Big response to Garners appeal for help

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Anger continues to mount among TGWU mombers at the failure to win the 13 month Garners strike.

Resolutions are coming in to Region 1 Secretary Sid Staden and to General Secretary Moss Evans demanding all out action from the union to • force Margolis to concede recognition.

This continuing support for the strike and criticism of their handling of it has shown up the weakness of the policies adopted by Staden and Region q "organiser" Shorter.

Faced also with a united strike committee determined to fight for policies to win, their only defence is to 'attack so-called outside groups "who want to wreck the strike".

No reply They have no reply to the strike committee's policies of a Day of Action in March, a national delegate TGWU conference and for strike pay of at least £30 a week.

That TGWU branches wil! support the strike was clearly shown by the response of the Liverpool labour movement when strike committee member Manuel Blanco went to speak to a series of meetings. last week seeking support for the strike.

Blanco told Socialist Press:

"We were invited to Liverpool to speak at the Trades Council so we spent a day visiting some factories.

"First I went to the Port Shop Stewards Committee at 10 a.m. They immediately gave me £25 for expenses and agreed to take the resolution supporting our policies into their branches.

"There was only one who spoke against us but all the others told him to shut up.

"After that we went to Fords in Speke. We met the convenor, Brother McGuire.

"He agreed to put our resolution to the branch and to ask for a donation.

"At Triumph we were met by stewards at the gate and got promises to pass our resolution and to give us a donation.

"They had not even been told about our strike, through the TGWU although we have a copy of Region 1 Committee minutes which says the committee will circulate all regions for help.

"We also went to Dunlop, and the Shell refinery. At Vauxhalls, Ellesmere Port, the convenor, Brother Farrell promised to ask for £100 donation at the branch and to pass the resolution:

"One lorry driver we met at Trànsport House took ! our leaflets to take to his meeting in Warrington.

"Pat Harkin, another leading lorry driver, promised to give the resolution to Wally Nugent, branch secretary, to be raised at the next meeting and will try and give a donation.

"After I spoke at the Trades Council meeting the chairman said they would pass the resolution, ignore the six picket limit and would send a bus down on the Day of Action, with the banner.

"He said they would all stay outside one Garners branch.

The workforce at Leyland's Longbridge plant went back to work last week after a week-ong strike over the non-payment of promised 'parity' payments.

The strike had had the effect of stopping all mass production of Leyland cars by bringing Cowley to a halt as well as Longbridge.

The major problem at the other plants which resulted in majority votes against strike action was the unprincipled way in which Leyland convenor Derek Robinson had at first fought for corporate bargaining.

Consequently he ended up leading a strike for the payments associated with the corporate bargaining plan.

The right wing ledearships in other plants where there is opposition to the corporate bargaining plan did not use this situation to fight for a straight wage claim and the breaking up of corporate bargaining, but instead argued merely against strike action for the implementation of, the parity payments.

Even then the strike at Longbridge could have been effective and actually would have continued but for Derek He fought hard on the stewards' committee to get a "return-to-work" recommendation and only managed to get a ... SO WHEN ROME'S PROSPEROUS CITIZENS WERE :THREATENED BY THE ETRUSCAN HORDES, JUST THREE MEN STEPPED TO THEIR DEFENCE: LED BY HORATIUS, THEY HELD A CRUCIAL BRIDGE AND HALTED A WHOLE MASS MOVEMENT!

MACAURAYE LAYS ROME General Executive of the TGWU to support the strike committee policies of:

1) No return to work without recognition and reinstatement of all.

2) Full blacking of supplies and suppliers if necessary.

3) To pay all the strikers a decent living wage until the strike is won, to be raised by a levy of members in Region 1.

4) Regular delegations to the pciket line with large turnout on Saturdays.

5) National delegate conference of TGWU.

6) Send a delegation and banner to the Day of Action.

7) Regular donations to the strike fund".

'Also £26 was 195-122 majority. 195-122 majority.

His argument His argument about the 'isolation' of 19,000 workers 'isolation' of 19, LAIAC hunioranc. and was ludicrous and means that in his opinion no plant in Leyland should take strike action on its own.

The vote at the mass meeting was even then, with the returnto-work recommendation of the stewards, only narrowly carried. a meeting of hospital workers at St Mary's W9 who have themselves just been on strike for a week for their pay claim.

"We know from our experiences that the union members will respond. • "The union leaders try to tell us they are "doing their best" but that members don't want to do anything.

"But they do not want to, back us fully. They must realise that we will not go away, we are prepared to fight to the end.".

Donations to the Garners Strike Fund should be sent to the strike headquarters at the TGWU Offices, 12/13 Henrietta Street, London W1.

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