All London sites to be brought out

A MASS MEETING of over 1,000 London decided yesterday to pull out as quickly as possible every remaining site in the capital.

Many speakers demanded the union leaderships call a national, official, all-out strike for the £30, 35-hour week claim.

But leading members of Communist Party opposed idea and no resolution was put to the meeting.

The enormous turn-out for the meeting, which started at 9 a.m., showed the real determination of the rank and file to fight the claim through to the end.

Several contracting electricians also came to express solidarity with the building workers and condemned Electrical and Plumbing Trades Union leader Frank Chapple for failing to call them out officially.

Opening the meeting, Jack Henry, a CP member and Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians general councillor said escalation had rapidly taken place in London.

'Once we've consolidated we have to go outwards and attack Greater London as a whole,' he said.

'It's a question of a national strike, region by region,' added, without explaining what that formulation actually meant.

Henry said the focal point of the strike was wages, hours and Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. Published by Workers Press, 1868 Clapham High Street, London.

SWA 7UG.

Printed by Plough Press Ltd. (TU), 180b Clapham Hish Street, London.

SWA 7UG. more holidays. Running alongside it was the elimination of the lump.

"The fundamental question now is for 100 per cent unity behind the leadership in this fight,' he concluded.

Not every speaker from the floor, however, accepted Henry's cover-up for the union leadership, who have refused to call a national strike.

One steward from a Mile End site said his men had a grievance to bring to the meeting. They had been asked by the local UCATT organizer to pull out some sites in their area.

The site agent refused to let him speak to the stewards on the site still working. In the end the agent phoned UCATT regional secretary. Len Eaton who told him the Mile End men were "freelancers'.

'What kind of leadership is that?' the steward asked.

"The selective strikes policy was always treacherous. The union leaders have not called for an all-out national strike. And the London action committee failed to organize a lobby when the leaders met last Tuesday.

Instead of this splitting-up of London into six areas it should be one out, all out - like the miners and the dockers.

'The union leaders tried to sell us out and only a massive demonstration stopped them. The leadership is avoiding the call because it would mean an alout fight with the dockers against the Tories.' At that point chairman Henry broke in and cut his speech Another leading Stalinist, Lou Lewis, then tried to explain his position.

WEATHER A RIDGE of high pressure will move into western districts of the British Isles during the day.

North and East Scotland and North East England will have scattered showers at first but will become mainly dry.

West Scotland and Northern Ireland will be bright, becoming generally cloudy with rain later in the day.

Wales, South West Scotland and most of England will be mainly dry with • some bright intervals.

It will be rather cool.

Outlook for Saturday and Sunday: Generally cloudy with drizzle or rain in the North and West but dry with a few sunny intervals in the South and East. Temperatures below normal generally and rather cool in the West and North West.

'I stand for all-out national strike, but I also stand for reality, he said in reply to the Mile End speaker.

It has to be organized. The decision by the leaders means the regions can stop all the sites.' A steward from the Laing's site, Gipsy Hill, said there should have been a call for a national all-out stoppage to the confusion.

'It is also an illusion to talk of conditions on the sites outside of nationalization of building industry. And that means a fight to bring down Tories.

'Scanlon has sold out engineers for a two-year deal and no cut in hours.. We must call for a change in the official leadership of our unions,' he said.

Earlier, another Stalinist, Peter Cavanagh, had made the CP's position absolutely clear.

'Some slogans have been put across here for an all-out national strike. I've said it before and say it again.

"They are living in cloud cuckoo land; he said to no applause.

They were taking on the employers and what was needed was more effective picketing. 'Not slogans, but the facts of life,' he added.

Speaker after speaker yesterday came to the microphone emphasize their determination to stay out and fight until the claim was met in full.

But after over three hours of discussion, the Stalinist leadership was unable to offer any perspective for the fight by builders against the employers and the Tory government.

The only perspective is for building workers to join with the dockers who are now at the forefront of the struggle against the Tory government.

No decent wages, no jobs security can be won • today unless it involves the political struggle to remove the government. The unity of dockers and building workers will be a start. But it must be extended throughout the trade union movement. Sit-in at Leyland THE REMAINING 1,000 workers at the Thornycroft heavy transmission plant at Basingstoke have occupied their factory on a 24-hour basis.

The men are determined to halt the plans of the management, British Leyland, to sell off the factory to the Eaton Corporation of Ohio.

In the hiving-off deal Leyland has also sold the 50-acre site to a property company.

The decision to makers, however orward free hand claims since there has been a pay pause at the yard for the last months.

Boilermakers mer in a Glasgow cinema yesterday where a large minority were in favour of throwing out the deal altogether.

The men eventually instructed their officials to return to management to get guarantees on the two remaining objections and report back to further mass meeting next Thursday.

The decision was taken despite heavy pressure from Scottish boilermakers' leader James MurraHe said that the Tory Cabinet had instructed Govan Shipbuilders managing director Archibald Gilchrist that the deal would have to be signed in its present form immediately or there would be no public money for the firm.

He also told the meeting that boilermakers' president Danny McGarvey had been told by the chairman, Lord Strathalmond, that any delay would jeopardize an order for ships from Kuwait.

The decision to accept the deal in principle was so close that a ballot had to be held.

The agreement, exclusively reported in the Workers Press on April 15, provides for a massive increase in productivity. The unions are pledged to introduce flexibility between crafts and break down the lines of job demarcation.

It also requires the boilermakers to relinquish their independent bargaining rights.

One clause insists that nego tiations will take place between management and all the labour This is a change from the present practice when unions like the boilermakers usually go it alone—a practice which allows leap-frogging claims by the lower-paid groups.

At the meeting MacDonald candidly admitted that he did not like the deal but it was at least better than the one signed at the fourth UCS division-Clydebank—now owned by Marathon Manufacturing of Texas.

There the stewards, led by Communist Party national executive member James Reid, have agreed to a four-year no-strike contract.

The boilermakers Clydebank originally objected to losing lapsed Pay Marathon chief, their differential, but colWayne Harbin, threatened to pull out.

factory taken on Tuesday with only votes against.

Today Thornycroft stewards will address a mass rally of Leyland workers from the Cowley plant at Oxford and call on them for industrial and financial support.

Other Leyland workers, those employed by Jaguar, are also demanding combine-wide action as their pay strike enters its ninth week. yesterday brought £74.15 giving us a total of £669.10 so far. We are sure we can raise even more.

The enormous treachery of the union leaders opens up great dangers for the dockers and plays right into the hands of the Tories. It means that our paper is absolutely decisive today. Trade unionists everywhere are looking for an alternative to these reformist union leaders. More support than ever can be won from all those determined to fight to make this Tory government resign.

It is this determination which drives us on to complete our fund. We specially appeal to you, our readers, to do everything you can to change the position. Every month you fight magnificently. This month— please don't leave It too late. Post all donations Immediately August Appeal Fund, 186a Clapham High St, London, SW4 7UG.

August Appeal Fund, 186a Clapham High Street, London SW4 7UG Soclalist Labour League PUBLIC MEETINGS End TUC talks with Heath Stop Jones-Aldington collaboration !

Victory to the dockers! Nationalize the docks and transport industries I Make the Tories resign MANCHESTER FRIDAY AUGUST 7.30 p.m.

Milton Hall Deanagato Speakers:

dock worker)

ALAN STANLEY (Vi Ellesmere Port sho Both in a person:

HULL MONDAY AUGUST 7.30 p.m.

Co-op Hall, Kingston Square, opp New Theatre Speakers:

G. HEALY (SLL LARRY CAVANAGH (Liverpool dock worker)

JOHN NOLAN (T&GWU convenor; Hollis Brothers) Both in a personal capacity CIRCULATION 01-622 7029 NEWS DESK 01-720 2000 hall steward)

capacity