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Socialist Organiser1983 1983-03-03Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 10 →
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the Secialist Organiser Alliance, 28 Middle Lanc, ==3: Be End Onset TU. Registered as a newspaper at 5==i =..: : not necessarily reflect the views of the SOA.
By Thursday afternoon, with the new ballot still in progress, another 8 collieries had already come out in support of TM-LM. The result of the ballot was known late On Friday morning -55.41% in favour of striking.
This has been described, naturally, as the narrowest of margins', by NCB, the capitalist press, and the right wing in the NUM - by Rates: £5 for three nonths, £8.75 for ix months, and £16 lor a year.
Bundle of five ach week: £12 for three months.
Bandle of 10: £21 For three months.
Mara..
Address..
I andose £ To: Socialist Organi.
s01, 28 Middle Lane, London N8 8PL. which they mean, that even though this is a clear majority it is only 0.41% above the 55% required for strike action by the NUM Constitution. băllot papers were returned unused.
Even the blatantly anti-union paper The Western Mail' acknowledges that if these men had voted the majority would have been greater, since they had already decided to take strike action on a pit-by-pit basis before the ballot.
There is no doubt that many of them saw Thursday's ballot as at best an irrelevance, and at worst a diversion.
The 'marginal result" to the paper vote thus does not reflect the level of militancy in the coalfield, and the official Area-wide strike which began on Monday morning is of course completely solid.
Official
The official announcement of the NCB's intention to close Ty Mawi-Lewis Merthyr in July was made by Area Director Philip Weekes on Tuesday of last week -the day after the action began at the threatened pit, and the day before the NUM South Wales delegates' conference.
Weekes does not argue that there are no reserves at TM-LM, but claims that, because of the unfavourabic geological conditions, the rosérves are 'technically unworkable' The miners there say that the reserves can be worked, and are demanding the inyestment necessary for the London N8. the GPO. as y la narras .... seams.
Technology
The workers argue that this can be overcome by the introduction of new technology, in particular the new 'support shields' . The only answer Weekes can give to tis argument is that the introduction of these would cost £3½4 million and that,