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TACHOS OUT

10th September 1976
Page 4
Page 4, 10th September 1976 — TACHOS OUT
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

...or 7,000 drivers will

know the reason why

by CM reporter

A TACHOGRAPH strike by 1,000 drivers paralysed the delivery of fuel and other commodities at Ellesmere Port for 48 hours this week.

The dispute, caused by the refusal of some employers to remove tachographs from the drivers' cabs was unofficial. And the tachographs were not even in use.

The men picketed depots and stopped drivers arriving at Ellesmere Port from other areas from making their deliveries.

Transport and General Workers' Union national organiser Jack Ashwell attended a meeting to try to persuade the men to abandon their plans.

"The lads were very polite but they were adamant," said Mr Ashwell. "They had made their decision to strike from midnight on Sunday and that was that."

The men are complaining about the tachos and about statements made at a Birmingham meeting of the transport union and on BBC's Jimmy Young Programme by Transport Minister Dr John Gilbert.

"It was the manner of the statements," said Mr Ashwell. "There was no consultation involved; he just made a statement over the radio." He told listeners that the tacho was inevitable and here to stay.

This week Mr Ashwell was due ts fly to Brussels to have talks with other European transport unions on the tacho issue. "I will be putting across the views of the union," he said.

"There seems to be an undercurrent within the EEC that tachos should be installed on a voluntary basis," said Mr Ashwell.

At Ellesmere Port a spokesman for the Shell company said that even though the company was not involved in the dispute — it has already removed its tachos — TGWU men are picketing the exits to the depot, but some deliveries have managed to get out.

At a mass meeting the Shell men had narrowly voted not to support the stoppage but later they said that they would be coming out and the situation became confused with half the men at work and half on strike.

Ellesmere Port Transport and General Workers' organiser Stan Davies said that the strike had gone very well. "We are picketing the depots and there has been no trouble at all.

"Hospitals and the old peoples' homes have been kept supplied. The lads always make sure that they are not troubled by a dispute," said Mr Davies.

He told CM that the men were angry at Transport Minister Dr John Gilbert's assumption that the tacho was going to come anyway.

"He said that as far as he was concerned it was merely a matter of time," said Mr Davies. "That is contrary • to what we have been told and we are in complete objection to this," And there is a possibility of the strike spreading to other ports. The Ellesmere men are to hold another mass meeting on Sunday and may call on other tanker men to support them.

But the TGWU is unlikely to support, a spreading of the strike. The union is already committed to an anti-tacho policy and sees this as sufficient, but it stands to gain support from the European unions this week.


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