Unions in the Dock

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TIGHT TO IE TART TU JOIR. capitalist class which always end up with the working class footing the bill.

The fight must press forward to throw out all forms of state control of wages. Instead we call for a sliding scale of wages clause in every agreement, to ensure that wages rise automatically with the cost of living - on a scale assessed by elected committees of trade unionists and housewives.

To those employers or government departments who say they cannot pay, we must demand that they open their books to these elected committees. This will either prove them wrong, or prove that they must be nationalised without compensation under the control of elected committees of workers, not tailored to the requirements of capitalism as at present.

We are for immediate strike action to stop the cuts. Where redundancies and closures are threatened, we must fight for occupation and demand work sharing on full pay, administered by trade union committees, together with a programme of public works to provide jobs for the unemployed a trade union rates.

ELECTED

But to fight for these policies means to fight the bureaucracy and its allies in the trade union movment. We must demand that all full time officials are regularly elected at branch meetings. At the same time careerists must be driven out of union positions by demanding that full time officials be paid no more than the average wage of their members.

Steps must be taken to protect trade unions from the interference of the Tory press. And "participation" schemes which subordinate unions to management must be opposed on principle.

We are convinced that the working class will fight the wage-cutting policies of the government and the TUC. But this needs a clear lead and a perspective on which to fight.

CAMPAIGN

To this end, we as trade union militants, have formed 'ourselves into the Campaign for Workers' Democracy, an ad hoc committee of rank and file trade unionists.

We are calling a Conference in order to promote the widest possible discussion on the policies and analysis outlined above. The Conference, convened on the issues of "Wage. Control and Union Democracy", , is open to all trade unionists. But we ask in particular for trade union branches, District Committees, shop stewards committees and Trades Councils to send delegates, sponsor the Conference and make a financial donation towards the organising costs.

Copies of this statement, further details of the campaign and conference credentials (25p) can be obtained from the Conference Secretary Kevin Lee, 44, Devonshire Road, Handsworth Wood, Birmingham 20. THE DOLE JOB PROTECTION* LIVE L PAN OFFICIA WHERF ARE THEY Key demand: Open the Books!

"No polities" was the unspoken rule at the recent conference of the National Union of School Students. Many of those most eagerly following this ine were Stalinists of the Young Communist League who were strongly represented among the 80 delegates and observers at the Conference.

This is why, though one of the main campaigns of the Union is supposedly against spending cuts in education, any specific method of fighting the cuts was rejected.

A motion containing wol policy calling for a fight for a sliding scale of public expenditure rising automatically to keep pace with inflation - was defeated in favour of a meaningless resolution simply stating that "The Union should fight education cuts" , but leaving open the question of how.

Defeated also was a motion which demanded a struggle to secure work sharing on full pay together with a programme of useful public works to fight unemployment.

One delegate, clearly prepared to see huge sums of government cash bolstering up toldivate contractors' profits, conference he did not see why useful public works could only be carried out alongside a scheme of When discussion shifted to the question of wages, another delegate went so far as to suggest that school students "aren't interested" in economic or political questions.

This view was correctly attacked by the speaker advocating the main motion "deploring" the TUC's 42% In March last year there was a dispute at the Eaton Transmission Co, Walkden, Lancashire. A mass meeting first of all decided not to strike in support of 9 workers sacked in a previous dispute, but then a further meeting decided to strike.

Some of the workers scabbed on the strike. Four of these men, who organised what was called a 'liaisor committee' for the scabs, were expelled from the AUEW by the Bolton District Committee.

But an industrial tribunal on Wednesday July 21st acting under its powers under Section 5 of the 1974 Trade Union and Labour Relations Act decided that they were entitled to be members of the AUEW.

This Act was passed by the Labour Government to replace the hated Tory Industrial Relations Act following the confrontation with the AUEW in 1974.

This decision of the tribunal follows on the High Court ruling last year as to who should be members of the union's national committee - a ruling the leadership passively accepted.

There has to be a stand made against these attacks of the courts on the independence of the trade unions. Last week's Manchester decision must not be accepted. If the courts try to enforce it, they must be met by the same national strike action which defeated the Industrial Relations Act. pay cuts plan, who expressed amazement that anyone could believe working class school students aren't interested in wages.

This motion was clearly quite inadequate to provide any alternative path for the struggle to defend living standards against inflation. It was narrowly defeated, while a motion advocating a fight for a sliding scale of wages clause in all agreements to protect against inflation was more heavily voted down.

But the real weakness of the preșent NUSS leadership even on simply day to day questions emerged clearly in the National Committee reports to the Conterence.

They contained a long and sorry saga of petty personal feuds among the national leadership' , resulting in splits with many NC members resigning. Even some of the survivors were absent from the Conference for obscure 'personal reasons' ABSENCE What has clearly been absent from the leadership has been any firm fight for principle or serious desire to overcome the inevitable initial organisational and financial problems in building the NUSS.

The Stalinists of course refuse to fight the periphery of liberals and right-wingers who have crept into the leadership, with the resuit that now far too many of the union's members are paper members only.

This situation must be turned by recruiting school students on the firm basis of an active union with a fighting policy both to defend education and to fight alongside the working class as a whole against the attacks of the employers and their agents in the labour movement. AUEW General Secretary Boyd: right wing leadership rests on intervention by courts.

Sommi nU Battles continue around 1 disciplinary action taken the Yorkshire area coan against two extreme di wingers who gave union do ments to the Tory press.

The two - Bill O'Brien, until decision Branch Secretary at Gl houghton Colliery, Castleford, : Tom Roebuck, of Manvers M Colliery, were banned from of for two years for giving volunt statements and confidential do ments to lawyers representing Sheffield Star. The informat aided the paper's defence again: libel action brought by Art Scargill, Yorkshire area preside on behalf of the NUM.

•Now the disciplined men resorting to legal action to try get the decision reversed.

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TRADE ÜNia MEMBERS