To Break Nuj Strike
Socialist Press1977 1977-11-02Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 10 →
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NATSOPA workers supporting the NUJ closed shop strike at Darlington returned to 'work' last week, furious at the action of their union leadership.
Tommy Ferguson, the NATSOPA FoC, had a stand up row with the official sent up to order them back.
Not only have his members been forced to cross NUJ, NGA and SLADE picket lines, but they were further humiliated by Westminster Press management on their return, being told that holiday entitlement had been forfeited by their action.
Their return has put the workers back on the company payroll, but with no work for them to do, so long as the NGA members stay out.
Everything points to a deal between Owen O'BrienNATSOPA General Secretary —and westmmster press, who own North of England Newspapers. NATSOPA have successfully pulled out of the dispute and stopped the £50 per person a week strike pay that they claimed was draining their funds.
In return, Westminster Press were so • confident that NATSOPA's defection would end print union support that they had notices placed on the Northern Echo windows proclaiming "We're Back'. A curtain covered this over optimistic slogan.
The NATSOPA workers are on basic pay-far less than their strike pay-and Westminster Press is expected to lay them off within two weeks if the paper resume publishing.
Thus NATSOPA officials have not only struck a blow against the strike but may have thrown their members. on the dole in the process.
The NUJ is now committed to a series of guerrilla strikes throughout the rest of the group and are pressing for the NGA executive, meeting this week, to support these.
The NGA executive has already admitted that their members at Darlington would be very hard to persuade to go back to work.
But they are unlikely to permit effective by their members.
If this happens NUJ members must go it alone with all out sympathy strikes and fight for local print support in defiance of the NGA executive.
Wage claim
NUJ chapels throughout the provincial papers are voting on whether to strike over a £23 wage claim with numerous fringe benefits.
The Newspaper Society employers offered 10%,