Todd ducks Ford pay battle

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AT A conference in Southampton on November 10, delegates from public sector unions and trades councils called for a united mass campaign against the government's 4% pay ceiling.

The campaign is being run by the Hampshire Campaign Committee of the South-East Regional TUC, and promises to give assistance and organise solidarity where members take industrial action.

Meetings of public sector shop stewards, trades council delegates and union officials will be organised in major towns in Hampshire. Local co-ordinating committees will be formed to organise mass meetings with national speakers. A leaflet is to be produced leading up to mass demonstrations and meetings in the New Year.

Some delegates at the conference spoke of apathy or fear in the rank and file union membership-but apathy and fear is not solely due to government policies.

It is also the result of sell-outs by our national trade union leadership-best illustrated in BL recently.

At local meetings in this campaign, that point should be driven home. The rank and file doesn't need to be convinced of the need to breach the 4%-they do need to be convinced that their national leadership is fighting with them, not against them.

CARLA JAMISON AS negotiations dragged on up to the last day of the old pay contract-November 23 -rank and file workers in Ford plants were ignored.

The demand for a £20 claim has not been pushed National Organiser.

The argument between management and the unions has been over increasing the offer of 4.5% on the basic rate and over management's plans to bring in a fixedbonus type efficiency agreement. centred on mobility ment This agreement, for all workers, would be linked to a new penalty clause, controlled by plant ta THE threatened strike of tanker drivers planned for 16 November didn't take place. TGWU officials delayed the strike for further talks with the employers at ACAS.

The dispute arose over pay when Mobil drivers accepted an 11% offer earlier this year.

Tanker drivers from other companies with the exception • of BP have rejected the employers' offer of 8%.

Talks with Shell over the weekend broke down at ACAS when the company refused to go above 8%.

Esso met TGWU officials this week at ACAS.

United action by drivers from the three main companies-Esso, Shell and Texaco-can win a pay rise in line with Mobil and strike action is still on the cards for December. managers.

Reports leaked on Monday indicated that the penalty clause idea had t sen dropped by Ford man gement in negotiations.

The betrayal of the BL strike for a £20 claim has affected the mood of the rank and file.

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There will be a series of mass meetings to be held before Christmas. claim, is trying to get senior stewards and the JNC to make a recommendation on Ford management's final offer.

A vote at this stage will be undermined by the extent of short-time working in many of the smaller Ford plants and the closeness of winter and of Christmas.

One sign of progress is the willingness of militants in the Leyland Action Committee and the Ford Workers Group to discuss and plan together a joint campaign, sharing the lessons of the respective struggles-in particular the role of the paid national officials.

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However, Todd, in an attempt to avoid taking responsibility for the progress of the 1981 pay