[•July finance poses ASLEF the TUC leaders are…]
Socialist Organiser1983 1983-01-06Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 1 →
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•July finance poses ASLEF the TUC leaders are slow and cagey. But repeatedly they have been quick and decisive about stopping action.
• November 1981: TUC general secretaries went over the head of the regularly-constituted Joint Negotiating Committee to fix up a return to work at BL.
1982: The TUC and general purcoinmittee forces to abandon its strike against flexibl rostering, even threater ing to expel the trai drivers' union from th TUC if it continues th •August 1982: When Flet Street electricians decid to strike in line wit appeals by the TUC t back the health worker: TUC Health Service Con mittee chairperson Albel Spanswick advises them t back down in face of legi threats from the employer:
DiSPIN Despite all their talk about defying Tory anti-union laws, the TUC leaders are nowhere to be seen when electricians' branci secretary Sean Geraght! is taken to court under these laws. •October 1982: Rank and file pressure finally pushes the health union leaders into a call for indefinite action. Then as soon as the consultation starts for this action, they rus to find a dumping every principle they have proclaimed in the pay campaign.
And the Labour front bench? If it were a matter of a fight to extend action, they would be saying: "This is a trade union matter, we can't do anything. But now they decide that the gulf between 'politics' and 'trade unionism' is not so wide alter all.
Just like the union leaders, they do it all with no regard to the views and inte the rep uni the roo ran Cor atic els an( shi in lab erests of the, members y are supposed to resent. Just like the ion leaders, as a result of ir life in the committeems and corridors of wer, insulated from the ik and file, they have ne to fear mass mobilison more than anything The fight for democracy a an accountadie leaderp needs to be pursued every section of the our movement.
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Socialist Organiser no. 114 January 6 1983 Page 2 ABO
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settlement, in the process SOC ol civil & oubl offi picke
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