Unions Must Fight Telecom Sale

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THE POST Office Engineering Union executive has THE 1980 Telecom Act - which came into force in finally called for industrial action to oppose the latest October 1981 - opened the way for private firms to Telecom Bill. This is a decision welcomed by many POEU members, and a necessary one. compete with British Telecom on supplying equipment and even in basic telecommunications services.

A rival network — Project Mercury - is being set up between 26 English towns and cities.

BT as a public service has the possibility of using the more profitable operations and heavier users to subsidise domestic-users and the phone network in more remote areas. Pressure from rivals who undertake only the more profitable heavy-traffic businessuser operations will lead to increased charges for the The new Telecom Act goes further to propose privatising BT itself. It will be made into a private company and shares will be sold off. The other side of As a recent statement by the POBU (July 1982) states, 'The privatisation of British Telecom [BT] will mean a direct threat to the jobs of POEU members"

The threat cannot be overestimated.

First we had a statement 71 :

Over the last few months the Hotline campaign has been formed. It is coordinated by BTUC, a body made up of delegates from every union in BT - the POEU, the CPSA Posts and Telecoms group, SCPS, SPOE, and the UCW Telecom section.

The Hotline campaign is concentrating on propaganda, resolutions, street leafletting, and agitation through the labour movement.

The POEU is the most influential union within BTUC, in terms of size of membership, and it is here that the POEU Broad Left is leading the campaign to alert and mobilise the membership to fight the privatisation bill. Without widespread, indefinite action soon, the Bill will become law. The lessons of the first Bill nust be taken THE last three years have seen the privatisation of the major nationalised British Transport Hotels, including Gleneagles in Perthshire, the Derby Midland and the Sheffield Victoria.

It has recently also been announced that the remaining 22 British Transport Hotels are to be hived off totalling 29 in all. PROJECIȚ MEROURY Boyle into account.

Liverpool Internal branch has circulated branches with a well-documented history of the POEU's 'fight' against privatisation, from the build-up against the first Telecom Bill, the so-called liberalisation bill, which was passed with no real union opposition in 1980.

Action

They summarise: '1980 Conference: Prop. 346 is carried unanimously. It reads, 'to vigorously oppose by all available means, including industrial action, any attempt to interfere with or break the Post Office monopoly' • The mover points out that the Government's strategy will first be one of encroachment to weaken the Post Office, then to press home the attack" been realised: but during the 1981 pay negotiations it was understood that if a strike arose, the hotels would not be called out -since the union would, in effect be striking against itself! A strike did not arise; but the hotel workers only received 9½% that year where other rail workers received 11%.

Part ownership of a comsmall user.

this operation is massive job cuts.

Later on that year, the Bill was passed with no industrial action except for a rally outside the hallowed walls of the Houses of Parliament on the day the Bill was passed.

There is therefore little reason to have faith that the same leaders have either the will or the strategy to defeat the present Bill.

Once the Tebbit Bill gets passed, the POEU leaders are even less likely to fight. The Union will certainly be in breach of the Tebbit law if we take industrial action against privatisation - which will be interpreted by Judge Whoever as a political strike.

The Broad Left is calling for a special conference to be held on privatisation -so that the whole membership can be alerted to the situation - and for resolutions to instruct the NEC to carry out detailed action opposing the Bill to be put from the floor of conference.

More campaigning, however, is needed to gain the confidence of the broad membership by the Broad Left, and to alert them to the dangers of privatiscompany made a million pound profit last year this may not be enough to prevent it being denationalised next time.

Apart from the obvious effects on the workforce if privatisation does take place (for example, lucrative parts being expanded while the smaller station buffets are closed resulting ation.

London City Branch was one of the first branches to respond to the Broad Left call for a Special Conference, writing to other branches : asking them also to support the call. A growing number of branches have since responded.

So much so that in the letter from general secretary Bryan Stanley telling us about the decision to hold a one-day strike, the last paragraph reads: ''This is not a time to be calling for special conferences or other ideas which will delay or divide"

No-one should be taken in by this. It is obvious that the NEC majority do not want a Special Conference for. the same reason that they talked out a resolution for a detailed campaign to oppose the activities of a rival company to BT, Project Mercury (which is chaired by none other than the murderer of the BL workers, Michael Edwardes).

Support the call for a Special Conference, and support widespread industrial action to defeat the privatisation Bill! search of a space off which to eat; not to mention the prices which, quite understandably turn people away with gasps of disbelief.

The difference between the two is that Travellers' Fare has the potential to provide a good public service with reasonable prices and good quality -but it cannot be done alone. 'AN insult. That was the unanimous reation of the NUM National Executive Committee to the National Coal Board's offer of 6.5% following the first round of wage negotiations last week. Inis feeling was echoed round the coalsang here her it fields, and pit-level disusually short, sharp and laris misery reponse by NCB their firs reply to the NUM's annual wage claim. Decided almost unanimously, by the annual conference, the NUM claim is for a minimum of f115 a week (an increase of 30%) on salary basis, with acros the board flat rate increases for other grades, for a four day week and early retirement at 55.

The NEC met the da iter the negotiations an agreed to a three-point plan of action: 1. To send the entire 28 man Executive to the next round of negotiation on September 23, instead o the usual Joint Negotiating Committee 2. To call a special National delegate conference meet on October 4 to decide on what course of action to pursue. 3. Provision to be made for a pithead ballet authority from the membership to take industrial action if necessary in pursuit of the claim.

It's essential that the NUM claim soursued the miners. To prepare th ground, and it must be prepared as it looks lik being a long hard struggl massive ropaganc not only the

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112 VI JACKPOT

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