minster Branch POEU, 'THE supporters of was the wry comment from John Scott-Garner, president of the Post Office Union, on resolution take POEU's pay claim to arbitration.
It received only a "half dozen votes the delegates gathered union's annual conterence in Blackpool last week. The gales of laughter which Scott-Garner's remark showed the militant mood ot representatives of the 120,000 telephone engineers.
Inflation The crucial pay debate was opened by union general secretary, Brian Stanley. He attacked the Post Telecommunications Board for making a pay offer that would drastic cut in real wages. He made it clear that the offer was the result of governespecially the cash-limits imposed " on nationalised industries.
Stanley supported the proposals from the national ecutive lor a pay claim that would keep pace with inflation and make a small improvement in productivity bonuses. Crumbs The first amendment, put forward by Glasgow branch, called for a 30 per cent basic claim. This Was ferociously resisted by the national executive who argued that under the present government it was only possibly to protect existing pay levels and get a few crumbs on top.
Despite the fact that the executive's alternative, of 23 per cent, was unprecedentedly militant, the conference decided that it had had enough. It passed the Glasgow amendment by 63,002 votes to 61,295, a maoff defeat, but to no avail. In the final card vote, was passed by 64,230 to 60,067. Hundreds of rank union members in the galleries that and rank-and-file leaders the conference floor burst into applause. Result Brian Stanley followed the the with a statement in which he callea ror a unica anu acici• mined fight for the claim that had been decided. Despite these fine words, the militants in the the conference know that it is up to them to win this dispute.
the Office the 11C W the report and file THREE hundred engineers attended the first full meeting of the called for *a Moving Upchurch, based solely massive meeting Tuture ingly passed. Composite proposition 17, WACT Fi progressive reduction in hours' in order to preserve jobs TeSOlULOn of Hillingdon branch explained tht this wasn't a demand the terest POEU members but was in the interest of the entire working class.
nose who solo loes roare redundancy payments were betray ing the unemployed of today, and generatons jobs weren't morally theirs to sell.
Supporting the resolution, Dave Ward called for the POEU to defend the rights of youth. He said that saving jobs for the workers of trade unionists of today and it was issue that simply couldn't be avoided The resolution was overwhelm-
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and Chris Mullins, Horsham Branch POEU
proposition will be meeting outside, in a kiosk.' That