Union Row Over UDR!
Socialist Republic1984British troops and the occupationTrade unions and workers' strugglesLoyalism and unionismInternationalism and other strugglesJohn MageeBritish troops and the occupationTrade unions and workers' strugglesLoyalism and unionismInternationalism and other struggles
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The North’s largest white-collar union, the Service Alliance (NIPSA) is facing a storm of protest following a decision by the executive council to donate £500 to the UDR Benevolent Fund. The proposal to make the donation came from the CSPOA divisional executive which is dominated by pro-loyalist right-wingers. There is no doubt that it was designed to provoke the union left and cause deep offence to catholic members of the union.
In recent years NIPSA has moved from being a management association to one of the most active of the North’s unions. The 1981 civil service strike and the 1982 health workers dispute transformed the union and immeasurably strengthened the influence of the left. The union began to adopt policies opposing the use of repression in the North and _ identifying itself with democratic struggles internationally such as Solidarnose in Poland and the fight against apartheid’ in South Africa. The strength of the shift to the left was even reflected in a decision by the CSPOA divisional conference (traditionally pro-Ulster TUC) to seek affiliation to the ‘ICTU last year.
A left-wing majority on the NIPSA executive was thrown away in 1983 through factional disputes between the Communist Party and Militant. This has given the right-wing an opportunity to undermine the left advance at what has to be the most critical time in the union’s history. A report in December by the Fair Employment Agency (FEA) disclosed discrimination in the Northern civil service on a scale which only the acquiescence of the union could have left unchallenged in the past. Not only the membership of NIPSA but. the entire trade union movement is. waiting to see how the NIPSA leadership responds to this indictment. The FEA advocated a series of measures which, though limited, would go some way to curbing. the pattern of sectarian appointments. The left in NIPSA wants the union to endorse these proposals but the executive has so far refused to go beyond noting the FEA report and has declared that the issue is an industrial relations and not a political matter.
The executive position is designed to hold the union together in the face of loyalist threats to split the union rather than see effective measures taken to combat discrimination. Instead it has encouraged the right-wing to greater provocations. As well as the UDR donation the right-wing have launched a campaign to reverse the CSPOA affiliation to ICTU.
Some catholic members of the union have already resigned membership. They have no confidence that a union which gives money to the relaSee tives of sectarian killers can represent them. If this is not to become a stampede the right-wing in NIPSA will have to be openly confronted and defeated. It also demands that the loyalist veto in the ICTU has to be ended. As was further evidenced by the FEA indictment of the GMWU (an ICTU affilliate) for actively and ema eS bal Roll of Hond over ‘a ilong period discriminating against catholic union members. The convention of giving the North’s unions a free hand only bolsters up sectarianism and _ ensures that any’ genuine workers unity will not be achieved. aS