New Kangaroo Court Build Hotels Set up Bytgwu

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Edinburgh hotel workers join picket of natio al pay talks with Centre Hotels authority of the union" the Oxford District Committee of the TGWU is making preparations to discipline leading militants British Leyland Cowley Assembly Plant.

At an emergency meeting of the District Committee last week a motion was submitted from the Finance and General Purposes Committee of the District Committee asking for powers to be vested in itself to conduct a disciplinary hearing involving certain members of the District Committee.

Hearing

The far reaching motion which was carried by a large majority says the following:

«This specially convened District Committee meeting authorises its Finance and General Purposes Committee to conduct a disciplinary hearing under the Union rules in respect of those delegates who caused disruption and disorder at the District Committee meeting held on the 20th October 1977.

The disciplinary hearing, if agreed, shall also deal with those members of the District Committee whose conduct, both at their place of work and within the District Committee, have brought the Union into disrepute.

Furthermore, this District Committee authorises its Finance and General Purposes Committee, where it finds members to be in breach of Rule 11 to make such recommendations as it deems necessary, to the Regional Committee, for disciplining those members"

According to delega tes at The meeting the cha irman ruled that only the F&GP can prefer charges.

Executioner

This means that the motion sets up the F&GP as prosecutor, judge, jury and executioner.

It gives the same four people the right to select those to be charged; prefer the charges; conduct the hearing: and recommend disciplinary action to the Regional Committee.

In the case of the Oxford District Committee, the whole committee who are conducting the hearing are laying the charges. It is therefore impossible to argue that they can be to any degree unbiased.

Oxford TGWU District

Chairman, Bill Roche JP.

A hearing set up in this way cannot be designed to disperse trade union justice.

It is a kangaroo court and the purpose of kangaroo courts is to act on predetermined decisions and to persecute people.

The purpose of this particular set up is not difficult to find.

Next Monday is voting day in the shop floor ballot for convenor and deputy convenors of the Assembly Plant.

Witch-hunt

As things stand most workers active in the trade union movement in the plant are convinced that present convenor and arch right winger Reg Parsons will lose the election and that Bob Fryer, removed as convenor in 1974 after a TGWU Regional Inquiry and a national witch-hunt will be elected convenor.

It is expected that the names of those to be charged will be announced before the election along with the nature of the charges.

It is also expected that the list of names will include leading contenders in the election who will then be forced to participate in the ballot with charges hanging over them.

It is presumably hoped that this will provide the witch-hunt material necessary if the right wing are to regain their positions.

The problem tor the right wing is that most workers in Cowley have seen it all before. There is always a witch-h int before every election in the plant.

Problem

This year, with militancy high and with wages and working conditions rapidly deteriorating it will be hard to make a witch-hunt catch on.

The other problem the right wing have is the reaction of workers if militants are targets for the disciplinary hearing-Alan Thornett, chairman of the TGWU 5/293 Branch and Tim O'Sullivan, chairman of the TGWU 5/55 Branch.

The result of this was a lobby outside the District Committee meeting of 40 workers from Alan Thornett's Transport section along with workers from other parts of the Cowley Assembly Plant, in particular the Princess track.

The Transport Department made their position clear in a statement to delegates:

"Dear Brothers and Sisters, This delegation in attendance tonight, which following a mass meeting represents the whole of the Transport Department, wishes to make this point:

TG WU members in the Transport Department are completely fed up with conented our interests in the Transport Department for the past 15 years and all we ask is that we be allowed to continue to elect the stewards of our choice.

Only recently he was undemocratically barred from a meeting of shop stewards on the plant, now we fear that further such action could arise from this District Committee meeting.

The Transport Department is not prepared to tolerate any further witchhunts, personal vendettas or undemocratic actions.

We request that a delegation of shopfloor members from the Transport Department be allowed to attend tonight's meeting, purely as observers. We also request that such representatives be allowed to attend as observers any meetings which materialise from tonight's meeting".

CONDER METROPOLE

The struggle against low wages in the hotel and catering industry which has been waged in London over the last eight weeks suffered a major set back last Wednesday when stewards at the Centre Hotel branch of the GMWU accepted a productivity deal and 10% pay rise in a package negotiated the previous day.

The best organised hotels branch in the London region was poised for strike action in pursuit of a £50 minimum wage. Now the GMWU bureaucracy has by skilful manoeuvre and sabotage been able to win acceptance of a deal which will drive living standards down even further. Dartmouth 1HR It has significance beyond that of one branch. Centre Hotels branch • were always the key to leading the fight for the £50 minimum wage backed by the necessary strike action.

Sufficient

The importance of cracking the Centre Branch has long been recognised by the GMWU leadership. They sent National Officer Cooper to negotiate the wage increase for the group, whereas Regional Officer, Romp, ans his messenger boy Tilston. were considered sufficient to crack the resistance in the Rank Hotel branch and to knife the Metropole strike.

Cooper delayed negotiations saying that he was pressing for a £20 across the board rise and so managed to break up the threat of a common movement on the £50 claim.

Romp and Tilston have been busy for over a month delaying negotiations and gaining acceptance for wage increases of 10%.

Little alternative

When the Wages Counci rise of ten percent was ther presented as the finished position, leading stewards fel: they had little alternative bi: to accept. Given the activit of the GMWU it is hardly surprising that they capit:lated.

Throughout the last eight weeks the strike at the Metropole has brought militants from around the countr: together in a fight for wage increases which has threatened the bureaucracy and the future of the Wages Council.

The lengths to which these leaders have gone to strangle the movement shows the importance of directing tha: fight against the bureaucracy. if decent wages are to won.

The rank and file together is only the beginning.

The question is now poses of how completely *-= GMWU leadership London region will be abie :: reassert its hold.

It is essential that militar:s tested out in the here struggles throughout the last year direct their fight :3 breaking that grip.

The Hotel and Catersa Workers National Actica Committee could be i-e focus for that struggle. A' hotel militants should contac the group at 21, Scala Street. London WIP 1LU .E1.10 .22.20 .£5.50 E10.00 Park

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