Nalgo Right Wing Put on Defensive

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This year's NALGO Annual Conference failed to reflect the changes in the union created by. the successful action over pay comparability undertaken earlier in the year.

The main reason for this is that the majority of conference delegates were elected at Branch AGMs or Executive mectings that will have taken place before the industrial action, and the majority of resolutions will have been formulated at about the same time. • Nevertheless it was possible to discern a certain leftward development albeit hampered by a lack of national organisation.

In the year since the last Parter A GO Alliance" has collapsed completely, and failed to even produce a bulletin for this year.

The NPA was based on two groups of lower bureaucrats and their supporters, one in the Scottish District Council and the other in the Metropolitan District Council.

Relations between these two seem to have deteriorated seriously over the last year as a result of the electoral successes of the Scottish group on the NEC while their former partners in London have been lett Orators The left orators and organisers of previous ycars from Scotland-Steele, White and MacFadden-were this year able to sit on the rostrum in comfort to watch the desperate antics of their erstwhile London colleagues in 'Progress'.

The SWP-led NALGO Action Group were present in about the same numbers as in the last two or three years and had no distinctive impact beyond that made by their handful of experienced speakers-notably Will Fancy (Lewisham) and Barry White (Hertsmere).

NAG has hung so much of their experience on flat rate pay claims that when the pay issue is removed from the agenda to a special meeting later in the year they find themselves with no clear reason for being there at all.

The fact that the members are not satisfied with this disorganisation of the left in NALGO was reflected in the large attendance at most of the fringe meetings held by the various left groups.

Notable among these was the first appcarance of NALGO Left' , a grouping based on the North West-North Wales District, and also an unofficial meeting on the pay question called by the Islington Branch.

Failures

Both meetings were characterised by a search for tactical agreement that had been the reason for the failure of carlier attempts of the same kind.

But in the absence of a struggle for a clear programme, as opposed to short term organisational manocuvres, no group or combination of groups will be able to build a force capable of replacing the existing rotten leadership and inspiring a fighting spirit among the membership.

Despite all these problems in the left wing of the conterence there were a few important advances made.

The first day of conference is always devoted to separate meetings of the various service groups, and the highest point of militancy this ycar came in the Health Group meeting which backed calls for industrial action in support of pay claims by nurses and midwives.

Few speakers were prepared at this stage to argue for open strike action but the whole tone of the discussion focussed on the need for action now to ensure the future existence of services for patients.

The other service groups did not achieve this same height of militancy, but pay remained the key debate in each of them, with new technology a close second.

Local Government is the largest of the groups, and it was warned that the employers had clearly indicated that they were unwilling to meet the NALGO claim.

The debate was ditfused to.a large degree by the decision to recall the Group to discuss progress in the pay negotiations which were due to open'on 20 June.

The National Local Government Committee had to promise that it would not pull back from organising industrial action if and when it proved necessary. but would not be tied down to preparing a specific programme of action at this stage.

It will require quite a lot more experience of industrial action before resolutions of that kind are likely to succeed in NALGO.

Alter all, this year's action on comparability was the first national industrial action in the history of the union and few members have much experience of fighting the bureaucrats on terrain of this kind.

The first day of full conference even heard some token militancy from President John Meek, who called on the whole union to support their colleagues in the Health Services and their former colleagues struggle agalsı wage control, cuts whose pensions were threat.

He defended the refusal of NALGO to cooperate with Heseltine's new demands for manpower statistics in preparation for further cuts.

Two rule change motionsopposed by the NEC-ensured that any person accepting a blacked post would be kicked out of the union or not allowed to join.

Backing

But a further left wing move to ensure that NEC candidates had the backing of their own branches failed to be carried.

This was based around the case of Sheila Smith, a long serving NEC member who is not even a steward in her own (GLC) Branch.

A second left wing move to give NALGO the right under rule to affiliate to any organisation having aims and objectives consistent with the NALGO constitution was also defeated when the NEC argued that it was a backdoor method of affiliating to the Labour Party.

The third day began with the now regular economic policy debate, which led once again to the passing of NALGO's own variant of the alternative economic strategy complete with import controls and wage policy.

Action against cuts

A significant gain by the left was made with the victory of a resolution backing industrial action against any cuts, whereas previously policy had restricted industrial action to situations where NALGO members jobs RATES:

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Six months NALGO leaders in conference were at risk.

This leaves the way open for joint actions with tenants and clients against reductions in services.:

SWP/NAG opposed this motion and counterposed to it their own menu of forms of industrial action. They were heavily defeated and missed an opportunity to put teeth into a conference position by presenting their line as a helpful amendment instead of as a diametrical alternative.

Thursday afternoon centred upon the new technology question, and showed one of the major weaknesses of the left wing.

There was widespread agreement on the need to generate and support a British microtechnology industry, a view supported by the CP both in debate and in their fringe meeting with guest speaker Derek Robinson.

In effect this motion means that NALGO jobs will be destroyed by British microtechnology as opposed to the nasty foreign variety!

Weakness of left

The overall impression is of great possibilities for action from NALGO, but of a crippling weakness among the present left elements in mounting challenge to the leadership through a clear alternative programme, which must now include open trade union defiance of the Tory government and its plans to destroy the public services.

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