Almost half the 10m full-time manual workers in Britain have now negotiated their employers a working week of less than 40 hours.
According the progress towards reducing working hours has been brisk in the past months, although Mouse acknowledges that some Have yet lo be implemented.
Nearly CYCL trade union conference during 1970s adopted policy for no loss of pay. 35-hour week with In the Trades Union Congress called TOr 'a working week of 35 hours in all industries with a further target of a 32-hour, four-day week Liverpool 15.4% Widnes May 2 13.8% May 9 without loss of earnings.' Yet =. the 35-hour Week is becoming more widespread the figures are still rising, is there ally point in fighting for such a policy? How effective has the TUC campaign been? Overtime The slump has brought down the total number of hours of overtime worked from 13.5m 1975 9.19m year, but ine amount oi swill as high as ever and overtime worker Is averages out at a full exLa ay a week In their drive for profits. the employers are Salford 9.4% May 6 & Warrington May 4 10.0% Congleton 7.6% May JOLVERHAMPT "Wolverhampton May 14 12.0% West Bromwich May 16 10.5% 'It has been , an essental part of TUC's campaign that reductions troduced in a way which increases efficiency and ensures a better use of resources over a shorter period of time through such methods rescheduling and reorganising patterns of WOlK 'Unions and managements in many working al c together to achieve this.
It is hardly surprising that while the index of weekly worked by each worker fell throughout manufacturing industry by 10 per 1969 and 1979 the actual output per employed went up by 22 per cent!' The worked in all avclari lilculular turing industries is still a staggering 60.9 "nours a week!
But the introduction of new machines and the closing of You all and factories has been saving All ll has Gone Is to cut the wages bill for the bosses.
technology has eliminated jobs and raised productivity by forc ing the remaining workforce to work harder, to produce even more than they did before their co workers were put on the dole.
In the present recession more is being pro for duced than the bosses can sell The steady stream of job now turning into a tidal wave, and as the Tories the public sector this area can no longe. soak up the privale maustry The TUC went along the about technology and the profits, hence its anxiety to make sure that the introducuon of the 35-hour week increased Slash This is why the trade union leaders can offer nothing better to combat unemployment than calls for increased public expenditure of £6 billion. Since the Tories are anxious to slash public expenditure, such appeals are unlikely to succeed.
The is, of worried about Long as it goes along with unemployment, but
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MPs to marchers