NALGO) and Doug
Thorpe (Islington) Last week's NALGO conference showed a rising anger at attacks on public services and a growing recognition of the need for national campaigning to defeat them. On several important issues, for example defiance of the trade union laws, the 2000 delegates inflicted defeats on the National Executive (NEC). But the NEC held the line against the left on the crucial issue of national strike action to defend local government and the NHS.
After five years of job losses local manual workers, white collar workers face massive cutbacks. Already thousands of jobs have been lost, mainly through voluntary redundancy and redeployment. In the next five KALS 0's 500,000 local govern- to 30 per cent of ment workers face the sack.
On the first day of conference a resolution from Ealing local government branch calling for national strike action to defeat the cuts was defeated by about 3:2. The NEC were able to caricature this resolution as calling for one big bang strike to defeat the cuts. After ears of no lead from the NEC, and branches having to fight in isolation, many delegates doubted their ability to deliver strike action.
But the disquiet of delegates was reflected in the adoption of the call for a recall meeting of local government delegates in September, when the national strategy for fighting the cuts will be reviewed. A national demonstration against cuts was also decided.
During the conference the government announced plans o privatise the majority of local government services run by NALGO members. The complacency of the NEC was shown by its failure to mention this fact until Islington branch demanded statement. Whether or not NALGO's leadership really intends to fight this attack remains to be seen.
Resolutions for national strike action against NHS cuts also fell, but a day of national solidarity with the sacked 34 Oldham hospital records clerks was agreed for 5 July, as well as a national demonstration against attacks on the NHS.
Most time at the conference was spent on the proposed merger with NUPE' and COHSE. Many delegates, supported by the left, expressed concern at whether the new union would retain NALGO's relatively open and democratic structures, including branch autonomy and financing. Twenty eight amendments to the NEC's document were passed to ensure democracy in the new union.
The NEC got a shock when the final debate of conference revealed a huge majority to centsure them for bending to the Tory anti-union laws in Liverpool. NALGO's executive inStructed the Liverpool branch not to go on a one-day strike after the council got an injunction against branch secretary Judy Cotter. Although the NEC instruction was ignored by Liverpool workers, the conference went out of its way to condemn the NEC for its action. The implication of the vote is that NALGO will conduct 'business as usual' by defying the anti-union laws in such 10 JULY. National pay clalm lobby, London workers.
strategy. NT to PiCKIS No John Harris (IFL