COHSE: Spanswick holds pass for Thatcher

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GROUP 81 - the Broad was to embark on a course Left grouping within COHSE of all-out strike action, with started at last year's confer- the provision of emergency ence - made a meaningful cover under trade union conIt's first fringe meeting centred around abortion was held on Sunday night rights and democracy resoluimportance of democratic crete effect of Group 81's reform in COHSE and organ- organising was seen in the ising an intervention within passing of the Hackney À majority of the dele Regional Councils should be gates there felt that the only held at quarterly intervals, wav to win the 12% claim instead of the present twiceCORSE started its pay campaign on April 26 by asking branches to take one-hour stoppages and by starting a work-to-rule aimed at stopping all non-emergency admisSIOnS.

Since then a series of 2hour and 1-day stoppages have been the recommendation from the TUC and the STUC. But in some areas health workers took the initiative and came out on indefinite strike as in Edinburgh where around 1,000 health workers were on strike for seven days (NUPE, NALGO and COHSE).

This lead from the workers shows that the strategy of selective action is not supported by the rank and file.

NUPE conference unanimously supported the call for all out action with emergency cover but the leadership used a clause which referred to other TUC health intervention in this year's trol. conference.

before conference where tions.

80 delegates discussed the the pay debate. unions in a way which disarmed the all-out strike call.

COHSE conference had three emergency resolutions on the COHSE pay campaign. The National Executive Committee, Dundee and Hackney all put resolutions to conference. The usual manipulation of speaking time occured with Albert The rest of the discussion An immediate and conresolution demanding that Spanswick, general secretary, abusing his platform position by speaking for 20 minutes on the NEC resolution. Bulletins and lobbying by Health Workers for the Full Claim was instrumental in getting the support of some of the delegates for the Hackney resolution.

Spanswick, in an attempt to give a rousing : speech, blasted delegates with such "militant' phrases as 'We want jam today' and 'We will not trade off jobs! He made much of CONSE's "lead' in the present campaign and the effect this is having on hospitals.

Obviously, as chair of the TUC's Health Services Committee, Spanswick was supporting the weak stand taken by the TUC. He maintained that health workers should continue the selective action (We started together, we should finish together') until scuss aler yearly intervals.

In addition, many delegates sought the advice of leading Group 81 activists throughout the week.

A series of Group 81 fringe meetings were held. Over 200 attended a meeting on Monday evening to hear Tony Benn. Welcoming the formation of Group 81, he suggested that the reason trade unions did not act in the best interests of their members is that their leaders had grown away from their members.

Goss

the government took notice!

Spanswick: spoke several times of the importance of reducing hospitals to accident and emergency cover only. This showed how totally out of touch he is.

Several delegates oppos ing the NEC resolution pointed out that they were already reduced to accident and emergency cover and it hadn't pushed the Tories any further towards giving us 12%. However, Spanswick's lack of any real commitment to fight became apparent in his opposition speech to the Hackney resolution calling for indefinite strike action with emergency cover only.

The said it would be totally against CONSE policy and that the Hackney resolution would be illegal because it would mean nurses walking off wards and leaving patients without any care.

mocracy Benn maintained that the reaction against the Left and democratic reform was based on the fear that groups like Group 81 presented a positive way forward and therefore change. This obviously undermined the opportunist leadership within the trade union and labour movement.

Ellen Taylor, from Middlewood Hospital, Sheffield, spoke for Health Workers for the Full Claim on the need for COHSE to support all-out strike action.

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This complete distortion of the resolution was calculated to twist its meaning and confuse the emotive subject of accident and emergency cover.

Despite some excellent calls to support the Hackney resolution, Spanswick and the NEC got their weak and divisive resolution through.

If Spanswick gets his way the 'ultimate weapon' of indefinite strike action is to remain buried for all this year, at least, in the COHSE arsenal at head office.

Activists in COHSE should continue to argue and fight for indefinite strike action. We need to offer support to NUPE branches who are prepared to come out indefinitely and to pursue the only kind of action that will win the 12% claim indefinite strike and emergency cover only.

Other meetings were held on Labour Party democracy, with CLPD speakers, on the Falklands war, with Tam Dalyell, and Michael Meacher on the Tebbit Bill.

After only one year Group 81 has already proved itself a real step forward in the long-overdue fight to organise the left in the Roll on 1983!

By Pauline Bartlett THERE was widespread support tor the one day strike in Wales last Wednesday 16 June. The response was the best yet, with even the small hospitals responding and coming out on strike.

At the miners' gala on the previous Saturday, a number of NUM Lodges promised to send delegations down to the picket lines in Cardiff before attending a demonstration through the town on the Wednesday.

A delegation of NUPE members attended the gala where we collected £45 for the Health Workers for the Full Claim Campaign.

A number of different groups of workers pledged their support for strike action - apart from the miners. These included the National Union of Seamen, who had originally sent the resolution calling for support for the NHS workers to their own national executive. Local council workers in Merthyr and Rhymney Valley had also promised to take action as did NUPE members at South Glamorgan County Hall. * The breadth of support in the labour movement had encouraged more participation by health wörkers in picketing and marching.

More and more people are seeing the need to go beyond limited one-day strike action and feel confident enough to take on the government over pay and defeat them.

MARTIN BARCLAY NUPE