Jackson... FROM BACK PAGE

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could be made profitable-at workers' expense.

The plan, published only days before the closure date, was a major stab in the back for those Dunlop workers that' had placed faith in the "Action" Committee's talk of saving jobs.

Its proposals involved 1,000 redundancies from, the 2,400 workforce, together with a ruthless onslaught on working conditions involving the scrapping of all existing agreements on manning levels, flexibility of labour, working practices, "unproductive" overtime, timekeeping and absenteeism.

Protest stunts

So reactionary was the Plan that it prompted the first open opposition to the "Action" Committee when it was presented by Pemberton to' a mass meeting. Three workers got up to demand a fight to defend all jobs at the plant-only to be brushed aside by the platform.

But in preparation for the publication of the Plan, the "Action" Committee had laboured for weeks to soften up and demoralise the Speke workforce with a bewildering series of half-cock and irrelevant protest stunts, and the publication of a news-sheet Dunlop Spekes designed to promote the grossest illusions in the NON firing the imaginations of Merseysiders", it was only one month later that the plant shut down.

Impotence

As the closure date loomed, the "Action" Committee stepped up its pressure on dockers, airport workers and others-many of them hundreds of miles from Speke-to black Dunlop goods in order to save the factory that they refused to It is a measure of the solidarity of many of these sections that they have done so. But with the factory now closed and an unknown number of Speke workers having already taken redundancy pay and given up, it is doubtful how long such action could continue, or what possible effect it could have on Dunlop management, who have no intention of reopening the plant.

For the Speke: "Action" Committee to proceed now to picket other Dunlop plants after refusing to fight the closure of their own is a clear statement of the impotence of the leadership that has sold its members down the river.

While Pemberton, whose 43 years in the Speke plant ensure a huge redundancy pay-off may well be able to face defeat with writer puts forward the following utterly reactionary rubbish:

"The Dunlop directors are 'traitors to the British people in general and to Merseysiders in particular.

"Oh yes, the directors are British. And yes, they sing God Save the Queen with the best of them.

"But all of that is just so much mealy mouthed hypocrisy. The only flag to which they owe any allegiance is the one with the sign of the f on it.

'An extreme view? Not a bit of it.

"In December 1978 Dunlops bragged in their employees' paper that they were spending £6 millions on a now tyre plant in Malaysia that would be in production within twelve months.

"In the TEN YEAR period 1968-78 Dunlops have spent only £4¾ m at Speke.

«You can call that what you want. but you'd find it hard to find a word much: different from treachery."

There is of course no "British people". There is the ruling, capitalist class, and there is an opposing, exploited working class; which is part of an international working class.

For Dunlop workers to attack their exploiters, the Dunlop employers, tor not being sufficiently "patriotic"

WORRIED ABOUT PRICES AND ALL "VOLUNTARY.

EFFORT, COMRAX!

WORRIED ABOUT PRICES AND JOBS?

THAT'S THE ANSWER TO THE TORIES! meetings all over the country have rejected the deal over. whelmingly and often unanimously.

Jackson's dwindling hopes of success now rest partly on the small rural offices (who are relatively less affected by the attacks), and more on the clerical Postal Officers and night telephonists who stand to gain YEAH-JIM$ PULLING NO PUNCHES THIS TIME!! most from the deal.

But these hopes are fading daily before the anger of the members, who have in many areas passéd votes of no confidence in, or censure on, the Executive.

Correct as they are, such moves will not in themselves win postal workers the settlement needed to abolish low WORRIED ABOUT PRICES AND JOBS? wages, the necessity of working overtime and the horrific conditions which dominate the huge, state-controlled Post Office.

Memories of the monumental betrayal of the 1971 strike by Jackson's leadership have demoralised a whole generation of postal workers until now.

But the pressure of falling real wages. and continuing bureaucratic sell outs is breaking down this barrier.

Workers in London and Liverpool have given a valuable example of the strength which lies in the hands of UPW members.

All-out strike The UPW claim will not be won by protests, more negotiations or even mass anger..

Only all-out strike action, led by those elements in the union who are prepared to fight for the interests of postal workers, can succeed against the opposition of Jackson's bureaucracy, the management and the wage controls of Callaghan's cabinet or the full scale attacks on unions of an incoming Tory

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SOCIALIST St 'aily life in the six counties

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... YOUR MAN AT THE

JOBS? THE THE KEEP TO

THE KEEP

BETTER I DOWN

THE THE KEEP

WAY BETTER WAY DOWN THE UNIONS!