Spread Civil Service
Socialist Press1981 1981-03-25Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 9 →
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NS After a tremendous rank and file response drove back the government last week on the issue of the Liverpool suspensions, the civil service pay dispute has entered its third week with members preparing for a long battle.
The main question now is to escalate the action and bring out as many of the selected strike centres as possible at the same time.
This in itself should only be seen as the build up to a national indefinite strike, with just the key unemployment benefit computers exempted.
Anything less will allow the Council of Civil Service Union leaders the chance to prepare the kind of sell-out they have already indicated they are looking for.
The most likely form this will take is to trade the 7% cash limit for a revived version of the Pay Research Agreement-despite the fact that the CPSA (the largest of the nine unions) is split down the middle on whether such an agreement is necessary.
All civil service activists must work now to prepare the membership to resist any sell-out deals. Strike-breaking • by top Inland Revenue officials must be met with mass picketing.
The decision by the bank workers' unions to black any work redirected to their members shows the kind of solidarity which will be needed to outmanoeuvre Thatcher.
Spread the strikes to win the full 15%!