Jobs in N Post & Telecoms

Scan page 7

On Monday 18 May the Annual Conference of the Union of Communication Workers will open in Brighton.

In that same week the Committee Stages of the British Telecommunications Bill will take place.

The Bill ends the state monopoly for Posts and Telecoms, and will, allow private operators to obtain licenses to run specific posts and telecoms services.

: Assets or parts of the two businesses could be sold off by government directive and the pension fund will be split which all the unions with the exception of SPOE (the middle management union) are against.

Appropriately April 1 had been the day chosen for an attempt by the union officials of the UCW and POEU to campaign against the Bill.

A rally was held at Central Hall, Westminster, together with a lobby of Parliament.

It seemed to many rank and file members a bit late in the day to campaign against the inevitable -especially when the UCW Executive had in many ways pre-empted the legislation.

They have reorganised the union structure, changing its name, holding a special conference to discuss and agree on reorganising the union's structure, and setting up a Joint Reorganisation Committee that has dealt with issues requiring action to split the postal side and Telecoms.

The new Bill is no surprise to the union leaders. The campaign of non-cooperation with the split in the industry could have started immediately after the election of the Tories.

It might then have had an effect on what went on in Parliament.

UCW General Secretary Jackson, speaking to the 1 April rally, said that despite the union lobby the Tories would vote for the Bill and pay no attention.

He argued that the Tories were in power because somebody voted for them and that union members should make sure that next time they don't.

Jackson believes that what is important is the ballot box and parliamentary democracy.

Yet there is an alternative -class action to defend jobs, services and living standards. Yet, like other TUC leaders Jackson will give no such lead to the UCW leadership.

The pay award for postal workers this year is a reflection of that lack of leadership: 20% was the claim and 8% from 1.April and 1½%, from 1 November is the recommendation for members to accept!

The circular outlining the agreement refers to the recent pay awards given to other public sector unions (most of them around about 7-9%) as an argument that postal workers should be pleased at what they've been offered.

But no mention is made of the firemen's 18% or the miners' 13% secured even without industrial action.

And Jackson remains silent on the way the Tories backed down over job losses when the miners began to take unofficial action!

There is a source of power outside of Parliament that can bring about changes. That is the might and independence of the working class.

The UCW membership needs a leadership in the union to show them this alternative.

If not, the future for postal and telecoms members is a dismal one - with living standards decreasing by the minute, jobs being lost and given away in so-called "voluntary" productivity deals with a gun in one's back.

The Executive hopes to avoid controversy over issues at this year's conference by producing a special report that will take up most of conference's time.

But one of the major debates is bound to be on new technology.

It is essential to secure an agreement that will not mean the loss of jobs.

Claims outstanding for reduction in the working week and extra leave should be secured by UCW members as a priority before any further discussion on new technology takes place.