[sign Demonstration last Thursback on pay LAST Thursday…]

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sign Demonstration last Thursback on pay LAST Thursday, 25th, three thousand YOPs workers and unemployed youth converged on London to say what they thought about the so-called 'Youth Training' and Youth Opportunities' schemes.

In the days running up to the march I was on the Right to Work march through London highlighting the plight of YOPs workers and young unemployed.

All through the march we had delegations to YOPs workers and other workers in struggle. We even visited a group who never struggle, the TUC General Council. On Wednesday we lobbied their As they went in, not one of them stopped to say that they supported YOPs workers being organised.

Ken Gill, a so-called 'Communist Party" member, walked straight through.

Terry Duffy, who has appeared in a full page advert in all the daily papers pleading bosses to take on ‹ heap labour, got a rough r tion.

Jostling.

Although there is not much to gain politically from jostling the bureaucrats, I certainly understand the feeling of YOPs workers and unemployed who did it. Anyone who is quick to condemn should stand outside the NUM. ISTC or TGWU headquarters when the workers are lobbying for a fight.

On Thursday we marched round London, through Fleet Street (who were very quiet about the lobby) up to the Royal Festival Hall for a rally. When we went in after our hard slog round London, singing and chanting, the amosphere was electric. It really gave you confidence in vur ability to defeat Thatcher From the platform, speakers from the YOPs Trainee Union Rights Campaign (the organisers) outlined the true nature of YOPs as cheap labour.

Tony Benn and Dennis Skinner both seemed to be very wary of the presence of the BBC camera in front of them. they kept their comments mainiy on the Tories, well away from the right wing of the Labour Party who set up YOPs in the first place.

Tebbit

It would have been good to hear them say that they will fight for the next Labour government to implement the demands of the YTURC.

Alan Sapper spoke from the TUC General Council. He never mentioned the conduct of our 'glorious leaders' , who have consistently supported YOPs, and gave the usual 'we're doing all we can' speech.

A deputation of six demonstrators went to see Tebbit to ask him four questions:

1. Will you affirm the right of YOPs workers to join unions?

He answered yes, surprisingly. 2. Will you allow an introduction from a trade union rep at the beginning of each scheme?

He said it was not his job to recruit to the unions. Of course, we all know his task is to smash the unions. 3. Will you confirm that YOPs workers are covered fully by the Health and Safety at Work Act without delay?

Health

He gave a shady answer to this: no, because they get an allowance and not a wage, so are not workers.

Last year, five YOPs workers were killed at work and hundreds injured. If it's left to Tebbit, they will get no compensation.

No wonder he is against this. Any Trade union health rep would have YOPs workshops closed down if they could inspect them. 4. Do you think that youth are overpaid and have priced themselves out of jobs?

He answered yes. He uses this farcical view to justify cutting wages in the Young Workers Scheme.

The most significant thing about the lobby was that YOP workers from all over the country had taken strike action - the only way we will defeat Tebbit's plans.

Let's take Tebbit up on his own words. If you're on YOPs, join a union, get your mates to join. If you're in a union, fight by Stepher AFTER Thatcher's insulting offer to the Civil Service unions, which condemns the lowest paid workers to a further cut in living standards, the CPSA London no. 2 Area Committee has given a lead for a fightback.

But the national union leaders are planning to take the issue to the arbitration tribunal soon to be set up.

The bureaucrats' line was expressed by CPSA general secretary Ken Thomas. At CPSA VEC he claimed that the unions had outmanoeuvred the Tories on pay, and the arbitration tribunal would have no alternative but to give us a better increase!

Every move towards preparing for action is being ruled out of order by the top bureaucrats. Either they argue that it is too soon, ol else that action might frighten the arbitrators!

But the lesson of the ASLEF dispute is that only action will force any arbitration tribunal even to for YOPs workers, get your trades council to black YOPs.

The TUC should withdraw support from YOPs, not to condemn 500,000 youth to the dole but to force a programme of useful public works with full pay.

The Tories say there's no work. Well, how about the millions on the housing waiting list? Or the hospital waiting list? Or those who can't get education, because there's not enough college.

Of course there's work. The only thing is, this does not mean profit for the Tories. We've got to force them out and get real jobs and real wages for youth.

fignts Corbishley begin to think of bending towards the Civil Service workers.

A meeting of the London no. 2 Area Committee on Friday February 26 unanimously supported a motion from DE(MSC) Central London, calling for:

*the NEC to organise all out strike action from April 1 if the full offer is not conceded by arbitration;

*a lobby and demonstration against the arbitration; and *an immediate campaign to build links with Nhs unions against the offer of group rates tor civil servants to get access to private medicine.

CORRECTION: There was a mistake in the report in SO last week on the CPSA offer. The 527 increase applies to all grades, but only those wno are on the maximum or the incremental scale within the grade.

Ăll others will either get nothing (if they are 20 or under, : or have just started work in their grade) or very little (1-2%).

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es mass picket had been closed to ambul ment had said that st. were deliberately trying to called the hospital workers Tal...... ITIN _ D HOW LONG can Rupert Murdoch continue bluffing the Times workers?

On Monday 1 he postponed his 210 compulsory redundancies for NATSOPA WORKERS in the hived off profitable Telecoms Industry have each been given individual copies of an 8page glossy magazine entitled The Need for Change' Once you've waded through the preamble about what dedicațed and experienced staff British Telecom have and the need to cut costs to be more efficient in the face of competition, the crux of the whole Report is to inform staff that over the next three years there must be a 25% cut in costs!

It then breaks down areas where these cuts are needed.

It even mentions flippantly in one passage that:

"It amounts to a situation in which it should be extremely difficult to justify increasing pay next year."

It emphasises the 'need for change' and states that "with all this change going on, tuture security of employment will be a natural concern. Let me make it clear: there are no plans for sweeping across-the-board cuts or redundancies. But I cannot guarantee that there will never be redundancies..."

"We need to review existing practices on the retention of staff over 60 and to be more stringent on employment of staff who aren't up to standard."

The closing paragraphs THE fight for jobs by the women of the Lovable Bra firm has now shifted away from the firm's factory at Cumbernauld, near Glasgow, to its warehouse at Blairlinn, a desolate industrial estate on the outskirts of Cumbernauld.

On January 8, the women began a sit-in at the Cumbernauld factory. Negotiations were carried on with potential buyers for the firm. By the beginning of February, there remained only one possibility, a consortium headed by businessman Richard Corbett.

But as the deadline set by the receiver for a takeover (Wednesday 17 February) came closer, there was still no sign of a deal, although the women were prepared to accept Corbett's demands for a cut in the workforce from over 300 to 92, and the right to pick and choose the 92.

On 17 February, the receiver declared everyone redundant apart from some of the cleaners and office and canteen staff at Cumclerical workers from March 9 to March 15. The prospect of the Times and Sunday Times being shut down and then reopened elsewhere, • with new manning and work outline union reaction to these proposals. Management "have been heartened by the general response of unions' representations so far."

A statement from the UCW Telecoms Management Group confirms the general attitude of the executive -which is to tell Branch Secretaries not to turn down management proposals on TONY BENN gave his full support to the campaign to keep St. Mary's W9 open when he spoke to a packed public meeting last Wednesday at the 510 Centre, Harrow Road.

The public meeting (organised by the Hospital Defence Committee). was an attempt to extend the campaign into the local community at a time when the hospital management are continuing to run down the major casualty unit in the district and are planning the closure of the obstetric services on February 27.

Terry Petifer (London Ambulance Drivers Convenor), said that the present situation was that St. Mary's bernauld, and the workforce at the warehouse.

The workers left the sit-in at the factory to start picketing "the warehouse. Kathie Platt, one of the convenors, explained why:

'There's no money to be had from the sale of sewing machines (at the factory). The money is in the stock, and that is in the warehouse. The receiver is interested in the stock because that's where the money is tied up.

Regular orders

The pickets do not attempt to stop everything leaving the warehouse. Orders for the regular customers are still allowed out, after the receiver at the warehouse has let the pickets check the contents and destinations of what is being despatched: the pickets feel that preventing these deliveries would alienate both the regulat customers and any potential buyers.

In the last fortnight there has been a steady increase in the amount of conditions, has since Murdoch postpone the titles from papers to his pany. staff without going through agreed procedures and negotiations first.

However Branch Secretaries are urged to realise the need to co-operate in the face of competition and BT's future viability.

This combined attack has to be fought by the whole membership of UCW, CPSA (P&T) and POEU. had been closed to ambulances since February 15th.

This was because there were not enough beds to back up the Accident and Emergency unit. The hospital management had stated that the A&E unit was only open for serious injuries but ambulance drivers were having to decide whether or not to take serious cases to the hospital knowing that without beds these patients would have to be transferred to another hospital. (It is known that 50% of seriously injured patients die if transferred).

Terry said that if there was a major disaster in the area such as a big fire there would not be enough beds to cope. The hospital managesupport being received by the women: from the local trades council, from miners, from local factories, and from the local community in general.

The women have also met a delegation from the occupied Plessey factory in Bathgate and Helen Monaghan, who led the sit in at Lee jeans. A demonstration and rally were held last Saturday (27 february) in Cumbernauld in support of the fight by the Lovable workforce.

But the women's union, the National Union of Tailor and Garment Workers (NUTGW), continues its God-like role: many are certain of its existence, but it has yet to provide any concrete manifestation of itself. The union is not prepared to make the dispute official on the grounds that the women cannot, by definition, be on strike since they have all been sacked.

The pickets continue to focus their hopes on the emergence of a buyer for the factory and warehouse. The consortium headed by also receded, has had to trai isfer of 'imes pare nt comBut tinuing package talks are still confor a compromise of redundancies.

The leadership of the Times NATSOPA clerical chapel, it seems, wants to make some deal itself for fear of the whole thing being taken entirely into the hands of the NATSOPA executive, and a worse deal being imposed on it. The national union leaders have made it clear that they see the alternatives only in terms of large numbers of redundancies vs. very large numbers of redundancies.

Risky

Yet Murdoch can be beaten. Closing down and restarting would be risky and costly for him. A workers' occupation of the Times could defeat him.

And even if he did stick to his threat to close down, official strike action at his other papers, like the Sun, could beat him back. ment had said that st. Mary's W2 and St. Charles could cope but this was not true. The next nearest hospital able to deal with this sort of situation is the Middlesex W1 which is difficult for ambulances to get to because of the London traffic.

The area casualty officer, who was present at the meeting, summed up the seriousness of the present situation. When she said that there were only three beds available in the whole area that Wednesday night.

Tony Benn told the meeting that the closure of St. Mary's was part of the wider issue of this Tory government's attack on the Health Service. The Tories Corbett is continuing with negotiations and has now been promised the financial backing of the Scottish Development gency as well.

The Italian firm of Berlei is also again showing an interest in a possible takeover.

But, speaking bluntly, there can be no grounds for optimism. The ending of the sit-in was a serious step backwards, throwing away the trump of possession of the factory and the machinery in it.

And allowing out orders to regular customers from the warehose negates the purpose of the picketing. The receiver has no reason even to attempt to move any of the rest of the stock out.

Weakens

Permitting the workforce at the warehouse and the remnants of the workforce to continue working is another factor which weakens the fight for jobs. Their work is running down operON SATURDAY a mass picket took place outside Foyle's bookshop, where a trade union recognition dispute has been going on for about three weeks.

Ken Livingstone spoke at the picket and promised the support of the GLC. He also pledged to push for blacking from ILLA and the Labour-controlled London boroughs.

Since the original five, a further seven have been sacked, when management discovered that they had joined USDAW.

Another 12 members still remain inside, their identities unknown by the bosses. were deliberately trying to dismantle the Health Service so that there could be a return to the old system where private health schemes would make large profits for those that ran them.

Benn said that if the campaign was to succeed the fight had to be continued. He said that the only people who win are those that fight such as the workers at Lee Jeans and the ASLEF train drivers.

He saw that the main problem in getting support for the campaign as the lack of media coverage - if people knew the issues there would be massive support for-St. Mary's. Had this meeting been taking place in Poland our press would have ing complete closure much nearer.

And only limited efforts are being made to break out of the isolation which the women find themselves in, as a result of the failure of the NUTGW to provide them with any support. The retention of jobs in Cumbernauld is certainly a central aspect to the fight, but to retain the jobs there must involve building support outside of Cunbernauld as well.

Stacked

With the odds now stacked against the women, a new buyer could demand and win even more concessions from them than those already gained by Corbett. All these factors make it more vital than ever that the labour movement rallies to the support of the women.

Send donations to: Sadie Lang, c/o Lovable Co. Ltd.. Wardpark Road. Wardpark South Industrial Estate, Cumbernauld. Cheques payable to Sadie Lang.

Organiser, Thursday Police have limited pickets to two per door and stopped any collection of funds in the street. This has obviously limited effectiveness, but customers and deliveries are still turning back.

I spoke to Siobhan Lanagan, who having been elected shop steward, was the first to be sacked. Although cold and tired she is not demoralised. She is still trying to recruit more people inside the shop and putting pressure on USDAW to give official backing. She is planning to take her case to an industrial tribunal.

"We hope they will called 'heros' The last speaker was Rita Maxim, ward orderly employed at St. Mary's for the last 19 years. She said that she had suffered a great deal of harassment from the hospital management. It was because she had stood up for her rights and refused to do three people's work that Nettal, the hospital administrator, had threatened her with the sack for what he called "serious misconduct'. It was this that led to Nettal's office being occupied.

The sector administrator, hospital administrator and unc omes supervisor mar all attacked some of the weakest hospital workers. Shop stewards who had fought to save the hospital had been sacked. Rita said that as well as the management she had to fight her own union officials who had failed to support her.

Finally a resolution was MARYS MOSPHAL MARBOW ROAD put to the meeting and was carried unanimously. included: • "This meeting resolves to continue support for the campaign to save services and jobs at W9. In particular this meeting:

a) calls for a public vigil outside St. Mary's from 2-3 pm on february 27, the day the obstetric services are due to close:

• calls for an Inquiry into the closure and into the general level of Casualty pro"! isa Lon1982 in our favour but we still need to put as much pressure as possible on the company by picketing and organising blacking" she told me.

Any help with picketing during the week will be welcome and there will be a mass picket every Saturday. Siobhan will be 'speaking about the dispute at the Women's Fightback Trade Union Conference on March 27.

Donations and messages of support to Colletts International Bookshop, Charing Cross Road, London WC2.

Amanda Barnes early January when hundreds of people were dying each week. This Inquiry should be organised by the CHC and should take evidence from local residents, patients, CPs, London • Ambulance Service, Trades Unions etc.

f) calls on all candidates in this May's local elections to commit themselves publicly to fight for the restoration of all services at Harrow Road;

g) calls on local parties to establish the principle immediately that they will consider as their prospective parliamentary candidates only such individuals as are prepared to make the same public commitment."

Whilst this public meeting was successful, the difficulty of winning this campaign must not be underestimated especially considering the lack of serious support there. has been from the official union machinery, trade union leaders and the wider labour movement.

It is perhaps significant that when Tony Benn was asked how to get this support he couldn't o: wouldn't say. What he said was that he, and others like him, were just bigger "megaphones" which get meeting: like this reported in e press. What he didn't as * 1: how to get union late::. MPs and othes to 30: state thel: are Lamper Plan

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