Workers Press no. 851

workers press

JOBLESS AT THE

MILLION MARK

INCORPORATING THE NEWSLETTER • FRIDAY AUGUST 25, 1972 No 851 • 4p L DAILY ORGAN OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE SOCIALIST LABOUR LEAGUE cent of the UNEMPLOYMENT soared to 930,123 this Ireland—is Scotland where working population (141,467) is out of a job.

month, the highest August total since 1939.

The shocking unemployment in Scotland is made On current trends this means it is only a even worse by the news from the upper Clyde work-in where details of the jobs-pruning are now matter of weeks before there will be more than one million out of work—for the second When UCS collapsed in June last year there were about 8,800 employed at the four yards.

time in two years of Tory rule.

2,700 working Clydebank while were fail register taken into 1,800. Under the deal done If those there are only account, the number now out of work is really at nly 700 employed by

WITH

The exas Marathon yanuac. the one million mark already.

turing, there will be only the company by Christmas. The Department of Employment announced yes- At present at the other three yards there are terday that the number of men, women and school out work last by 4.100 workers. some 2.000 less than at the start of seavers MOna increased 62,033. Meanwhile the number of wholly the Communist Party-inspired 'work-in'.

employed, the hard-core jobless figure, was up by This jobs erosion is a direct result of the Com- 15,562. munist Party's refusal to launch a political struggle Among those out of work are 60912 teenagers against the government walch is responsiDe who have graduated from school straight to the for deliberately creating mass unemployment.

dole queue. The anger and militancy of the Clydeside workers was channelled into a useless protest work-in One of the worst hit areas-apart from Northern Sign in a week or else-

ULTIMATUM TO UCS

BOILERMAKERS

FROM STEPHEN JOHNS IN GLASGOW

said they will Unions have accept round-the-clock shift working in a bid to get Mara- CLYDESIDE boiler- 'if they suitable'. He ex- were thon double their la bour plamned that te company expe- makers have set them- would leave 600 men with no even requirements ted 200 vacancies Christmas. Representatives selves a collision of the on at 14s here. course with Govan Ship the Civde There is now concerted at- Temo ov me sainst readers builders — the firm who divorce the Govan issues from got the no Strathalmond jobs crisis at Clydebank wants to start work at from boulermakers celerate a boilermakers' meeung three of the old UCS Jimmy Ramsay over the tele- yesterday which unanimously phone endorsed a call resist pressure divisions on September to The boilermaker Shipbuilders, for Govar 11. COn the only fighting the

LOUD

venor CommunIst eart big carve-up on Clyde. member Sammy Barr made une After a mass meeting yes- shop sandards coordina the clear that 1,500 boiler- terday, boilermakers' leaders stewards co-ordinating holding makers not WeLC hayes deal until ali their 7 because of the problems at Clyde- Com- committee. commated Dy munist Party members, are bank. their 7: agreement with the new The obstacle their members in the UCS work-in formula with Ship- ment was guaranteed employment builders only, he said James Airlie, speaking after the Govan Shipbuilders when The have unions now seven meeting with Strathalmond. said takes over. days to resolve the crisis.

that 1,200 redundancies threat- The move put the whole deal ened at Clydebank by simiat one bew UD Manufactur- Clydebank where boilermakers in American Marathon copardy. objecting were yester- meeting unions ing Corporaton would not stand their day, chairman Lord in the way of the Govan deal.

deal under which they lost Strathalmond warned that if the that Govan position pay recognize at the top or tae Shipbuilders responsible eague Was nOL signed next are

HOL

UCS

Eventually, 'Reide pressure Friday it would be called off. TOr tne wnole the leading responsibility lies with rom sames He said: "This the last said. Marathon,' salinist DollermaKers possible date. We have a board he president Danny McGarvey further indication meeting the following Tuesday gave the go-ahead for the deal, that the shop stewards lea Dy unless We Tine Stalinists like Airlie- -have aban- which rules

OUL

SITIKES.

natures I know perfectly McGarvey may have to doned their original stand for intere we won't get our money from at Govan yards four arreement and Here too there is a problem over government. and all will be no Govan Shipbuilders.

the workers in tem *The boilermakers, traditionally were At first it seemed the deal was Marathon employ 700 plan to Strathalmond proposed would the most militant Clydeside on. by this Casuas

DU L

of the Clyde formula that leaders workers, start negotia- leave a surplus at Clydebank of backdated 1,200 shipounding TIOnS

TOR

DaV ruse Unions Engineering

UCS

immediately. But the firm the of the

ACCCULCU

was to 140 sisting the right to hold them This the liquidation- -there - une last vear- off until January if necessary work-in men, then take them on were about 2/00 at vee bank ST 25, 1972 • No 851 • 4p

IALIST LABOUR LEAGUE

while Lord Strathalmond, a close friend of Industry carried out the butchery of Minister John Davies, the yards-and men's jobs-behind the scenes.

The lessons of the treacherous work-in must be learnt. Jobs cannot be saved today without a political fight to get the Tories out and replaced by a Labour government pledged to socialist policies.

the economic situation deteriorates As un- employment will grow and the Tories will try to batter the working class with the twin threats of joblessness and the Industrial Relations Act.

The figures for men, women and teenagers out of work is mounting to pre-war totals. The fight for the right to work must be taken up immediately.

• Defend the right to work.

• Force the Tories out. • Return a Labour government pledged to socialist basic indus- policies including nationalization of tries, repeal of the Industrial Relations Act and the restoration of full employment.

ho is this man, pictured with Ron Taylor (left), roclaimed leader of yesterday's anti-immigrant marc he Home Office? See page 12.

workers press

JOBLESS AT THE

MILLION MARK

INCORPORATING THE NEWSLETTER • FRIDAY AUGUST 25, 1972 • No 851 • 4p DAILY ORGAN OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE SOCIALIST LABOUR LEAGUE Toraid po Scotion 4,467 is up or a ent.

cent of the UNEMPLOYMENT soared to 930,123 this Ireland—is Scotland month, the highest August total since 1939.

The shocking unemployment in Scotland is made On current trends this means it is only a even worse by the news from the upper Clyde work-in where details of the jobs-pruning are now matter of weeks before there will be more than one million out of work—for the second When

UCS

collapsed in June last vear there were about 8,800 employed at the four yards.

time in two years of Tory rule.

There 2,700 working Clydebank while were fail register taken into there 1,800. Under the deal done ff those are today are oil account, the numbèr now out of work is really at with the Texas nly 700 Oll-TIg the one million mark already.

turing, there will be only employed by the company by Christmas. The Department of Employment announced At present at the other three yards there are terdav that the number of men. women and school workers, some 2,000 less than leavers out work last month increased by 62,033. Meanwhile the number of wholly the Communist Party-inspired 'work-in'.

employed, the hard-core jobless figure, was up by This jobs erosion is a direct result of the Com- political struggle munist Party's refusal to launch a out of work are 60,912 teenagers Among those Tine lory governmenl have graduated from school straight to the for deliberately creating mass unemployment.

dole queue. The anger and militancy of the Clydeside workers was channelled into a useless protest One of the worst hit areas-apart from Northern Sign in a week or else-

ULTIMATUM TO UCS

BOILERMAKERS

FROM STEPHEN JOHNS IN GLASGOW

said they will Unions have accept round-the-clock shift working in a bid to get Mara- CLYDESIDE boiler- 'if they suitable'. He ex- WeLC double their thon plained that the company expec- makers have set them- But even requirements

TRIS

ted 200 vacancies Christmas. would leave 600 men with no Representatives selves a collision of the on jobs. course with Govan Ship cat 145 p.m. «Civde continee concerted at- There is yes- tempt by the Stalinist leaders builders — the firm who later terday, minutes divorce Govan issues from no jobs crisis at Clydebank ouratna mona

LIC

wants to start work at from hollermakers delectre boilermakers' AT meena three of the old UCS Ramsay over the tele- yesterday, which unanimously phone endorsed a call to divisions on September resist pressure The boilermakers are noW Govar Shipbuilders 11. 101 COn® the the and Party veror Communist big carve-up Clyde. member Sammy Barr made After a mass meeting yes- understand that leaders of the clear that 1,500 terday, boilermakers' leaders stewards' coordinating shop holding makers

WELC

because of the problems at Clyde- have relused to sign a new • Com- consuce their 77 munist Party members, bank. wages deal until all are agreement with the new The obstacle their members in the UCS work-in with Ship- guaranteed employment James Airlie, speaking after the Govan Shipbuilders when unions now have seven meeting with Strathalmond. takes over. that 1,200 redundancies threat- days to resolve the crisis The move put the whole deal ened Clydebank by up simiat «one Deu Manufactur- Clydebank where boilermakers in jeopardy. American Marathon objecting to were meeting unions yester- ATter ing Corporation woula not stand which they their day, company chairman Lord in the way of the Govan deal. acal Strathalmond warned that if the We that Govan at the top pay recognize Shipbuilders responsible dedi Was signed next dIc

UCS

Em Tamals Reid, pressure Friday it would be called off.

for tne Whoe OT responsibility lies with the leading Tonne. He said: "This is the last he said. hoilermakers' Marathon,' tanist. possible date. We have a • board president Danny McGarvey indication meeting the following gave the go-ahead for the deal, that the shop unless we get sig- TRAl Stalinists like Airlie- -have aban- witch rues our silkes natures I know perfectly well may have McGarvey doned their original stand for inter won't get our from at Govan Shipbuilders. yards atreement until unc Here too there is a problem over and workers in will be no Govan Shipbuilders.

The were secure. paThe boilermakers, At first it seemed the deal was Marathon plan to employ 700 tractionall proposed Clydeside Strathalmond would the most militant formula that leaders by this but of the Clyde workers, want start leave a surplus at Cludebank of a could for backdated Who Engineering Unions shipoulding

HORS

TIst Engineering At

UCS

immediately. But the firm the time the to retrain 140 sisting sist until nahear it necessary.

the right to hold them This was the -there liquidation- une last vear work-in men. then take them on were about 2,700 al ST 25, 1972 • No 851 • 4p

IALIST LABOUR LEAGUE

while Lord Strathalmond, a close friend of Industry Minister John Davies, carried out the butchery of the yards-and men's jobs-behind the scenes.

The lessons of the treacherous work-in must be Jobs cannot be saved today without a political fight to get the Tories out and replaced by a Labour government pledged to socialist policies.

deteriorates employment will grow and the Tories will try to batter the working class with the twin threats of joblessness and the Industrial Relations Act.

The figures for men, women and teenagers out of work is mounting to pre-war totals. The fight for the right to work must be taken up immediately.

• Defend the right to work.

• Force the Tories out. • Return a Labour government pledged to socialist basic indus- policies including nationalization tries, repeal of the Industrial Relations Act and the restoration of full employment.

ho is this man, pictured with Ron Taylor (left), roclaimed leader of yesterday's anti-immigrant marc he Home Office? See page 12.

PAGE 2 Workers Press, Friday August 2:

AROUND THE WORLD

BY JOHN SPENCER

POLICE

used massive and barrages tear-gas arrested nearly 1,000 anti- war demonstrators out- side the Republican Party Miami convention at Beach yesterday. The demonstrators, num- bering only about 4,000, had tried to prevent party dele- gates from reaching the con- vention hall to hear Richard Nixon's acceptance speech on his nomination as presidential candidate. They were met by the tightest security ever seen in the Florida resort. The convention centre was turned into an almost impreg- nable fortress with miles of barbed and hundreds of wire armed guards. Inside the high wire fence sur- rounding the centre was a ring of police wearing helmets.

Most of the roads leading to blocked by the entrances were TEN left-wing guerrillas who fled to Chile from Argentina aboard a hijacked airliner ten days ago have asked the Popular Unity government to grant them safe conduct to Cuba. The request follows days of legal wrangling over their fate.

President Allende, anxious to maintain his close ties with the Argentine military dictatorship, he will abide by the has said decision of the courts. The Supreme Court judge in charge of the case is a known right-winger who may well order the ten guerrillas to be deported back to Argentina. There they would face almost certain death after torture. their comrades Sixteen of from the People's Revolutionary Army (associated with the Pab- loite revisionists) and the Revo- lutionary Armed Forces were 'shot while attempting to escape' in Trelew, army base at an Argentina, on Tuesday. The military dictatorship has forbidden the press to comment at Trelew, the shootings on which took place after the guer- rillas had surrendered to a local judge who guaranteed their lives.

Earlier the guerrillas had broken out of prison at nearby Rawson and hijacked the plane which their leaders fled to on Chile. The Popular Unity parties in divided Chile are what over should be done with the escaped guerrillas, who are now being held in custody. August 25, 1972 buses parked bumper-to-bumper to prevent demonstrators break- ing through. Reporters the scene on accused police of 'over-reacting' to the demonstrations. Residents of Miami Beach, many of them elderly and retired tear- and by were overcome with which the pepper-gas police saturated the entire area.

himself got a strong Nixon whiff of gas when he flew in by helicopter to the convention hall.

The gas was so thick that it was sucked into the air conditioning of the convention hall, affecting delegates inside the convention.

Police said the arrest proce- dure used against the demonstra- tors had been carefully planned in advance. Until now the police have left the demonstrators largely un- Tuesday, molested. But on chief Capt Washington police Jerry Wilson was flewn in to plan tactics with the local force.

At the same time a group of Republican delegates obtained an order from a county judge requir- ing the police to enforce city specifically those against laws, drugs, assault and breach of the peace. The delegates claimed police had taken no action when a group by of delegates jostled was demonstrators. Allende and the Communist Party want to leave the issue strictly to the courts in the knowledge that this could mean they will share the fate of their comrades in Argentina. A number of Socialist Party however, deputies, have sup- ported the guerrillas' request to Cuba. Eric ne sent on to Schnacke, one of the Socialist MPs, met the guerrillas on Wednesday and said afterwards: 'They no longer want asylum here. 'They want to go to Cuba and we will present President Allende their case to Another Socialist Party poli- tician, Alejandro Filiberto, said that to send the fugitives back to Argentina after the Trelew shootings would mean 'they will be condemned to death'. • The Foreign Ministry in San- tiago said yesterday that Argen- tina had repeated its request for their extradition and sent a list of detailed charges against them.

itself, In Argentina the Peronist Party has condemned the Trelew shootings as a new rights' and violation of human its own said it would send investigators to the army base.

The Party said it was sending for the four doctors to care wounded survivors and lawyers 'assist other to persons in the area deprived of their liberty'.

in the Argentine police Cordoba are northern town of holding over 600 students who demonstrated against the Trelew They are being held massacre. for 'identity checks', according to the police. Heavily-armoured police contront d TROTSKY stressed, in the "Tran- sitional Programme of Fourth International', that 'the worla political situation as a whole is chiefly characterized by a historical crisis of the leadership of the proletariat'.

This has been illustrated once by the recent dock again strike. Under capitalism new productive techniques, such as container- ization, cannot raise the level of material wealth of the working class because of the profit motive. Instead they insecurity and un- create employment for the working class. This means that the only answer to the problems facing dockers is nationalization of the entire docks and trans- port industries, without com- pensation and under workers' This control. This involves bringing down the Tory government, which is determined to create large- scale unemployment in order to drive down working conditions.

It must be replaced by. a government which Labour would be forced by the strength of the working class to nationalize all basic indus- tries without compensation and under workers' control, as a prerequisite for the establish- ment of a socialist society.

Such a struggle would create a split on the part of the right wing in the Labour Party and politically open the way for a mass revolutionary leadership.

During the entire period of the recent docks strike, the pre- dominant section of shop stewards failed to put forward such a political demand. Yet without a political programme no amount of militancy could bring victory. The release of the Pentonville Five shows that given political leadership the working class could bring down the Tory government. But as it was the strike ended with nothing gained. Lord Aldington could boast in the 'Sunday Telegraph': "The fact is that we have not made any improvement on our original offer.' Above everything else, this experience poses the question of leadership. And that is the main difference between the Socialist Labour League and anti-communist 'Inter- national Socialism' group.

The current issue of the IS paper 'Socialist Worker' carries a front-page article which blames the dockers for the collapse of the strike. It declares: "The national shop stewards' call was outmanoeuvred and fell apart. The attitude of the men is the spirit-level of any struggle and this time the men proved themselves unworthy of their shop stewards? What actually happened, as Workers Press has shown, was that the London stewards, who include several members the Communist Party, failed to the con- issue a clear call for tinuation of the strike. This led to a reversal of the unani- mous strike-on decision in Liverpool and to the Hull shop stewards' decision not to seek to maintain the strike there. What was involved was not any 'unworthiness' of the dockers reformist but the nature of the leadership, which broken from not politics of class-collaboration.

Even if the strike call could not carried, it would have been put it have been better to forward and fight for it as the Hull stewards were prepared to do. That way some lessons could have been learned. This is the essence of leadership, London but stewards evaded the issue. A correct leadership cannot, by itself, guarantee automatic vic- tory. But without a fight for such leadership workers are left confused-as they were last week. London The stewards Bernie a Communist Party Steer, member illusions and Vic Turner on Jones- spread Aldington. The 'Daily Tele- graph' of August 3 reported that Vic Turner had urged the committee that 'the recom- mendations should be con- verted into copper-bottomed guarantees'. Jack Jones was able to tell the "Telegraph' - and this was never refuted - that 'both he and Lord Aldington had told the dockers they were making efforts to get tan- strenuous gible results and the dockers seemed happy with the pro- gress being made. Then, on the decisive Friday, August 18, Steer and Turner did not put before the London dockers the resolution of the national port shop stewards' which committee called un- ambiguously for a continua- tion of the strike. Here was an abdication of leadership.

The Communist Party did not want a continuation of the strike because that would have involved a • break with Jones and a political struggle against the Tory government. 'Socialist Worker' up for this covers betrayal because it persistently rejects the struggle for a revolutionary leadership in the unions. It advocates instead a blind militancy, and consist- ently attacks the Socialist Labour League for maintaining a principled struggle for Marxism. The 'Socialist Worker' editorial calls only for 'a network of militants that can unite workers against the employers' offensive'. And it concludes that the Liaison Committee for the Defence of Trade Unions (LCDTU) again failed to play this role'. But the role of the LCDTU is not that it failed to build up a network. It is domin- such ated by counter-revolutionary Stalinism and is used to hold back the development of revolutionary consciousness in the working class, in particular by opposing the call for the TUC to organize a General Strike to bring down the Tory government. we said in yesterday's As Workers Press: 'The LCDTU is the instrument through which counter-revolutionary Stalinism seeks to exert its pressure by the working holding back class from revolutionary con- sciousness.' The IS group, like the renegade Trotskyists of the International consist- Marxist Group, has ently supported the Stalinists in the Liaison Committee since its inception. IS lines up with the Stalinists because they too want to avoid the central question of political leadership. So today these anti-communists place the responsibility for the docks defeat not on the Stalin- ists, nor even on Jack Jones but on the dockers themselves, who now face unemployment.

This has been the hallmark of every traitor in the working class for the last 150 years.

And the people they blame are the same dockers who stood out for four weeks in the face of an all-out witch-hunt by the capitalist press and television.

plus police provocation and violence. By blaming them 'Socialist Worker' seeks to divert workers' attention from the leadership and the political questions now •posed. In the same way IS refused to blame the engineers' Scanlon and leaders for the lack of fight on the engineers' wage claim.

Worker' declared, on 'Socialist 'the traditional July 22, that organizations are not workers' yet up to the task of giving the bosses a real fight' The unions-built up by workers in over 200 years of struggle- are written off as inadequate by these revisionists rather than challenge the nature of the Scanlon leadership. • Yet is was Scanlon who threw the wage claim back to district level because and plant a strike would have national meant a showdown with the Tory government. Once again the anti-communists of IS, however, poured scorn on the working class and its achieve- ments in order to protect the reformist and Stalinist leader- ship. The crisis of leadership will be resolved in struggle against the reformist and Stalinist leaders and all those - like Inter- national Socialism — who seek to protect them. Workers Press will continue this struggle to the bitter end.

BY WORKERS PRESS

REPORTERS

SKELMERSDALE

Council has voted two to one against implement- ing the Tory 'fair rents' Act. While Labour councillors in the Lancashire town were taking this stance, however, Yorkshire opposite their numbers in Castleford were voting the other way. Calling on Skelmersdale Coun- cil to refuse to co-operate with the Act, ClIr Philip Bond told a meeting on Wednesday night he completely opposed to the was Act. Bond said that councils which implemented the Act lacked the courage of other sections of the working class to take on the Tory government and were trying to hide behind the law. John Walsh Other councillors opposed to the Act said it failed to recognize that housing was a basic need and that it should be repealed by the next Labour government.

Labour councillor Stan West said that those who said the Act had to be implemented because it was the law of the land should bear in mind that the Tory itself government was illegal. It had not promised in its election manifesto to raise rents and prices, create mass unem- ployment and attack the trade unions. West said the next Labour government must be forced to carry out socialist policies.

Labour councillors who voted for the Act were heckled with shouts of 'Tories out!' as they left the meeting. 28 Charlotte St

BOOKS • PERI

Meanwhile by 21 votes to four, with two abstentions, the Labour- controlled council in Castleford has reversed an earlier decision not to implement the Act. Last March the council decided not to implement the Act and called, on tenants to resist it. this week Jack Smart moved its implementation on the grounds that the government would suspend the town's hous- : subsidies if they failed to toe the line. recently defeated Cllr Smart, in an election for Yorkshire area the compensation agent of National Union of Mineworkers, is an NUM official in North Yorkshire. He recently founded a York- shire Miners' Labour Association to combat the development of socialism in the Yorkshire coal- field. Smart's proposal was seconded Walsh, by Cir John an NUM branch official from Glasshough- ton colliery. Walsh, who claims to be on it hard declared that he found to second the proposal, because of recent rises in the cost of living. But I'm left with no loophole, he said. Rents of Castleford council houses will now go up by fl per week from the beginning of October. The proposal was opposed by Charles Churm, who is also an NUM member. He accused the Labour group 'crucify" leaders of wanting to the people of Castleford.

Grinsdell, who Cilr also opposed Smart • and Walsh, demanded that the vote be taken by a roll-call of names. This was done and all 21 of the councillors who were prepared to support the Tory attacks on living stand- 'Yes' ards answered as their names were called. A meeting of tenants is to take place in Airedale, Castle- ford, on Monday to discuss what action to take now the Labour councillors have gone back on the pledges they gave in March.

• More than 300 council ten- ants on the Langley estate at Middleton have decided to with- hold rent increases ordered by the Tories and implemented by the Labour-controlled Manches- ter Council. Cllr Kevin Hunt, chairman of the Langley Tenants' and Resi- dents' Association, said: 'Tenants are now going to stand up and be counted'

LECTER

S • PERIODICALS • NEWSPAPERS

Manbre drivers picketing yesterday

BY IAN YEATS

FULL-TIME

union • officials may meet management today with new proposals to end the nine-week-old strike at Coventry's Jaguar car factory.

Jaguar is anxious to settle the dispute and union officials have been urging the strike committee to arrive at a formula acceptable to the company so that work can be resumed. Earlier this week they asked for an inquiry into the circum- stances which led to the rejection of the employers' latest offer at a mass meeting on Tuesday, and from which 40 per cent of the strikers were said to be absent.

Strike leader Mick Richards said yesterday that after nine weeks the determination of the strikers to secure a substantial across-the-board increase was going to be difficult to break down. Jaguar have offered the 2,000 men an interim flat-rate rise to £44 for a 40-hour week pending talks on a new wage structure to replace piecework. The men have so far strongly resisted Measured-Day Work, which British Leyland, who own Jaguar, are trying to introduce throughout the combine. Jaguar's latest offer would give about £3 a week extra to the lower paid, but many track earning already £44 workers would gain nothing. Mick Richards said there was a danger the deal had split the meeting Tuesday's voted men. to continue the two to one strike instead of the usual unani- mous decision. has The strike committee agreed a new formula which full- time officials are expected to put to management today.

NOW OPEN

Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Fri 9 a.m.-7.30 p.m. Sat 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Workers Press,

BY SARAH HANNIGAN

DRIVERS

by employed Brockelhurst Transport Co at Hammersmith, West London, yesterday staged a token stop- page in support of three of their union representatives whom have management refused to re-employ. All 70 drivers who do con- tract work for Manbré Sugars had been sacked by Brockelhurst the previous week for staging a walk-out in protest at the ViC- timization of a fellow driver.

Friday all Last the men re- applied for their jobs back on the advice of their representa- tives. were taken back apart All from their Transport and General Workers' Union branch secre- tary, Jim Butt, branch vice- chairman, Pat Harrison and shop steward Mike Gash. When the drivers returned to work on Monday they registered a 'failure to agree' on the non- reinstatement of the three with their district official, Bob Kay.

The dispute was then taken through official union channels.

BY ALEX MITCHELL

CENTRAL London branch of the National Union of Journalists has launched an all-out campaign against the management of United Press International, which is victi- mizing trade union members of the staff. The strike has been made official by the NUJ. And yesterday the National Graphical Association was drawn into the dispute when UPI dis- missed NGA members who were 'blacking' copy, cables and pic- tures in the office. UPI's London office is hit by a total strike by the 20-strong chapel, who are opposing the and work victimizations new schedules for a 45-hour week.

Trouble began at the office six almost weeks when ago American members of the staff were recruited to the NUJ so their interests could be projected while they worked on contract in this country. The management immediately retaliated dismissing by father of the chapel, Mark Gran- tham. After a threat of union in his defence, the man- action agement relented and Grantham was reinstated. In the ensuing weeks UPI withdrew the harsh work sche- dules which apply to the Ameri- can members of staff, only to reimpose them suddenly on Mon- day of this week. 18 Press, Friday August 25, 1972 PAGE 3

SCARS

MISBRI

TRADE

UNIONIST

SMO!

NEWC

On Wednesday, however, T&GWU road transport group secretary Bill Packer came to the factory when none of the men there was going to be a knew meeting. Then after meeting Brockel- hurst management he told the that they would not re- men employ them, and advised them to get new jobs. The drivers refused to accept this and called for an official stoppage. Packer refused on the grounds that he could not prove a case of victimization. The driv- ers then met and decided to call a token stoppage until the three outside the gate had been rein- stated. On Thursday Packer told the men that he had put the case to the union executive and asked them to return to work. They refused. It was next proposed that the three should be taken back for six months without their union credentials, providing the three agreed. As we went to press yes- terday negotiations still were going on to see if these terms would be accepted by manage- ment. When they arrived at work the Americans were given an ulti- matum of either accepting the 45- hour week or reporting to the New York office on September 4.

The NUJ stepped into the dispute by calling a permanent mandatory chapel meeting at UPI which effectively pulled the edi- torial staff out on strike.

At a meeting of the Central London branch a series of mea- sures was agreed to step up the fight against UPI. They include: • Stopping rerouting Press Association cables to UPI's Brussels office. • Checking with the Depart- ment of Employment on the being work permits of scabs brought from overseas to work in the London office. • Approaching scabs with NUJ membership cards and asking them to join the strike. • Getting the five-man UPI at the Munich Olympics to the strike (they have already done so).

• Contacting the Post Office prevent UPI from unions to using cable and wireless services to circumvent the strike and the blacking of their copy. Now that

NGA

men have been dismissed the strike could develop into showdown not only with the NUJ but with the Printing and Kindred Trades Federation, organization of the all the main unions involved in newspaper production.

MINERS IN THE WAR

*Right to Strike is Part of the Freedom we Fight for" PAGE 4 Workers Press, Friday August 2 Part two by Jack Gale The miners' union lead. ers were beside them- selves with rage at the outburst of strikes which greeted the insulting Por ter Award in 1944. York- shire President Joe Hall screamed about 'the rule of the rabble. Will Lawther, right-wing leader of the Durham Miners' Association, the denounced strikes as violations of pledges, consciously or otherwise sabot- aging the war effort and assist- ing the enemy' Communist Party members joined with the right wing.

The 'Western Mail' published a denunciation of the strike signed by the South Wales Miners' Federation leaders (including Arthur Horner) with together every South Wales mining MP. Everywhere the line was the same-the strikers were sab- oteurs stabbing the soldiers in the back. But many of the strikers had sons and brothers in the and they consciously army fought to win reasonable con- ditions for these soldiers to come back to. For the employers the 'fight for freedom' included their freedom to intensify the exploi- tation of the working class and to control the unions in readi- ness for the post-war period.

But at the height of the Award strikes, Porter the Trotskyist 'Socialist paper Appeal' was able to reproduce a report from a soldiers' paper which defended the right to strike in wartime. The paper — 'Eighth Army News' — carried the headline 'Right to Strike is Part of the Freedom We Fight For. Soldiers had debated and rejected overwhelmingly the suggestion that strikes should be banned for the duration of the war. Thanks to the combined efforts of the right wing and the Communist Party, however, —plus a vicious witch-hunt in the millionaire press - the Porter Award strikes were broken in April, 1944. This was to have important conse- quences. The coal-owners' success in imposing the Porter Award with filled them arrogance. Indeed in Yorkshire in Novem- ber 1944 there had to be a strike to get them to pay the Porter minimum of £5 for a five-day week But the owners had been anxious to inflict a defeat on in preparation for the men their main strategy--to keep mines in private hands the after the war. The mining industry was in a sorry state. The owners were concerned only with grabbing as much profit as possible. No modernization had been carried out and in 1944 output per man shift was less than it had been in 1914! And conditions were deplor- able. In 1939, for example, there were 91 certified deaths and 355 certified disablements due to silicosis in the South Wales coalfield alone. In 1943 there were 82 deaths and 1,042 certified disablements.

What concerned the owners more, however, was that most of the pre-war markets had been lost and would be diffi- cult to recover. The Porter Award had shown that right wing and Communist Party collaboration might inflict defeats on the miners for a while. But how were they to modernize the pits to maintain profits with little expense?

1 August 25, 1972

TUBY CREATE THE 1

SION FROM THE MAIN PU

A SOSPICIOUS OF OUR SI

MORIOUS PROPAGANDA

One of the most tellin of strikes in war Lim • FAILED to gala effici to carry his proposal at be declared illegal. Above all, how could they hold off increasing working-class demands to take industry, par- ticularly coal-mining, out of the hands of the private own- ers? To answer these questions, the owners produced the Foot Plan in January 1945. This was the result of an 'independ- ent inquiry' into the industry produced by Robert Foot. He was paid £12,500 a year by the coal owners just to make sure remained independent. he Amazingly Foot enough, concluded that 'the best people the mines are the coal to run owners' But the industry could only be put on its feet if planned nationally. So Foot suggested a central board for reorganiza- • tion which to consist was entirely of representatives of the owners. This board would carry out compulsory amalgamations to drive out the smaller owners and monopolies create area which, under conditions of pit closures and consequent unem- ployment, would be able to hold down wages and force through rationalization at the miners' expense. Or-as Foot put it-'The miners must adopt a liberal approach to cost- reducing processes.' Edwards, a Even so, Ebby miners' union national execu- tive member welcomed the document as 'the greatest document ever produced by a

* STRIKES ARE HARMFUL TO OUR NATIONAL INTERESTS

TEBY CREATE THE INPRESSION OF NATIONAL DISUNITY AND DIFER

SION FROM THE MAIN PURFOSE OF OUR WAR EFFORT, THEY MAKE, RUS

SUA SOSPICIOUS OF OUR SINCERITY AND CIVE GERMANY MATERIAL FOR

INJURIOUS PROPAGANDA IN OCCUPIED AND NEUTRAL COUNTRIESS

the most telling argument in a sons entent of strikes in war time, this satement of Sit. J.

Hon TAILED to gala sufficient Burkth Army Signals!

erikes war time al tha representative of the industry effort to an improve con- ditions'! That the coal owners could seriously think in terms of continued private ownership and that their scheme could be welcomed by a national leader of the tar- • nones fetched it might appear. During the war there had been the closest collaboratior betwen the Labour Tory and Nothing had leaders. been done about gross profiteering Neither had any Labour Party the slightest leader made objection to the fact that hardships of the war fell only the asses: the class and middle classes. exclusive London clubs maintained their service to their clientele koen ittle and cared less ass (Indeed, ruling class other people's sufferings. Harold Macmillan recounts Winston Churchill how was once shown a worker's rations for a whole week. 'Why, that's not a bad meal', commented war leader.) luxury and political collaboration had been the order of the day in war- time, why shouldn't it continue in peacetime? The ruling class saw no threat to its property. Why, wasn't the Com- even munist Party saying that things should go on as before? Indeed Just as the Stalinists was. in France were to enter a coali- tion government under de

INTERESTS ABROAD,

FOR

INAL DISUNITY AND DIPER-

EFFORT, THEY MAKE RUS

GERMANY MATERIAL FOR

CUTRAL COUNTRIES.

mersare and trel the poelleg could be restored wber - Rus 1 woult warA 1020 cader p Gaulle, the Italian Stalinists behaved similarly in Italy and Stalin was declaring at Pots- dam his support for Chiang Kai-shek, so the British CP opposed the call for a Labour government. On February 21, 1945, the Communist Party Executive Committee issued a special statenent: 'It [the Crimea Conference ory of the Big Powers] represents a victory for the anti-fascist forces over the pro-fascist which «have hitherto policies dominated the Tory Party' change was revealed This in the leading role adopted by Churchill and Eden, the as present dominating per- two sonalities in the Tory Party in the whole course of the war against fascism.? No less a figure than Win- ston Churchill was now being put forward as a friend of the working class. The Communist Party's slogan in 1945 was not for a Labour government, but for a 'Labour and Progressive' government. The executive statement made it clear that the CP leaders were prepared to fight their own members over this: "The whole nation must unite... we shall fight against all remnants of sectarianism both in our own Party and in the labour movement.' ( To want to fight the Tories was now 'sectarianism'! In the unions, the Commun-

THE

Welsh coal strike has roised in many minds the ques- tion, "Should strikes be allowed in war-time 94 Here is the snywer of Eighth Army men who have just debated the subject.

•LATFOR

8 R Top: headline which appeared In 'Eighth Army News' in 1944 defend- Ing the right to strike in wartime.

Left: Shinwell, Labour Minister for Fuel and Power at the first Exhibi- tion of the National Coal Board after nationalization of the mines In 1947. Above: Clement Attlee.

ist Party's leading figures faith- fully pushed this line of colla- boration with the Tories. Arthur Horner told the 1945 conference of the South Wales Miners' Federation: 'I want to see a national government of a new type, reflecting a growth of Labour's strength and unity, able with confidence to invite the repre- sentatives of other parties to assist.' Such a government, of could not possibly course, • have nationalized the mines or anything else-its 'progressive' allies wouldn't have stood for it. It was the working class which went beyond the limits to which the reformists and Stalinists wanted to hold it.

Labour was elected with an overwhelming majority. Work- ers demanded an end to the old days. Central to that was the demand to take the pro- perty away from the capitalist class. The Labour government was reluctant to nationalize the mining industry. It could have done it in two days. Instead Prime Minister Clement Attlee hung on for more than two mines were But the years. nationalized in 1947 - albeit with crippling interest pay- the compensation ments on lavished the payments on owners who had taken all and given nothing. But the owners were gone. From then on, a new struggle faced the miners.

BY JOHN SPENCER

industry is Japanese now under intense pres- sure to cut back its exports and open its markets to foreign goods.

A procession of American envoys demanding trade con- cessions has been passing through Tokyo over the past few weeks to prepare the ground for the US-Japan summit on August 31 in Hono- lulu. At the weekend President Nixon's close adviser Henry Kissinger held three hours of talks with new premier Kakuei Tanaka and extracted a promise of concrete action from the Japanese leader.

Kissinger's visit followed less successful round of talks between Tanaka and William Eberle, Nixon's trade adviser, last month. Either as a result of behind-the-scenes pressure or because they recognize the writing on the wall, the Japanese now seem more pliable. Tanaka told Kissinger he would map out a detailed plan to reduce the country's massive favourable balance of payments with the United States in time for his meeting with Nixon.

The United States claims the trade balance in fiscal year 1972 will reach $3,600m Japan's favour and is pressing for so-called 'emergency im- ports' to reduce this below $3,000m. Tanaka is reported to have told Kissinger he wishes to settle the problem before the Honolulu summit. If he does not settle to the Americans' satisfaction they likely to demand a new are revaluation of the yen at the forthcoming meeting of the International Monetary Fund in Washington on September This prospect has already created panic on the Tokyo stock exchange-Japanese in- dustry was badly hit by the 16.8 cent revaluation per forced on it at the December Group of Ten meeting last year. With a heavy preponderance of export industry Japanese capitalism can ill afford to be from its overseas cut off markets.

LOTS OF

ARGUMENTS

But the revaluation of the yen and a series of American quota restrictions have forced Japanese industrialists into a desperate search for new markets, disrupting trading relations right round the world. A government spokesman said after the Tanaka- Kissinger meeting that 'there were lots of arguments and exchanges of opinion'-under- standable since Japan is being pressed to sacrifice its own economic interests for those of US big business. The measures proposed by the United States include in- creased Japanese imports of uranium (which Japan cannot use for at least five years) air- craft (which are not really required by Japanese airlines) and electronic goods (already produced in massive surplus by Japanese firms). The US is also proposing that American firms be given special dispensation to set up in Japan for the distribution of certain categories of products.

None of these demands can be met except at the expense of domestic manufacturers.

The blunt threat which is forcing Japan to comply with these requests was spelled out at the Republican Party con- vention when it opened in Miami Beach on Sunday. Economic spokesman Pierre a press confer- Rinfret told ence that unless other coun- tries soon opened up their markets to US goods, America will revert to protectionist measures. Rinfret said the US wanted 'free trade, but we also believe in fair trade and the cards have been stacked against us.

We have opened our market to the rest of the world and we have been greeted more and more by walls. 'We are close to the point where either these walls must be destroyed or the United States action, must take positive Asked what that action might be, he declined to pre- dict, but he said it could come in 'about 200 different ways in all fields — trade, monetary and economic' Rinfret added that the sub- ject could become a prime topic at the forthcoming IMF meeting. The threat to Japan (and to the European Common Market) is obvious. The American market is vital to both Japan and the EEC, and Rinfret's threat to close it completely with high tarifis would precipitate instant and devastating recession for these economies.

The EEC countries are themselves already agitating about the influx of Japanese goods following the Nixon measures of August 15 last year. Top: Japan's new premier, Kakuel T Nixon. Tanaka has been forced to map exports to USA. Left: Japanese television German electronics manu- facturers have been lobbying for the imposition of quotas on Japanese exports which have risen up to 300 per cent over the last year in certain categories of goods. Holland and Belgium have also threatened to impose import restrictions unless Japanese exports of certain lines are reduced. A spokesman for the Dutch Economics Ministry said at the weekend the two Benelux countries had once more sent a note to the Japanese govern- ment expressing their concern over the sharply rising imports of Japanese radio and TV sets.

recorders, calculating tape machines and electronic micro- scopes. The spokesman recalled that a similar note on this subject last April had been followed by talks between Belgian, Dutch and Japanese industrial delegations in Tokyo.

However, these talks had not led to agreement on quantita- tive restrictions of the Japanese imports. Japanese measures to adapt the prices of their products to those of the Benelux countries had not had the desired effect, the spokesman said. The Dutch and Belgian gov- Workers Press, Kakuel Tanaka. Above: Kissinger with d to map out a plan reducing Japanese • television works ernments had now pointed in their note that the out 'serious situation' for the rele- vant Benelux industries still existed. They expressed the hope that the Japanese authorities would make every effort to 'normalize' the situation, he added.

VICIOUS

TRADE WAR

Otherwise the Benelux countries would be forced to impose temporary restrictions on the Japanese products, the spokesman said. There is no way out of the vicious spiral of trade war now opening up for the major capitalist nations. Japan can only hope to its markets at other restore nations' expense and they in turn must drive to force Japan out of its traditional spheres of influence. The monetary crisis created by the ending of the dollar's convertibility with gold already affecting the total volume of world trade and the situation is now moving inexorably to the tariff blocs and trading conflicts which were characteristic of the 1930s. ora Press, Friday August 25, 1972 PAGE 5 In a major speech on July 28, the Peruvian dictator, Velasco, made a vicious attack on the Peruvian Com- munist Party which prepares the way for state repression of Party members. The response of the leader- ship of the Peruvian Stalinists is to say that the attack was the result of 'misunderstand- ings' and to continue collabo- rating with the corporatist measures now being introduced by Velasco. Velasco declared that the interests of his government are "irreconcilable' with the Com- munists and accused them of being 'basically conservative' He attacked the Soviet Union with the object of demonstrating that the dicta- torship of the proletariat 'inevitably becomes repressive and totalitarian'. The central committee of the Stalinist party has replied to this attack by claiming that the 'incompatibility' between them and the government is only the result of a 'monetary lack of understanding' which can be explained by certain 'conceptual ambiguities in the president's message', , all of which will be overcome 'by the dynamic of the process' The party certainly strives not to upset Velasco. Recently general secretary Jorge del Prado visited the dictator in his palace. This was the first time that an official • delegation of the Peruvian CP had ever publicly greeted the President Velasco of Peru: launching vicious attacks on the Communist Party. head of government. The 'dynamic of the process' is also helped by the anti- strike position of the CP.

Their paper 'Unidad' argues that the Peruvian economy has improved because of the decrease in the number of strikes in the mining industry.

"The drop in the number of stoppages in the mines, which is a tendency that has been revealed from last year is not a consequence of the "domes- tication" of the miners' move- ment, as some ultra-lefts main- tain, but is a pointer towards the higher degree of revolu- tionary consciousness amongst miners' leaders and the rank and file; and it is also a sign of greater understanding of the problems of workers on the part of the authorities.'

In fact if there has been a decrease in the number of strikes in the Peruvian mines this is because the dictator- ship massacred the Cobriza year, murdering miners last more than 15 workers. Their leaders it kept in that The more represses the working class and its organizations, including the CP, the more the Peruvian CP attempts to show its loyalty to the regime.

PAGE 6 Workers Press, Friday August 25, 1972 Bring down the Tory gov- be negotiated. The final solu- tion of it ernment and return all. That's the only answer— Labour to power pledged but not in the way the mines to nationalize the docks and railways have been natio- nalized. under workers' control. I've never been happy at the This was the widely-held shop stewards' national com- view from a cross-section mittee. London never seemed to be of Hull dockers who For in control of their port.

spoke to Workers Press example when we had lobbies there were very few there from the return work to as London, their even in home began this week. town. my opinion the London Anger Jack Jones and In at grave disquiet at the failure of stewards didn't want an un- Communist Party member official strike . We really do need a national Bernie Steer to lead a fight to out the London docks bring action, but now the northern have what's was universal. men seen hap- Hull gained nothing from the pened in London we won't let Jones-Aldington recommenda- them run the show so much. tions and stands to lose hun- We asked for a national dreds of jobs in the near future.

shop stewards' meeting last As one docker said: 'It will weekend but we got no re- blow again in Hull.' sponse. If London had tried to out, we would Transport and General get some men have got 300-600 out here.

Workers' Union steward Tony Fee told us: The attacks the ores on Jones-Aldington Neap Iouse Wharf pickets gives nothing in Hull. We'll still didn't affect the men here the mild ones have battle such even became to as Bar. determined that wharf chard's (a firm of timber im- that should be shut down. porters who have bought wharf on the river Hull, a tri- But there seemed to be two of the Humber, and sets of police. butary The ones linking arms against have been given permission by us, you could joke and talk to.

tọ an industrial Tar one But there were special snatch employ non-registered labour).

squads who came from i behind We've been fighting contain- dif- them. They were totally ers and non-registered ports we haven't got ferent. for years and We'll have to black the one job out of this report. All people from Neap House and we have is a promise of a sur- then we'll what see vey. The leadership should October 31. have happens on been much more forceful, it was wrong to call it off when Another T&GWU steward, behind they had all the men Terry Geraghty, thought the them. stewards under-estimated A number of delegates were had concerned only with their own Jack Jones as a political ani- mal. situation. When the docks delegate They went there solely to conference voted for a strike end the strike. Even if Jones that first time, he said, the had recommended continuing, Hull dockers who were out- they would have been against Transport House side were it. overjoyed. Jones has carried out the of But they had been too naïve these trade normal Told round to see the political move behind leaders-sit union table, bit, then try to the scenes. He went on: get There's nothing for Hull in sell it to the men. Some places got a few con- Jones-Aldington. like Teesside and The employers are supposed cessions, to have everyone off the tem- Manchester. But for the docks industry as a whole there was porarily unattached register by September 4, but the employ- nothing. We're still losing jobs in Hull.

will down stringent ers lay conditions before they'll accept There are 2,600 men on the docks. 1967 there that. were 4,000. There are 150 men in They'll want strict time-keep- the reserve pool now and each ing and full mobility, which causes redundancy anyway.

employer is carrying a surplus I would say there I feel that the decision to in addition. are about 500 men surplus in go back in Hull is a vote of no confidence in the stewards this port. The Ben shipping line is go- and that the outlook for the ing to Southampton because of next two or three months could be bleak. I'm con- the containers, and that's 100 very by October 31 Some weeks they vinced that jobs gone. Jones able to will have been employ 200-300. The British Transport Docks add nothing, but they've bought Hull should time. oly handle short-sea cargoes that By 1975 there'll be 1,700 That means we'll be under- redundancies Humberside, 1,500 of them in Hull, accord- cut by the unregistered whar- Nobody National can live along- ing to the Ports

TAS.

If the declared aim Council. side them. I've always had reservations is to stop us handling ocean- going traffic, we won't stand a about the of the power chance. national port shop stewards Our position is going to get committee. London never much worse. seemed to have the power they A settlement with the em- said they had. We were let down before. ployers containers can't on capitalism. when Tack Dash was the leader to in London. Now we've been let Any working man who down again. can see that there's no D..+ under capitalism. I think nationalization: be reinstated in the ste programme, late. another bureaucracy like got in the mines and rai and like we've got here the British Board. vote. At the moment the n "Liverpool the docks have accepte voted against the policy of the nine- point and turned their backs programme shop stewards. But me going to be thrown out of the country. what you all over the to Now, of course, ernment. couldn't will try to get tighter get over the shop stewards. Tones government. was ington as if they stuck best of mates. couldn't sit next to a make it wing Tory without a rov to clear to disagreement no for no more arise there. we If nothing's done abou we'll have of registered ports by Octob many out we'll have been proved If Tones "No more" thing-which he's up against it. For start. a completely out of busin nothing is done about working man who thinks the non-Scheme ports. The shop stewards would e that there's no future re- group, Terry Geraghty thought ink nationalization should but London down going as nstated in the stewards' easily as it did would make mme, but I don't want it hard. er bureaucracy like you've the mines and railways; Lal Rawson, member of a got here with Humberside's No. 4 branch of Transport Docks the National Amalgamated Stevedores and Dockers, the the moment the men in Blue" union, pened the mahe ocks have accepted the blame for ending of the union officials strike on Jack Jones. The deci- urned their backs on the sion to call it off was a stab But men are in the back', he said. to be thrown out of work (In the first week of the the union strike we got five men out of gaol, but for the last three to get tighter control weeks we've got nothing. sitting with Ald- Jones-Aldington gives us as if they we were the nothing. They promised a sta- and tement on unregistered ports, but there's no statement yet.

It sit next to a right- Tory without a row. But As far as I can see they'll seemed to be building unregistered ports as fast as they can. othing's done about non- When Devlin Phase II came red ports by October 31, in, every man was going to be have been proved right. regular. Bro Warhurst T&GWU official) told us at a les can't produce any- he can't-then City Hall meeting that every man who worked one 7 o'clock a start, Goole will be would be on £2,300 per year.

go ask the etely out of business if Tell him now to the temporarily men on un- attached register if they're on £2,300 per year. Nationalization could be good thing, but not like it's been done on the railways and in the mines; there has got to be workers' control. The National Ports Council the whole of says it can run Goole, Humberside (Hull, Grimsby and Immingham) on by 1975. That's a 1,700 men Jobs are being real threat. threatened all the time. Cargo Operations have moved out of Hull rather than retain men on their list at £34 per week. Hull and Humber, and Wil- son's-the two main firms- both say they have too many men now. John Good's (for- warding agents) returned 53 men to the unattached pool last week. So that's 50 of Jones' wonder- ful 200 jobs gone already.

There are no guarantees of jobs in Hull. It's all the other wathe only way was to have But Jones a national strike. of men on setiring to get rid on severance. But it'll blow up again in Hull. Jones/ Aldington deal (lar loll) gh The ton on July 27 and the announcing of a lubliant reception from dockers (left cel when delegates accepted revamped pro (lett) with Jones and gravely disquieten Steer and Turner (abor Party member: dockers picketing at the Neap House Wh The deputy chairman Hull's stewards' port mittee, Roy Garmston, told us he was 'very disappointed' by the end of the strike. T&GWU officials were never enthusiastic, either at national or local level, he said. But the stewards should have carried on the fight. He continued: The first docks delegate vote in favour of the strike was produced by lobbying and a sustained campaign. I expected them to vote against in the first place. But I never expected full support from the Union even after that vote-not after the of the Pearson experience Report in 1970. The only union which has used the strike weapon pro- perly has been the National Union of Mineworkers. Jones-Aldington guarantees us no jobs in Hull. In fact the non-registered ports have been encouraged by the government.

We're supposed to get the result of the survey by Oct- ober 31. I think if they get their way there'll be no such thing as a n deal (far lell) gtres dockers nothing.

Its rejec. the announcing of a national dock strike brought a om dockers (left centre). By third week of August epted revamped proposals, dockers were angered d gravely disquietened by the failure of Communist er and Turner (above) to lead a fight. Top: Hull the Neap House Wharf dock worker within the Scheme or anywhere else either here in the country. They'll want it down to com- 800-1,000 men in Hull. And whatever deal the employers have offered, they've always made inroads into it. They've said they'll take men off the unattached register by September 4, but we've got on unemploy- no guarantees ment or on unregistered ports.

We've already got nearly 200 men on the temporary un- attached register in Hull. All the employers want to reduce the number of men they've got.

Wilson's and the BTBD have applications in to return 300 men each back to the reserve pool. We face a lot of redundan- cies in the near future. We could have got more. But the leaders weren't pre- pro- pared to fight it all the way.

They don't come out of it with any credit. Every industry is going to be under attack. At Neap House wharf it wasn't lorry drivers we were fighting and it wasn't the wharf workers— it was the state. They were trying men in the Workers Prose, Friday courts in the middle of an atmosphere stirred up by the press and television. Before I was a shop steward, - thought the Communist Party members were always those who bothered. But I've found they're very ineffective.

They are very moderate. But between and now October 31 we've got to keep the national shop stewards' committee going. If the majority of dockers had thought like we think now on job security and inroads into the Scheme when Devlin Phase I came in, we'd have fought it harder. It's like history repeating itself. We were split Devlin Phase I. London has been a let-down We should put more to me. faith in Liverpool now. It's political. But you have Labour people voting with the Tories on the Common Market, and the Labour Party didn't nationalize the ports when they were in. safeguard We can't jobs under a Tory government; to we would have had win, to carry the strike on to bring down the goverment. First the workers, power then the miners and now the dockers could have brought the government down. We could have kept the strike going 12 weeks, but we would have needed the sup- port of the miners and other workers. I'm a bit downhearted. We could ill afford to lose. We've got no guarantees. There'll be a cut-back in labour because the initiative is with them at the moment. You people are extremists.

But the only way in the end is nationalization of the whole complex of the industry-in- cluding road transport-under workers' control. The only way to achieve this is through the construction of a revo- lutionary movement. Dockers had gained nothing Ludders, by the strike, Len chairman of the Humberside area NAS&D told us, but it had exposed the weakness of the union leaders. He went on: There's been • no material gain in Hull, nothing on containers or on wharves. The will come to nothing inquiry because it won't be in the government's interest to tie the unregistered ports to the regis- tered ones. The four-point policy of the national shop stewards' com- right but it was mittee was not backed up by any trade 'Blue' union, including the (NAS&D). The unions are not the wishes carrying out their members. The future of conventional will be disastrous cargoes unless the privileged position of the employers in the non- registered ports is ended.

This has been a political struggle from the off. They've set up a political court and the struggle against the pickets was carried out by government department. They prevented peaceful picketing from being carried out. The four points can't be gained under a Tory govern- ment because in their opinion it wouldn't be in the 'national' interest. As it turns out we've no alternative but to fight within the unions. Nationalization must take adjacent facilities, over the such as haulage. I'd like to see Labour government carry out a type of nationalization in which the workers had con- trol over the full transport industry. Another 'Blue' union mem- ber, George Richmond of the NAS&D No. 4 branch, remem- bered that at the time of his release from the navy in 1945, dockers were strike for on 25s a day. He told us: I started work on the docks just before Christmas Pross, Friday August 25, 972 GE 1945. My wage was 16s per day it was some time and before we received the nego- tiated 19s. Our wages and piecework were based on this 19s datum and it took us ten years of negotiation to achieve the 25s.

On May 5, 1920, dockers received 16s. But trade got worse and after a four-week strike in 1922 the unofficial docker wás on 1ls per day.

Under the national govern- ment in 1932 he was getting 11s 2d. On January 6, 1936, it went to 12s. On September 20, 1937 it was 13s. On November 13, 1939, 14s. And July 8, 1940, 15s. During the post-war years, when Labour was swept in on the working-class vote — in- cluding the ex-servicemen's~ we saw the infamous Order 1305' retained. When the groundnuts scheme was on, Hull dockers had to fill the groundnuts at a piecework that rate was obnoxious until, after a num- ber of years, we were working piecework for basic pay. At this time we were, using the well-known hand-scuttling method for grain. We also saw, during those the zinc-oxide strike, strike and the Canadian seamen's strike?.

During these early post-war years I was an idealist. I really believed that if we worked harder we could put back a socialist government to solve all our problems. But we were really exploited then, as the men at the unregistered wharves and depots are exploited today. In 1946, during the period of office of the National Dock Labour Corporation, 600 of us in Hull were sacked in one week. 'Redundancy' was a word that hadn't been coined then, but the effect just the was same. My mate was a cockney and a number of London dockers came to work in Hull while we were on the dole- his brother among them. pub In the London one dockers had a collection for an out-of-work Hull docker. A nice gesture but embarrassing for the Hull dockers. When the 1947 Dock Labour Scheme came into operation, the employers asked for a number of these Hull dockers back on the main register. I picked up my dockers' book as a financial member of the

T&GWU.

After some years of frustra- tion, the Welsh dockers refused to do hand-scuttling.

This led to the filling strike and 3,500 men joining the 'Blue' I made my choice and have a 'Blue' been member now for 18 years. I will remain a member until I am once again kicked off the dock or, at best, go off vith a pension that bents my ears of service and some ol the profits I have made for the stevedores and shipowners.

I will not be bought off with a couple of years' wages.

The benefits of moderniza- tion should be passed on to the docker and the consumer —not just into the employer's pocket. Vessels are now passing the port of Hull to the unregis- tered ports where they employ four-man gangs. They pay the workers between 40p and 50p per hour, and they are hired by the hour. In the major ports firms will either reduce the labour force or leave the port, like John Good's here and Smith Coggins in Liverpool. After all these struggles we still have not got any security. " Compulsory arbitration. Used in an attempt to jail seven dockers' leaders in 1951.

• See the current series on the ristory of the dockers' organ- izations, where these strikes are discussed. with the 13- As compared man gangs in Hull.

From the Dockers' Tanner Strike 1889 to Devlin 1967. An historical series on the organization of the dockers by Jack Gale

WHEN DOCKERS CHANGED

PAGE 8 Workers Press, Friday August From the Dockers' Tanne

PART 8

Between 1945 and 1951 there were more disputes on the docks than in any other industry. The lead- ership was invariably unofficial. Labour government, The therefore, at first sought to encourage the leadership of the Transport and General Workers' Union to win back the leadership of the ranks by projecting a more favourable "image' The Leggett Committee of Inquiry into unofficial docks' disputes, set up in 1950, declared: 'The unofficial movement is first and foremost a challenge to the unions and an attempt to undermine the confidence of the rank and file in the con- stitutional methods of union negotiation. The unions, there- fore, must play the crucial part in combating unofficial activi- ties.' Reformists everywhere wel- comed the report and urged Arthur Deakin, general secre- tary of the T&GWU, to head its wise counsels. 'Tribune' For instance 'the deplored what it called entirely unjustified distrust— often active dislike — of T&GWU officials among the men.' 'Mr Deakin, complained 'Tribune' with an air of dis- belief, 'is regarded by many "bosses man"!' dockers as a fighting paper then This advocated contact closer between Deakin and the dock- ers 'to beat the disrupters' It urged this leading trade union right-winger, who, inci- dentally, was implacable in his to "Tribune' and the hostility 'Tribune' within the group Labour Party, to take the trouble to convince dockers that strikes were unnecessary.

Times had changed, accord- ing to 'Tribune' and dockers should their forget now 'groundless fears of redun- dancy'. And Deakin was to be congratulated for his 'courage and loyalty in his conscientious support of wage restraint'.

Unfortunately for the gentle- "Tribune', neither men Deakin nor the dockers fol- lowed their well-meant advice.

In February 1951, the national docks delegate confer- ence of the T&GWU accepted a negotiated wage increase of 1ls per week on the minimum wage and increases of 7} to 10 per cent on piece-rates. The day this was announced, 3,000 dockers stopped work at Birkenhead and Liverpool. One speaker told a mass meeting: 'Only Deakin is satisfied.'

By February 5, 8,000 men were out on Merseyside, Man- chester was at a standstill and the Royal group in London was also out. The strike was led by the unofficial portworkers' defence committe under the chairman- ship of Albert Timothy. The strike, never became national.

Only a few hundred came out and there was a in London drift back in Manchester.

Then T&GWU secretary Deakin and Tom Yates, right- wing general secretary of the National Union of Seamen, produced leaflets which they claimed were circulating on the docks and on ships, and which they said carried instruc- tions on organizing strikes.

Whether connected with this or not, on February 10, seven were arrested and dockers charged with inciting an illegal strike. ay August 25, 1972 •Tanner Strike 1889 to Devlin 1967.

Xini The seven were: Joe Harri- son and Bill Johnson from Birkenhead; Bob Crosbie from Liverpool; and Ted Dickens, Joe Cowley, Albert Timothy and Harry Constable from London. The charge was 'conspiring with person or persons unknown to incite the dock to take part in workers strikes.' This was contrary to Article Four of the Conditions Employment and National Arbitration Order - better known as Regulation 1305.

This regulation was a war- time measure introduced 1940 which made arbitration compulsory. Although Labour had been in power since 1945, they had never abolished it.

But not only was the Lab- our Government in favour of retaining this anti-strike regu- lation-so were the right-wing leaders of the trade unions.

At the 1950 Trades Union Congress a resolution calling for the abolition of Regulation 1305—moved by the NUR was defeated by 5,000 votes to 2,500. in 1967. An historical series on the The Minister of Labour at that time was Aneurin Bevan.

As one dockers' leader, R. Spalding, told a mass meet- ing: |'The man who once called the employers vermin is now lining up with them against When the seven men appeared in Bow Street Magis- trates' I Court, 6,700 London dockers stopped work and when the seven were remanded on bail they were carried shoulder high through the streets. On February 12, when the seven appeared in court again over 7,000 dockers stopped work in London, over 9,000 in Liverpool and over 2,000 in Manchester. When the cases were adjourned for a week, London and Manchester returned to work, but the Merseyside dock- ers stayed out for the Dockers' Charter, which included a claim for a minimum wage of 25s per day. On February 20 the case was adjourned again. This time 10,000 dockers were out in on the organization of the dockers I Above: Bill Johnson, 'Nudger' Harrison an seven dockers' leaders tried on conspira from the courtroom after their acquittal.

London, with supporting strikes in the northern ports.

On February 27 the case was adjourned for two weeks and again there were massive stoppages. On Friday, March 16, the seven were committed for trial at the Old Bailey and once more the docks stopped. On each occasion when they appeared before the magis- trates the seven made fighting speeches, while dockers crammed the court and blocked the streets outside.

On Tuesday, April 3, 1951, the seven dockers appeared at the Central Criminal Court in the Old Bailey before Lord Chief Justice Goddard. The defending lawyer was Labour MP Sidney Silverman.

But the prosecution was con- ducted by the Attorney Gen- eral in the Labour governmen: - none other than Hartley Shawcross, MP for St Helens.

It is worth saying some- thing about the man who the Labour government put up to prosecute dockers whose whole ives were spent in the Labour movement. Soon to be known through- out dockland as 'Pretty Boy , this man was later Shawcross', to distinguish himself further by prosecuting striking African miners on behalf of the South African mineowners. When this raised a storm inside the Labour Party, his right-wing friends defended him by saying that a man's professional life and his poli- tical views were quite separate.

After all, he was only earning his money! Shawcross was never dis- ciplined inside the Labour Party for such anti-working class actions as this. He finally left the Labour Party of his own accord. He became a director of Shell,

EMI,

Rank-Hovis-McDougall, Caffyns Motors, Morgan et Cie International, Morgan et Cie, ockers by Jack Gale larrison and Harry Constable, three of the I conspiracy charges in 1951, are carried acquittal. Left: prosecutor Shawcross.

Times Newspapers, Hawker Siddeley, Birmingham Small Arms Company and the Euro- pean Enterprises Development Company. He was created a life peer by the grateful Tories in 1959.

But he didn't go down so well with the dockers! When the seven appeared in the dock at the Old Bailey not only did dockers from all over the country stop • work, but they were joined by hundreds of building workers, engineers and other trade unionists. Workers travelled by car, train coach from all over Britain to demonstrate out- side the court. At the end of the eight-day trial the seven were found not guilty on the charges relating to Regulation 1305. Although charges against them on other counts were not dismissed, Shawcross decided not to proceed any further and the men were released. The thousands of workers who thronged the streets out- side the courts were convinced that this was a victory not for British justice—but for the organized strength of the work- ing class. Celebrations held were throughout dockland, for-as one unofficial broadsheet pro- nounced: 'Shawcross stood astounded Then his head is bended low.

At last the judge, he turned and said I'll have to let them go?

In 1950 Minister of Labour Aneurin Bevan, after consulta- tions with representatives of the employers, had decided not to repeal Regulation 1305.

But it could not survive the.

1951 court case. After a decent interval it was removed from the Statute Book. The dockers had changed the law.

CONTINUED TOMORROW

New London, Connecti- cut, is one of the oldest cities the United Since the Ameri- States. can revolution, New Lon- don and the surrounding area has been a vital base for the US navy and an important centre of the shipbuilding industry. Today the home of the largest submarine base in the world, New London is the very heart of the naval power of American imperialism. The travel brochures issued by the local tourist informa- tion service always talk about the city and its 'great and glorious past' in American history. What they carefully omit is that New London is also a city with one of the highest and fastest-growing unemploy- ment rates in Connecticut.

Unemployment has ravaged the city so hard that many workers who work on the nuclear submarines live in terrible slums. Housing con- ditions have deteriorated with the decline in jobs. General Dynamics Corpora- tion's electric boat division has been the backbone of New London's industry for over a generation. It was always the main and most important employer. Four years ago, the company employed 15,000 workers. Today that figure has been cut to under half by massive sackings which are still con- tinuing. Lionel Williams, local official union, of the boilermakers' said of the situation: 'There is no work. "There is no work in the yard and none out of the yard either. Construction work is the worst in 15 years. 'There are no ships in the yard. There's been lay-offs over the last year or so.' Those remaining in the plant are forced to work under the most dangerous health con- ditions. The extensive elec- trical work in the industry has caused regular fatalities inside the plant. 'It is not just obvious types of accidents like people being killed every day. We lose most of our people by electrocution, by talls, crushing, burning.

'A submarine is like a maze of piping, cables, wires. And of course if you penetrate a piece of metal you Williams also pointed to the dangerous atmosphere the men worked in. If anyone inhaled beryllium they were certain to get beri- litis. Few people among the 8,000 in the metal trades live to collect their pensions. General Dynamics has never done a thing to improve con- ditions in the plant. While the government has poured mi- lions of dollars into the pro- duction of submarines for use by American imperialism, con- ditions have actually worsened The workers at General Dynamics are organized into a general Metal Trades Council Top: decaying housing where workers" Above: a nuclear submarine by the Gener in which all unions in the plant are organized. Many times in the past few years, the workers have struck against the deteriorating con- ditions in the plant, for higher wages and in defence of their unions. Four years ago, the manage- ment fired the president of the boilermakers' union. Within four hours, every single worker struck and closed the plant.

In working for the Us navy, the workers employed are literally by the government it- self. To prove the point the company is offering 5.2 per cent increases. This is exactly in line with the Nixon Pay Board's guide- line, fixed after the August 1971 decision to cut the dollar's links with gold and attack the standard of living of the American working class.

The unions are not having it.

Said Williams: 'We are asking for a cost-of-living escalator.

We really need a 20 per cent Nixon's taken increase.. away the responsibility of bargaining from the companies. •From now are opposing the federa, You govern- ment with the wage freeze in contracts? For years New London has been promised programmes to redevelop the city, to clean out the slums and restore full come of these 'promises' The slums have got worse, and drugs and prostitution are the increase. The entire on social fabric of the city is crumbling away. Now many workers in the city know it is the government whether Republican or Demo- cratic administrations, which is determined to let New Lon- don die. The American Can Company giant corporation with -a 127 factories in the United States and Canada-has announced the closure of nine plants. workers live near the submarine plant.

the General Dynamics dock, New London Another three will be sold as part of the effort to ration- alize production. Almost five thousand workers now face the sack as a result of these moves.

So while President Nixon a 'new economic talks of boom', the decision by Ameri- can Can exposes the reality behind his policies. The big American corpora- tions are being encouraged to ruthlessly streamline their pro- duction through methods speed-up and automation. American Can is not losing money. Profits are as big as ever as they expect the sack- ing of 4,800 workers and the rationalization of production to increase earnings by 30 per cent by 1975. • that are being plants The shut are old. The Jersey City plant was built in 1928 and the machinery in use is almost the same age. Of the 1,000 workers at the plant, only 150 at the most will be allowed to transfer to other plants. The San Francisco plant is over 60 years old and the closure of the factory and warehouse will mean the sack for 500 more workers. Workers now facing the sack at American Can also stand to lose most of their pension rights. This follows a Supreme Court ruling that a company is not responsible for the pension plan after it shuts down. One of the Jersey City work- ers told the 'Bulletin', paper of the Workers' League: 'Believe me, you're going to see a big change. More and more of these younger workers are go- ing to get hurt. 'They feel this more because they have got the bigger part of their life ahead of them. A Labour Party? Maybe not right but we can let things away, go only so far.' Workers League The are demanding the steelworkers' union, which represents the can workers, call a nationwide strike of all the company's workers around the demand for nationalization of American Can corporation and the con- struction of a Labour Party to implement these policies.

Workers Press, Friday August 25, 1972 PAGE 9 Yet another new and import- God is still a be power to theoretical breakthrough reckoned with, it seems, but for the Communist Party. we are not so certain now that At the climax of the national He is on the side of the dock strike, some hardy believers. Surrey Stalinists ('and others' man recently died after according to the 'Morning having a tattoo made on his Star') gathered 20 strong out- right arm. Death was caused side the American embassy by liver failure. It was later for vigil on the war discovered that the tattooist's Vietnam. previous patient had been One slogan directed at the hepatitis and carrier the chemical weapons used by the disease had been passed on.

US Vietnamese against the An inquiry has now been sounded a new note in the called for into the control 'peace'. for campaign regulations governing the It read-'leave rainmaking sterilization of tattooing

GOD'.

I'm sure the staff to machines. of the embassy were suitably tattoo the unfortunate The impressed with this appeal to client had had inked into his the TNOTE: Surrey skin? A crucifix.

FOOTNOTE:

is the home of the hard-line and ultra-Stalinist elements the In Party led by Sid French.

POVERTY

RISE

CITYOR NEW YORK

An investigation of consump- tion in 1971 has revealed the direct relationship between growing unemployment and poverty. 1971 marked the highest for 25 unemployment years, and this put a brake on the improvement of the basic living standards of the work- ing class. New York City police depart- For example, for the first ment has issued new rules gov- time since the early 1950s, erning the use of firearms by spending food actually on policemen following the shoot- declined. ing by an officer of a ten-year- Between 1960 and 1965 the old boy. spending average increase in The rules prohibit the fairly on food was 1.1 per cent each of firing common practice warning shots at fleeing fugi- was 1 per cent, and from patrol tives hring unemployment rockcted during cars, unless an officer is under 1970-1971 consumption of fire. food dropped by 0.3 per cent.

Also a board has been set The same is of other true up to interview all policemen basics like clothing and foot- who use their guns. The board consists, among wear. Spending in this category others, of a Puerto Rican legal 2.8 per was increasing by cent affairs deputy commissioner 1960-1965, in the period in and a black community affairs 1965-1970 it was 1.6 and last deputy as messe ioner. year it was down to 0.8. was these two minority The same is true of housing groups that protested strongly (2.8 per cent to 1.2 per ten-year-old cent) when Ricky and fuel and light (4.2 per cent Bodden shot dead on was to 1.6 per cent). Staten Island in a stolen car.

LEON TROTSKY:

Germany 1931/1932 Paperback £1.25- -cloth £1 87} Where Is Britain Going? Paperback 37}p Revolution Betrayed Paperback 62}p--cloth £1.05 Problems of the Chinese Revolution Paperback £1.12h—Cloth £1.87% Permanent Revolution : Results and Prospects Paperback 75p In Defence of Marxism Paperback 75p Lessons of October Paperback 60p Postage 10p per book, 3p per pamphlet. Order from :

NEW PARK PUBLICATIONS

186a Clapham High Street, London SW4 7UG.

PAGE 10 Workers Press, Friday August 25, 1972

BY OUR OWN REPORTER

SPECULATION is grow- ing in Southampton that Vosper Thornycroft is but anything could have done it,' he said. preparing more mass lay. 'When I first heard that 120 offs at its shipbuilding EPTU members were to be laid off I was all in favour of a sit- yards at Woolston. the lads in, but I don't think would accept it at the moment.

There is still deadlock "The mood is changing, how- between the management and ever. The other week there was almost 400 technical and holiday atmosphere about it. supervisory section members Now they are beginning to realize the Amalgamated situation could of Union how serious the be.' of Engineering Workers. One of the electricians laid off The TASS members are on is Ginger Pearce, president of the strike for a f5-a-week all-round

EPTU

recently amalgamated increase and the reinstatement of and Trades Council branch 19 fellow-unionists delegate. claim have been victimized.

He told Workers Press: With has company £14m of orders and a offered but has reinstatement, I'm expansion programme, post- refused to concede the £5 claim.

tive that the company's eyes are Another dispute in the yard, and labour set on new wages "Blue involving boilermakers who to replace the structure Book" which expires to be timed, has been agreement refused temporarily by next March. solved company put them back on agreement to 'They will be wanting to run full pay and to take the matter covered-in building berths new through procedure. though they are factories as On August 12, the first mass with productivity deals which will lay-off took place. include mobility of labour, harder The majority of those laid off conditions and, of working 120 shift-work. of electricians- consisted course, best-organized trade in the the 'The results of these deals we yard. - sackings and unem- all know Vosper's claim this lay-off is ployment. entirely due to the TASS strike, situation removed quality- 'The in the yard is which has Ministry control inspectors. On very dangerous at the moment.

of Defence contracts supervision "The company are in a position by these inspectors is mandatory.

where they can take on one sec- However, according to Mick has to tion at a time. lesson A Hodges, yard and learnt-unity is strength!

convenor be the Electrical of and member 'If we fight for unity between Plumbing Trades Union, the all sections then can take management have been trying to Vosper's defeat and confrontation for the provoke a work and redundancies. past two months. made myself clear been I've very It happens to have many times on what I think the triggered off by the draughtsmen Fill in the form below and send to NATIONAL

SECRETARY,

SOCIALIST

LEAGUE,

LABOUR

186A CLAPHAM HIGH ST, LONDON, SW4 7UG.

Name Address The daily paper that loads the fight against the Torles. {20.28 for 12 months (312 lasues) {10.14 for 6 months (156 Issues) £5.07 for 3 months (78 issues) If you want to take Workers Press twice a week the rates are: £1.56 for 3 months (24 issues) £6.24 for 12 months (96 issues) Fill in the form below NOW and send to: 186a Clapham High St., Circulation Dept., Workers Press, London, SW4 7UG. I would like to take out a subscription to Workers Press.

THURSDAY

MONDAY

Days required

TUESDAY

FRIDAY

(Please tick)

SATURDAY

WEDNESDAY

Or Full subscription (six days) for months. Name Address Amount enclosed 2 only answer to these threats can be. And that is nationalization of all the docks, the ship-build- ing and ship-repair industries under workers' control. Because we're fighting for this unless we're fighting for nothing.'

THIS SITE IS

ON STRKE FOR

GUARANTEED

OF ≤J0

Flying pickets at the Wimpey site strike escalates rapidly southern region with nearly involved, the 100 sites Wimpey site at the Vosper Thornycroft yards in South- ampton is becoming a key target for flying pickets.

About 20 Wimpey employees are working 12 hours a day, seven days a week on the site which consists of two covered building berths and a fitting-out quay. Despite attempts by union officials and pickets to close the site down only one of the work- ers has joined the strike. The lone striker is 30-year-old Keith Painter. 'When the pickets came to talk to us, that was it as far as I was concerned, he said. 'No hesitation, I was out. It doesn't worry me that I'm the

BY OUR OWN REPORTER

SIR Louis Le Bailly is the new director general of British Intelligence. Until recently the names of heads of intelligence units in Britain have been a dark secret.

Newspapers were advised in D.

notices issued with the authority of the Cabinet of the day not to But -the publish the names. names of these gentlemen were widely known that the SO hush-up became a farce. The ludicrous secrecy was finally exploded a couple of years ago when the East Germans pub- lished a thick booklet entitled 'Who's Who in the CIA' which was a complete list of Central Intélligence Agency agents throughout the world. Sir Louis (58) takes over at the end of next month from Air Marshal Sir Harold Maguire.

He served during World War BRITISH European Airways has warned that continuing inflation may force them to put up fares on all domestic air routes. BEA made a profit of £181,000 last year after receiving f8m from government to compensate for buying British aircraft instead of American, and paying nearly £llm in interest charges.

BEA said it was a satisfactory only one on strike here' The majority of the other workers have been brought down from London and are well paid by Wimpey. In order to work inside the shipyard, union membership is But according to compulsory. one of the men still working, apart from signing an application form he knows nothing about belonging to a union. wouldn't know • whether Wimpey have bought cards for us to get into the yard or not, he said. Last week about 30 Construc- Union mem- tional Engineering bers who are working for Con- sub-contractors the on agreed to strike new after appeals from building pickets. They returned to work promised after two days but further sympathy action if the Wimpey men could be brought out as well. Il as an engineer officer in HMS 'Hood', HMS 'Naiad' and HMS 'Duke of York'. He has served as head of British navy staff in Washington, and was UK national liaison representative to the Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic.

Returning to Britain in 1969 he became projects officer for the and National Defence College, was promoted to vice-admiral in April 1970. Sir Louis became Director of th Action Council calls THE SECOND full meeting of the Orpington and Sidcup Coun- cil of Action decided this week to call an anti-Tory public meet- ing and to hold a demonstration in the near future. Two slogans were suggested for the public meeting: Build Kick the Councils of Action, 'Defend our Tories out!' and result in a year when world scheduled air traffic growth was the second lowest recorded over the past 20 years and many air- lines recorded losses. The company's annual report says last year's profit was due in large measure to the substantial reorganization undertaken during 1971. The connection between the Vosper Thornycroft yard dispute building and the strike was stressed by Pete Hamlet, a young boilermaker. 'This site is vital to Vosper Thornycroft, he said. 'We must support the building workers and demand from the yard stewards that all non-union labour is cleared out of this yard. 'Our struggle and theirs depends on it.' THE BUILDING workers action committee in Skelmersdale, Lan- cashire, passed a unanimous reso- lution on Wednesday condemn- ing site deals and calling on union leaders to mobilize all workers in the industry in a national strike for £30 for a 35- hour week. A copy of the resolution has been sent to all major action committees in the North West region. Service Intelligence on Septem- ber 1, 1960. He is married with three daughters. Sir Harold Maguire has been director-general for four years.

He was a fighter pilot in World War II. and served in the Far East, where he was a Japanese prisoner-of-war. In the 1971 edition of 'Who's Who', Sir Louis' address is given as — Barclays Bank, 36 Curzon Street, Mayfair, Wl. Just near the office! calls meeting rights, destroy the Tories!'

It was decided to call a public meeting in the next tew weeks to involve all local factories, tenants' associations and political groups in the labour movement in the struggle to bring down the Tories and to bring in a Lab- our government pledged to social- ist policies.

BBC 1

ITV

9.45 Camberwick green. 10.00 11.35 Trade winds to Tahiti. 12.25 Robinson Crusoe. Women 10.25 Cana- 12.50 today. Freud on 1.15 dian journey. 10.50-10.55 Magic food. Bellbird. 1.30 Dan. roundabout. 12.55-1.25 Eu tyb a'u 1.40 Bush boy. 2.05 Castle haven.

tebyg. 1.30 Fingerbobs. 1.45-1.53 2.30 Magpie special. 3.00 House- News and weather. 2.00-3.55 Rac- 3.15 This week. 3.45 Delta. party. Goodwood. house. 4.15 Play 4.40 Happy 4.55 Land of Jackanory. school. 4.55 the giants. 5.50 London. Monkees 5.20 Ask Aspel. 5.44 6.00

TODAY.

Sir Prancelot. 6.30 ARNIE: 'Standing Up For 6.00

LONDON THIS WEEK.

Julius'. 6.20

TOM

AND

JERRY.

Dog

7.00 THE

BEST OF PLEASE

Trouble. SIRI 'Old Fennians Day'.

6.30 THE

VIRGINIAN: 'The 7.30 THE FBI: 'By Force and Crooked Path'. Violence'.

SHUT

7.45 IT'S A KNOCK-OUT!

8.30 THAT DOOR! Larry 9.00 NINE O'CLOCK NEWS and Grayson with guests Dora Hanson, weather. Bryan, John

GRANDSTAND.

9.25 OLYMPIC

Jackie Pallo.

THE MAN FROM HAVEN.

The XX Olympic Games. 9.00 10,30

THE

EDINBURGH

MILI-

10.00

NEWS AT TEN.

TARY TATTOO

1972. WICKED WOMEN: 'Augusta 10.30

LATE NIGHT NEWS.

Fulham'. 12.00 Vivien Merchant, Weather. 12.05 Edward De Souza. 11.30 THE FRIGHTENERS: 'Miss Mouse': John Normington, Heather

BBC 2

12.00

CHRISTIANTY

SITY.

SCALES

12.10 OF

JUSTICE:

11.00-11.25 Play school. 5.35 'The Haunted Man'. Open university. 7.30 NEWSROOM and weather.

8.00

EGYPT,

ROME

AND

BRITAIN.

chronicle

REGIONAL TV

magazine. SPORT TWO: '94 Not Out'. 9.00 Colin Welland CHANNEL: 3.20 Airline pilot. 4.10 and lan Woolridge. Happy house. 4.25 Puffin. 4.27 9.25

GARDENERS' WORLD.

Jimmy Stewart. 4.55 Pebbles and Primus. Percy Thrower. bamm bamm. 5.20 5.50 9.50

THE

BEETHOVEN SYM-

London. 6.00 News and weather. 6.10 Report special. 6.35 Cross- PHONIES. Otto Klemperer conducts Symphorty No 9 7.00 7.30 roads. Comedians. D minor. London. ( 10.35 Film: 'Too Hot To 11.15 NEWS ON 2 and weather. Handle'. 12.20 News and weather 11.20

LATE

NIGHT

LINE-UP.

in French. Weather.

FOREIGN NEWS

BY JOHN SPENCER

guarantee from the Heath any Cabinet definite date about FRENCH Foreign Minister for restoring the pound's fixed Maurice Schumann flew to parity. Equally, he will find little London yesterday for talks sympathy for the French ideas on with Edward Heath and other raising the gold price. Tory Ministers on the forth- The outcome of these prepara- coming Common Market discussions will be further tory talked the summit. Common Market Foreign Finance and The meeting was staged at Ministers' Italy in meeting the request of President Pom- mid-September. who has threatened to There they will attempt to pidou. torpedo the summit unless the agenda is to his drawn up satisfaction. Above all, Pompidou wants discussion of the monetary issues facing the EEC. He wants the pound returned possible to a fixed as soon as parity and he wants the Market MONEY that paid for the a policy for countries to murder of American miners' raising the official price of gold.

leader Joseph Yablonski two French government sees The these measures essential came from union as years ago both as moves towards the con- lunds, a Federal grand jury solidation of the EEC as a single alleged in Washington yester- bloc and as monetary measures day. stabilize internal and protect the With his wife and daughter, relations com- mon agricultural policy. Yablonski murdered was on They particularly are con- 5, January 1970—just one about the weakness of cerned after he had failed to month the Italian lira, which is threat- win the of the presidenc ened with devaluation. Hence the United Mineworkers Union Franco-Italian earlier Droposal from corrupt president for a unilateral rise in the official away Common Tony Boyle. gold price within the which would Market — a move A dilatory police investiga- enable Italy to settle its central dragged the murder tion has bank obligations without exhaust- case through successive courts.

ine Its reserves. But yesterday the jury meeting on Wednesday At his charged that executive member in Bonn with the German Cabinet Albert Pass and several union found leaders, Schumann no German officials had cashed cheques change in the position on this question. worth $20,000 with various Germans are prepared to The union members. the Italians more time to give Through Silous Huddlestone, settle their debts, but they are an intermediary, the money was not in favour of a gold-price rise.

used to hire three gunmen who German Cabinet, the Like the entered the Yablonski house Tory leaders are in no hurry and killed the leader of the fall in line with French demands.

opposition to Boyle, Schumann is unlikely to get Two 0d ons for a Friday night ol Larry Grayson (ITV, 8.30) WESTWARD. As Channel except: 4.00 Gus Honeybun. 4.10 Happy house. 4.25 News. 6.00 Diary. 6.25 Sports desk. 10.32 News and weather. 12.20 Faith for life.

12.55 News and

SOUTHERN:

weather. 1.00 Beloved enemy.

1.25 Beverley hillbillies. 1.50 Common Market cook book. 2.15 Bellbird. 2.30 Let's face it. 3.00 Kate. 3.55 Weekend. 4.00 House- party. 4.15 Paulus. 4.30 Cross- roads. 4.55 Land of the giants.

5.50 London. 6.00 Day by day.

Scene SE. 6.30 Who do you do?

7.00 Shut that door. 7.30 Benny Hill. 9.00 London. 10.35 Film: 'The Stripper'. 12.20 News. 12.30 Weather. Guideline.

HARLECH:

3.35 Grasshopper island. 3.45 Women only. 4.15 Tinkertainment. 4.30 Crossroads.

Woobinda. Flaxton 4.55 5.20 boys. 5.50 London. 6.01 Report West. 6.18 Report Wales. 6.30 Saint. 7.30 Shut that door. 8.00 Cade's county. 9.00 London. 10.30 Cinema. 11.00 Film: 'There's Always A Thursday'. 12.10 Scales of justice. 12.40 Weather.

HTV Wales and HTV Cymru/ Wales: 4.15-4.30 Cantamil. 6.01- position on the agree a common Market's economic and monetary policy to put before the Inter- national Monetary Fund meeting at the end of that month.

The divisions within the EEC on these issues, however, are it seems deep-going, and that barring a rapid about-face by some of the countries involved the EEC countries will be unable to present a genuine united front against the Americans at the IMF meeting. Yablonski Since the murder Boyle him- self has been charged with various financial irregularities, including illegally subscribing union money to presidential campaign funds. However, he has yet to face any charge directly related to murder of Yablonski, the though there is evidence that he was involved in the killing.

Workers Press, Friday August 25, 1972 PAGE 11

YORKSHIRE:

1.45 Other Lindis- farne. 2.15 Bellbird. 2.30 Matinee 3.00 Kate. 4.00 Sound of ... 4.10 Calendar news. 4.15 Crossroads 4.40 Skippy 4.55 Flintstones. 5.20 London. Calendar 6.00 news, weather. 6.05 Randall and Hopkirk. 7.00 Comedians. 7.30 Shut that door. 8.00 Benny Hill. 9.00 London. I Want To 10.30 Film: Live'. 12.40 Weather. GRANADA: 2.20 Common Market cook book. 2.45 Saint. 3.40 University challenge. 4.10 News. Place 4.40 Happy house. Peyton 4.50 Skippy. 5.15 Funky phantom.

5.50 6.00 News London. 6.05 OK. 6.30 Riptide. 7.30 Shut that door. 8.00 Protectors 8.25 Chicago teddy bears. 9.00 Lon- ay night out. Horshel Bernardi (ITV, 6.30) 10.30 Film: don. 'Across the Pacific' 6.15 Y dydd.

TYNE

TEES: 1.45 Funny face.

HTV

West 2.30 Yoga 3.00 as above except: 2.15 Bellbird. 6.15-6.30 Report West. Kate. Sound 4.10 4.00 of News. 4.15 Crossroads. 4.40 Make wish. 4.55 Thunderbirds. 5.50 ANGLIA: 1.40 World War I. 2.05 London. 6.00 News. Rodeo. 2.30 Women today. 6.05 Mad movies. 6.30 Smith family. 7.00 Comed- 3.00 London. 3.15 Survival. 3.45 7.30 Benny Hill. 8.30 Shut 4.10 News. Yoga. 4.15 Cartoons. lans. door. 9.00 10.30 that London. 4.25 Romper room. 4.50 Giants. Film: 'The Bramble Bush'. 12.30 5.50 London. 6.00 About Anglia. News. 12.35 Epilogue. 7.00 Glamour 6.35 Crossroads. 72. 7.35 Comedians. 8.00 Combat!

SCOTTISH:

3.35 Horoscope. 3.45 10.30 'Dead 9.00 London. Film: Women 4.10 Animaland. today. Night. of 4.15 Crossroads 4.40 Happy 5.505 L 0.55k .. 5.20 Cs. 6015 ATV MIDLANDS: 3.10 Houseparty.

London. News. 5.50 Horoscope. 3.25 Paulus. 3.35 Love American 6.30 Who style. 3.45 Women today. 4.10 Julia. do you do? 7.00 Please sir.

7.30 4.40 Happy 4.55 house. Lost in Saint. 8.30 Shut that door. 9.00 5.50 6.00

ATV

space. London. 10.30 Festival. 11.00 London. today. 6.35 Crossroads. 7.00 Shut Late call. 11.05 Name of the that door. 7.30 Persuaders. 8.25 9.00 10.30 Please sir. London.

GRAMPIAN:

3.37 News. 3.45 Film: "The Curse of Frankenstein'.

Yoga. 4.40 Women today. 4.10 Happy 4.55 Rumblie house. ULSTER: 4.30 Romper room. 4.50 jumblie. 5.20 Bush boy. 5.50 News. 4.55 Cowboy in Africa. London. 6.00 News and weather. Mrs. 6.35 5.50 London. 6.00 News. 6.10 6.05 Mr and Cross- Viewfinder. 6.35 Crossroads. 7.00 roads. 7.00 Comedians. 7.30 8.00 Benny Hill. Sale 7.30 Jason of the century. 9.00 9.00 10.30 Hogan's King. 8.30 Shut that door. London. 10.30 Short story. 11.00 11.00 Job look. 11.05 London. heroes. Film: 'Soho Incident". Film: 'The Curse of the Werewolf'. HOMELESS single people in Britain's cities are facing a crisis situation as accommo- dation for them goes for the whole 'Responsibility for field of homeless single persons' redevelopment, according to needs should be located in one a report published yesterday.

department the government Department of Health and Social The report was produced by a Sécurity.' Camberwell Council on Alcohol.

The report calls on the Depart- ism working set up to party, ment to establish cheap hostels of homeless look at the plight and take steps fur- to prevent the London single people in ther loss of cheap single person borough of Southwark. accommodation. The working party found that in London there alone are between 8,000 and 10,000 people Dockers bailed but the problem sleeping rough, is a national one. The report recommends. that DOCKERS Cornelius Clancy and the Department of Health and Terence Penfold were remanded Social Security set up 'a work- on bail until September I1 by ing party to look into ways of financially compensating those Colchester magistrates yesterday, which forego redevelop- areas accused of offences alleged ment of existing common lodging have taken place at a private house sites, or alternatively when Tere vee replacement lace hostels allow wharf, Rowhedge, Colchester, on replacement August 7. in the redevelopment scheme.'

Clancy The responsibility of providing (26), of King Edward the homeless is being shirked Hackney, for Road, London, is by both central government and accused of abusive behavious breach of the local authorities, says the report.

likelv to cause a peace, and Penfold with using in- •It essential have is to sulting words in similar circum- national comprehensive co-opera- stances. for the tive programme single homeless worked out now. Bail was fixed at £10 each.

Moscow Trials Anthology Paperback, 621p

MAX SHACHTMAN:

Behind The Moscow Trial Paperback 75p

ROBERT BLACK:

Stalinism In Britain Paperback £1.12}-cloth £2

LEON TROTSKY:

Death Agony of Capitalism (The Transitional Programme) Pamphlet 5p Class Nature of the Soviet State Pamphlet 20p In Defence of the October Revolution Pamphlet 15p The Theory and Practice of Revisionism Pamphlet 15p Postage 10p per book, 3p per pamphlet. Order from :

NEW PARK PUBLICATIONS

186a Clapham High Street, London SW4 7UG.

PAGE 12 Workers Press, Friday August

BY PHILIP WADE

THE

BITTER

seven- week dispute for union recognition by engineers at Tonbridge, Kent, is being undermined through failure to get components blacked at Ford factories. More than 100 workers were locked out at the Creffield Engineering Co on July 10. A petition calling for a recog- nition of the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers had been turned down by management a few days earlier. of the The company, part Spark Holdings group, is openly anti-union. Since moving to Tonbridge from London nine years ago the company has fought any signs of trade union organization in the factory. There are no unions in the group's Enfield and Ashing- ton, Northumberland, factories.

In a letter to striking workers on July 18 the company said it accept trade 'unable to was unions as a negotiating body'.

Workers at Creffield produce parts for gear-boxes and over 90 per cent of the products go to Ford factories all over Britain.

Although the AUEW has declared the dispute official and circularized • branches to that effect, parts are being driven out of Tonbridge and delivered to Ford factories, including Dagen- ham. Bob Todd, strike committee told Workers Press chairman, yesterday: 'Ford's is the key to our struggle. We are disappointed at the reactions so far from the Ford factories.' He said AUEW national com- mittee member Sid Harraway, who is also a Ford convenor at Dagenham, came to the Ton- bridge AUEW district committee about five weeks ago and promised support. Ford workers then went on their annual holiday. Dagenham

WEATHER

THE ANTICYCLONE covering southern parts of Britain will persist. Northern and North-Western Scotland will remain mainly cloudy with some drizzle at times on coasts and over hills.

Northern Ireland and South- West Scotland will be rather cloudy but some sunny intervals are likely. Over the remainer of Scotland and over England and Wales good sunny periods are likely after the clearance of early morning mist or fog. Temperatures will be about normal over North and West Northern Scotland and over Ireland, but elsewhere it will be warm. Outlook for Saturday and Sun- day: No change. Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. Published by Workers Tess, 18a Clapham High Street. London.

SW4 7UG.

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

SWA 7UG.

ay August 25, 1972 stewards eventually met yester- 'According to our day week. information we heard they were going to black Creffield products,' said Toda. lorry 'But the day after a clearly showing the Creffield sign went straight into the Dagenham We know that because tactory. we followed it from Tonbridge.

'We eventually got hold of Harraway this week and he said disturbed that blacking he was was not taking place.' leading member Harraway, a of the Communist Party, is also secretary of the national commit- tee of Ford convenors. The only bright spot is the blacking at London airport of from Ford's in Ger- steel bars many, which are destined for the Tonbridge factory. Now Tonbridge workers are expected to meet Ford stewards in London next Wednesday to try and agreement national black of Creffield goods throughout the Ford combine.

'All eyes are on our struggle,' said Todd. "This area has never been organized before. 'Firms came here for cheap labour and workers at Creffield were only taking home between £17 and £23 a. week. This struggle has just got to be won.'

Creffield workers will demon- strate through Tonbridge tonight leaving the factory in Vale Road at 6 p.m. They have been promised sup- port from building workers on strike in the area, the local Labour Party and some Ford workers.

BY IAN YEATS

THE RACIALISTS took to the streets of London yesterday with 400- strong march to the Home Office to protest about the admission of about 40,000 Ugandan Asians. One speaker at the rally which followed was Martin Webster, national organizer of the National Front. Our front-page picture shows Webster and Taylor (in white overall) chatting before the march. Taylor earlier claimed the march was 'non-political. But the only applause came from the marchers' Tory friends from the City and a handful of paper sel- lers and odd taxi drivers.

The Smithfield Workers Against Immigration Group run by Mosleyite Danny Harmston and Ron Taylor had expected dockers, dust- men and porters from other markets to back the demon- stration. When no workers other than about 200 of Smith- field's 2000 porters turned out to support a contingent from the National Front Mr Taylor commented: 'Its a bit of a flop at the moment.?

Workers in Fleet Street where the marchers had gone

SAI

THE

ONLY ASK FOR REL

Croffield strike-committee members on

EIGHT

• appeared in

MEN

court at Birmingham yester- day following clashes be- tween police and building workers pickets outside the Rugby Portland Cement depot. were remanded until September 21 on £40 bail.

Prosecutor D. Emrys Morgan said they would plead not guilty.

All the defendants were build- ing workers except Vincent Flynn (26), of Lordship Lane, Totten- ham, North London who is freelance journalist with 'Socialist Worker'. Striking building workers will march through Nottingham today in support of their full pay and hours claim More than 50 sites are shut to protest against alleged press distortion of the facts about immigration watched the march in silence. a bloody disgrace, said one. 'They're all National Front. Its the fascists': Chanting 'Enoch for PM' and jeering and booing coloured people on the pave- the demonstrators ments marched four abreast to the where they Home Office handed in a petition demand- ing an end to immigration and assurances that the new immigrants would not be given homes and jobs needed by white people. MORE TALKS were held yes- terday in a bid to end the strike of 800 Merseyside docks cleri- cal workers. The clerks want assurances over job security and increased severance pay for men over 60 who will become redundant when two cargo handling firms merge and another closes. They are members of the Association of Clerical, Technical and Supervisory Staffs- the white-collar section of the Trans- General Workers' port and Union. Shop stewards were planning to put a recommendation to a meeting of the clerks this morn- ing.

„CREFF

TO RECOENIT.

nbers on pickot yesterday down and the strike involves about 4,000 men. Since the strike began the local branch of the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians has re- cruited more than 400 new members In Aberdeen building workers spoke out against rumours the morning press that the CBI- TUC conciliation machinery was to be used in their strike.

Sinclair, Ewen chairman strike committee the Aberdeen said: 'We are doing quite well ourselves. The will not men accept this type of intervention from the CBI and the TUC.

"We don't want to be the scape- goats for Feather's scheme. The have now are the problems we result of this leadership.

They refused to fight the Industrial Relations Act. 'Feather should buy his own yacht and go with Heath-that seems to be the way he is going?

Building strikers at the Mow- lem's Shell Haven site, Tilbury, have been told they will not get strike pay from the Transport and General Workers' Union They came out in support of the national claim two weeks ago and were told the union would pay benefits. Officials have now told them, that UCATT has no however, funds to pay its members strike T&GWU officials pay and the have voted to stop strike pay to their members as well • More building news, page 10.

AUGUST FUND

7 DAYS LEFT

AT LAST the sign of a change.

Yesterday • a bumper post of £174.52 raised our figure to £1,052.30. But don't stop now -try and keep this up over the next seven days. We knew that you, our readers, would rally around Workers our appeal Fund. Press has maintained a prin- cipled stand on every major Issue. Each day It fights to tell the truth to workers every.

where. Help us, therefore, with our drive to increase the cir- culation into new districts.

Over the next seven days, let's have a major effort to collect £697.70 still outstanding for our August Fund. Keep up the pace and perhaps we might go over the top! Post all donations immedi- ately to: Workers Press August Appeal Fund 186a Clapham High Street London SW4 7UG. CK

ALL TRADES UNIONS

ALLIANCE MEETINGS

TUC MUST BREAK OFF ALL

TALKS WITH HEATHI

MAKE THE TORY GOVERN-

MENT RESIGNI

NOTTINGHAM: Tuesday August 29, 7.30 p.m. People's Hall, Heathcote Street. 'Victory to the building workers' PRESTON: Wednesday August 30, 8 p.m. Railway and Com- mercial Hotel, Butler St_(nr Tory station). 'The railway government and the building workers'. • CAMBRIDGE: Thursday August 31, 8 p.m. Red Cow (behind the Guild Hall). 'Lessons of the dockers and Builders' strikes'.

SLOUGH: Tuesday September 7.30 p.m. Slough Com- munity Centre, Farnham Rd.

'Force the Tories out. Expose the traitors in the labour and trade union movementi Speakers: Frank Tomany and Brian Bailey, both in a per- sonal capacity. Lessons of UCS and the Docks Strike. ABERDEEN: Monday August 28, 8.00 p.m. Trades Hall, 24 Adelphi. DUNDEE: Wednesday August 30, 8.00 p.m. YMCA Constitu- tion Room. Soclailst Labour League

FOUR LECTURES

THE THEORY AND

PRACTICE OF MARXISM

given by

G. HEALY

(SLL national secretary) 1. Marxism as the theory of knowledge Tuesday September 5 2. Development of Marxism through working-class struggle Tuesday September 12 3. Nature of the capitalist crisis Tuesday September 19 4. Historical materialism today Tuesday September 26

AEU HOUSE

Mount Pleasant Liverpool 1, 7.30 p.m. 01-622 7029 01-720 2000