This weekend, in Sheffield, the tee will assemble the gathering of left trade union activists for more than ten years. The conference meets during the most bitter miner's strike for a decade. It is vital this opportunity to hammer out a line of advance for the left in the unions is not lost.
The BLOC conference must not be simply a rally. Nor simply a platform for ULIE other tendency. . It must be an opportunity sheet of the difficult situation confronting trade unionists and to begin out a plan of action and organisation to meet them.
The first and most urgent task is obviously solidarity with the miners. The NUM cannot today simply rely on spontaneous support from other unions. The record of the TUC on the ASLEF strike, the health workers dispute and the NGA is one of open sabotage.
Therefore it is vital for the left to organise a struggle within the unions to win action, and the membership, to support the miners. The contribution BLOC can make to this is begining to establish an organised left wing movement in the unions.
This would be in practice a new departure for BLOC. following its spring 1983 conference, BLOC virtually disappeared from view. It never appeared publically to organise support for the NGA, GCHu. or older workers suffering the brunt of the Tory attack.
It would be criminal to assemble more than 1500 union acocellier tivists and again fail to build from this a campaigning left wing in the unions.
So the first task from the conference is to OUCH democratic organisation of BLOC, actively campaigning in Starting with an all out campaign in support of the miners would be the way to launch that. BLOC should encourage broad left organisation in every union.
The second key issue the conference must act on is defending political trade unionism and the links of the trade unions to the Labour ParSocialist Action ty.
ple, Duffy, and Graham, are trying to largest impose a new model of non-political business unionism on the movement. This is the strategy which has brought disastrous situation. organise the forces in the union movement who oppose this line.
political funds. The Tory government is seeking to exploit tne ract that onl 39 per cent of trade unionists voted break the links between unions and The funds which are coming in 1986 are going to be sabotaged by people like as Frank Chapple — who quite openproclaim the need for the unions to weaken their links with the Labour Party.
The realism' General Council is quite incapable of tack. Indeed it plays into the hands of the Thatcher government -because a whole series of General Council members proclaim they are in favour of non-political unionism.
uned lent campaign io reverse t direction of the une ponucar levy. Inere Is an acal opportunity to do this during this sumarenas for BLOC to organise and gain support.
mittee has already launched a campaign around a 'Labour Party and Unions Charter'.
Unfortunately, dorsed by figures such as Ron Todd, Arthur scargill, Alan Sapper, Benn, Blunkett.
BLOC, ference, campaign and approach its organisers to discuss how to build it. If the campaign on political funds is built during next year the trade union conferences can really begin to turn round the tide on political trade unionism.
These three steps to defend the miners, building broad lefts in every union, uniting to pontical trade amonisit, are toe prac tical goals which terence can and should set itselt.
next year's BLOC conference will be even larger and more representative than this one. can be taken for the union left.
23 March 1984 MP The TUC, led by Murray, ChapÄFL-CIO such It Is vital flexible' DECIOTS Linked to that is the assaull on would Lauc • not least BLOC is capable of working for a TUC and to defend The Labour Coordinating Comfunds This appeal is Tony Ken Livingstone, and David the BLOC should endorse the LCC through local conthen it Photos JOHN HARRIS FI campaigning defend the BLOC conIf it carries but these campaigns A major step forward ICE Tory police organise to smash picket lines
These plans have been followed to e letter. During its first term in office ie Thatcher government laid down its verall framework of law for confron•g the unions. It took on and defeated e steel workers, the civil servants, and SLEF.
At the same time, as recommended Ridley, the government backed own pit clusures. hilosophically accepted a defeat at the ands of the water workers. Meanwhile ae entire framework of the Tebbit-King aws was being quietly put in place.
Now Thatcher is getting into order ae final part of the plan. The first step as to take on and defeat the NGA at Varrington. This effectively destroyed chances of smaller yorkers taking on and defying the Tebit laws:
Now the real target has come in the Tory sights: The Yorkshire NUM. The roup of workers that organised the lefeat of Heath in 1972 and 1974.
The. National Mineworkers has been the backbone of he British Labour movement for a cenury. These are the real targets of Thather's government.
Those clashes on the have nolnIng do with iolence'. It NUM against the most vicious linated assault on the Beement Since 1926. government defeats the NUM it will urn on any group of workers which lares to fight for its job, its wages or its conditions of work.
It is the Thatcher government which responsible violence coalfields. Not the NUM.
Thatcher is responsible for every loss of jobs, every injury death. She profits from the death of the Yorkshire David Jones. groups of of picket line *miners fighting trade union the Tory starved pits in Wales close.
and every She Miners at modernised Ollerton think they're safe while