SOUTH WALES seafarers, employer the National Environment Research Council (NERC)
Discovery last October, are still fighting for unconditional reinstatement. seafarers were sacked after giving the tremendous solidarity to the healthworkers dispute of a 5-day strike, and then defending themselves against anti-trade union harrassment by the master and officers on board ship Fighting for their jobs has seafarers in a battle against their own union leadership as well as their employer. MUSA NOGAN, their elected convenor, says:
of the main lessons of this dispute 1s that before we can solve une prodiems or ene me dustry, we have to solve union, the National Union have democratise this union, 50 fight that it's the members views which count and which get carried out.
We need the regula election of all national and local officials to make them accountable. The present in failed to solve leadership BESTO a the problems of the infrom wages and GUSLEY. demanning through to the difficulties facing ethnic minorities, and has even failed to uphold its own policies. They are more interested in an unholy autance the employers than fighting for the memberOur fight is for unconditional reinstatement on our previous terms of employment - a return to the status quo. The NUS leadership 3129 a cerea rather than helped this TIEHL.
We won support from the Scales on the Challenger, sacked by their the research vessel Seventeen involved the NERC ship, which they halted at Ardrossan in Scotland. But our general secretary Jim Slater, and assistant national secretarv John Nelson, gave the ship authority to sall dry dock for planned repairs.
This was a blatant act of strike breaking which considerably undermined bargaining position with NERC.
Then in December the national leadership took the out of our hands altogether, saying ahey better setirement than could win a quicker could locally. But in rep a deal were NER.
NERC Once the leadership was fulfilling its historical role of gendarme for the shipowners.
Deal In January John Ne so seimus to e deal. 10 try to sell us the deal. was unconditional reinstatement and contained many unacceptable clauses. First, our previous permanent строушель would be replaced by temporary work. This meant that NERC could get rid of us right arter the next voyage. It also overturned union policy wnich suDports permanent contracts of emp oment.
Second, we were to be dispersed different NERC ships, breaking up Shackleton which goes out of service in July anyway.
ed accepting both a reprifrom NERC for our trade not negonaole.
democracy NUS-style - J phone and got the final warning removed, but not the other clauses. So we told him it was unaccepfighting for unconditional Fight Since then we've had two meetings with national leaders at the London of fice. At the first meeting, which lasted 7½ hours, we told Inem unat HOL member accepted the deal. And then we discovered that NERC has already deal! So we said to Slater and Nelson, the deal dead anyway , so let's fight for unconditional reinUnbelievably they still said no.
At the second meeting we were there from 11am to 10pm. We occupied the office and told Nelson that we wouldn't leave until we got justice. He could see we meant business because we made ourselves comfortable with a colour TV ana naa nish and cups sent in! Frank Rowberry GWU official handing over donation from hospital workers to Musa Morgan and other seafarers.
So eventually at 8.30pm he brought in Sam McCluskie, assistant McCluskie could see the situation and was more recep tive to us, so we were able to come to an agreement with him.
Firstly we get to be inwith NERC. Second, fight for a return to the status . quo including unconditional reinstatement basis.
NERC says no, the NUS will use IS In dustrial muscle to win the demands.
A start has now beer made. The NUS has told branches provide So now we'll be wat NUS leadershi o make sure the carries out me agreement waice McCluskie made with us. If not, we'll carry on the fight.
During our solidarity the healthworkers, and NERCIT against and our union our jobs on the policies of our union and the TUC The trouble is that the fine words uttered at conferences by union leaders out to be empty OILCH LUE! rhetoric. taken us months to force our own union leadership to fight for what we It is now NUS policy to organise branches on DOZE Saus this quires participation policy doesn't give full backing to the kind of trade union solidarity action we pursued on the Discovery.
We've got to make our unions fight for us, and to went got democratise them and make the leaders accountable.
Finally, our fight has won tremendous support workers in South especially miners and healthworkers. ENIS On NERD pressures an the NUS leaders workers we have picketed these and also occupied the NERC office in Barry Dockith this kind of trade union solidarity which was what first place, workers can win their battles in pursuit of their interests. date surprisingly. John union democracy.
What happened in the recent ballot?
At the July NEC, Chapple announcee ne first the right fielded four canalcates, burns was eventual ly reduced to two. I stood as e broac sen candidate At first there were a varietv of challenges from the lef but was eventually agreed that I would be the on ly left candidate. We ran a campaign that broke new ground.
In what way was that so?
our rules. candidates can't electioneer -all they can do is attend branch meetings STRES hopeless. In the official period of the electior between 20 October and 15 November had branches to visit! Obviously, such conditions make it impossible for candidates run any sort of camdid whistle-stop tours many ches as possible. A typical day was: 10.30 am in Port Talbot, South Wales ENCI shop stewards meeting in Manchester later and or evening meeting at our Leeds branch.
Task This was one side of what was different about our campaign Also, the Broad Left decided to run an open campaign. Our argument was that candidates must be able to publicly present positions for the members to accept or reject.
This challenged our Code of Conduct which lays down things like candidates can't appear on TV or radio, can 't produce leaflets In other they can't campaign! During the electior Flashlight (the Broad Lef The Broad Lefts and JOHN AITKIN, a Fleet Street electrician with considerable experience in the union and in the Labour Party, recently stood as Broad Left candidate in the EEPTU election to replace General His platform included re-establishing full accountability to the union membership, and an all-out struggle to defeat the Tories and elect a Labour government on a socialist manDespite this he believes the Broad Left campaign was a big success. He explained why to Socialist Challenge reporter, CAROL TURNER and considered the future for Broad lefts and did the vote represent?
In rough figures, Chapple's man, Hammond 32, 80t and so votes. i 73,000 votes. I 26,000 If all four of the OLIC candidates stood, l'd have topped the ballot first time round Sanderson appealed to • YUL ight the 'soft lefts' He's an able and experienced man.
He's a bit anti-left, but his approach was one of bringing the union back to the centre of TUC-Labour Party policies. His vote was by no means a Chapple vote.
Did this election campaign mark any sort of change in the Broad Left itself?
It most certainly did The BL has been accused in the past of being a narrOW caucus the We've been campaigning to change that -to bring in all the forces or the left inside the union.
My selection as the Broad Left candidate signals some success on this score the candidates had come last. vote turns round this trend. Our candidates are seen as credible candidates for national office. Control We're building the BL as a broad-based group now, especially around the and the Labour We've Flashlight. present our case on public platforms other Broad Labour Party platforms Lefts and -UR In view of what you've just said, I assume you'il be involved in the BLOC Conference coming up?
Unfortunately, I've been too busy with my branch and with our campaign to be personally involved up to now. But it certainly has my support Our Plumbers candidate, lan Brown, been more involved thar me.
Socialist Challenge 18 February 1983 page 9
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Third. permanent
The Photo
and ing unionship is bor
union democracy Secretary Frank Chapple.