THE British Steel Corporation closed the secondary rolling mills at Warrington last Friday, the loss of 700 jobs. Ironically, the latest edition of Steelworkers Banner, the ISTC's journal, car-. ries the headline 'We'll fight the closure'.
The shutdown came after a ballot result of 2 to 1 in favour of accepting the principle of closure, with over a third of the workforce abstaining.
Yet the Warrington steelworkers in Cheshire among militant during the 13-week strike. What went wrong in the fight to save jobs? Socialist Challenge COLIN HERD, the plant convenor. Investment "The mistake we made,' Colin, 'was to rely on the TUC Steel Committee to fight for our jobs, and not on our own workforce and the support that we could win from other 'Don't get me wrong, it is important to get the union leaders actively involved in issues like this. This especially true if you've got a traditionally moderate workforce like we had. When they see that the union is involved, it can get them on the right side.
'But we left it up and they let down. We were told to wait until we KnOW the most asked were going to stick to it over Warrington.
says the closure.
all your money was a lot.' The closure BSC strike that the to them uS ot closures. had seen the BSC board, but when we got to London they didn't want to the problems that another closure in Warrington would "They had made up their mind that the plant was to close, and they 'The TUC Steel Committee had been delaying meeting with the Board When we finally got to meet them; it was too late to organise the older workers to fight 'If you had worked in this plant then the seve dice was officially announced on 17 April, just two weeks after the end of the steel strike. Secret documents revealed by ISTC have shown that the closure plans were drawn up at the end of last year. But the members of the TUC Steel fighting Committee knew during the wages' Corporation was preparing for another massive round Yet they. insisted that the strike was only about wages and not jobs. The refusal of the TUC leaders to organise against closures during the strike made BSC's job easier.
The strike had produced a new spirit among steelworkers.
months ago there would only have been a handful of votes against closure; now there were over a third. The task was to win the support ol those who were not committed taking voluntary redundancy money.
Here again the role of the fulltime officials was crucial. At the mass meeting George Cooper, ISTC official, announced that if you fight, the union will support you, but you have to realise that it may jeopardize your severance pay' There was solidarity that had been already been organisca by tne local umon commil tee in winning support from Skinningrove, Rotherham, and Scunthorpe for the boycott of orders from Warrington.
They didn't put forward any militant plan of action, based on local trade union and labour movement subport to threatened in the area anything more than verbal support officials, voted for closure.
To leadership, especially ISTC, on Warrington as a test hate costies in the methods that they want to use.
ISTC has produced an alternative adopt would save jobs. the local tne ciall described head'.
mention defend all. jobs being vital, Without sufficient.
the workforce the union looked are still there, case to save lobs.
But the problem lies change ensure Warrington.
But rather than mobilise their members, the union leaders wanted to rely on an injunction through the courts to stop the BSC closing more The plans start from the need to make profits, not from the defence of jobs. It could have been written by any management consultant Walletol workers were told that it was through getting the Tories to change their policics and the union's plan that they Bernard Connolly, at Rotherham, the ISTC plan sedative before they chop off your BSC is planning many more plant The first is at Consett this September. If other steelworkers are to be successful in defending their jobs, they have to organise to make -sure that they themselves control the conduct of the struggle.
Involving the full-time officials is but on its own this is not Full-time officials have to be forced to organise to defend jobs. Just three months ago, Bill Sirs sold out the steel strike. The same officials "supporting' the fight Part of this fight is to the unions themselves, to that there no repeat of