3,500 AEL ENGINEERS to-agree to cor LOCKED-OUT

FROM STEPHEN JOHNS MANCHESTER'S lai gest. employer. locked workers ou the AEI combine's giant Traf rd Park factory yesterday.

And at AEI Openshaw, 800 AEI enshaw, workers began a sit-in in defiance of in defiance a management to lock them out. them out.

The move, which comes at the start of the second week of the district-wide engineers' pay claim, shows there is still a powerful body within the Engineering Employers' Federation determined to resist a settleThe doors and gates at Trafford Park were barred and bolted to prevent 3,500 shop-floor workers from entering the plant.

Only a handful turned up because of a decision taken at mass meetings before. Easter which decided against an occupation. , Sir Arnold Weinstock's AEI has been noted for its hard line action in the local federation and has resisted in particular the demand for a 35hour week.

Today another combine, Guest, Keen Nettlefold, also noted for its tough approach, is expected to open negotiations with workers at the Bredbury steel steel plant who have been occupying since March 23.

Whether this is a genuine approach remains to be seen. One surprise move at Bredbury has been the removal of managing director Geoffrey Wilson. He is noted for his firm shop-floor tactics.

At the steel works, he was responsible productivity deal involving Measured-Day Work, speed-up and redundancies.

A GKN Bredbury spokesman, yesterday denied that the move had anything to do with the current dispute.

Wilson has been promoted to chairman of the company's N and Midlands bright steel division.

His successor is John Lamb, who is understood to be leading today's negotiations with two local union officials.

Lamb was formerly divisional Rolling, S Wales.

Throughout the NW a total of 6,000 workers are now occupying 11 plants. Workers at Rushton Paxton in Warrington have lifted their sit-in, but are working-to-rule.

lore workers who tur LONDON AEI THREAT TO CLOSE FACTORY A MASS meeting of workers from AEI's Century Works in SE London will today discuss the machine shop strike and the threatened closedown of the factory.

The strike has been in progress since January and now the electricians have "failed to agree and they too might join the strikers.

The firm, previously managed by Elliott Automation, has been threatening to declare redundancies and move the work to Leicester. AEL, RAILM START WORKLOCOMEN'S leader Ray Buckton yesterday expressed disappointment that his members at British Rail's Stratford depot in E London had started an unofficial work-to-rule.

I had hoped they would stand behind the executive, he said. 'Our policy is to try and get tomorrow's meetind front at Tomorrow'e meenna.

Today, the executives of all three rail unions discuss. how they can force the BR board to increase their £30.8m pay offer to the railwaymen. • See page 3 for work-to-rule