Confed leaders back BL jobs

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The leaders of the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions went straight from the settlement of the national wage claim to meet Keith Joseph and then Michael Edwardes to discuss the future of British Leyland.

Joseph bluntly threatened to stop all government finance to BL.

And Edwardes threatened that if they did not support his pian to close plants and cut back others, he would not even go to the government to ask for more money.

Rather than challenge such arrogance, the Confed leaders agreed to drop their opposition to Edwardes' rationalisation plan-which entails the loss of at least 25,000 jobs.

As a face-saver they added 8 rider, stating that if BL workers wanted to defend their jobs, they could!

This sell-out has followed almost exactly the course of the cutbacks in shipbuilding jobs where the workers took immed. iate protest action.

Keep your head

Make suggestions for improvements March & Lobby - London 4tty October 1974 CUT THE PLAN NOT THE PLANTS @ BL Cars-Suggestion Scheme The union leaders at first supported these moves-but then quickly called off their support and persuaded the stewards to call off their sanctions which had prevented completed ships being launched.

in Leyland, too, • union leaders went through the motions of opposition. They even set up an "action committee", and endorsed a demonstration past Leyland House this Tuesday.

The TGWU declared they would black all movement of But BL workers are thẹ sacrificial victims by which the Confed seeks to appease the ruthless engineering bosses.

The latest ignominious climbdown is a nod and a wink by Confed leaders to any employers thinking of pulling out of the Engineering Employers Federation that if they stay in, they can count on the loyal services of the union bureaucracy.

Occupy

The Robb Caledon shipyard workers in Dundee have refused to accept the Confed's sell-sut. All Leyland workers must do the same.

Plants threatened with massive cut-backs or closures as at Canley, Castle Bromwich and MG Abingdon, must occupy.

Other plants must refuse to accept work from those fighting the cutbacks.

The central demand should be work-sharing on full pay with no job losses.

If the employers say they cannot pay we must demand that they open their books and those of the profitable component firms and the banks who out compensation and together with the rest of the basic industries and finance houses be made part of a planned socialist WOMAN WORKER 3 Bi-monthly paper of the Workers Socialist League Now available Price 6p plus 10p p&p from WSL, 31, Dartmouth Park Hill, London NW5 DEMONSTRATE against the Corrie Bill Sunday 28 October Assemble 11.30 a.m.

akers Corner, Hyde P for march to Trafalgi Square Called by the TUC