Maintenance engineers refuse to cross picket line Key north gas plant slows down

Bradford Road plant.

two weeks ago.

repairs.

Partington, near Manchester. do something big.' Craftsman George who had just finished start in the bitter cold blunt:

"The way the strike run now, it will take They should all come it could be decided in said.

GåMWU is going about it into this one.

•Meanwhile watching to History brought into knife-edge fight in Wales morning is a ping, a look the club.

The community is almost solidly working class. The big local factories are Hoover's, Triang Toys, Thomas's Pies and Ansell's brewery. They are the relatively new workplaces for men who once worked the local coalfield.

But these plants do not compensate for the pit closures. Unemployment is still more than I2 per cent-people walking the streets haven't had a steady job for six years or more.

Now the nearby Ebbw Vale steelworks is threatened with massive "Tatio nalization' which will cost 4,500 jobs.

It is into this in the north and central city areas supplied by the giant Engineers took their decision as a gesture of solidarity with service gasworkers who have been out on strike since national action began almost One told me that the oil-fuelled plant would only operate two or three days without essential The service gas workers at Bradford Road have also launched action to halt the plant. Many are angry at the General and Municipal Workers' Union for not calling out production workers. Others told me that the work-to-rule was not being applied as strictly as it could.

A 24-hour picket has been mounted at the Bradford Road gates. So far all lorries bringing in oil have been turned away.

But the men are still not happy with the situation. Service shop steward Terry Foster explained that even if the Bradford works was shut down, supplies could be diverted through the national grid from the gas complex at 'We are sitting it out for the rest the workers because nothing can happen to anyone's pay until Ted Heath decides something. I think we want more action from the TUC. I don't think we will win this struggle until Victor Feather decides to I think a lot of the lads here are a bit cheesed off by the union and especially the way the 'Instead of calling an all-out strike, the union is creeping Tories see TYDFI bustle at the Sedgewick was more SIF with this one. They may fetch the troops in, but if they did I think that would be it-everyone would come out. 'For 11 years men have been docile in this industry Now they are just sick and tired of the situation. 'In the past we would be in for 15 per cent and the leaders would come out and say they had accepted 5 per cent. 'But they can't do this now because of Heath. This has led to the explosion.' In the Midlands is being are running high. months. Harry Thompson, out then Lord Street depot, days,' he said:

'It's all lies what the Tories are saying about the gas men. I went to Erdington to a 70-yearold lady who was very frightened.

She said that she couldn't turn the gas off, so I checked the gas tap and it took all my strength to move it. are just 'So I went happens the depot and L town centre a Satur of activity. It's weekend sh shops and perhaps a drink class situation that the organizers of the Pageant, 'The Road to Workers' Power,' have thrown themselves.

Last Saturday morning they campaigned in the shopping centre selling and tickets for Thursday night's public meeting.

Papers were sold out by early afternoon - there's scarcely a soul in these parts who doesn't think that the economic and political situation has reached crisis point.

They may not like what we are saying to them in our campaign, but they are taking notice.

The Merthyr contingent preparing to re-enact RS PR ESS AL ST/ IFF too, feelings based at the Birmingham, straight back reported that the history of the Taff Vale railway fight.

The privately-owned railway company sued the railway union and, in an historic and infamous judgement, the union was It was this legal attack legal attack whidh forced The Bradford Road, Manchester, picket line is now operating on a 24 hours_basis. Above left: TERRY FOSTER . . . Need more action from the TUC. Left: George Sedgewick ... Union creeping Into this one. new tap was required or a new meter. I went back to see the old lady and I've told her that I will check it again and if nothing's been done I'll be raising merry hell.

'Our fight is not public, it's. against government. All we want is a living wage.

'My top line is £22 for 40 hours and I can't live on that.' His mate, Douglas Tompkins, from the same depot told Worbonus for delivering anc Paid a fitting cookers and to get a good day's work in he has to deliver and fit ten cookers.

Last Friday, for various reasons, he couldn't fit four of them.

This meant a reduction in his normal wage.

'Heath should freeze rising prices, he said. I have not come He went on: across a single worker or member of the public who is opposed to what we are doing. All workers are in this fight.' unions to take the political road and form the Labour Party in 1906. apprentice electrician at the Robert Bevan Ebbw Vale steelworks and a member of the Pageant committee, said:

I've always been ested in politics. campalg interWe'd BLACKPOOL gasworkers are on their fifth day of all-out strike action A top fitter we spoke to was on £20 a week. And his tax allowance was the highest in the works.

One fitter said he was on £16.99. An average paid fitter married with one child would get £20 a week.

'We've been trying to get a fight like this for years. But the G&MWU has always held us back, saying that a shop stewards' meeting would be too hard to arrange.

"The first three weeks of the gas workers' strike was unofficial until the union recognized it.

"The government will set up a right-wing Pay Board and expect us to go back to work as soon as it starts. But we won't go back until we get a substantial increase.

'We want a decent day' for a decent day's work, 'And we'll have to ge Tories out first.' stand around in the bar arguing about it all the time. 'When I saw the cabaret, I decided that it was time to stop the pub talk and do something about it. "They asked for people come forward and help, I did. I knew about the BASIC RICHTS MERTINR TYDEK Spaster G. HEALY •NAi LABOUR CORRESPONDENT WE FIGHT on. This was the message of a series of weekend depot meetings following the breakdown of talks between British Road Services and its drivers in the Midlands.

To the consternation of BRS and its masters in the Tory government, shop stewards' representing the 1,000 drivers in the region have rejected proposals for ending the dispute.

After seven hours of talks between management and union officials on Friday the stewards voted to continue their fight for a £2.50 bonus for holding heavy goods vehicle (HGV) licences, which they are now required to possess by law.

Three weeks ago the drivers handed in their licences to the Transport and General Workers' Union-making it impossible for them to be sent out on the road in the heavy vehicles which serve the motor industry.

The number of carworkers laid off as a result has steadied at around 13,000. Millions of pounds have already been lost by the big motor manufacturers.

As BRS manager Kenneth Cook commented plaintively on Ne this one lune bit, song to Friday night: 'My friends like this BRS refuses to pay the drivers their bonus because of the Tory government's pay control law.

Several times during Friday's negotiations they were pressed by union officials to pay up and face the possibility of having the increase frozen by law.

'At least that'll get you off the hook, Transport and General Workers' Union district official Alan Law is believed to have told Cook.

The company's reply was a detailed productivity scheme, covering 11 pages, which it claimed would yield increases of between £1.50 and £4.85 Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. Published by Workers Press, 186a Clapham High Street, ondon, SW4 7UG. Printed Plough am in See London Sa 70 Newsdesk: 01-720 2000. 01-622 7029.

Taff Vale story-everyone's heard of it around here. But I didn't understand everything about it. It means much more to me now because I see what the working class has fought for.' • FORM FOR TICKETS: See page 2.