By Cowley assembly plant strikers determined management.
this Friday.
The main reason support is getting stronger is that we all know that if managemnent win this they will push their advantage and our work conditions will get worse. But we win challenge their attacks and give OUl stewards.
We all know this isn't just about three minutes time. The old Michael Edwardes introduced a plan to break the union, inproductivity then sell the profitable bits to private industry. This means attacks on our jobs, conditions and work pracLICC Cowley management are trying to trade off our washing up time for bonuses under an efficienPlant Status (APS). scheme called This means doing away with 243 jobs.
Any money we make up on bonuses will be at the cost of efficiency and speed-up. It'll be management's bonus not ours. The work force won't be able to monitor any of this.
The plant is due for DESPITE back-room wheeling and dealing by Terry Duffy and other union leaders, Cowley workers are to end their three week strike without substantial concessions from our bullyboy Last Tuesday we showed this by an even bigger vote for continuing the action than previously. But another sell-out is being prepared for a mass meeting profits at our expence.
Our union leaders are trapped in this little game port controlsin on port controls. managment can organise internationally why shouldn't we?
It's struggles like ours that show a way forward and we should be making con tact with unionists in other countries instead 'protecting ourselves' against them.
Our national union officials tend to say that this is a particular dispute with Cowley management. But these attacks are general throughout the car dustry as Ine Halewood. strikers shown.
The issues are the same - the emplovers 'right to manage', their right sack workers ike After troduce schemes like BLАп ' in Fords and APS in Our union should go the offensive against this on a national basis.
They should organise for the governmet to invest build up an overall plan for our industry that benefits us and not the profiteers.
technology doesn't take away jobs.
The Edwardes the 'blue challenges this veto the rights of our stewards. This is being opposed in individual plants issues like the washing up time. But it's time that the nationally fronted the blue head on.
Our worry is that they im- are only concerned to get back to cosy relations with BL management, mey can Da Coale and negotiate over our conditions. We're not interested in union negotiators cooking up deals behind closed of doors. We want a real veto of what goes on plant.
In the second week of the strike Thatcher hit out Tebbit wardes have had their say too. But until the statein- ment from the campaign Ford group of MP's which was have read . OU our meeting, we've such statement of suppor from outside the plant. want our leaders to us like Thatcher wardes back siNow that the strike is official, the union should give a direcnive to envers mao cao moved across country:
Management threatened to sack all the If this happens the SUIKCS.
plan, paper' over LUil paper where Edhad We back ana ca their own Transport the have Cowley. branches, general the Labour campaign next JOHN covertCowley workers leave mass meeting more determined Photo: GM COOKSON
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SOCiAlist ACTION