Fightse Big Battalions'

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Hence heard with the slogan "pay up or Arthur water workers will dry up" civil service Their task now is to get a vler's own special delegate meeting to the unions involved and the union • officials didn't derful. We went back again been officiallv announced a strike committee for all premises we put our case, where the support was, won- and Rogherham refusing to give a lead in action.

The fight to prevent these moves to rip up the resolution began on the Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile for all the calls for support, it is obvious that the only way NUPE will get other sections the union officials didn't call for a strike but left it to the individual consciences of the men.

When the police arrived they were able to escort us and 300 miners from the premises.

After this the strike committee organised a mini-bus to take as many of us as possible out to speak lo the afternoon shifts.

They had already heard about Maltby and everyof workers to gi solidarity is to own members branches of services.

The confere telegrams fror Scargill and from unions in For department derful. We went to speak to t shifts. By this ti knew they would down, and som turned up in the 10 hear us put ‹ then go to the pi Obviously we some of the cal they came ou morning. We w hours, so were th From this m our picket lines ive 1 ractical call out its in other the public I back Lhe evening ime the men in't be going re of them sir suits, just our case and ib. : had missed rly shifts so t Thursday vere out 24 ley. liners joined in Sheffield action only when health workers take all-out action.

And as water worker Ray Grey pointed out: "Why doesn't the EC bring out its own "big battalions?"

Water "We should be saying to the government, give the health workers 12% or you will have a national strike by water workers."

• Water workers' delegates lobbied the NUPE section conferences on Tuesday morning carrying placards but these call strike action. been officially announced that all South Yorkshire miners will cooperate with health service workers in their dispute.

Last Wednesday we realised that all-out indefinite strike action could be the only option open to us and it was urgent that we got an emergency resolution to the NUPE national conference, calling on NUPE to call for and organise this.

... ELLEN TAYLOR maict

SH

Basingstoke health workers of the GMWU, TGWU and NUPE had already chosen Wednesday 19 May weeks in advance of the TUC for a 24-hour stoppage, with a rally in the town.

We had pickets on all five gates from 6am through to 9pm, supported by delegations from the local busmen's union, NUR No. 2 and the local post office workers in UCW.

Many COHSE nurses were crossing the picket line. A lot said they had wanted to come out but their branch had decided against it.

Throughout the day it was obvious that most of the organising for the picket and the demonstration was done by GMWU workers in the psychiatric division. There were 300 of us on the march, supported by the postmen and busmen. and the AUEW ex-shop stewards committee from Haskins, the local engineering firm which made all its shop stewards redundant.

There were other banners from the Trades Council, Constituency Labour Parties, "I earn £74 per week ward sister and I look 32 acutely ill patients.

2-hour stoppages won't win me 12% - rhen you come back you end up doing the work that piled up while you were out.

We need all-out action from June 4, with accident and emergency cover.

That cover must be under our control = not management's.

We must take out our own members now, and let the other unions follow our fighting lead.

Call on your local industries, especially where workers are well organised, and get them to strike on our behalf".

"We need more encouragement from the union to nurses who for the first time are taking strike action - in the face of victimisation and harassment from ward sisters and tutors.

We need advice -- some nurses are afraid of losing their registration. Show nurses the way forward!

We can organise adequate emergency patient care. Let's face it - we do it often enough anyway!

Socialist Organiser supporter Mary Ireson, speaking at the NUPE conference Labour • Party Women's Councils and even one local Labour Party ward banner as well as Socialist Organiser.

The leaflets and stickers put out by Socialist Organiser supporters were eagerly grabbed and distributed.

At the park the rally heard UCW Secretary Alan Fraser, a supporter of Socialist Organiser, say that the UCW was with the NHS workers all the way and how they would be doing themselves an injustice if they didn't go all out for the full claim.

Two other Socialist Organiser supporters made the same point from the platform later in the rally..

But the show of solidarity proved too much for management to stomach. On Friday morning the senior steward of the TGWU at the General Division Marianne Jones and three other domestics were suspended without pay for working to contract, that is to say they refused to collect their equipment which has been work-studied as supervisor's work.

Within 15 minutes a mass meeting called for a walkout, which was virtually total. Emergency cover was arranged for porters at the General Division but their head porter said that if they wouldn't work . normal duties, they could piss off.

They did, and joined the picket line outside.

Within a short time busmen and postmen had joined us out there. The police were called to inform us of what we already knew -there were more than six on the picket line.

Two bus inspectors arrived after buses had refused to cross the picket. This time they rode uke shot-gun guards from the bus doors making the buses drive through and threatening to sack any driver who didn't CIOSS.

A deputation of pickets was sent to the bus station manager who then remnver the ottending inspectors.

Most of the pickets were women - some of whom had to leave the picket line for a while in the afternoon to do shopping and cook meals. Some things don't seem to change!

The action lasted till Fri day night and on the Monday morning the mass meeting reassembled whik the suspended stewards presented themselves lo: work. When their equir ment was not put out for them the 250-strong meeting marched off to see the hospital administration.

11.20 the stewards came out victerious..

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FAID DAL SUPPO May 19: Miners back NHS workers

ice astms

and it has pledges can be turned into

Sel 'Sta PHOTO: JOHN HARRIS