By Ron Thompson, steward, Sheffield ENGINEERING shop stewards in Sheffield at their quarterly meeting called for national action on our present claim. That was three weeks ago.
The same resolution factories, Engineering Union branches and shop steward quarterlies are received by the AUEW's executive council every day. After two months of a national overtime ban, successive one and two dav there still deadlock engineering industry.
The employers and Fleet Street are beginning to show signs of nerves. she engineerine emolovers' Federa. tion has given the green light to its members to start mass lockouts.
The headlines in the press are becoming, more hysterically union and futile attempts continue to encourage scabbing on the strike.
The duration of the dispute has clearly taken the bosses by surprise. In spite of the inadequacy of the claim itself and the half-hearted industrial action called by the union leaders, the workers in the industry responded overwhelmingly to the call' for support.
Perhaps the strangest aspect of the struggle is the fact that such a bastion of the right-wing as Terry Duffy is in the leadership.
When Duffy was succeed Hugh Scanlon as president of the AUEW. , he was welcomed with open arms by the press as a sensible 'moderate who openly declared his desire to see an end tö strikes in the industry.
Yet more working days already been lost in the engineering industry through official industrial action since Duffy ciected than during the whole period of Scanlon's term of office.
The truth is that Duffy has little choice in the matter. policy-making national committee of the AUEW has a narrow left-wing majority. It was this body rejected Duffy's first sell-out the claim earlier this year.
Since that decision Duffy has been trapped between the pressure of his own membership intransigence of the employers. There that Duffy recommend calling off the action on the basis of one day's extra holiday -the employers' latest offer maintain credibility membership.
His awareness of this problem is no doubt sharpened by the threat that he LOLICS up for re-election president. next vear.
Since Duffy is not Scanlon, the AUEW shop allies have no to save face; strike fast trom leaders.
Commanor
and of the workers.
strikes, in the argue for abandoning This is why nanonal strike action realise that this is the the executive council.
But if a call a national strike.
have leadership effective elected national promised: at should be leadership to make it official. hawe national was demands of the claim itself.
The 1982.
which attempt to down of the original claim, were dropped altogether.
Thirty-five
and the and holding the strikés together. can now campaign against made with the and with the to defeat the employers.
as desire to help him wriggle off the hook. His main hope has been that the employers would throw a big enough sop to allow him but Duffy must be that bosses' economic interests come before their gratitude to right-wing trade union The main danger now is that the the two-day stoppages without any conclusion in sight will begin to demoralise sections Any signs of serious weaknesses in the strike will give Duffy his chance to the struggle. it is vital that called as soon as possible, and an increasing number of workers are beginning to only way forward, as is shown by resolutions to national strike Is to become a reality, then resolutions are not enough. The rank and fue musi take action to force the leadership to Shop stewards committees should demand the recall of the national shop stewards conference held in Sheffield in July of this year. A call from such a conference for national strike action - with or without the blessing of the would be the most off the movement towards an all-out strike.
shop stewards co-ordinating committee, which was the July conterence, set up to conduct the campaign for the rank and file to take indefinite strike action and force the It is crucial that the rack and file • seizes the initiate pennot only to escalate the action, buf to ensure that there is no further retreat on the It has been quietly reported in one papers that Duffy has informally agreed to drop the demand for the 35-hour week by This demand was a watering and it would have a disastrous effect if it hours. is the demand that is uniting the workers Shop stewards committees must Many being employers without ratification by the membership. The solidarity shown by the workers so far has proved that they have the strength But time is running out. Unless the rank and file militants act now, Dutty will find the so-called 'breakthrough' that he is seeking and sell us all down TO WIN