Workers at Alford and Alder in Hemel Hempstead are first in the firing line of Labour's incomes policy. massively to continue their struggle in the teeth of Healey's wage-cutting measures. Convenor Ted Mitchell announced: "Somebody has to begin the fight against these measures; it may as well be us."
digging in for a bitter fight. For four weeks, knowing that incomes policy was around the corner and hoping the workers would cave in orice the good news fell from Healey's lips, management bent over backwards not to rough things up. But now things may change.
official has so far met with an ominous silence. No doubt the AUEW leadership considers it more important not to promote any struggles anywhere in the motor industry while the delicate' negotiations over the implementation of the Ryder Report are going through.
sops of workers' participation from the BL management, you don't want to blow the gaff by making a strike within the group official, do you? The strike has already led to the lay-off of 11,000 workers at Cowley, Longbridge and other BL plants, and this could rise to 35,000 after the summer break.
A clear call should come from all militants to make this strike official, particularly from within the motor industry and in the Engineers Union. Now is the time to test the resolve of the AUEW leadership in voting against the new version of the Social Contract now in operation. Money and all messages of support should be sent to: Secretary of the Strike Fund, 417 Barnacres Road, Hemel Hempstead, Herts.
Last Thursday, after being out over four weeks for a E10 claim, the 750 strikers voted All the signs are that the Alford workers - who supply components to British Leyland - are The Alford workers also have other problems. Although they have the support of the AUEW After all, when you're pleading how responsible your members are in order to wheedle some