IT IS A SIGN of the times when a right-wing trade union leader like Frank Chapple feels compelled to agree to a national one day strike in protest against unemployment.
Which is what the leader of the Electrical, Electronic, Monday to coincide with the strike the EETPU will be lobbying Parliament and holding a mass rally in Albert Hall in protest at cuts in the telecommunications industry.
Since the call for strike action was made, agreed to join the protest. TASS, the staff section of the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Work ers, are also on strike for the day, while members of the Iransport and General Workers Union who work in the communications ind ustry will also be joining the lobby.
LOSS OF JOBS The background to the strike action is the inreatened loss wnat the unions anytning up to 20,000 jobs, due to cutbacks in Post Office orders to ine eccommun canons mausur The Post Office is expected to announce yearly million and GEC, the main supalternative to cut backs.
TelecomPlumbing before 1pm. agreed to do.
TARIFF other unions have the fall off. fall-off in the high price estimate to be much-needed social service profits of £400 well as maintaining jobs.
Take the case of falling demand. and planned This is based on recent estimates that the growth in the use of the telephone is declining, and in some cases actually falling. This does apply to the use of the telephone long overdue But the reason lies in the intro duction by the Post Office of a penal tariff operating during the which has shifted much of the traffic to the afternoon. In other words, it is the Post Office's own decisions which have led to Then there is the case of the demand for teleof such installation which has led to this decline. Bu as the unions in the telecommuhave pointed out, the revenue from such instalIf these charges were abolished it would increase demand, provide a especially for the old and infirm free installation of telephones-as That the threatened redundanMilliar Teduncancies growing dole Culo.
inat iWo training hitting or collaose entire industry to be centralised be:
by nationalising the telecommunications industry. Then there would not be 'competing interests, then the industry as a whole could start to be run for the benefit of both the telecom munications work force. and the community at large So while the one day strike action being taken this Monday is Jane needs repeated and extended, it is not enough. An alternative strategy, based on the neec to maintan 1o0. and run the telecommunications industry in ine interests of working people, is what is needed.
Central to such a strategy would Welsh *The abolition of telephone in sia anon charges households;
one neery telephone Barate * No redundancies in the industry work sharing with no loss o pay and a cut in the working week workers control of the entire tele communications industry.
Given the profits of both Post Office and telecommunication giants such an alternative makes sense both in social and economic terms.
GEOFF BELL