Camden Labour Briefing, April 1989

STRIKE WAVE HITS TORIES

The two one day unofficial strikes on London Underground are now being followed by strikes in the BBC, engineering, British Rail 24 APRIL 1429. a : and most certainly the dockers. These strikes must be supported in order to beat back the Tory blues. Even the judges beat back the

DISTRICT HOUSING OFFICE STRIKE : Tory goverment by threatening an unofficial SUPPORT WALGO one day strike. Nalgo members in the Housing Department have However, it is certainly the dockers strike been on strike since 10 Apri] following the which most worries the goverment. 70% of all suspension of five workers. Nalgo had trade still goes thgrough the "scheme" ports submitted a claim for the reinstatement of 14 and the DTI has admitted that a strike would posts deleted last year to cope with the certainly cripple the economy. At stake is extra workload. The strike is now official | the abolition of the "right for a job for and support from NUPE and Tenants | life" and the introduction of casualisation. Associations has been magnificent. We should defend the right to a job, just like in any other industry or service where

Th_slaim for 14 staff (one per estate team) we would not expect arbitrary hiring and is one that must be supported. Over the last firing. year, nearly half the posts in the Housing Department have gone, yet the workload went A victory for the dockers would mean the end up by 30%. The result is that tenants suffer of all the undemocratic anti-union as the council has asked that the staff's legislation and the end of the Tories. A priority be rent arrears and Right to Buy | solid all-out strike with solidarity across applications, while repairs, harassment, and from the labour movement would be the best

general management is seen as secondary. | guarantee that the law would not be used, and

the threat of casualisation defeated. As the Council was avoiding negotiations on

the claim, Nalgo boycotted work on Right to At the 1987 conference, Weil Knnock wondered Buy applications and Councillors' enquiries. how to win over dockers to labour who earned The result was still not negotiations but a £400 a week and went on holiday to Spain. The lock-out! answer is simple : support the dockers in

their strike] Ken Hulme, the vice chair of Housing,

denounced the strike as being political and lead by left-wimngers. This red-baiting and t h "Murdoch" style approach to industrial relations means that council workers and tenants will mean that the Labour Group is more and more isolated as it is seen as acting like the Tories.

CAMDEN LABOUR BRIEFING

WEXT MEETING : TUESDAY 2 KAY, 8pm Town hall, Cttee Room 4

Socialists in the Labour Party should pass resolutions calling on the Laboiur Group to enter into immediate negotiations and meet the claim. Invite speakers to your ward union or TA by phoning Nalgo on 860-5634.

AGENDA :

The EURO-ELECTIONS AND 1992 : what is it al} about, and what is in it for socialist ?

Discussion introduced by Steve Cowan, ILEA councillor and from the Socialist Conferencg

European Policy Group.

THE LABOUR GROUP AGM : what should the left in Camden Labour Parties fight for ?

THE HOUSING STRIKE : What is it all about? Hear first hand froma striker.

For further details, contact Fred Leplat, 24 Godwin Court, NWi 1NN, 387 1361.

STOP THE POLL-TAX

either the Labour Group nor the Council has iscussed the poll-tax, the most swingeing stack on local government from the Tories. 9 much for a democratic and accountable vabour Group! Yet registration notices are ikely to be issued after May 22.

3 protest against the tax is one thing, but = should all ask ourselves how can we stop =. The first thing is to support the local ampaign which at least is trying to explain hy the poli-tax is such a vicious attack. By oing this, it may be possible to build a ass campaign of non-registration and nonvayment. Some wonder wether the campaign should break the law. If it is alright for camden to break the law over its Homeless 2ersons Unit and environmental health standards on some estates, then we could sonsider it. We should certainly envisage oreaking unjust laws. By not co-operating with them, they immediately become obsolete. In Scotland, Campbell Christie, the Secretary >f the STUC, publicly tore up his payment notice at the Edinburgh demo. Maybe Tony Dykes will do the same ?

t the area with the highest poll-tax, on the 8 April - the national day of action by the tabour Party against the Tax - the streets of Camden were noticeably empty of Labour members campaigning against the Poll Tax. Jnfortunately, it has been left to a small group of socialists to carry on the campaign. But you to can help.

Contact CAMDEN AGAINST THE POLL TAX, phone Dave Grace on 485 3690. Next meeting on 27 April. Public Meeting in Kilburnon 18 May and London Demo gainst the Poll Tax on 4 June.

CAHDEH LABOUR BRIEFING

j XT MEETING TUESDAY 2 MAY, 8pm Town hall, Cttee Room 4

AGENDA

The EURO-ELECTIONS. AND 1992 about, and what is in it for socialist Discussion introduced by Steve Cowan, ILBA councillor and from the Socialist Conterenc

European Policy Group.

what should the left in Camden Labour Parties tight for 7

THE HOUSING STRIKE : What is it all about? Hear tirst hand froma striker. For further details, contact Fred Leplat, 24

Godwin Court, NW1 1NN, 387 1361. x

| | | THE LABOUR GROUP AGM i | 1 |

what is it al]

HUPE STRIKES TO DEFEND JOBS

On 26 April, camden NUPE will be staging one-day strike to protest at the threat of loosing 80 jobs. Camden has been merging Departments to form a super "Direct Services" Department run by a management board like a private firm. The services concerned are all infact under threat of privatisation.

Labour councillors have often stated that they would defend staff, in particular lowpaid manual staff against the threat of privatisation. However, the council has recently lost several tenders. In order to win tenders in-house, the council is shedding staff, increasing the workload on those remaining, and attacking conditions. This is exactly what the Tories intended with privatisation : to drive down the conditions of council workers to that of the private — sector. Nobody wins from privatisation.

But rather than blaming the Tories, the Labour Group has clearly decided to blame the workers for the present crisis. Ken Hulme declared in a DMC that caretakers “spent most of their time in pubs and betting shops". Caretakers are now absolutely solid behind the strike on the 26 April. All socialists should back NUPE.

LABOUR GROUP AGH : MOVING DECKCHAIRS ON THE TITANIC AGAIN !

The Labour Group AGM on May 8 will produce nothing new. The cuts budget was set in March, and the Dykes/Woods and Hulme/Shawe, wings of the Labour Group have both prome .¢ and pursued anti-working class policies over the last couple of years. They have savagely cut services, attacked conditions of council workers, and without protest implemented every legislative attack from the Tory government.

The forthcoming AGM will be totally unrelated to any political initiatives, campaigns or struggles in the borough. It will be up to the Manifesto Group of councillors to offer 4 real alternative to both wings of the right

in the Labour Group. This alternative is that of struggle, with the community, unions and

other labour councils, to obtain the resources necessary for Camden and defending existing services rather than waiting for the next general election.