Gardner's Engineering Employers Federation to use the recession to undermine and break up shop floor organisation.
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Gardner's workers specially designed to make sure shop stewards, including the AUEW convenor Tom Macafee, were among those sacked.
The Gardner's management are using the 'Michael Edwardes secret ballot. out a banot about a ballot .
By these methods the management plant is the Milling Wray about how the section is organised. *THE millers were well organised ong before th lained Dave 'We started a shop fund to cover us in disputes over oUluses. Everyone had • a lanc cara ana pala. weekiy oo woer the occupation started we had a and erything we needed Like Vuilc! SCOLIUIS we had fortnichtl meeus stewards reported nack shop stewards' meetings and we could raise any problems we had since the strike started so we were dolC Or canuse KOld everyone in the section to come in, and we've got a chart on the wall showing who turns up. That make way suic cvc voouy s oule Cuc welzi and keep them informed about activity. Kettle 'First, we started our own food. cooker. kettle and the rest of it. So, as a lot of us were quite active ups o le ti funny were the militants or something.
Dille Liche wc vc myc ustaris lo luc ounces anu rcarlv all ol us are invo ved in aroune one committee or another.
Now we're not so cut off and because people can see fectively organised, people's attitudes towards us have changed, ana we ve carnea a lol or respect in the factory.
Millers are the youngest sections Gardner's workforce with an average are ll inc carly zus wave explalll co ow caér ve cd voe the less experienced workers.
We've been going out around the : country collectig cash we take one of the younger lad whenever on a delegation with us. It gives you a lot of confidence to see the sort of support Since the started, I've • been really surprised geting involved Thick •Sometimes vou'l get some=7 T : re25 200 30 E test by the the shoo plant.
week, were gress tactic' the So far they have just sent IN the fourth week of the strike, Gardner's is a hive of activity. One of the best organised sections in the Department Marines' as convenor Tom Macafee calls them. Redmond O'Neill talked to Dave Walton and Neil important to be - the other night there was a scare, a false alarm that police were coming to the ractory There were only a handful in from our secuon al the time out within an hour we were able to get anther people That's because the millers have stuck togetnel al meelngs wille some other sections have tended to split up? Afloat Like a lot of other workers at Gardner's. Dave is well aware that they are leading the Wtul o uc caoos is vilan ne anoineerino Federation must understand the stakes involved in this strike. If ahaus ca coev a over van.
money into Gardner's to management afloat.
But that won't do them any vou, h oie aco l easing dr ve winn would de tor other tar ories to start fighting on job: *The Engineering stewards an called mergency mt inhat l'a dike ts unemployment. ef- them strike ol te wnole contea or a day of action to get the ball rollBallot From the start oi the occupa tion, Hawker Siddeley has refused to follow the usual pattern of So negotiating redundancies, and inscau vrtcu lvi cumll vlilallul Having failed strike before the AUEW districi Teana erene a enen tryin te levies coming workforce ing a ballot. tach worker received a slip of Daber wimo no came numoe o identification on it.
Be shaned toe workranged about a return to secret ballot Management receivca The stewards oberr " 21 X are attempting to split up and undermine stewards' But they can be countered through the sort of organisation which the Leyland unions have built up their present strength - regular section meetinos. intormation on of the and solidarity.
For the engineering employers the stakes are high. Victory for the workers •rarener Si wiil provoke a wave or In• dustrial action against redundancy in 'Macafee's democratically movement in the effectively Chemicals, the the promassive discussing Manchester and possibly nationally.
At a second tactorv in Eccles. Lankros TGWU has withdrawn cooperation with management and are discussing action over a jobs dispute.
With tens of thousands on short time or facing redundnacy, the danger for the employers of a jobs' fight explosion is real. Two bus depots in Manchester are action redundancy. The best possible solidarity with Gardner's, apart from sending cash, is to turn this potential into action.
But a lead must be given.
JOINT demonstration.
Party democracy, against and Wright should In ManSaid Tom: 'It is the energy o, the shop floor in the factory anc winteers wilch Hu vE securen ne response we nove nad have circulated every district secretary in them for their good ounces n reorooucis ane cr culaw for a jac phat tsi sits,pl) Sheets done in some area. ine response wner 1' Pre ees as ceneruls 29 Novembe demonstranon ts verv imoorton for us in getting more support. We will be taking a big contingen 1 believe take a prominent place in the march.
'We have the support of the Klemto work marca trom man chester to Liverpool, and we wil of Shinbuilding and Engineering unions have called a special meeting week's ascess subor or bne oceaa 'We definitely need some sort organised for this meeting in our support. workers from all over Britain will attend the joint Labour Party/TUC demonstra. tion against unemployment. The Labour Party NEC should be flooded with resolutions calling for Gardner's to lead that Tony Benn and Bob Wright should do a repeat of their tour in favour of Labour but this time in support of action against unemployment.
Benn's cal in barlament tor suppori for every worker fighting unemployment should be backed up with action. Benn put their money where their mouth is and lead the fight.
NEARLY all of Sheffield industry is on shorttime, and steel-making half capacity Despite this, the Gard received widespread SU•DOE Six shop stewards from the occupied factory toured the city, and raised h.v in toree cavs trom shop stewards committees. Their visit was widely publicised in the press and The AUEW district committee has set in mo. tion a local ballot to start a week oor meneer This will raise f2,000 a week for the occupation. procedur establish the ballot and it is uv CuL That committee take steps to speed up the process Setting up .a Sheffieldwide inter-union committet would local orean sino SuDoorT throughout the entire labour movement trades council has already pledged its support for the occu alion photo: KEVIN COEN
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Sheffield raises £500 for Gardner's in three days!