cuts.

As Chris Giles, the Barking action committee press spokesperson, stated: •They even admitted that they did have enough money to avoid redundancies and maintain staffing standards as at September 1981"

But, he told the reporter from 'The Teacher' , they refused to use this money as it would create a precedent for other public services and would make the council liable to financial penalties by the government.

It is a disgrace that a Labour council can take this stand and yield only to pressure from the Tories. How do they think disgruntled parents and teachers will vote in the May Massive work will need to be done by Labour Party members to extricate the party from such betrayals.

No comment Neil Kinnock MP, the Labour Party spokesperson on education, apparently had a three-hour meeting with leaders of the authority, but would make no comment afterwards.

Meanwhile the local NUT association is well organised. On some days 12 reams of paper are used to produce leailets and statements presenting the union's case. Picketing has completely closed down many schools.

Good support has been reported from other union members such as T&G drivers. Eight sub-committees of the strike committee have been set up.

The strike HQ in Rainham ka south, Dagennam, is a hive of activity. Morale among members is high, and they are confident of victory.

Money

However, other areas of the union must be involved in supporting this action. Money is needed to finance the campaign. Donations should be sent to the strike HQ. The local association's call for a one day strike must be backed by motions from other branches.

Ken Jones, the Barking secretary, is standing in the National Executive elections in the extra-metropolitan area of London. All teachers in this area have opportun! their supp in for the actor. by voting ken Jones no.l in the election, which closes r. March?! ion of Teachers are remarkably impervious to any lessons which might help win struggles.

Thus, while teachers in Barking are left isolated in their fight against redundancies, the rest of the membership of the NUT is currently being led a merry if irrelevant dance in supposed pursuit of their national pay claim.

Presented with an offer of 3.4%, the leadership of the NUT have come out with an action so watery that Hamilton House could soon have a moat.

The action - a withdrawal of lunchtime supervision and a withdrawal from out-of-school activities other than sports and social activities - is, in typical NUT fashion, voluntary. This means in practice that individual members are left open to pressure from reactionary heads, some of whom happen, of course, to be in the NUT, and in particular puts local union reps in the school at the hard end of the fight against right wing unions like AMA.

But to make matters worse, the action is not directed to winning the full claim at all, but simply towards getting arbitration.

Having thus abandoned a!! atteno: :: actiere i:

Ia JE= EDE : BETEr the campaigo for the na:ional pay claim into what is now being presented to arbitration.

In this situation, NUT members should immediately begin to bombard Hamilton House with resolutions demanding that all members are involved in the action alongside NAS/ UWT members who are taking similar action everywhere. In addition, school groups and local associations should begin preparing now a campaign to win strike action votes in schools and in local associations and divisions.

Central to this ought to be the demand that the National Executive should continue to fight for the full pay claim.

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CLASS Can't afford to employ more people?

Workers Scheme. in defence of a decent wage.

It is only by organising ourselves and then forcing the leadership to move that any action will be taken. We must not allow ourselves to be divided, with ancillary workers being left to take on the fight themselves.

Every union branch should be organising. a meeting on pay and passing resolutions to take strike action regardless of what the leaders say.

It is our wage and our health service. The only way to fight this government and preserve both wages and the health service is by striking.

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