By Dave Benlow, Wandsworth district branch secretary TWO GROUPS OF workers both in struggle, dominated NUPE's 1984 national con. ference — the miners and even more so the striking cleaners at Barking Hospital. their delegations got rapturous applause and bucket collections were organised for them.
As conference progressed we found that Barking was synonomous with 'fighting' and the executive visibly flinched whenever the name cropped up.
NUPE's leadership Bickerstaffe and Ron Keating, the left of the TL C. sector has hotted ur natenail!
the! campaigns of ac:ion against cuts, privatisation and pay, preaching council and hospital workers' national strikes of This year, were blessed by the executive, so maintaining the union's left stance.
Direct action was called for to support a campaign to counter government nuclear war" propaganda and against the coercion of public authority workers into civil defence preparations. The executive was also called on to lead vampalgni the Lagreur Party and against the current witch greater membership hunts.
But the leadership': displayed whenever actions around public authority and industrial relations problemi. Frank rallan. argued down a motion from Camden calling for supportive action tor Liverpool, saying: should have the 'bottle"
Criticism of the TUC for its role dispute were attacked as 'divisive'. crucial Issue of privatisation expressed the leadership's drift.
On Sunday, the Barking strikers won their call for supportive national industrial action with no hand or voice daring to show against them. Yet the next day, a resolution from Wandsworth calling for national action to beat off the privatisation threat to all sections was branded by Keating as 'extremist' and 'impractical' He was assisted by anti-Wandsworth slander from some delegates in the Scottish Communist This resolution dulv tell. douht the seriousness with which the union will treat the support for Barking voted the day before.
The executive also succeeded in introducing a new conas brocedure.
of members conterence. and reading inore like an emplover's handbook than an amendment to union rule.
However the real left wing can emerge witn credit and hope from the conference. VUPE branches, the left is seen to provide answers to the practical problems members face.
Its intervention forced, for the first time, a leftposing leadersmp no an unnory allance win lne rightist Communist The conference also saw the establishment of lew, non-sectarian national Broad Left. and mo co-ordinated wing activities and policy than ever before. If developments continue in douht that the hak! EC/CP alliance can crumhle and important public ieutor victories can be won.
Both represented by Rodney are seen to he on conclusions trom the a number of left-wing resolutions involvement rightward shift was called for specific for the EC. "Councils to put up the rates.'