This interview with Derrick Fullick, the ASLEF steward at Waterioo Station, took place before the results of the rail ballot were announced. The footplatemen are undoubtedly the best organised and most militant of the three rail unions, and this expressed itself in their 23:1 vote in favour of industrial action. Even the TSSA had a 2:1 majority which considering its membership includes management grades is quite welcome. The overall vote was 6:1.
The vote was really a vote of confidence in the leadership. As Fullick remarks, it wouldn't have mattered what was the question asked, when it is a question of a threat to the basic organisations of the working class from a section of the bourgeois state the working class is absolutely capable of remaining united on a clear class basis. In America itself, whenever there has been a ballot like this one - and the laws governing such industrial procedure have been in existence since the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 - the workers have always rallied round their union.
Many people were surprised that the rail unions should have solidarised with the miners. What was the effect on the railmen of that action and is there any feeling that more permanent liaison between the two unions could be made? We all know the history of how the rail unions let the miners down in '26. We were all determined there wouldn't be a repeat performance. Everything we could do, we did. And it did us the world of good. It flexed our muscles and prepared us for our own claim-because we knew we were the next major industry in the pipeline and we knew too we'd have to take action in some form or another.
And there is definitely a feeling that liaison between railmen and miners should be looked for -but it should be explored first of all on an official footing. We've both gone along the same path after all, with massive reductions in the labour force and jobs being tied to wages. You know, they would say well if wages go up then a pit will have to close, with us it would be a line would have to shut. Now we conclude they'll shut the line anyway, wage rise or no wage rise.
What was the feeling in ASLEF about being represented in the Industrial Relations Court? The feeling was virtually unanimous, in ASLEF anyway, that we should have nothing to do with the Act including the ballot etc. The union leaders decided they would have to defend the unions in the Court only because of the treachery if you like of the TUC. You get Feather this morning saying how pleased he is to see that the Tories are taking note of some of his policies. He's trying to dig himself out of a hole-the TUC has mislead the various leaderships of the unions. Our union would have fought this if it had obtained financial backing from the TUC. Once that wasn't forthcoming it was decided we should be represented in court. There is still the feeling we shouldn't be, but when you consider a bit, if we had abstained only 1000 of the 180,000 railway workers entitled to vote would have needed to say "No' to further industrial action for them to win. The press would say it was apathy on the part of all the rest instead of militant abstentionism. The men reckoned that to ignore it would be to be defeated. If you had had a straight strike do you think (a) you could have carried the NUR and TSSA with you, and (b) would it have been the best tactic anyway?
REASONS FOR SOLIDARITY ther or not the Eight did or did not do the THE POLITICS OF "TERRORISM'