Bureaucrats turn out for Grunwick rally
Socialist Press1976 1976-12-15Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 10 →
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A formidable line up of national union bureaucrats assembled in Willesden Trades Hall on 12th December to make Sunday socialism speeches.
They were appearing at a meeting to support the Grunwick strike - a great let-out for them from having to defend the policies of the Labour government against E Ne hostility of their members.
This reactionary employer has provided them with an excuse for 'left' militant words.
Murray insisted the whole trade TUC General Secretary Len union movement was on the side of the strikers - yet the TUC has done nothing but circulate branches calling for financial and moral He paid tribute to the Labour government for bringing in the Employment Protection Act which has now been defied by the Grunwick management.
Lena Jaeger brought from the Labour Party National Executive Committee and appealed to the meeting to inform them of "loopholes" in the Act.
But while Roy Grantham, APEX General Secretary gave a rousing "we'll fight to the finish" speech Stalinist Maurice Styles of the UPW executive called for "realism" and the avoidance of another Shrewsbury Two - this time with postmen in jaii.
Styles' fears on this of course would be the greater with the memory of the complete betrayal of the Shrewsbury pickets by the TUC!
At the same time he intimated he would support the reimposition of a black on Grunwick's mail.
In contrast to this rhetoric was the straightforward account of the struggle by Mohammed Ahmed, Secretary of the Strike Committee who called for the blacking of all Grunwick products.
And the AUEW Convenor of the local Associated Automation GEC factory; Abdul Wagu, correctly condemned the talk of reliance on arbitration and law, and stressed the importance of industrial action.
Grunwick workers are unlikely to be taken in by the verbal displays presented by thé union leaders last Sunday. As in Trico and a whole series of local disputes now in progress, real support from these officials would have produced victory almost at once.