COHSE conference: defend the health service HOW CAN Black Nalgo members a force for change.
y Mark Whyte elegate COHSE 211 branch (personal capacity) LAST WEEK's conference of COHSE, the health porkers union, provided an early indication of the hood of trade unionists in the wake of the Tories' eneral election victory.
allowing the betrayal of our long pay dispute last ear, the conference showed that there is still plenty willingness for a fight back against the Tories.
From our National ExCommittee we eard a lot rhetoric gainst the Tories and we pere urged to organise for Labour victory at the ex! general election.
Many delegates replied hat we could not wait five ears, but must begin to mild a movement of oposition to kick out the fories defend THS immediately.
Evidence of the suport for a fight back was wen by the passing of a solution, by a 2-1 maonly, ion to all-out defiance Tories anti-union TUC health services committee talled to give an adequate lead during the pay usDulc. such a conference could have represented a big step forward.
Following the pay dispute many strong joint union shop stewards committees have been formed. It's a shame therefore that the voted moves to azalnsi amalgamate with NUPE.
Such isolationism will need. to be combatted and unity built at a local level, we are to successfully THE SHADOW of Labour's defeat in the general election lay heavily across the 1983 conference of the National and Local Government Officers Association in the Isle of Man.
sector union they were in the firing line for the Tories' attacks on jobs and conditions.
Conference marked a small but by no decisive shift to the right. At the same time, the lett showed clear steps towards organising its forces for the battles ahead.
In the first major on •pay, ference voted to accept a 4 per cent offer, but delegates made it clear that they were deeply dissatisfied executive's handling of the Branches had structed the NEC to pursue a claim with a substantial flat rate component, ie £15, and to avoid percentage claims which fell into the incomes policy trap.
In the event, the NEC had let the flat rate clairi go by default. Delegates went censure the NEC for its failure to campaign in une membership for the full claim.
while centéring on wages, wider cerns of delegates. clear that many NALGO activists distinctly unhappy with the present leadership and regard it as an inadequate instrument for the future fights with Delegates were acutely aware that as a public Unfortunately there was no alternative leadership capable of putting up a chanenge to ine right. Steps being taken … LO rectify this.
A Broad Left rally, a which Ian Stevenson from Bury spoke, was attended by nearly • 200 people The Bury branch has recently conducted a successful fight privatisation of refuse collection.
The meeting decided on number of steps towards establishing a national Broad Lenn une Activists recognis ed that a Broad Lett which was concerned only with eecuons was nor an accquate organisation for dealing with the problems faced by the union.
Equally, however, effective the workplace needed to be combined with a fight to establish a more adequate leadership national level.
The meeting decided to build in the autumn and to establish a steering committee to conof NALGO in the next few MOTHERs. with the aim of preparing for setting up a The combination of preparing for , left that can challenge for leader. ship of the with the fight against is major step forward for the TUTT towards preparing NALGO for the battles ahead ' shown in a debate on campaigning tor shop stewards system.
Again, voted overwhelmingly for motion and other branches which instructed NEC campaign for all branches estaousi shop stewards organisation.
The overwhelming vote on the shop stewards important SVSLCH. all break with the profesSold association traditions that have dominated the union for many vears Iț was yet another indicaLO1 that preparing for a battle to defend the against the Tory attacks.
There was major on issue of racism in ine union Con: ference was sharply dividmotion from the Metropolitan District Council inspired by the Black Workers Group The motion called for 'affirmative by the union at all levels to com bat personal anc instituOn two issues in particutar, . there was opposItion in was the drawing up of 'appropilale ruic cedures discipline and expel NALGO members forpetuating racism. The found guilty other was on a call for 'all vacancies to be advertised externally internally The motion was defeated by 219.600 to 43,900. Despite this tinuing its campaign in the ¡cAl ycal.
Increasingly NALGO is less and less like the professional of . It is more and yesier ycai workers. women and black. These the forces . of change which will show itself in the face of the Tories' attacks:
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nalgol •IF THE TUCCAN SUPPORT ASLEF Despite a certain amount of demoralisation the noc hehe services