AIN vernment's 5 per cent pay series of militant workers of important questions for alternative to Callaghan in om different currents on the movement give 3, member of the Tribune member of the Central ist Workers Party; CHRIS of the Communist Party's r; and BRIAN ternational Marxist Group. the of Empire, monopolies LaDOur respectability devolution, ownership, would rise.
the trade union leaders. contraWHEN the Labour government decided against an election in October last year, it took a calculated risk. It believed it could hold its 5 per cent wage cutting policy by virtue of its collaboration with The public sector manual workers can blow this strategy sky high. But if they remain at the level of mere economic militancy. they give Callaghan the opening to regain the initiative What is posed now in every militant struggle is what the socialist alternative to Callaghan is going to be.
bureaucracy Now is not the time to attempt to go recent experience has indicated that whilst we must root ourselves in factories and ornices, SUCE activity be aimed recomposing the leadership, starting at the level of We should therefore be for a recall of to centralise present COLICI and mor powerful workers like the miners and power workers in coordinated action, and prepare ine ngm government's proposed assault on the Such an orientation is the best way to reach out to more workers at the shop Everyone now understands the need, for instance, for the public sector unions to make an alliance and cease their splittist tactics.
Equally, it reinforces the fight for STO! stewards and strike committees to lead the struggle officials should be Self-proclaimed actior committees need to be oriented to these structures and not delude themselves rank and Revolutionary socialists have never had greater opportunities. With their own encersno n once ano atackin them, rank and file workers are forced search around alternative The initiatives taken by stewards in a that the SUTIKC.
political hold of the bureaucracy is now being questioned by the rank and file They are aware of the political issues a never Detore bu d dISWCI WIl HUl come spontaneously We now have the kind of hearing we nae DUE fragmentation is a big obstacle.
Roger Cox, a leading member of the Workers TECCHILI expressed in Socialist Worker what is now a common estimate: •We must not even though this is often the easiest way. Those instincts must be tempered bv answers to questions which those instincts alone cannot provide.
This recognition of the need to fight for a political alternative to reformism failure the remedies adopted by the working class has been expanded by Duncan Hallas in argumentation "TOI programme of transitional demands in recent issues of Socialist Worker A united campaign by revolutionary organisations around such a 'socialist alternative, including united action in the trade unions, in campaigns like the ANL, NAC and UTOM, could start to the perspective which r thousands 01 workers breaking from their reformist Il could also provide an impetus towards the building ola revolutionary / organisation in Britain a line of political action and start to overcome the scepticism worker militants regard the currenti fragmented state of the British far left In this regard the electoral alliance be downplayed. It is just silliness counterpose to taking advantage of the massive opportunities ol a general election Lo sorovide in not furnished by workers' instincts alone There is broad agreement with the programme fought for by Socialist Unity. To refuse to partici when such obvious arreemen exists is a folly whose only beneficiary -will be Callaghan. Socialist Challenge 25 January 1979 page 9
----- pull-quotes -----
their •GROGAN,