Opposition Mounts as the Freeze Bites

Amongst the first sackings to be announced as a direct result of the Government's measures was the dismissal of several hundred railway workshop staff, to take effect mostly in October. Resistance from the N.U.R. is expected, and it makes it more likely than ever that the union's block vote will go against the Government at the T.U.Cs and Labour Party Conferences. In addition it hes been announced this week that more than 1,000 men at 3 factories of I.C.I. Fibres, which employs 9,300, are to lose their jobs within the next 2 weeks - 600 in Doncaster; 250 in Ponty pool and 200 in Gloucester. Announces ents of staff cuts in such consumer durable industries as cars, domestic appliances and the like are expected in the next few weeks, according to the financial page of the Guardian. This has occurred already in the building industry. The first and the hardest to be hit will by and large be unskilled workers. The Financial Editor of the Guardian on August 23rd estimated that the traditionally high unemployment areas - Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and the Northern Region will bear the brunt of Wilson's measures, just as they bore the brunt of Selwym Lloyds freeze in 1961. In Scotland, one of the_Week's correspondents, Willie Thompson, has informed us of the determination of the Scottish N.U.M. to fight the entire content of the Government's poldcy. On the pay front, a strike by 34 D.A.T.A- members at Bristol Siddeley Engines, Ltd., Bristol was the first millitant action actinst the measures. This strike is now over but a work to rule and overtimeban, involving over 1,000 D.A.T.A. members has followed. Early this week, a strike began at Shardlowés engineering factory in Sheffield over the pay freeze, involving well over 1,000 workers in several unions. Such resistance will be joined by many similar moves in the next few weekse