Grunwick-lessons for Today's Union Struggles

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INWICK STRIKE COMMITTEE STOP NAFF! eUT ¡TOP STOP NAFF! CUT GRUNWICK NAFF! GRUNWICK OFFNON CUT GRUNWICK NCN until the spring of this year when 'the leadership of APEX-the union predominantly involved-formally announced the calling off of the strike their conference.

Although ultimately defeated, the strike remains of historic importance.

Despite the small numbers involved in the original action and the elementary democratic principle at stake, the dispute escalated into …a national trial of strength between the working class and the sections of the capitalist class epitomised by faciory owner George Ward and the National Association for Freedom.

But, much more than that, it saw the inevitable test between the strike's leadership and the trade union bureaucracy for control and direction under conditions of mass action around picketing, against the police, and in open conflict with an increasingly repressive state apparatus personally directed by Rees and other Government ministers.

It is for these reasons that Grunwick cannot and must not be forgotten.

At this very moment almost identical struggles for union recognition are going on at Sandersons in Skegness and Garners Steak Houses in Central Londonthe former for 17 months and Garners for nearly half as long.

Though no mass movement has yet developed around either of these struggles, the attitude towards them of the trade union leadership and their unwillingness to implement the policies necessary for victory is an almost exact mirror image of their counterparts in Grunwick.

In particular 'lefts' such as Jack Dromey, Secretary of the S.E. Region TUC and an early champion of the Garners strike, now fail to even pay that strike lip service.

The buik of the Grunwick strikers remain unemployed, many obviously the victims of blacklisting, while the APEX leadership direct the energy they so patently failed to put into winning the strike into trying to find them other jobs.

In a struggle which highlighted the particular oppression of immigrants Socialist Press: The role of the trade union leaders has obviously been crucial to the strike's outcome.

We think the TUC conference last year, which was lobbied by Grunwick strikers, was very important for the strike's eventual defeat. How did you see the decisions there?

Mrs. Desai: The TUC conference was bogus because they promised a lot but did nothing. They were only interested in keeping us away.

We had trusted the TUC, had believed they would do something to win, but as the strike went on we found the TUC was only promises, and for that reason we started the hunger strike outside Congress House.

Socialist Press: The hunger strike had a big effect as it was aiming in the right direction. Why was it eventually called off?

Mrs. Desai: We though pressure on them would change them, but we saw it was no good. APEX threatened the strike committee with suspension and some were afraid of the union's and women workers, the strikers' courage, tenacity and endurance was for many personified by Mrs. Jayaben Desai, the strike committee treasurer.

Despite being forced out of active involvement towards the very end of the strike through exhaustion and serious illness, she remains symbolic of the fighting spirit so cynically betrayed by the union Socialist. Press spoke to her about the strike and the lessons it holds for other sections of the working class.

threats, but that was not the reason, it was health.

I was very weak, the others wanted to continue, but I persuaded them to give in.

Socialist Press: Why didn't you take part in the firemen's lobby of the TUC meeting in December? Mrs. Desai: Because after the hunger strike everyone who was on strike was sent a letter saying that no-one could go on any lobby or demonstration without agreement from APEX. If anyone did then everyone would be suspended and lose their strike pay.

Socialist Press: Wasn't it clear long before then where the TUC leaders stood and the lengths to which they would go to prevent any section taking the kind of action needed to win?

For instance, there was the sabotage by the Postmen's union leaders of the blacking in Cricklewood and their support for the Scarman inquiry to defuse the mass picketing.

Mrs. Desai: Yes, we knew these were the people spoiling the strike. They had tied the str. hands since cancellation picket.

VAFF! CUT Die C ommittee's the August 8 of the mass That's why we wanted to focus attention on them and expose them through the hunger strike.

Their attitude was to get the strikers to give in and them blame them. One day after the TUC conference, the watermains burst in Chapter Road.

We ran all over the place to get them to stop the repair work that was being done, but they deliberately delayed and allowed them to mend it.

Socialist Press: We said throughout that one of the main questions was whether the strike was controlled by picket on July 11 away from the factories and onto the TUC demonstration showed it was the bureaucracy who dominated. Mrs. Desai: That was a big disappointment but it was not the strikers' fault. There was a lot of confusion and threats.

Socialist Press: We have also been heavily critical of Jack Dromey's role.

In particular we have taken up his failure to come out openly against the actions of the trade union leadership and his support for the Scarman court and its findings which would have meant sackings. For instance, was Dromey warning that the TUC would sell out?

Mrs. Desai: No, but he said we must fight on our own and we must take decisions.

EVER not very e xperienced and there was F ressure on Jack Dromey as well as he was employed and not completely free.

Looking back, Scarman was a waste of time and we should have boycotted it.

It allowed support to ebb and only helped Ward as he would not recognise it anyway., and the strikers would never have accepted selective reinstatement. Socialist Press: Looking back on the defeat what are you feelings about the many union leaders, such as Arthur Scargill, who pledged themselves to support the strikers.

Mrs. Desai: Everyone. was affected by pressures; the officers, the leadership. Once you are working under someone you have to bear that pressure, pressure from the government, from the TUC.

When things get critical everyone is looking after their own jobs.

We have a story in our language, an Indian fable.

A mother with her baby on her back was crossing a river. The tide was rising so she put the baby on her shoulder. When the water came up to her nose, she put the baby on her head. Then the water rose above head height, she put the baby under her feet and stood on it.

There are no heroes in this strike, that is why it failed. Everyone has a certain limit, no-one went beyond it.

POX AN MAN

COMMITTIE STOP committee picket PHOTO: Mark Rusher, IFL

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CE ASSESSMENT ST PRESS, Wednesday 1 "This week has seen the biggest shift to the left at the Labour Party Conference since 1973" claims the latest issue of Labour's tame-cat 'Marxist' paper Militant.

The dubious significance er, 1978 fellow Tribunite Neil Kinnock, both of whom secured selection to the NEC for the first time, ensuring that all seven constituency members on the NEC are now lefts'