The one day strike of Feb.4th was a magnificent demonstration of strength, militancy and discipline from one of the most decisive sections of the british working class. The strike, the biggest industrial action since 1926, has been followed by a whole series of local disputes which are char@terised by the offensive spirit of the workers. As one boss bitterly complained 'the stewards are using this issue to enforce 100% trade unionism'. All over the country the tiny number of scabs are being driven out of the factories. Let those, of both left and right, who have been complaining of apathy, etc. ponders what other working class anywhere in the world could put on a better show?
A whole series of demonstrations in nearly every important tcWn in Britain took place: 4,000 in Sheffield passed a resolution calling for a national stoppage on Feb 19th; 5,000 marched through the streets of Glasgow; 4,000 in Tundees 2,500 in Birmingham, supported by a jazz band, in the city's biggest post war aemonstration; in London, mestings and marches were held in Ganning Town, St. Pancras, Willesden, Ealing, Finsbury and the Uast Sfids The 'best cver' mass march and meeting was held in Ilford 3 3,000,.ma chers, headed by Labour .P.s Frank Allaun and Will Griffiths, chanted slogans as nt through the main streets of Manchester} a meeting of over 1200 was held in Coventry which was followed by a march of over 500; ina march from Islington Square to the Pierhead, 3,000 Liverpool workers called for weekly one day strikes; students took part in a march of 2,000 in “= Newcastle-upon-Tyne carrying banners "students support the workurs'! 3. in driving rain, 3,000 marched through Belfast to a mass meeting, the engino&t iS 8h Spoon joincd by 1,000 workers from the Ulster Transport Authority; meetings Were attended by sevoral hundrod in towns like Derby, Nottingham, Oxford, Slough, 2,000 marched around the industrial estate at Crawley New Town; and everywhere the scabs amounted to only a tiny porcentage of the total labour force. Indocd the biggest complaint cf the pickots was the lack of work.
Strikes to enforce the sacking of blacklegs or afsiny out of the refuml to do "black! work have broken out at Raleigh Cycles and Uricssons, the two biggest umployors of onginoers in Nottingham; at Ruston and Hornsby in Lincolng at Blyth power station, at Jaguars of Coventry and in a whole host of small firms.
The decision to hold another ono-day strike and a ballot of the member ship for a national stoppage represents a compromise between the desire of the trade union bureaucrats to limit the struggle to that of putting pressure on the Government and the employers to be more 'reasonable', and that of the shop-floor militants to wage tne fight to its conclusion,
Revolutionary marxists must support, in a responsible way, every attempt to broaden and deepen the struggle. Taking into account the level of consciousness of the workers we must campaign for (1) a national stoppage (2) the linking of all the struggles of the enginoets, the miners, the railwaymen, etc. with the perspectivo of a one-day national strike (3) a programme of real preparationsfor these als, especially building up union membership, shopfloor, and branch organisation, On another levol, we must renew our offorts to link the Labour Party, the Young socialists, Students, etc. with the struggles. Throuzh these links we can raise the question of linking the in ystrial struggle to the political aim of removing first, the Tory Government and tha Capitalist system. Millions of workers are coming into eer for the first time, they are determined to have a decent standard of living» “hey now understand that the Tory Government intends to cut their living standards 2 Prop up Capitalism. ‘hats more th¥ are propared to fight this attack and go on “se offensive. From amongst these people revolutionary socialism can make many adherents.