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From Socialist Worker, No. 108, 8 February 1969, p. 4.
Transcribed & marked up by Einde O’Callaghan for the Encyclopaedia of Trotskyism On-Line (ETOL).
CLYDEBANK:– While the national press prints accusations against John Brown shipyard men in connection with the QE2 saga, workers face the serious threat of mass sackings.
The present estimate is that 3,000 workers on Clydebank will be declared redundant this year.
350 workers at the Foster Wheeler John Brown land boiler factory got their cards on January 31. 700 men at the Babcock and Wilcox, factory will also be ‘phased out’ in the next few months.
The men directly under the chopper have responded vigorously, but their readiness to fight has been partially weakened by the constitutional approach of local ‘leaders’.
Two weeks ago Provost Turner of Clydebank [words missing] of the Amalgamated Engineering Union, [words missing] shame at [words missing] Babcock and Wilson [words missing] gave to Dr. Dickson Mabon, Parliamentary Under-Secretary to the Minister of State for Scotland.
They heckled and booed him when he came to explain why the government would neither give the firm a grant to prevent redundancy, nor take it over.
Even more revolting was the decision to declare February 2 a ‘day of prayer’. Commenting on the decision, John Boyd, Scottish AEF executive member, said: ‘As a man of faith, I must say that more things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.’
He was speaking after a meeting with directors of Foster Wheeler where the union side had ‘won’ a fortnight postponement of the first sackings.
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Last updated: 25 October 2020