Willis warns electricians against single-union deal on the London Post
A fresh rift in the labour movement loomed last night as Mr Norman Willis, Trades Union Congress general secretary, warned the electricians not to sign a single union agreement with News International for the planned new newspaper The London Post, to be launched in March.
Meanwhile, production unions in the company - Sogat '82 and the National Graphical Association - demanded a 'jobs for life' guarantee for their members at the The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and News of thw World, as part of a pay and conditions claims.
The companywill almost certainly refuse the unions' demand and strike ballots from mid January are being planned. Any disruption over The London Post would almost certainly be regarded as unlawful secondary action, and unions would be open to heavy fines.
The pay and conditions agreement at the four papers expires at the end of this year, and the unions' origional claims were presented on October. The job-for-life clause has been added in a letter sent to the company yesterday after a meeting of four of the five print unions at TUC Congress House.
The electricians' union (EETPU) is the only union to state that it could accede to the legally binding no-strike principle for the Post, which is to be printed at Wapping. The electricians also indicated that they might be prepared to sign an exclusive deal.
The company has set Christman Eve as the deadline for unions signatures. So far the only union to make any substantial progress has been the electricians.
If EETPU ignores Mr Willis's advice, there will almost certainly be renewed calls for its expulsion from the TUC.
The elctricians do not have the support of the AmalAgamated Union of Engineering Workers on this issue, as they did in the disagreement over taking state aid for ballots.
Trade union traditionalists believe that the EETPU is planning to breach what is seen as a more fundamental principle.
After a lengthy session at Congress House yesterday with leaders of all five print unions, Mr Willis issued a formal letter saying that it was 'imperative and urgent' that there should be a common approach to News International's proposals.
He said that there should be an early meeting of the Printing Industries Committee in order to work out a unified positon. Mr Willis was acting under rule 11 of the TUC, which allows the general secretary to interview and offer advice.
If there is no inter-union agreement, Mr Willis said that he would, if necessary report the matter to the TUC's 'inner cabinet', the finance and general purposes committee. Miss Brenda Dean, general secretary of Sogat 82, said that she was 'delighted' with Mr Willis's action and hoped for a new unity in the industry.
Mr Eric Hammond, general secretary of EETPU, and Mr Tom Rice, national officer for the printing industry, were not present yesterday at the meeting called by Mr Willis.
Meanwhile, production unions in the company - Sogat '82 and the National Graphical Association - demanded a 'jobs for life' guarantee for their members at the The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and News of thw World, as part of a pay and conditions claims.
The companywill almost certainly refuse the unions' demand and strike ballots from mid January are being planned. Any disruption over The London Post would almost certainly be regarded as unlawful secondary action, and unions would be open to heavy fines.
The pay and conditions agreement at the four papers expires at the end of this year, and the unions' origional claims were presented on October. The job-for-life clause has been added in a letter sent to the company yesterday after a meeting of four of the five print unions at TUC Congress House.
The electricians' union (EETPU) is the only union to state that it could accede to the legally binding no-strike principle for the Post, which is to be printed at Wapping. The electricians also indicated that they might be prepared to sign an exclusive deal.
The company has set Christman Eve as the deadline for unions signatures. So far the only union to make any substantial progress has been the electricians.
If EETPU ignores Mr Willis's advice, there will almost certainly be renewed calls for its expulsion from the TUC.
The elctricians do not have the support of the AmalAgamated Union of Engineering Workers on this issue, as they did in the disagreement over taking state aid for ballots.
Trade union traditionalists believe that the EETPU is planning to breach what is seen as a more fundamental principle.
After a lengthy session at Congress House yesterday with leaders of all five print unions, Mr Willis issued a formal letter saying that it was 'imperative and urgent' that there should be a common approach to News International's proposals.
He said that there should be an early meeting of the Printing Industries Committee in order to work out a unified positon. Mr Willis was acting under rule 11 of the TUC, which allows the general secretary to interview and offer advice.
If there is no inter-union agreement, Mr Willis said that he would, if necessary report the matter to the TUC's 'inner cabinet', the finance and general purposes committee. Miss Brenda Dean, general secretary of Sogat 82, said that she was 'delighted' with Mr Willis's action and hoped for a new unity in the industry.
Mr Eric Hammond, general secretary of EETPU, and Mr Tom Rice, national officer for the printing industry, were not present yesterday at the meeting called by Mr Willis.