British Shipbuilders MORE ORDERS MORE LOSSES!

Scan page 10

Even after the loss of 13,800 jobs, a wage-cutting pay deal and a savage programme of productivity proposals have been forced through, workers at British Shipbuilders face an uncertain future.

Management has won sufficient orders to keep most yards busy into next year: but the Asset-stripper Joseph With workers by the thousand taking to the streets to oppose Tory policies there is plainly no lack of militancy in the organised working class.

Yet the existing trade union bureaucrats and Labour leaders -whether right or 'left'-have no perspective to offer those workers prepared to fight in defence of jobs, living standards, social services and democratic rights.

These can only be defended through policies which start from the independent interests of the working class, which, as an international class, has nothing to gain and everything to lose from attempts to restore the profitability of their "ovin" employing class.

In a period where the contradictions of the anarchic capitalist system force the wholesale closure and destruction of the productive forces of society, only a socialist planned nationalised firm is still unable to compete with modern Japannse yards on anything other than the building of warships.

The result is that 'British Shipbuilders is due to run out of money before the end of the year-posing once again the prospect of more cutbacks and closures.

Cost of credit

Rritich chinnwners driven VIL by the massive cost of credit in Britain and the rising value of sterling against the yen have joined the world-wide rush to buy cheaper Japanese shipsleaving European shipbuilders high and dry. In the first quarter of 1980 Japan took 60% of ordrs-thn EEC a measly 8%!

But the "Tory governmmt has little time for the tales of woe told by British Shipbuilders management.

Impatient to get their hands on the vast profits turned out by the warship yards, they are talking of selling these back to private industry, while at the same time contemplating moves to close down further merchant vessel shipyards.

Yet again British Shipbuilders underlines the futility of union leadnrs' claims that by making concessions employers, jobs can be 'saved' within the existing systemó The world slump of capitalism has brought a simultaneous plunge in the rate of profit and a gross overcapacity in the productive forces.

Every retreat before the employers' offensive simply lays the basis for the next attack: shipyard workns must instead prepare the ground and a new leadership that will fight for all out strike action and occupations to dnfend all jobs in the