WHILST parents, governots a students organiscu in FACE groups have been increasing the pressure on THE RULES revision conference of the Communication Workers' Union saw scenes of uproar as the minority clerical section repeatedly vetoed rule changes supported by the majority telecom engineering and postal sections.
Under the terms of this year's merger each rule change has to have a malority in each of the three "constituencies". This means that branches representing 15,000 members can veto chaneus supporteu by branches representing over 200,000.
The clerical section first voted down a rule change that would have helped end deals made by the postal executive over the beads of the members.
In the ensuing uproar General Secretary Aian Johnson was torcoo to promise to bring forward a rule change ency matters - yet this proposal will itself be subject to veto.
Given that the main bene. ficlary of the existing set-up Is the national executive -their voting recommendatioms closely coincided with the clerical majority - it is questionable whether they will end the veto. THE CAMPAIGN for the reinstatement of victimised RMT militants has moved centre stage in the union's struggle against British Rail's attempts to break the unlon.
Ballot papers for strike action have now gone out to raincrews at Manchester's Piccadilly station and cleanIng staff at Longsight depot.
The RMT special conference on November 14 gave its support for the struggle.
Management have been tempts to wreck the national which would have severety restricted the rank and file's control over head office. upon itself in an increasingly bitter internecine struggle.
General Secretary Doug McAvoy, still smarting from a humiliating string of defeats at the union's Easter conference, has launched a lase-ditch ion. In this he is uncritically supported by a politically executive majority.
Ine NUE is Presently amongst the most democratie of trade unions: local branches (known as associations and divisions) are able to levy and spend local subscriptions and are consequently able to exercise a high degree of organisational autonomy Local lay officers under. take the negodaboos with s0cal education authorities (LEAs) and are, within the framework of nationally agreed policy, able to deter. mine teachers conditions of service.
Critical
Despite a squeeze in grants from the National Union, branches remain able to fund Circula al throughout the union which is often critical of the National Union and General The Union also has two active and increasingly effective broad lefts - the Socialist Teachers Alliance (STA) and the Campaion for a Ixmo cratic and Fighting Union (CDFU), presenting a very real altemative leadership and pole of attraction for members Fed up with the do-nothing policies of the "new realist" leadership. ence attracts over 1.000 delegates and has over the past few years, shown itself increasingly unwilling to rubMcAvoy and his Executive supporters. ( This culminated in Blackpool last caster when dele. gates voted for, among other things, a ballot for a one day strike against the underfundvigorous campaign against excessive class sizes and tescher redundancies.
Collision course These policies put the union on a collision course with Blait's "New Labour" Party and jeopardised the cosy relationship that McAvoy has bour's Education SpokesperThe usual tactic of appealing to conference delegates through the media tailed 1o save the day for the right wing, and an orchandiming McAvoy has opposed growing FACE campaign on cuts majority rejected the witch-hunting atmosphere which they attempted to create on the back of the il-conceived SWP demonstration against At the end of conference McA voy made clear his intention to ignore or overtum decisions he didn't like. Nothing unusual here, but what was unexpected was the viciousness with which he embarked pon mis task and the extens to which he was prepared to use union resources to meet his ends.
The ballot for a one-day strike • which the left had posed as part of the coberent militant strategy of opposition to the Tory offensive agains: state education - was the first target.
Over €155,000 of union money was spent on a succescommunications sent directly to members' home addresses and to schools for display on NUT notice boards.
Well spent
From McAvoy's point of was well spent, with a 4:1 vote against action. Te renak to been at cally and unashamedly used to "bash the left", which has been characterised as being "out of touch" and "unrepresentative of the member. ship". branded "extremists with their own narrow political agenda".
Encouraged by the success or chas picoische mica voy nas gone onto the offensive and has initiated a ballot on "extendine democracy" in the NUT. Every member has received a letter urging them to vote "'yes" to six questions whilst an issue of NUT News ccutive members are op posco to consultation with the mem. bership and to internal democracy.
inc tact that they acavea promoted an alternative form of consultation, aimed at ad. dressing te very real prop lems that members experience in trying to attend Whilst the ballot material pays lip-service to encouraging members to participate in the existing representative democratic structures of the union (added at a late stage by some uncasy right-wingers) it is clearly intended to endorse the marginalisation of branch meetings and, more particularly, annual conference.
The six questions ask members to endorse the use of ballots to determine every. thine from who may be nomt. nated to national office to which decisions of annual conference should be implemented.
One man band Of course the ballot remains silent on the fact that both the questions and the accompanying matchai whi oc decided by General Secretary • surely the ultimate 'one man There are positive signs. however, that the McAvoy steamroller may be running our of sicam in the National Officer elections which overlapped the "extending (sic) democracy" ballot, left vice-presidential candidate Christine Bower toppco the poil, whits! lan Murch, standing for treas. urer, increased his vote and the right-wing incumbent fell.
In the short term McAvoy is likely to win the current below the 80% in the one day strike ballet).
Elections
The forthcoming Execu. tive elections therefore take on a particular significance. A left majority on the Executive is needed more than ever to put a brake on his excesses. his right wing supporters no longer able to exercise any sort of control on his conduct.
SON and the NUS. We should Atter demo on national No. Matthew Boulton College vember 23 we must continue Edgbaston is about to to build upon the gains won by the left on grants at the special make 40 workers redundant. Ten work in the ad- conference in May.
The right are doing everyministration department, thing to sabotage the demothe rest are lecturers. cratic decisions of the NATFHE members will be conference - including closasking for support from the Ing NUS London, attacking students. The union is cur- other regions where the left is rently balloting for strike ac- strong and a money wasting PR exercise.
It is important that there is The student right is followthe maximum unity against the onslaught of college man- Party leadership. ing the polaes of the Labour agement. When the masses of stuStudents are establishing dents mobilise they have an an anti-cuts society that Impact on the labour maveshould affillate to the Free ment. Education Campaign, linking The left in the NUS must up with students and lecturers now bring broader forces into around the country.
In order to be effective in using it as a way of fighting for defeating these cutbacks we democracy within student unneed the mass participation of members of NATFHE, UNI-
Battle over Birmingham college axe