Busmen's Pay Rise — an Alarming Report

The Financial Times of February &th contained a report by itslabour reporter, John Elliott, on the latest position in the busmen's pay rise affair. It is worth quoting extensively: "TGWU national leaders are expected to tell their regional officers not to press ahead with legal actions to gain the £1 a week rise for 77,000 municipal busmen stopped by the Government uniter its Prices and Incomes Act powers, Mr. Frank Cousins, TGWU general secretary, announced that the rises were to be fought for in the courts instead of by strike action after Mr. Ray Gunter, Minster of Labour, had made it clear that the rise was totally unacceptable under the incores policy. Actions have been started against many of the 97 municipal corporations involved. But the Governrent has remained confident that the wording of the relevant section «eof the act, and of the notive stopping the pay rise while it is studied by the Prices and Incomes Board, cannot be faulted in the courts.....The TGWU legal department and its advisors have been examining the position since the Government stopped payment nearly two weeks ago and the national leadership now seers to have had second thoughts about its chances ef winning any action....." This report, if true, indicates a-most deplorable state of affairs, Many sections of the busmen, notably from Scotland and Nottingham, were eager for militant action. Had the leadership of the union come out for strike action of one kind or another an overwhelming majority of the busmen would have supported them, Unfortunately the action of the TGWU leadership not to forget certain exceptions, e.g., Bill Jones, whose redord on the TUC is most cormendable — has been to damp down militant action. One has only to compare the docks' struggle with that of the busmen's to see that it is possible to fight and defeat the Government if there is militancy and a minirum level of leatership. Everyone on the left has been pleased by the opposition to the Government's wages' policy which has emanéted from the TGWU leadership, However, unless this opposition is consistent and goes forward the very "leftness" of the TGWU leadership could become a factor dampening down struggle. Militant trade unionists would mot accept from right wing trade union leaders what the busmen accepted from Frank Cousins and Go. Those of us who hae supported the initiatives of the TGWU leadership in the past have a special responsibility to do all we can to ensure that that lealership evolves to the left.