Regan and Defend Living Extend Postal Standards

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of the factories on July 11.

Although, the police replied with a turnout of over 4,000 including their cavalry detachments and military-trained Special Patrol Group, their attempts to break the picket, met with repeated failure. In fact, the pickets made the streets around each of the factory entrances completely impassable for several hours.

The assortment of trade union bureaucrats from APEX and elsewhere, including TUC assistant general secretary Norman Willis, who attempted to address the pickets, were given a hostile reception as a suitable reply to their lack of action over the previous ten months.

In sharp contrast was the acclaim given to the strikers themselves and left-winger Arthur Scargill, who had brought a large contingent of miners from the Yorkshire area and who along with many other delegations, had travelled overnight to join the picket.

Ironically, it was Scargill's actions which ensured that the goal of bringing the factories to a halt was only partially achieved.

It was his call for the pickets to join the TUC-organised demonstration which brought a response after right-wing pleas had failed.

With the picket reduced to only a few hundred, the scabs Cont'd Back Page, Col 5. which mass, active hostility to wage controls led to the bringing down of the Heath government.

OFFENSIVE

In the wake of the destruction of Phase 3, a wages offensive is already opening up. There is no doubt that section after section of workers will now seek to seize their chance to make up for the last two years of vicious cuts in real wages.

The readiness of workers to struggle in pursuit of these demands is shown by the scale of the mobilisations in support of the Grunwick strikers, and the tenacious blacking action by postal workers in defiance of UPW leaders, employers and courts.

And at the same time the defeat of Jones at the TGWU Conference has clearly shaken the authority of the union bureaucracy at all levels and challenged its ability to sabotage and disrupt through bureaucratic decree the struggles of their members to defend their living standards.

LEFT TALKERS

But it has not removed their room for manoeuvre. Rather, it has forced them to turn increasingly to utilise the left talkers and the Communist Party to assist them in heading off and diverting militant struggles on wages.

Already in Fords and at Longhridao Ctalinict dominated leaderships have rushed in TGWU vote to submit basic increases of no 1570-20%.

Even if such claims were won in full they would still amount to a substantial wage cut under present inflation. And workers are clearly prepared to fight for much bigger claims.

DEFUSE

The sole purpose of these "responsible" claims is to take the steam out of the wages movement by arguing the need to keep the employer viable.

We say that the priority must be the restoration of the living standards of the working class to 1974 levels, and the defence of this through linking wages to the cost of living through a sliding scale of wages.

The defeats suffered by the bureaucracy have killed any possibility of an agreed Phase 3, and caused Liberals to question the future of the Lib-Lab coalition deal.

But they have not slackened the iron determination of Healey and Callaghan to press ahead with their alliance with the Liberals, and impose wage restraint, if necessary without the formal support of the TUC.

They have drawn Liberals to set them nreccure from the w after the claims for more than closer to the selves free of arkine classPHOTO: Andrew Wiard, Report whether through the unions, or through the Labour Party itself.

At the same time the government is aware it can count on the energetic efforts of TUC leaders to stifle militant wage struggles by any means at | their disposal.

Scanlon has already announced that the AUEW will uphold the 42 month rule' and honour annual agreements.

More dramatically, the TGWU leadership has violated the specific vote of this month's conference by circulating full time officers informing them that the return to free collective bargaining is to • COULEI BRAM PLAN UNITE The Grunwick mass picket begın only alter the end of existing contracts.

The TGWU conference rejected this position and voted for unfettered collective bargaining as of August 1.

It is with these moves in mind that Healey has made it clear that the government is prepared to press ahead without any formal deal with the TUC From the government end, all wage claims in the public sector will be resisted; rigid cash limits will be imposed, and, working Cont'd Back Page, Col 1.

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•TERMATIONAL NELS