Sparks defeat Balfours - now for total victory over BESNA
17 February 2012
Led by the ‘rank and file’ committee, many of whom are blacklisted, finally
after six months of protests, unofficial walkouts and now a threatened strike,
Balfour Beatty - the biggest of the 'Dirty 7' electrical contractors, has
pulled out of the BESNA contract which will cut electricians' and other skilled construction workers’ wages by up to
35%.
This is a major
victory for Unite, coming on the back of the reinstatement of Paddy Brennan,
the suspended convenor in the Swindon Honda plant and forcing Unilever and
Wincanton back to the negotiating table after strikes in recent weeks. It
should act as an inspiration to the union in the public sector and re-convince
the leadership that Unite should join in the pensions strike on 28th March alongside
the likes of PCS and NUT. Obviously, it will be a major boost to the pay talks
in the NAECI/Blue Book trades.
There is no question that the turn of Unite, and particularly its organising department,
to the sparks dispute has been a major factor in gaining this victory. The
dossier that has been compiled showed Balfours that there was a war of attrition
coming their way and there would be no hiding place anywhere, as the support of
the Teamsters in the USA this week and the longstanding assistance of the
Australian ETU has shown.
However, without the rank and file sparks, this would have been merely a paper
document. They have breathed life into the dossier. Their incredible campaign
has acted as a lever on the union and allowed the officers to make threats of
future action against Balfours knowing that it would be backed up by the site workers.
If they had any doubts on this they were dispelled by the protest outside the ECA awards dinner in London on Wednesday, with traffic on Park Lane being stopped for a hour.
Court victory
Of course, the
successful legal victory yesterday on the second strike ballot was a crucial
moment. The NSSN correctly raised the prospect of even the Tory
judges ruling against Balfours, as they did against Serco Docklands in favour of the RMT union’s ballot in March last
year.
Blatantly
outlawing strikes that have had large majorities in favour – 82% before
Christmas and 67% more recently in the case of the Balfour Unite members – can
legitimise unofficial action. In any case, the weekly action of the rank and
file made it clear to the employers that the action would continue even if they
won in court. Unite made a mistake in re-balloting in December without going to
court but corrected it this month.
Balfours’ retreat is a crucial breakthrough but we can't rest until all the
remaining six companies follow suit. Therefore the campaign must continue until
a total victory is won. If necessary, strike ballots should be launched in all
or at least one of these firms.
Also, correctly
the union is targeting improving the Joint Industry Board agreement. We support
the involvement of the rank and file committee in any such talks and regular
reports back to meetings of construction workers.
This is a fantastic victory after a marathon campaign, headed by rank and file
workers. Unite has shown exactly what an industrial union of its size can be -
a powerful force that can improve the working lives of workers. This should be
shouted from the rooftops and be the starting point for a mass union organising
campaign on the construction sites, involving the new layer of activists that
have been the stalwarts of this struggle. The recruiting slogan should be 'Join
the union that saves 35% of your wages!'
Private or public sector - workers can win victories! For total victory - smash
the BESNA!
