sections of the labour movement.
experience in the health service.
KOOCOEEN the London sion of NUPE calculated thai by 1986, per cent London's bospitals and ether hen th care instrutions wil te closed, : This means a loss of 20,000 heds and 24,000 jobs in the capital alone.
Despite TWE with higher waiting ists and increasing pressure or staff, health workers remained The violent raid on Hounslow Hospital began to iot thes melaiene of The cocu pers Hounslow beuan to co-ordinate and LAIU resistance, by drawing together CHUCEICUUG to ald SLEUELEES elsewhere. It was our of these needs and exmeriences that Fightback was born.
NETWORK Fightback is a nerwork of workers and milicants actively mented in tehrad the cin the trade unions theaselves MLAST the Simited experience of the revolutionar.
etis suficient to fill the need Fightback is growing rapidly because at does atlempt to till The Socialist Challenge Trade Union conference on 1 July is receiving an enthusiastic response from many CARL BRECKER and KATE TRUSCOTT, both active in the Hounslow Hospital occupation, discuss the need for a rank and file organisation based on their divi- this need.
Any trade utionist knows hOW hard it is to organise anything in co-opcration with other unions. Health workers in a single hospical can belong to any of at least eight different unions. of COMMUNITY Moreover many trade unionists often do not see the need JOT JULAS WIA TAM-CISOC Unaa bodies. But for the the Sosia o be crecuve Ie must draw in support from PUUS S 1IUUOS organisations, and all health service users.
FELIL hiegest organising within che unions is LIC ILILEN with the Labour Goverament: In the health service, as clsewhere, such as Leyland and the steel industry, the trade union leaders prefer Eoveramen" shore upthe - even it the cost af lowering living and the loss of johs than throw their weight hehind a colloctive working class fight back.
There las boen tremendous Lalk in the healthi service unions agaiast cuts, bur talk alone is not cnough. The overall cifoct of the unjons" strategy bas been to entrench sectional interess. FRONTAL Ai present, with Labour's austerity programme lenting a full frontal allack on the warking secticnal responses around pay condicions ciass response.
We noed to start torning the descriptions and expericnce of strikes and AMOEIOTR ERE CE AIA TCMIRIS press into strategy and ractiesto SIUL WINE Rank and file organisations health have come to mican fronts Toi олс political are urgent COLIUEL sectarian fronts.
For ux a class struggle rank and file movement mus hindrance to LEDO BEseO MIIOCEaE nou-soctarian. This meaus that i must be open to all those prepared to organise together, directedtothe diess needs nt the mass of people.
Labour RECALL standards All committees should be subject to control and recail bi TEDSC WEYMNCOAAEIT SOOHL Bol he dominared All militants outside гертеreputation tor class, such are Limited.
0H-0-02 work.
struggles thai POSITIVE build such SUEE PE LIC tendency spending, health service.
For bulietin — slow. Middlesex.
ference, by onc labour held.
and revolu- men who tiomaries should light for their politics inside each strugsle.
People are won to politica ideas wher they prove to be effestive, not when they are foisted on the struggle from The revalutionary lett has a dabbting and then dashing off to the strike down the road. Let's bury that once and for all by showing a commitment to the UTERTTAANOI Fightback is an attempt to effective co-orchnaring organisation preresist ail cuts. Wewant to huild 1esilanee lo iculs in Dub and to spread positiue ideas to exiend the more informution afteliation; copies of Fightbuck contact: Fightbuck. c/o Hounsiow Hospital Occopation, Staines Rond, HounFor details of the Socialist Challenge Trade Union Conheld Birminghum on 1 July write to: DLISIS SCTL Conference, PO Bos 50 London NI. Please inciude details of your union and any novement positions London E.8. local branches of NALGO, NUT, NUPE, UCATT, the sheet metal warkers union and CntrSHORAOOU Hackney Under Fives can be obtained irom |38 Kingsland High Street, MAKE HAPPIER DAY NURSERY SOCIALIST CHALLENGE 25 May 1978 page 5
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