Adwest: police crush picketing rights
Socialist Press1980 1980-07-09Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 11 →
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donations to Danny Broderick, 46 Berkle: Ave., Reading bodily carry off Adwest convenor Danny Broderick The nine week old dispute at Adwest Engineering of Reading • took a dramatic and sinister turn this week with the arrest of TGWU convenor Danny Broderick.
The arrest came as the culmination of a high-profile strikebreaking action by 'E' Division Reading police backed up by the Thames Valley tactical support unit (SPG) and led by Superintendant Winship from Woodley division.
When the 80 or so pickets arrived to take up their positions outside Adwest's gates there were already over 100 police waiting for them: more arrived shortly after 6.30 am.
The police then formed ranks four deep on either side of the gates thus creating an open corridor for the scab labour going in.
Any picket who could get anywhere near the gate was immediately bundled out of the way and threatened with arrest.
This not merely preempts Prior's vicious Employment Bill which seeks to limit numbers on picket lines and restrict secondary picketing, but renders it redundant before it even has a chance of becoming law.
Questionable
What Winship and his superiors attempted on Wednesday morning was the complete prevention and abolition of a totally lawful picket: an act which itself would appear questionable in terms of the law.
At 7.30 a.m. convenor Danny Broderick addressed the police, press and pickets through a megaphone informing them that in his view the action of the police was unacceptable because it was denying pickets their lawful rights.
He then walked between the ranks of police to the gate and was immediately arrested for wilful obstruction of the highway' and dragged bodily to a waiting Black Maria.
Meanwhile, the strike for the reinstatement of the TGWU convenor, TGWU stewards and 56 workers at the components plant goes on. Now, more than ever it needs the support of trades unionists everywhere.
*Mass picket. Monday July 14 from 6.30 am. at the Adwest Plant, Reading. redundancies, but to break the electricians' shop organisation as well.
The electricians rejected management's attempt at blatant victimisation and are continuing the strike until INTER COMM