Official Strike

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strike funds in Oxford, Birmingham and Sheffield and called for stronger blacking in those regions.

They are also calling on their local Trades Council to call a national demonstration in London on the disputes and on the TGWU to extend the blacking to London.

Meanwhile the 'left" MPs of the Tribune group were being asked to call for a government ban on using THF hotels.

This action, after the first of the strikes is now nearly 19 weeks old, was forced by a lobby of MPs and trade union officials in Smith Square last week by the Joint Shop Stewards Committee of hotel workers from both the TGWU and GMWU.

RECOGNITION

Workers at the Linton Lodge and Randolph Hotels in Oxford, at the i Grosvenor House in Sheffield and at the Night Out night club in Birmingham are all on strike for union recognition.

The move by the lefts has a particularly hollow ring. Last week one of the Tribune group, Bob Transport and General come from Ipswich Trades Council which has called for a local boycott of THF in their area, and for other trades councils throughout Suffolk to follow suit.

' PRIVATE

Meanwhile a catering committee of the TUC has been meeting on the disputes-in private and without consulting any of the strikers.

The London lobby forced the national officer for the trade group Bert Kay, to call for the blacking to be put into effect in Yorkshire.

No action has so far been taken by the TGWU to get the GMWU to stop allowing scabbing in their name at the Linton Lodge in Scab labour, most of it recruited since the strike started, have been proudly displaying GMWU cards. Meanwhile the strikes and the pickets go on.

Messages of support and donations to:

Margaret Radbourne 41, Bridge St.

Oxiord

:TGWI The Surrey hospitals strike escalated early this week when IGWU members at a further four hospitals took strike action and set up pickets in support of four strike-bound hospitals in the Epsom area.

The strike, which has now won official recognition from the TGWU first began on Tuesday 22 March when 30 porters were sacked for alleged breach of contract. Reorganisation of the duty rota as part of the cuts in public expenditure lies at the root of the dispute which now involves more than sixty strikers.

The dispute took a bitter turn last week with a massive press witch-hunt around the by now common theme of hospital workers "endangering the lives of patients" by their picketing.

At the same time members of COHSE were lead into the shameful step of joining an anti-strike demonstration of management and consultants.

By last weekend the idle rich of this exclusive commuter area, were joining in attempts to break the picket, with five bourgeois girls riding horses through the picket line on Saturday.

The following day scabs on horse back were out in force at the Manor Hospital.

The health authorities were due to go to the High Court for an injunction against the pickets last Monday as calls went out for Jack Jones to intervene in the dispute. But with local NUPE branches offering to man the picket lines in the event of an injunction against the health authority seemed to be considering a IGWU request to refer the dispute to ACAS.

As hospital workers increasingly resort to strike action in defence of living standards and jobs, it is becoming clear that hospital management, consultants and the press will unite to peddle the line that patients' lives are being put at risk.

The livelihoods of the threatened workers and the effects of the cuts on the services provided to patients are, of course, totally ignored by these 'humanitarians' been massively rejected.

Hatred of 'participatic increased a few days before t vote when workers received a let rom the Cars Council, the high ody in participation' supporti the management and governme threat to sack the toolmakers a urging all Leyland workers to st at work and maintain continuc STOP THE CUTS LuPE END MUPE STUC SAIS ONCER STOP CUT ARMS Nurses march against the cut Strikers should insist that Ja Jones pulls out all TGWU hospil workers immediately and deman supporting action from other pub sector unions unless the 30 porte are reinstated.

Hospital workers from ti Epsom area must be encouraged attend the next Conference London Area Stewards in the NI (CLASH) on May 11 so that tl fight against the cuts can be o ordinated on a London-wide bas and individual disputes such as th given the full backing of Londe hospital workers.

UM

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PHOTO: John Sturrock (Report) named individuals,

STRIKI THE CUTS