*Substantial increases for apprentices, including *Sick pay, lay off and compassionate leave on a *Additional holidays to be implemented after the This means £35,000 a year increase officials.
real prospect of United national action strengthened the workers' resolve. BL workers meeling clearly felt that a solid vote was best defence against sell Unless OUL Edwardes' backers the Tory coventment naKe d calculation on the likely of the strike which CHICELS leads them to intervene, wallaus through arbitranon, te suike looks sel lo November.
When BL out they will be aiming to win.
BL is still a major exporter and operations linked BI accounts for substantial proportion the British economy.
potential allies lilally among workers with their own claim in the pipeline, the BL workforce throw off the mantle of its recent sorry berry.
overwhelming vote for strike action shows the will to fight There. If this have to beat Thatcher as well as Edwardes then BI workers will not be alone in celebrating. By a TGWU shop steward, Longbridge from 1 November.
As We assembled Cofton Park at 8 in the morning, feelings began to high. Many workers luil had brought placards calling for • '£20 Now and saying 'Shove your 3.8 we're going out the gate'.
LOuG cheers greeted the news that Cowley plant Oxford voted strike. The threats Michael Edwardes and the BL management to sack put the company into quidation, had exactly the opposite impact they'd hoped for.
'Michael Edwardes Talks Rubbish and Time Edwardes' Bluff WCIC placards that summed up the mood of the workforce assembling COLLOI Park.
Our Longbridge, Jack Adams took this up in his speech mass meeting.
Threats were, he said, no for negotiations, particularly une worktorce sa seen ar. nual increases over the last three years of 5 per cent, S per cent and 6.8 per cent, conored plan!
and massive Telence will gẹt the situation. he said we don't negotiate beg on your behalf.
At Longbridge we are already lacing IUSS 1,500 workers production of the Wilcil LAST FRIDAY we voted at BL's Longbridge plant in Birmingham for a complete rejection of management's offer of 3.8 per cent on the basic rate. Unless there is a substantial improvement on that offer we will be out the gate Allegro ends next year didn t need manv speeche for us to vote overwhelmingly for strike action.
Feelings were running high as we returned to the factory from Cofton Park We stopped the traffic by laking up the whole road as we walked back and shouted in defiance at the foremen who had been saying we'd never vote for the strike.
older workers started stout the go old days stories of militancy before Ed wardes came We cheered everytime news of the vote Came over ine aul.
The atmosphere was electric. worker me: been threatened with the sack before while I've been on strike, but never before l'd been on strike.
'We don't like being threatened. In our hands now. We've got to win.
Management now has till | November to come back with a new offer. If it at Longbridge that this strike will become a key test of strength between une whole aDOH movement and the Tory government. So the whole labour movement the trade unions and the Labour Party has in LTON full weight behind this struggle.
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said to