Letter: trom hard-up Cowley workers International sell-out attempt at Dunlop

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French and Italian union bureaucrats last week turned up to reinforce the efforts being made by all eleven unions in : Dunlop's threatened Speke plant to head off any serious action to prevent its planned closure.

And once again leaflets distributed by the Workers Socialist League : exposing the way in which the struggle is being - shunted down blind sidings by Speke convenors were subjected to witch-hunting attack by TGWU Executive Council Chairman Stan Pemberton.

The WSL has stressed from the beginning the fact that • the union leaders accept that the 'viability' of Dunlop as a capitalist employer is paramount-and that therefore they must also accept the company's conclusion: that the 2,400 jobs at risk in Speke must be sacrificed in order to would like to n below. d me. 10 preserve profits.

If any worker doubted this position it was amply confirmed in a statement by the TGWU's Rubber and Chemicals officer, "left' talking John Miller. Speaking to the Guardian (20 Feb) he pointed out that:

"We do accept the need to streamline the industry and make it more efficient, and we would probably accept that there would be difficulty in maintaining all 2,400 jobs at Speke [!], but as efficiency increased there is a possibility of attracting new products to the plant."

No denial Conspicuously Pemberton's attack on the WSL leaflet at the previous mass meeting had avoided any denial that this is the position of union officials and convenors.

Instead he merely set up a clumsy smokescreen of anti-Trotskyist. bluster in the hopes that no worker would see the pathetic protest policies behind it.

Last week's mass meeting saw a similar display, with Pemberton soft-peddling his nationalist : demand for import controls to keep out 'foreign' tyres in deference to the French and Italian union bureaucrats on the platform.

They in turn paid Pemberton the curtesy of avoiding any reference to occupation of the plant to prevent closure, and helped set the scene for the continuing campaign of 'lobbies' and 'talks' lined up by the Speke convenors.

One such lobby was the futile Communist Party February 14tobby of Parliament, at which a mere handful of people had turned up to implement the revolutionary' policy of handing valentine cards to MPs!

WSL leaflet

This fiasco is to be 'followed up' by a demonstration on March 10 called by the Stalinist-led Liverpool Trades Council.

Pemberton then turned his full fury against the WSL leaflet which called for the meeting to adopt a policy of occupation, and demanded that Pemberton use his position as national chairman of the IGWU to press for a national trade group meeting at which a joint plan of action against closure and sackings at Speke and other threatened tyre plants could be hammered out.

Yet though bombaswally deese element you WSL) to lead you, I will be only too glad to stand down", Pemberton failed to explain where he stands on these policies.

Nor would he respond to the demand on him to join with local left' Labour MPs Eddie Loyden (who has verbally supported occupation) and Eric Heffer in a fight to kick out the anti socialist Callaghan-Healey Heffer Labour and reverse their policies of wage cuts and • mass unemployment.

But he was quick to argue against one member who, drawing the logical conclusion from the convenors' do-nothing policy on. the speke closure, suggested that the pickets now manning the gates should be withdrawn to allow the company to restart production.

However in deference to the international bureaucrats on the platform, Pemberton failed to answer the same member's suggestion that the picket line be transferred to the docks-to stop imported • tyres from entering the country!

We say clearly: , NO to import controls!

YES to occupation!

No to Dunlop's "viability"!

YES to an elected trade union committee to open Dunlop's books and show the need for nationalisation without compensation under workers' management!

NO to sackings, "voluntary" or compulsory!

YES to work sharing among the whole workforce without loss of pay! the whim of outside influences.

We now ask our union officials ONERS mole OUT $Pp panel below and join us. in the fight for such a leadership! Ed.

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CAPITAL For clear lead