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May 14: Loyalties and Undermine Their Ability to Fight

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May 14: Loyalties and Undermine Their Ability to Fight Marxism Today August 1980 15 and is going to remain as a major feature of Tory policy. The Tories' direct appeal to the people gets a hearing because Thatcherism is a much more developed form of political argumenta- tion that offers something for almost everybody: its philosophy on the sale of council houses, law and order, the return of grammar schools, attacks on bureaucracy, and so forth. Their open campaigning against nationalisation, immigration, mugging, the Pete Carter so-called social security parasites, and the Government's militant stand on the Common Market are just a few of the issues through which they have been able to politically confuse sections of workers, divide their May 14: loyalties and undermine their ability to fight. In addition to policy, they have also developed the ability to present a most an assessment reactionary idea in a popular and feasible way. But there was also another very important factor hampering the fightback. This has been the impact of recession, unemployment and closures. It has been a powerful influence at British Leyland. It is at the heart of the problem in steel and South Wales. Recession There has been much talk about the May The Tories fought hard to offset this and unemployment, indeed, have been 14th Day of Action. According to the Tories growing movement. The measure of their gathering pace this year. The latter is now and the media it was a huge flop. Conversely success can be judged by the lack of support beginning to affect the main body of workers. many on the Left saw the Day as an un- for the South Yorkshire call for action in And its effect has been to demoralise and qualified success. Neither is the case, and February, which received less support than confuse important groups of workers: it is the whilst the Day itself illustrated the potential their November initiative, though a very classic disciplining force of capitalism. power of the trade union movement, it also important factor here was undoubtedly the demonstrated the many weaknesses that the calls by the TUC for March 9 and May 14. MAY 14 movement must deal with urgently. The Wales TUC called off the national strike The decision to hold a Day of Action on May because it lacked support. The Welsh miners 14 together with a demonstration on March Background call for action was defeated in a pithead ballot 9, was taken by the General Council in 'The Campaign for Economic and Social of the miners, and after 35 years of working December during the steel strike and at the Advance' (1980s Yes — 1930s No) was the for Leyland and a comparable period as a height of the cuts campaign. But even before theme of the initiative launched at the 1979 shop steward and convenor Derek Robinson this, at the Congress in September the issue TUC Congress. Delegates to that Congress, was removed and the management's wages of TUC-sponsored mass action against the meeting just five months after the Tory and conditions were imposed on the Leyland Tory government had received considerable general election victory, were confronted workforce. It was clear that although the support in the shape of the narrowly defeated with a vicious Government, that had fought fightback had developed rapidly it faced FT AT resolution. and won the election with a political package difficult political and industrial problems. The March 9 demonstration around the of reactionary ideas. The conception of the In the build-up to the 1979 General themes of the TUC's broad campaign, but campaign — its breadth, its content— was a Election and during the period from when notably the Employment Bill, was large and response to the new Tory offensive. And it the Tories won power, immense damage had impressive -- something over 100,000, a provided a broad political and economic been done to the trade union movement, its useful advance over the turnout at the framework for the trade union fightback. image, its standing in society, and perhaps November demonstration. The rally at the The fightback itself developed rapidly. above all, the Tories' ability to undermine the end however lacked imagination while, The November demonstration in London — confidence of workers in their own trade although the decision on May 14 had already initiated by the South Yorkshire labour union. The technique of by-passing the been taken, only (if I recall correctly) one movement in its struggle against the cuts — unions and appealing direct to the workers speaker, Ken Gill, called on the crowd to marked an important stage. The long and had paid off. work for and support the Day. bitter steel strike over wages soon followed. Speaking at a recent CBI dinner in May 14 was an historical event in the life of In South Wales the steel issue rapidly Birmingham, Mrs Thatcher, in a response to the TUC. It went wider than just a Day of assumed wider dimensions. The leadership the way Sir Michael Edwardes had dealt with Action over pay, or for example, trade union of the Welsh miners called for an all-out the Leyland question, urged the business- legislation. It was action over wide ranging strike linking their fight to save jobs with that men present to emulate Sir Michael in demands, covering freedom to organise, of steel closures. And the Wales TUC dealing with the trade unions. This style of democracy, social services, education, proposed an all-Wales General Strike. work is something very new in Tory thinking hospitals, house building, living standards, 16 August 1980 Marxism Today the quality of life, prices, Britain's industries. opposing activities and only 254 column strike calls in the engineering industry was It was a political Day of Action, the first of its inches stating what was to happen in a non- patchy. Elsewhere workers, whilst not kind called by the TUC, around a policy that derogatory fashion. Only 31 people engaging in strike action, had extended could unite a wider section than trade supporting the Day of Action were quoted, meetings to discuss the issues during working unionists alone, confronting the Government compared to 195 opposing it. time, or took time out to attend demonstra- head on with an alternative economic and These five newspapers have sales of 13 tions. The TUC has not made an estimate of political strategy. million daily which constitutes over 80 per those on strike. However the CBI claimed The problems facing the trade union cent of the national sales of newspapers in that 94% of the working population turned movement in making a success of May 14 Britain. Labour Research also did a cursory up for work on May 14. Even this estimate — were manifold. Firstly the nature of the survey of the Times, Daily Telegraph, based on responses in manufacturing demands were very new in the eyes of trade Guardian and Financial Times. This survey industry and thus excluding pits, docks, unionists: never had they been called upon to shows a similar pattern in their coverage, railways and public services — would mean take action on such an extensive political although usually the language used was more that in excess of 1 million workers took strike programme. Secondly, and contrary to sophisticated. Of the national daily papers action. the Morning Star alone had a coverage that Another yardstick in measuring support is It was a political constantly supported the Day of Action. the TUC's estimate that at least 150,000 took The insidious propaganda from the press part in 130 rallies up and down the country. Day of Action, the first of was openly hostile to the Day and vicious. The Eight rallies were held in Wales, with 3,000 its kind called by the TUC Daily Express described the TUC General marching in Swansea. In Scotland over Council as 'Lenin Murray and his bully boys'. 15,000 marched in Glasgow and 8,000 in popular opinion, the TUC lacks experience Other papers described supporters of the Edinburgh. Aberdeen saw its largest ever of mass campaigning: it has never system- Day of Action as 'a small tightly knit group of demonstration when 2,000 marched through atically campaigned outside of Whitehall. politically motivated men.' On April 16 the the city, and a large number marched in Thirdly, it faced a Tory offensive of a new Daily Express headlines were 'Day of Shame' Dundee. In the North, 5,000 demonstrated kind which had had a big popular impact. and on the eve of the Day of Action editorial in Newcastle and other rallies were held in Fourthly, by May, the movement had opinions masquerading as headlines Sunderland, Middlesborough, Gateshead, suffered some serious defeats which appeared in four papers — 'Let's go to work' Wear Valley, Consett, Carlisle, Spennymoor inevitably affected its confidence, morale and (Daily Express), 'We want to work' (Daily and North Tyneside. In Yorkshire and combativity. And finally, there was the Star), 'The strike nobody wants' (Daily Humberside, 10,000 demonstrated in problem of dealing effectively with the Mail), and 'Carry on working' (Sun). Sheffield. Other big demonstrations took massive assault against May 14 itself. place in Wakefield, Barnsley, Huddersfield, The courts Doncaster, Dewsbury and Hull. Less The Right offensive against May 14 The courts of law were also brought into the industrialised towns also saw marches on The fight against May 14 was a well battle. On May 1 of all days, Mrs Thatcher May 14, including Harrogate, Whitby and orchestrated campaign embracing the had set the scene by suggesting in the York. In the North West 9,000 marched Tories, the media and the High Courts.
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