Strike Call

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Cammel Laird workers occupy their yard during a 1974 dispute: the tactic must but also at rank and file level, to are still counting the social, and rumour, encouraged by military and economic costs of divisions. last year - are committed to TALKS between the Shipbuilding Negotiating Committee of the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions and British Shipbuilders ended in deadlock on Wednesday November 30./ British Shipbuilders refused to withdraw their plans to close yards, make redundancies, freeze wages, and use their so-called survival plan to eliminate trade boundaries. The executive of the Confed are now calling for an all-out strike from January 6.

Ballot

Not much detail has come down to the yards at the time of going to press, but it has been rumoured that the Confed executive is calling for a ballot on this strike. Some of the Confed unions' rules require them to conduct a ballot anyway.

Why the strike has been called for the 6th, and not the 3rd, we don't yet know. But one thing should be pointed out. The call for an all-out strike is a historic step. But strike action in itself cannot protect those yards facing closure.

The original call for occupation of all the yards has to be taken up by all British Shipbuilders workers, especially those threatened with the closure of their yard, to prevent the removal of vessels, plant, and machinery, and also to focus attention on a fight to save jobs and improve wages.

The call by the Confed executive is a complete turnaround. Murray, the chair of the Shipbuilding Negotiating Committee, and Ferry, the secretary, had come out of talks with British Shipbuilders on November 2 Sheffield City Branch of the National Union of Railwaymen passed the following resolution on Tuesday December 6:

"This Branch calls on the NEC to:

1. Declare its support for the NGA in its fight to reinstate six sacked members and against the Tory anti-union laws.

2. Offer the NGA financial and industrial assistance, and, 3. Call on the TUC to organise a 24 hour general strike against the Tory BRITISH LAURE BURNSI LAN JOHN STURROCK (REPORT)

now be used throughout British Ship builders they had achieved an agreement on the survival plan and would be working out the finer details before December 15.

Their smiles soon changed when the reaction from the yards came back to them, opposing the deal.

There is no doubt that British Shipbuilders and the Shipbuilding Negotiating Committee will be looking for ways to divide the yards by trying to negotiate yard-by-yard deals, directing