Make the Unions a Vehicle for Working Class Struggle}?

ELEVEN MONTHS' OLD STRIKE CONTINUES by a Scottish correspondent Thirty three men are still on strike at the Square Grip Reinforcement Company Ltd., Newhouse, near Paisley, Scotland, The strike is over union recognition, and is officially supported by the T&GWU, The company (an English one) produces high tension steel for building projects and also columns for reinforcing concrete. It has eight factories, plus one in Bulawayo. The eighth was opened in Glenroth, Fife, in July - after the dispute was well under way. Approximately fifty workers are in each of the company's factories, which between them comprise Scotland's biggest steel supplier, selling at a considerably cheaper price than its competitors. Newhouse is the largest of these factories, and the most militant partly because its workers are by far the lowest paid on the Newhouse Industrial Estate, and partly because many of the workers were union men in their previous jobs. Up to November 1965 resentment had been steadily growing and walk-outs had taken place as a result of various disputes within the factory; e.g. bonus, heating, first aid, etc., but the annual wages conference in November was the last straw which led to the formation of a T&GWU branch in the factory. At this conference an increase of 7d on the basic rate of 5/4 per hour for all Square Grip workers was agreed by the management, but bonus rate was cut by 25% - which meant that some men got less at the end of the week than before the "increase", Within three weeks of this agreement 90% of the workers had joined the T&GWU, but management refused to meet the full time officials or to recognise the union. In January 1966, 21 men were paid off, as "the demand for material is not enough to carry these men" - this despite the fact that overtime and night shift was being worked (unusual at this time of the year). All the paid off workers were union card holders - itself a significant fact. In February, despite meetings with Ministry of Labour officials, the Company still refused union recognition, As a result, the workers, with union backing, decided on March 27th on strike action, On the following day all except 17 non-union men were out, On March 29th, the 57 workers received letters dismissing them "because they had broken contract" - a contract which some men had never signed, some had never even received, and some had signed because they would not otherwise have got the job. For the first three or four weeks the factory was almost at a standstill, but on 6th May succeeded in getting an indictment against three full time T&GWU officials, two branch members and all members of the T&GWU, preventing them from carrying out their normal functions, The judge decided there was a basis for a court action, on the grounds that under the Trade Dispute Act of 1906 it is not certain that T.U. recognition is a Trade Dispute, This means that the Union can no longer "black" the factory, although they are officially supporting the strike until May 1967, when the case is to be heard. The dispute is a very important one for the whole Labour movement. If-in May the Court declares that the fight for recognition is not a Trades Dispute a dangerous precedent will have been set which will make unions supporting strike action over union recognition liable for damages. The costs of the strike, which, even after 11 months, still involves 33 men, are very heavy. The Scottish N.U.M. has donated £500 to help defray these but more support is urgently required. Donations received by The Week will be immediately passed on to the Strike Committee,