CAR WORKERS ON THE DOLE

LAST Monday was signing-on day for the 2,000 Standard workers sacked At the Coventry Labour Exchange the scene was reminiscent of the '30s. queues crawled slowly to the counters. I found the car workers anxious Christmas and their future was uncertain.

W. Morris, an electrical finisher at Standards, had 19 years' service at the company. Because this service was broken in 1956 when he was sacked, his name had been placed on the list of those to go. I asked him what prospects he had of employment in the car industry. 'No chance', , he said.

T. Cochran, press operator, had also been sacked in 1956, breaking his 10} years' service. For some time now he has been working only two days a week. With the sack he received the princely sum of f5 for one week's pay, plus f15 'compensation'. He also thought the future was "grim"

Many of the workers alleged that the redundancy procedure at Standards has been 'chaotic'. Some had not been on the list at first, but their names had been added at the last minute. •There had been no lead from the trade unions. No mass meetings were called I spoke to R. Banks who had worked at the Standard factory on the Vanguard axles. He had received his notice at 1.40 p,m. on the previous Thursday. There was no chance, he said, for a job in the motor industry. He anticipated at least four months' unemployment, and with a wife and two children to keep was expecting a "rough time' Three Times Redundant F. Duckworth, a finisher, had started at Standards in 1936; had been called up in 1940 and had returned to the company at the end of the war only to be made redundant in 1953 and again in 1956. He is now forced to start afresh for the fourth time. He is bitter about the neglect by the industry of its workers in the "slack' times. "The government should take action' , he said. "The motor industry should be nationalized.' At the factory of Massey Ferguson Ltd., I spoke to many workers who had been at the Standard factories in 1956.

C. McCarthy, the metal mechanics convenor at Massey Ferguson, said, 'leadership and a clear, positive policy is the essential factor in the present crisis. J. Twigg of the Amalgamated Engineering Union, interjected to say, "The industry should be taken over in the same way as the people of Cuba have nationalized their industry. He went on to explain, 'not only the car industry but all big engineering firms and other big enterprises should be nationalized".

J. Clerkson, a shop steward in the machine shop, said: "The whole situation in the industry smells. Workers who are "redundant" should be kept in employment until found other jobs. The trade union leaders he added, 'are out of touch with the rank and file'. He thought that there were too many careerists in top positions in the labour movement.

Calls for Nationalization Coventry is a Labour town and the turn towards more [-lite solutions to the car industries' problems is spreading fast. The support for nationalization is universal by all car workers except a few supporters of Right-wing interests such as Moral Rearmament and similar bodies which are occasionally noisily active. But their propaganda, and that of the Tory press, which has tried to raise a barrier around the idea of nationalization, has fallen flat. Is there any wonder when Tory policies lead direct to the 'bureau' and four months out of work?

The way in which motor workers are beginning to throw their weight into the fight for a policy of nationalization in the Labour movement is shown by the reactions of two militants active in the Labour Party.

Councillor Jack Sprung works at the Canley factory of Standards. He is working in the Labour Party, he said, to defeat the Right wing and for the implementing of the Scarborough conference decisions. Asked what action he would advocate now, he said: We must fight and for those on short time.

From 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. long and bitter. Four weeks to harder for the implementing of Clause Four of the Labour Party constitution."

Eric Harrison, a Transport and General Workers' Union member and sacked from the Standard company after 7} years' service, summed the situation up well when he said: The situation is much worse than 1956. Nationalization of the motor industry is the only answer. We must back up even more the fight to implement Clause Four of the Labour constitution which calls for nationalization of industry! Short Time at Dunlops By OUR INDUSTRIAL CORRESPONDENT THE Car Covers' section in the Dunlop factory at Speke, Liverpool, is now working short-time. This section makes tyres for the car industry.

So far the workers are only losing two shifts out of every 30. However, militant trade unionists in this factory are pointing to the growing crisis in the motor industry and arguing that it must have an increasing effect on Dunlops.

They feel the union should take a stand now. An elementary step would be to ban overtime throughout the factory. Overtime is still being worked by workers in other sections such as those on remoulding and giant tyres.