SOCiAlist NATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS ACTION nLU years since Bryan Stanley, the right secretary of the Post Office Engineering the union's Journal. It was virtually the last occabecome the National (NCU), that all would be well in a private, British Telecom (BT).
The private BT has sold or given away shares to 96 per cent or lls employces, whilst at the same time surpassing Is own ambitions 15,000 jons shedding more than in the last three years.
The industry is currently poised on the brink of radical modernisation its customer services set-up through computerisation, and of the telephone network through the introduction of 'chip' based exchanges.
One defeats and setbacks which the union has suftered, coupled with the steady advance on anti¡castaLon. LIC failure of the TUC to lead any opposition io it. the defeat of the year long miners' strike have taken their toll on the confidence of the NCU membership.
In addition the failure of the left galvanise resistance to BT's attacks has resulted resurgence the union's discredited right wild At the moment when Telecom face the most serious 'THERE IS no plan to cut jobs.' It's only four short wing general Union of (POEU), penned these famous words in the pages of sion on which the leadership of what has now Communications even attempted to persuade its members but 'caring', onslaught onanagement tvy are ikey Joe ica by an executive whose most radical aim is to haggle over the price of redundancy pay.
Met NW branch The employers have been careful to ensure that their job cutting activities have laken place piecemeal localised 10SuUll. Utilising uneven strength of the NCU branches double edged 'Job Securi ty Agreement' a procedure by which the union enters into negotiations with management in situations of management identitying 'Job surpluses' they have ensured a steady erosion jobs, same time avoiding any which might provide focus for a national struggle. number of local disputes Even growing involving. overtime bans, work to rules, and strike action have been breaking out around the country.
So far these disputes have only involved minority of the union's members. And their extent has been limited by their isolation. However these struggles represent the way CLEC NCU.
As BT pushes ahead in its drive to maximise profits, it inevitably has take on and defeat larger and larger sections of the union's membership. Total job cuts are aimed to be 100,000. George Jefferchair the SUll. board, has claimed the industry is 'one third fats' while documents leaked to NCU members employed at the Post Office admit 'compulsory redundancies will be inevitable.' When John Golding was elected general secretarv. one of his firs statements to the press outlined his intention, contrary to current NCU policy, to reach , an agreement on redundancy with Winning such a strategy in the NCU would be a green light to management to speed up redundancies drastically set back the possibilities of seriously fighting to defend jobs.
On the other hand members of the NCU in the West of Scotland, in posta engineering, motor transport, and in a numo o one the union are beginning to the lessons of just Icalll such a fight can be waged. These lessons must De arawn rigal across une union - by the building of the strongest possible links of solidarity and support with those sections taking action Although the experience of the NCU in waging the light against job cuts and redundancy is still limited, there aI Ci wider examples to draw The Telecom unions Ulle anti-privatisation struggle, the iwelve month miners strike which tollowed it currently the printbattle arallls Murdoch, all show in difterent wavs that oniv a full and unreserved committfrom the union organise lead the strength of its membership can hope to win. Without this commitment it is impossible to win the backing of other secand labour movement Untortunatelv the NUC's lead-in to the fight waged has prepared well. The Broad Left leadership of the union have put all their eggs in the basket of the 'Broad Strategy'. This is a AT THE end of April, a ballot on industrial action against job cuts among engineers in the Post Office was narrowly WOl. NCU members employed by the Post Office threatened with between 30 per cent and 50 per cent job losses as a result of "scrutinies' carried out by private manpower consultants. This struggle is now at the sharp end of the NCU's fight to defend jobs.
Attempts to buy time through the use of the unions Job SecuriAgreement with management had failed when Socialist Action spoke to the secretary of the London Postal Region Power Branch, JAMES HARGIS.
POST Office management are working hard to try persuade individuals that whatever happens their job will be safe. Everyone is very frightened about losing their jobs, and that fear is something we must overcome if we're going to fight back. reople mus feel they can win. Only then will they put up a real fight. I think most of our can win.
When held our London prior to the industrial action we made things very clear. We said well worked out manifesto for the renationalisation of British Telecom, its expansion into job creating areas, and the introduction of a 32 hour four day week But credibility lies solely on the re-electior of pathetic Labour Government.
If more and more jobs are simply allowed to slip away. the ability of the NCU to mount its defenc against compulsory redun dancy will decline An arrecincul with BT redundancy VUlulilal terms will further undermine fights being waged by local branches against arbitrary job cuts.
It is not too late to halt the slide of the NCU the policy of selling members jobs Every fort must be made to link up the struggle breaking out now, to pull them out of their isolation, and to build on the foundations being laid for a national sunke moerence o os and a leadership prepared to fight for this goal.
What distinguishes the right from the left in the NCU on jobs is that the right stands for accepting job cuts and the left for fighting them. But the fight against BT's redundancy plans also means having a strategy to do so.
means understanding that in the end only a national against BT's job cuts can defend our jobs. . Fighting to win the membership that means building a Broad Left which is not just an electoralist machine but is based on the real rank and file involvement. a 'yes' vote would mean taking strike action. No doubt about it If •they weren't prepared to go on strike then they should vote 'no'.
In this respect it was a ballot, even our approach meant we got lower 'yes' vote. People knew what they were voting for.
The POis trying to undermine that support.
take on the smaller isolated offices first where the effects don't ap pear to be so drastic. Bu that's thing our members are strong on. They don't want to be split up and picked off, they'd rather act together. We're all in the same boat It worries me that in negotiations the may have given away too much already. We fighting nOW ODEI safeguards for individual's employmen rather than against the principle of the arbitrar job cuts. Although means that the individua members who threatened will feel strong. commitment fight, it makes it harder to win wider support for ou action.
A victory for us agai the Post Office the rest of the NCU that it is also possible to fight aed W 11 against Britis Tets and redadancies te Telecom's plans for need all the morad physical, finasci support from other Nat members in BT we can get
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Postal engineers face 'certain redundancies'