Shipyards: unite and fight !

Scan page 15

Esso sold out anomalous differential between public and private contracts, and it hampered productivity bargaining' cleaning companies have started cutting wages by 10% or more, and reducing working conditions of cleaners (mostly women) .who are employed on government contracts, in response to demands for savings in department budgets.

The Northumberland and Tyneand-Wear Regional Health Authority, have agreed in principle to a restructuring seheme for the area's ambulance service. One of their programme's principal features is a two-tier service separating accident and emergency services from domestic patient transport. The proposals which are separate from cuts imposed as a result of new government restrictions include a 37% reduction in vehicles, and a 19% reduction in ambulance crews. This in fact means crews being reduced from 577 to 467; officers being reduced from 95 to 78; depots from 29 to 24 and ambulances from 256 to 161.

35,500 firefighters, and fire control officers have been awarded a 7.8% increase on basic wages, more than twice the government's 3% pay limit set for public sector wage rises. However, taking into account allowances on top of basic wage rates this reduces to 7.58% and from November 1, by another 2% to 5.58% because of a second stage of an employee pension contribution increase coming into effect.

IND COOPE Brewery (Burtonon-Trent) is cutting its workforce by 400 over the next five years.

Metal Box is to make a further 355 people (after recent job losses) redundant at five of its factories in its general line metal packaging division. Since April 1980 the company has shut 15 plants in the UK and reduced employment by more than 10,000 to 22,500. Deputy Convenor denied recognition by management.

He was summarily sacked by management last November, using a trivial driving infringement as their pretext for a brazen victimisation. *x Any prospect of action in Thornett's defence was blocked by deft manoeuvring from TGWU District Secretary David Buckle, who failed to make any public statement in Thornett's support and refused to attend the crucial mass meeting which decided for or against a strike.

Only after this avenue of struggle was firmly closed did Thornett agree to go to the Industrial Tribunal - armed with evidence that BL consciously planned his sacking well in advance, but aware that the most that could be gained was a sum of compensation, since BL have refused in the past to reinstate unfairly dismissed militants.

In one case, that of Cowley Se tos Kilgariff, the Tribunal found" 100% his favour and ordered his reinstatement. BL refused - and in THE SIX week old strike by Esso (Fawley) contract workers ended last Thursday, October 13, with the strikers voting two to one for a return to work on the basis of the company's original offer.

The employer conceded nothing on workers' claims for a 38 hour week and pension scheme. The only concession was an extra 2% on basic pay , rates starting next January. Since the annual agreement nominally runs from July, even this is not the gain it appears.

Naturally enough the sell-out deal was fixed up through the government arbitration service ACAS, called in two weeks ago by Confed Area 5 officials with a brief to negoțiate a quick settlement.

Despite a lot of scabbing by refinery workers, the real turn. ing point in this dispute came the moment two hundred pickproposals had been rejected unanimously with a majority of the yards who were still to hold mass meetings confident of a similar Before the lay delegates conference the Shipbuilding Negotiating Committee will be meeting to decide on what recommendation to put to the conference. There are a number of lay delegates on this committee and they will be pushing for a recommendation to give full support ets took possession of the TGWU regional offices in Southampton (see SO148).

From this point on, the local union hierarchy tried every trick in the book to dissipate and sabotage the workers' control of their strike.

Mass pickets

For example, scheduled mass pickets that attracted hundreds of supporters were then split up into sectional mass meetings.

It is a disgrace that neither at national nor at local level did the TG WU attempt to enforce blacking of Esso products.

In fact, oil tanker drivers were clearly under union instructions to bust Fawley picket lines.

Pickets who bravely set up an alternative blockade on oil tanker movements had to contend with violent threats 100 people turned up to a public meeting in Shettleston (Glasgow) last week in support of the Carousel strikers, whose fight for reinstatement is now in its fifteenth week. The meeting was addressed by the local MP, union representatives, and the strikers themselves.

Unfortunately, though, the support for the meeting has not been matched by support for the weekly mass pickets, attendance from cowardly shop stewards as well as the usual cop harassment.

For both contract workers and trade unions, this defeat will have serious repercussions.

Esso have a £20 million investment plan well advanced for Fawley refinery. Management are intent on smashing the existing site agreement, and this can only mean replacing it by the so-called 'national agreement' lately accepted by unions such as the AUEW and EETPU.

This includes provision for bonus schemes that favour craft workers whereas contract labour working on nominated sites will find earnings are drastically reduced.

For these workers, it is vital that they continue to defend and extend hard-won workplace conditions. This is the only way to win the disputes of tomorrow. at which continues to remain limited, despite the official backing of the TGWU.

And last week also saw the first test case of those sacked go before an industrial tribunal for a preliminary hearing to see whether or not there was a case to be answered The tribunal, as with a similar dispute at Glencroft Knitwear in Glasgow two years ago, ruled that there is no case to answer.

The woman whose dismissal came up before the tribunal dropped out of the dispute after losing her case, as, too, has a second striker after getting another job, leaving just eight to carry on the fight.

An additional blow to the strike occurred last week when two vans made deliveries to the firm late on Saturday night, at a time when there were no pickets at the factory gates.

What the vans were supplying, and from which firm, is not known.

On a more positive note, however, the Cooperative Wholesale Society in Glasgow have now decided to withdraw all stocks of Carousel wafers from its shelves, and send them back to the factory as well as refusing to take any more supplies from the factory until the sacked strikers are reinstated.

And despite recent setbacks, the strikers have no intention of throwing in the towel. On the contrary, they are stepping up their action by organising a demonstration through Shettleston on Saturday 5 November.

For details of the demonstration, requests for speakers, phone Carousel • strike headquarters on 041-763 0922.

Instead of putting forward recommendations on how to fight back against British Shipbuilders attacks, most yards have just pledged their support for the SNC in what ever action they propose.

Those who support this line should remember what happened to the Robb Caledon yard when it was faced with closure. At that time the SNC proposed • an overtime ban and a strike on Monday of each week. Meanwhile a deal was made to sell off the yard to Kestrel Marine with many of the workers there being thrown on the dole.

The yards have got to support the previously agreed action of taking over the yards. We have also got to build the links with other sections of workers facing similar attacks such as the health workers and the miners.

MOLE REVIEW SHOCK: MOLES HORROR OF THE WORLD.

Official badge of the 'Save the Mole' campaign. 25p or £2 for ten, from N.Barstow 165 Liverpool Rd, London N1.

Scan page 16

RONALD Reagan's hypocritical attack on "left wing thugs" as a pretext for his brutal invasion of Grenada contrasts vividly with US support for extreme right wing thugs in the ruling junta of El