AS MOMENTUM built up for the Unshackle the Unions conference, Socialist Outlook spoke to JOE MARINO, General Secrelary of the bakers' and food workers' union, BFAWU. Marino has been a consistent supporter of the campaign, along with miners" leader Arthur Scargill and furniture workers leader Colin Christopher. How have the anti-union laws affected vour attempts to defend organisation? We've had a policy right from the start of totally ig noring the legislation. Any action that's been taken to defend terms and conditions or members jobs has always got the sup port of the union, inespeclive of any legislation.
Joe Marino Many industries have faced attempts by employers to derecognise unions. Has BFAWU faced these It's not beer a problem so far, but that's not to say it wont happen. We're in dispute with a company at the moment now. The workers are talking about coming out over a national agreement that's under attack.
Some figures in the union novement and the Labour Party have argued that rather than industrial action, we should look to the EC social charter.
In our view the Eurepean Community only looks good because the attacks by this governmont have bean so bad. But as they say beware Groeks bearing gøts.
We're not too enamoured with what's coming out of the community -we'd treat with great caution. But in any event, you only have to look at what's happened with the Social Charter to see how it's been watered down to the lowest common denominator.
Weid get very Ittle out of it at all. So we belleve that's leading people down the wrong path. Now that the EC's becoming more of a concrete reality, do you think it's more important that unions and workers' organisations begin to work together on an international level? Whether the EC's becoming more organised or not is immaterial. Our view is that unions should be organising on an international basis anyway. But it shouldnt just be among the 12 EC members, but throughout Europe, givert the way multinational companies are going.
We are lading a mutinational company that's been buying heavily in France. We have made inks with French unions, itrespective of their political affiliations.
Internationalism has always been part of the working class movement; the EC shouldnt make a differerice. Finally, what role do you see for the Unshackle the Unions conference? How can it aid union activists? One of the problems that the movement has got is that no lead has been given by the TUC, the Labour Party or indeed the major unions in fighting these laws.
Conferences like 'Unshackie the Unions should be used in order to begin the fightback against this Tory legistation. It should be used to coordinate the approaches of shop stewards in particular and union activists.
it should also show that there is a lot of resistance ouf there to the legisiation.
• July 11, 1992 No. 25 THE SMTUC conference comes at a time when trade unionists are under wide-ranging attack. The depth of the capitalist crisis and the re-election of the Tories, mean that the bosses' offensive is going to be resumed with an vengeance. The conference must highlight three key areas for resistance:
• the new antt-unson laws, which aim to strike a major how at the unions ability to organise.
• the widespread introduc tion of 'new management • the coming attack on the public sector, which threatens a million public services jobs.
The focus of the conference will be the new management techniques. Although generally assocated with manufacturing industry, especially cars, they are now crank marcoacca i the public sector Health, education, the post office, telecom and transport all lace the same offensive Few workers will not be faced with some aspect of these techniques in the coming years.
There are four main elements to these techniques, First an attack on trade unions. Second, the transtonnaon or working conditions. Third, the reshap ing of the workforce. Finally, these techniques are held cal offensive.
None of these elements, taken separately, is new. What is new and threatening is the way these things are being integrated by management into a coherent approach in which each one reinforces the others.
Attacking the trade unions can involve outright de-recogmoon, as i she capart plant in Oxford, and in the print trade.
But derecognition so far has involved relatively few areas. Anu-umonism nas included a range of measures designed to break the allegiance of workers union, and identify them with their employers These measures include performance relatea pay. dividual contracts, no strike agreements and binding arDitration, reduction in trade union facilities and the abolition of the check off svstem where union dues are deducted Work teams, often with elected team leaders promoted by management as and an alternative to unions workers are encouraged to look to their team leaders, rather than shop stewards, to solve problems he aim of course is to make it appear that pay and conditions depend on individual effort and not on collective union achon At Nissan's Sunderland blame workers get an annua ay increment if their perfor mance is judged to be good enough; exactly the same model is being proposed for teachers in higher education.
The new techniques demand an intensification of work levels, achieved through: reduction or abolition of job demarcation, being proposed on London Underground, and by putting responsibility for quality control and maintenance on to production workers, thus cutting the workforce.
Defining jobs in terms of tasks to be carried out per week, rather than hours worked per week, effectively introduces compulsory overtime.
Speed-up often operates through team-working have the responsibility for checking their own output and also checking and reporting on other teams.
but it is not necessary for teams to play this role in every ample the focus is much more on individuals teachers. and in stead of team monitoring the emphasis is on formal appraisal systems.
Thechanging character of the workforce involves increased use of part-time workers and temporary and
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