Despite the resignation of council leader Margaret Hodge, there is no end in sight for Islington NALGO's fightback against compulsory redundancies.
Some 750 members are already on strike, and the union is set to bring another 250 people out if the authority tries to force non-strikers to cover strikers' work or co-operate with scabs. It also seems likely that the computer section will walk out as compulsory redundancy notices are issued.
As a result of the escalation threat, limited talks have taken place despite * the council's public refusal to negotiate.
The dispute is becoming increasingly bitter. Islington is stepping up the use of agency staff as strike breakers and started sacking strikers on temporary contracts.
Scabs are being supplied by a Page 4 10 Oct. 1992 No. 29 company called CSL, largely owned by the pension funds of British Rail and the National Coal Board, which operates extensively in local governMANI Itis currently bidding for local government contracts where white collar services are being privatised. NALGO is calling for a boycott of CSL.
The Islington strike committee has responded with mass pickets where agency scabs are being used, which has led to confrontations with the police.
Mass picketing has been successful both in raising strikers' morale and in intimidating scabs. The council is threatening to apply for an injunction against NALGO nationally if numbers are not reduced.
With Newham NALGO strikers' forced return to work, the Islington dispute -now entering its fourth month - is the largest and most sustained resistance to the Tory assault on local government.