EMPLOYERS SHOULD BE

By lan Yeats lan AFTER an hour of Secretary M aurice M and General he had high hopes of crisis.

Macmillan urged him to waste no time in getting down to discussions with port employers in the new joint committee on dock labour.

Although he was hopeful Tr StE er, talks with ry Employ: nent acmillan y rday, Tran: port Union lear said a solution dockland's jobs thing would come from these discussions, Jones told reporters that: "The delegate conterence really wants to feel this committee is going to have authority and drive, and means what it says, and will not end up like so many other committees of inquiry.

'We will be trying to find satisfactory position to report the conference on June 14.

The chairmen of port authorities will sit with top-level union officials on the new joint committee and Jones said they were men who wielded 'enormous power in the ports'.

He added: 'Port authorities are licensing authorities for stevedoring companies. And they control everyone registered for dock employment in the port 'authority area' Jones hopes that the chairmen will be able to persuade employers to show 'greater responsibility' in their labour policies.

But their promise to put pressure on employers can be no substitute for the cast-iron guarantees being demanded • by the rank and file, particularly in Liverpool.

Workers at present stuffng containers are paid up to a third less than registered dockers, and there are bound to be difficulties in persuading port bosses to pay the higher rates. There are likely to be added problems in persuading terminal operators not directly controlled by the port authorities.

Anything less than a concrete guarantee of jobs will open the door to union collaboration with the employers in their ports modernization plans, which have alréady sent thousands of men to the dole queues.

Macmillan also asked Jones to influence the tally clerks to call off their strike due to start on Monday. Jones said he was making 'special efforts' to bring about a settlement.

WEATHER

WEST to North-west airstream covers the British Isles. There will be bright or sunny intervals in many districts, but North and North-west Scotland will be mainly cloudy.

Showers are expected in all areas, the showers being prolonged in North and North-west Scotland, and heavy at times in other districts. Continuing rather cool.

Outlook for Sunday and Monday: Showers heavy and prolonged in places, but also sunny intervals. Rather cool in all areas.

01-720 CIRCULATION 01-622 7029 egistered as a newspaper at the Post Jnice.: Published by Workers Press, 186a Clapham High Street, London, : SW4 7UG.

Ltd. (TO) By our own LONDON dockers w ere • KAVE COODFELIN RANE HIRE 1-223-4464