Strike Leaders Back Clash

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Recent 'sensational' reports in the *press about the deteriorating condition of many hospitals have served to under*i Hine the importance of the forthcoming Conference of London Area Stewards in the Health Service (CLASH).

The Conference, to be held from 2pm to 6pm on Wednesday, 23 February, will provide an opportunity for stewards and lay officials in health service trade unions in London to discuss the next stage in the defence of the NHS.

The programme provides for an examination of experiences in fighting the cuts and for the establishment of united policies for future action.

The second half of the meeting will be devoted to the need for a standing link-up between all NHS Joint Shop Stewards Committees in London.

The most recent meeting of the organising committee for the conference, was attended by a group of stewards and lay officials who played a prominent role in the three-day strike in January of anciliary workers at five East End hospitals.

Denis Renton, GMWU at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, G. Waller, GMWU at the Metropolitan Hospital, and the secretary of the Central Hospitals Branch of the GMWU, gave a report of the action which, according to one estimate, involved some 1500 hospital workers.

The ancillary workers' strike (first reported in Socialist Press 51) centred on staff cuts which had resulted in undermanning and local management's attempts to impose new rotas on the catering staff in the District without any discussion with the unions, threatening loss of overtime pay amounting to between £4 and £20 a week.

The united action of the anculary staff eventually resulted in the reinstatement of the suspended porters although, apparently with the help of the full-time officials of COHSE and the GMWU, the management was able to secure a return to work without agreeing to drop the proposed new rotas.

Negotiations since the strike have resulted in present staff obtaining protection for their regular hours but new staff will receive only basic pay. The GMW stewards expect that further struggles around the same issues lay ahead. ancillary workers throughout the NHS in the coming period unless united action is taken to defend living standards against the effects of 15% inflation and the treacherous collaboration of the trade union bureaucracy with the Labour The CLASH organising committee, built around the South Camden Joint Shop Stewards Committee, has therefore quite rightly made the overtime question a central topic of the conference.

Maurice Kolander, NUPE Branch Sectetary at St. Bartholomew's will speak at the meeting, which is expected to be well supported by the shop stewards who were involved in the dispute.

The organising committee meeting also received reports of support from a number of other JSSCs and hospitals. At one Area JSSC, however, members of the Communist Party had voiced opposition to the conference.

Their opposition appeared to have been based on the inclusion in the main resolution of too many points of Such complaints are absurd in view of the appeal by the organising committee for all supporting bodies to submit alternative documents or amendments to any of the three resolutions.

This democratic approach contrasts sharply with that of the Communist Party inspired and dominated Liaison Committee for the Defence of Trade Unions.

As on previous occasions, the LCDTU has refused to allow any motions or amendments to be moved by labour movement organisations at their conference on the cuts to be held on Saturday 26th February.

The main CLASH resolution has been circulated throughout London together with the programme and proposed constitution.

The programme also includes a report by Arthur Churchly of the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital on the first ever occupation in Britain of a hospital threatened with closure.

The • conference for all London NHS shop-stewards and lay officials will be held at Bonham Carter House, 52, Gower Street, London WC1. Further details from: Terrv Prosper. Secretarv.