THOR 06 DAYS OF HOPE While Labour ministers and the capitalist press mouth pious platitudes about the plight of the young unemployed, some sections of the labour movement are beginning to take independent action to deal with this problem.
In Birmingham alone, 5,000 schoolleavers were still without iobs at the beginning of September. This is almost twice as many as in any previous year since me Issus. Ine Labour Govern ment's injection of £50 million into the Manpower Training Services Commission for the whole country will do little to solve the problem. And the bosses' efforts have been confined to exploring ways in which the young unemployed can be used as cheap labour to break the back of the organised workers' movement.
In Birmingham the Trades Council, via its Youth Advisory Committee, has taken unree steps to tackle the problem of youth unemployment. Firstly, it has produced an enquiry into the local trade umon movement on the state of apprenticeships and training schemes. Secondly it is sending a delegation to Michael Foot to protest about the level of youth unemployment. hurdly it is calling a demonsuanon in me autumn in Burmingham to back up this protest.
VICTORY
In Sheffield, workers at Laycock's Engineering - part of the Guest, Keen and Nettlefold group stop petter. wnen twelve apprentices compete with the kit they were asked for - turned up to start work, eight of them were given a letter telling them they did not have a job. The issue was immediately taken up by the convenor who demanded their re-instatement With feeling high on the shop floor, management were warned that industrial action could not be ruled out; and after wide publicity in the local press and radio, management were tinallv forced to concede the union's demands. All twelve apprentices are now back at work, and management has agreed to maintain une ruture intake at twelve.
If this kind of action is taken up nationally, the trade union movement unemployment the bosses. And by explaining how the are creating unemployment by cutting living standards and therefore demand, more forces can be won for the fight against Wilson's pro-capitalist policies. BBC1 9.25 In reviewing the first part of Days of showing on Thursdays on BBC1, the Daily Telegraph —while recognising the ly pro-working class doetrine came over even more strongly in the second programme, 1921'.
the troops are sent in against striking of the struggle against the vicious wagecut policies of the employers. He is bethe struggle, when first the police are brought in against the miners - 'All the land you see and all that lies beneath, belongs to someone else, and don't you forget it' - and then the army. - have gone one esty of the programme's vision of the contradictory nature of the working class shines out. First we see the passive, nice side of the workers as they are over-awed and lectured by the paternalistic coal-owner about the 'family spirit' and 'common sacrifices'. 'Violence has no place in the British way of life, we want revolution by consent, he concludes, as the camera pans to a soldier wielding a bayonet.
verse of this the working class's aggression, initiative and creativity in defence of its class interests. When a squad of soldiers are sent in, led by an upperclass captain - T'm just carrying out orders, I'm not interested in your argucan win tens of thousands of young work ers to their side in future struggles against Lo limit and attacks on the social services Hope, the Allen-Garnett-Loach series now brilliant production and direction of Garnett and Loach-described it as 'doetrinaire. So it is. Furthermore, its unashamed Ben deserts from his regiment when miners, only to find himself in the thick militants arrested. friended by Joel, a leading militant, and accompanies him through the climax of women in the home.
It is here that the strength and honThen we suddenly switch to the obof what is at stake.
Carl Gardner It is through the adoption of such policies, which offer a real solution to the present crisis, that the rank and file can be mobilised to prevent the take-over of the Union by the right-wing. If such a campaign was launched there would not be much need to worry about outside intervention in union election' (ie. the capitalist press giving undue publicity to the right wing) as we would have the policies with which to answer their accusations and slanders.
JOHN GRAHAM (AUEW)
Joel-leading the miners in his viflage
ICU NCCA! SCULCHUCI