IMGpapers 1980–83

Newspapers of the International Marxist Group and its forerunners, 1980–83

Massey Ferguson strike: First round to workers

· Socialist Challenge No. 255, 23 July 1982 · pp. 15-16 of the scan · 248 words

The scan: sc-no255.pdf (PDF, Marxists Internet Archive, opens at this page)

Uncorrected machine reading. This text was read by machine (Apple Vision OCR) from a scan of a newspaper page, and the page was cut into articles by machine, at the headlines found by their type size. Nothing has been corrected: expect misread words, text from a neighbouring article, and titles that are the machine reading of the headline, some of them only fragments. Quote from the scan, not from this page.
How this article was cut and titled: headline found by type size in the OCR geometry (split_tabloid.py); 2-3 of 7; machine-segmented newspaper page; uncorrected Vision OCR.

page 15 of the scan

Massey Ferguson, Manchester rejecting a pay familiar lines. On telegrams them to attend a mass meeting regarding the company's wage offer.

There seemed to be a certain amount of collusion between local officials and management. When local officials were contacted they directive had come from a no ever HOSTCHY them to hold mass meeting to get us back to work On hearing this, we immediately issued a strike bulletin, before the mass meeting, countering management's and also the dubious game being played by ficials.

On the day of the mass meeting the local officials the workforce, who refused to listen to them. We decided to give another broadside THE DEVELOPMENT of our two-week strike, offer of two per cent, took 12 July, strikers received local union officials urging on 14 July.

Simultaneously, a company bulletin arrived, urging us to return to work and claiming there was a misunderstanding in our strike bulletin to the company.

The stewards' committee said that instead of instructing members back to work, we should put to management our position: f5 on the basic rate will oar galning on tne excess.

After stewards' meeting Will COll with the workforce Dally standing outside the gate in angry mood, the company capitulated and agreed to our demand. vote was laken and a Illa jority was for a return to work so lnal negoulanon: could resume.

This was seen as a victory which could strengthen our organisation, although recognise there'll be more

page 16 of the scan

Socialist

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