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ment in the hope of preventing part of the fight of the working by Alan In each new period of the struggle of the working class movement it becomes necessary to remind the rising generation of the sacrifices which have been needed to set up our organisations and establish our rights.

It came as a surprise to one of our members in his union branch the other week to discover that nobody seemed to know why May Day is celebrated as International Workers Day. The general opinion was that it might have something to do with fertility rites, Morris Dancing and the beginning of Spring, so it seemed good idea explain that origins really lie in a particular struggle to improve workers conditions and to express solidarity with those who have suffered to maintain them. Clin for that not provocateur or an attempt off a personal grudge.

However, any careful consideration of the case was impossible at the time in an atmosphere of witch-hunt and hysteria built up by the press and exploited by the legal system. After numerous raids and arrests, eight men were found guilty of conspiracy" - not because they could have played any part in the incident, but because they advocated policies which according to the police might have led to it.

Of these one committed suicide and four others were hanged in 1887. With the rope around his neck, one of them, August Spies, declared: "There will be a time when our silence will be more powerful than the voices you stran gle today'.

The stepping up of the struggle the eight hour day ensured the Haymarket martyrs were forgotten. The American FedAs Healy's budget chopped to the ground any lingering hopes among trade unioniSts that the socia contract meant preservation of jobs or living standards in exchange for "restraint" in wage claims, the pressure has increased on the trade union leaders.

Workers are demanding these leaders fight for increases to match the escalating rate of inflation now an annual rate of 25.4%.

In London, bushen have been able to extract an offer of a 12 month cost of living deal paying 75p for every 1% increase in the Retail Prices Index, starting from next month.

This eliminates the reactionary "threshold" conception, since no "trigger" is involved whereby certain level of price increase is tolerated. It Is a considerable step towards a full sliding scale of wages though of course a sliding scale would include all increases in living costs determined by trade unionists and not centre on merely the government-distorted figures of the Retail Prices Index Every action by students But even this creates agony for the trade union bureaucracy. Teachers' leaders for instance, put on the spot by the 20-30% settlements conceded to powerworkers, civil servants, and miners, have been forced to scrap their earlier 28% claim in favour of one for about 26%.

Yet the NUT leaders showed then reluctance to fight by blaming the employers for not settling quickly, as union official lenrv Clother said *They could have had a quick settlement but they chose not to do so. It will now cost them much more Similar embarassment is shown by the railwaymen's leader Sid Weighell. who, forced by the pressure of his membership reflected through the NUR executive, has reluctantly rejected British Rail's 21.2% offer and is holding out for 30%. Desperately attempting o prevent strike action (only deteaed by two votes on the executive Weighell has called for non-binding instant arbitration, while preparations go ahead for a strike.

He plainly feels uncomfortable in confronting the employer, and blames his memhers. "It has made EX ment in the hope of preventing my life intolera l said, "because my members a accept the situation that the gate should be closed now with the NUR the only one left outside." Left to himself, Weighell obviously would have sold out long ago.

It is this massive working class pressure. escalated by the budget attacks on living standards, which is now disrupting the wage cutting social contract between the Labour leaders and the TUC. This is not for want of trying by the TUC. Len Murray made clear last week his disappointment that wages had been forced up. He said that the social contract had been "very successful" in many ways, but admitted "wages and salaries have gone up much faster than we had honed"

Without TUC influence "things really would have gone through the ceiling, said Murray thus proudly stating his belief that the TUCs function is to keep down wages in line with the needs of capitalism.

This raises the need tor a now and determined leadership in the unions to replace the present half-hearted and shame-faced reformists.

the fight