[lot are completely anti-union. They made that clear…]

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lot are completely anti-union. They made that clear from the first day they arrived. The chairman of the company said that he wouldn'teven be in the same room as the trade On 10 February a chargehand fitter was asked to move two pumps against our usual procedures. So the bloke told him where to go and he was suspended with threat of dismissal for swearing.

Management wouldn't back down so our members walked out in sympathy.

On Monday 13 we returned to try to resolve the situation and the general manager told us that if we weren't back to work by 8.30 on that day then we would be disciplined. It was 8.20 so we discussed it and got in touch with the District Secretary. But the manager had gone home by then so we left it that we'd go back to work from the Wednesday.

On the Tuesday we received by recorded delivery, dismissal notices. On the same day the fitter at the centre of the dispute had a disciplinary hearing and was found not guilty. We approached management about our dismissals and they said they'd made a decision so get off the premises' We've been picketing since With the 37 dismissed members we are trying to picket the place 12 hours a day. We can't do it for 24 hours, there aren't enough people.

The call for the mass pickets on Mondays by the Trades Council has been tremendous. On the first Monday we had 150 people.

The call for blacking was put out by the District Secretary. It's gone out nationally. The response has been tremendous. I've had many people phone me up from oil refineries and main suppliers. We've got a sister plant in Sheffield, Darwins, that we're visiting this week. We 'understand At a mass picket, two Socialist Organiser supporters, Tim and Eustace, were arrested Tim told us, 'The police were obviously looking out for people to make an example of. We were standing in front of a car while the pickets talked to the driver. He accelerated and NGA and have made a start get the advert withdrawn.

But they cannot employ anyone else from this area. They haven't got the skill. LaBour Pumps products can only be made by the 37 they've dismissed. I don't think they can get the people. They're into the seventh week now and they've only employed five new people. There's no way they can took us with him. We went along on the bonnet. I fell off and Eustace clung on.

We were later arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and after five hours we were released on bail. This was after we had complained to the police about the scab's dangerous driving!

tactics. In the past they've felt isolated. They're organising a social and a jumble sale. They have been to see the general manager to ask why he cannot get around a table with our union or ACAS. He totally twisted the situation. He can't even remember why or how he sacked us. Because he told a lot of lies, the women are now even more resolved than the men are to beat this company. of ideas from them. At these meetings you meet the activists. This is a good thing. These people are guiding us; we take their advice.

We had support from NALGO, TGWU, the Bakers Union, the teachers' and the students' union.

What we want now is the AUEW District Committee to call a day of action. We feel they should be doing more. outside unions, they've put in a lot of time and effort and the AUEW have got to move themselves.

We'll win one way or the other. We'll either get our jobs back or the firm will shut down. We want our jobs back but if the company is not going to take us back then it might as well shut.

We'll black the company's products and we'll beat them Pickets have reduced Bi General Hospital in East L to an emergencies-only s in their strike against atti to cut contract cleaning income by as much as 60° change conditions of en ment.

About 90 cleaners, empl of Crothall, a subsidial Pritchard Services, have be strike since March 19 Crothall announced tha renegotiating the hospital ‹ ing contract it had to unc competition by paying less the going rate. NUPE view dispute as a test case i springs from the governm abolition of the fair wages a ment which previously ot outside contractors to I NHS pay and conditions for employees.

On Monday April 2 whe cleaners were deemed i dismissed with the expiri their tormer contract, SC broke out on the picket when Crothall brought in bus loads of scab worker: one woman NUPE picket arrested and charged threatening behaviour facing intimidation by drivers.

The six-week strike by 595 ery workers, members o Entertainment Trades Al (formed recently out o alliance between the Assoc of Broadcasting Staffs an National Association of ] rical Television and Employees) the BB centre in London threate escalate by the weekend.

The strikers, who wer week sacked by the BBC, I the dispute over revised wo practices. They are now se financial support from members of the Alliance directly involved in the di including those working ir companies, and are pressir action by technicians te programming. So far two grammes have been cans and a further sixty postp though with supportive 8 by technicians the blackin; of programmes by the end ‹ week could be expected.