How We Built Our Workplace Lp Branch

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Workplace branches can draw normally passive Labour supporters into political questions' branch? But we've only had two speakers. We get a reason- ings, which we No. One Labour councillor meetings. We meet fort- able attendance. vertise. isn't. There is an antagon- pub over the road. ural meeting - only 1l at What do you our members are on the tween a business meet- meeting, but we should get The next one is a Labour young side, rather than the ing and a political discus- good • attendance at the Party conference delegate's old Labour Party tradition- sion meeting with invited political discussion meet- report. This is important WE HAVE 46 members already, though we only needed 10 to set up the branch.

How did you go about ting it up?

We had been trying to get something started for a couple of years, even before the Labour Party natinnal ronference decided LULLILANY for factory branches.

We tried various things, a 'Broad Left' for example. Through inter-union rivalry, at leadership level mainly, we failed.

Now the convenor of the G&M and myself have initiated this Labour Party branch.

We went round to everyone we knew was in the Labour Party and we got a leaflet out inviting peopie to join and help us set up a Labour Party branch. We linked it to the question of closure and the threat of denationalisation, and things like that.

The G&M convenor is chair and I'm secretary. So are all Labour Party members you know of at Lairds now in the workplace istic element. In general alists.

Daughter of the Earth is an autobiographical. novel. The experiences of the fictional Marie are parallel to those of Agnes Smedley, which makes the account all the more fierce.

Reject

The novel traces Marie's attempts to reject the traditional role for women living in the poor section of pre*ar Mississippi and to resolve political and personal conflicts in her work in New York.

In New York Marie joins the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), a revolutionary trade union movement.

Her early involvement with socialism confuses her. She goes to the Socialist Party meetings where she is intimidated by the theoreticians nightly, at dinner time, in a We will alternate benormally passive Labour supporters We got 22 at the inaugthe second, business, plan on? because not many of the members are involved in their local Labour Party wards.

What is your relationship with the local Labour Party structure?

We are a recognised part of the Labour Party. The regional official attended the inaugural meeting, after the G&M convenor approached the regional office.

Workplace groups are on a rather similar basis to YS groups. We are allowed one delegate to each constituency if we have 10 members who live in it. If you don't have 10 in any one constituency, then you send a delegate to the one where you have most members.

Are there any other Labour Party factory groups locally?

Yes. One is in Liverpool City Council housing department, and one in a post office. There is a plan to set one up in Birkenhead Tech. I haven't heard of others.

Have you any advice for people setting up workplace Labour Party branches - what to do, how to do it?

First get out a leaflet explaining the need to link up the unions and Labour Party, and issues affecting touch. Take it from there. We found it was dead easy. There was a demand which we met.

You often find that people who are industrial militants are not necessarily in the Labour Party, and that those who are in the LabLabour Party group compare with the trade militants at Lairds?

I think it is pretty much the same people. We managed to get round and recruit people not previously in the Labour Party. A few of the stewards were Labour Party members already. How about other political formations in the shipyard? Is there a Communist Party branch?

There is - but it's dead. It used to be quite sizeable, but is now perhaps a dozen nominal members. It doesn't meet regularly as far as I know.

SWP, or anything like that? No, though they sell papers outside.

Is there any influence Militant?

Only a couple of people. And Socialist Organiser? We have been putting out a bulletin more or less regularly for 4½ years.

Will the Labour branch discuss trade affairs?

Only in so far as this supports the work of the unions in the yard. We are not allowed to take up trade union affairs directly where it cuts across the sphere of any • constituent trade union. But there is no doubt that we will be the ones who will do the linking up between any struggles going on in the yard and struggles outside the yard. Are all the unions involved? It's mainly the G&M and with the G&M. I suppose this reflects who it was that initiated it. But we hope to change this. We will have a drive to recruit. People are coming up to us all the time. Any :achon from management?

We plan to ask them for a place to meet. I don't suppose we will get it. There are no canteen meetings here, and management is very much opposed to out.side speakers. We may try to get some 'big name' labour movement speakers -Benn, perhaps. He was involved in bailing out Lairds in the '60s.

The traditional separation of the industrial and political sides of the labour movement has always been one of our great weaknesses. Do you think workplace Labour Party branches can help tackle this? Yes. If the Labour Party is even in part rooted in the conditions of day-to-day working class struggle, this can greatly boost the work of trying to make the Labour Party itself into an instrument of working class Workplace branches can draw the party directly into industrial struggle, and draw working class Labour supporters who otherwise are normally politically passive into the affairs of the party. This in turn, I hope, will help them begin to think more about the political questions.

Propaganda and other activity by committed socialists is of course essential if this development is in the end to be a positive contribution to the work of self-renewal we have seen the political labour movewhat Socialist Organiser is all about.

1 urge all readers of Socialist Organiser to consider initiating a workplace Labour Party branch. As I said above, we have found it surprisingly easy - so far!

it. It called it 'a sensible and heartening programme which bears a distinct family resemblance to the proposals of the SDP-Liberal alliance...

nce A Mirror editorial asks:

'What's to be done?' Its answers - stricter laws against drunken driving and against selling to under-age drinkers, and a government publicity campaign.

As if such measures couid do anything serious to deal with the effects of a system where poverty, insecurity, anxiety, and alienation drive people to destroy their health for the sake of a few hours' false consolation.

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Vorkers at Cammell Lairds shipyard, Merseyside, have et up a Labour Party workplace branch. Lol Duffy, secretary le branch, spoke to John O'Mahony of Socialist Organiser.

the workplace. Put a form on the bottom, saying get in

my own union, the Boiler- makers, which is merging

ment engaged in over the last three years. But that'