part of a nationally organised campaign. So far the Executive has avoided even talking about a national strike, much less taking concrete steps like organising local and national gatherings of shop stewards and stewards' delegates to plan such a strike.
The situation has become so ridiculous that John Foster (a national organiser of the AUEW) can write in the Moring Star (2 November):
there are indications that some form of protest action will take place on the day of the reply (by the employers to the national claim)..- Indeed such an action would be excelient-a mass declaration to the employers that the union meuns business and a big boost to the fighting mood of the workers. But who is in a better position to organise such a positive step than the leadership of the AUEW! That is what the Executive should be doing, instead of just passively boting that there are 'indications" that some form' of action will take place. government too well prepared? Won't it always The answer to this is a definite no: it is perfectly possible for the miners and engineers to win. The miners' victory against the old 7% norm and the Glasgow firemen's recent victory against Phase 3 shows that victory is quite possible. It will be a real fight however. The special antipucket squads of the police, the huge bullding up of strike funds by the engineering employers, the stock-piling of oxygen in power wations by the Central Electricity Generating Board so as to render picketing less effective, is not being carried out for fun. But even so, provided the most effective forms of struggle and organisation are taken up - flying pickets, factory occupations, elected strike committees and so onit is still perfectly possible to win.
The decisive thing is whether the ruling class can take on the unions one by one, as it did when it defeated the hospital workers and the gas workers, or whether it will face a centralised and amited working class attack. If the workers go On this front of building maximum united action the miners and engineers have a key role to play. They are two of the most powerful groups of workers going into struggle against Phase 3, and their claims are coming up at almost exactly the same time. United action by them would be a hammer blow to the Tories, the key thing is un alliance with the lefts', of and would rapidly inspire the rest of the working class to join the fight.
By fighting for this united action -a minersengineers alliance-the best conditions will be created for winning the struggle when it starts Moreover it will raise the level of confidence of those going into battle: if the mincrs Knew in advance they were going to be supported by the engineers, and the engineers that they were going into united struggle with the miners, both in favour of striking would be enormous. All this makes it vital that militants in the NUM and the AUEW fight for a miners engineers alliance. This will push forward moves for the centralsation of the struggle of the whole working class and ensure the best conditions both of a national strike was forgotten' and the for winning the claims of the miners and engineers, and getting rid of the Tory Government. In some areas certain steps towards such an alliance have been made and some union executive members have raised the question. For example. Bill MacLean, General Secretary of the Sopttish NUM, at a recent mass meeting of Kent maners in Aylesbar, said that unity with the engineers was the 'centrat anue facing the miners. In an article in the Morning Star of 6 November Eddie Maiden, General Secretary of the AUEW constructional section, points to the need for unity between all those now taking up the wage fight. Referring to the miners, engineeis and postal workers he says: It will be difficult for any one of the above two struggles to succeed while they remain separate. But in a joint strugele they would he certain of victory and could rally the whole of the movement behind them. Surely this is the role of the TUC? facing the working class movement at present. If that is not a runner because of right-wing dominance on the goneral council, I helieve the unions involved ought to consider joint action now.
But what is needed is far more than speeches