MIDLANDS DISPUTE TAKES NEW TURN
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ONLY 35 road haulage workers were still on strike this week over the claim for a "Birmingham differential" in basic rates of £3 a week. They belonged to Millichamp Haulage Ltd., of Erdington, Birmingham. More than 400 men belonging to eight other firms were back at work without having gained anything from their unofficial action, writes our Industrial Correspondent.
It therefore seems as if the sudden campaign, which received some support from local officials of the TGWU, is now practically over. But these are already signs that the campaign will be renewed in another form. One firm in the area was approached by the union this week to discuss the question of bonus payments. This is, of course, very different from a straightforward increase in basic wages without anything in return on the part of the men.
There was also a report that a small Redditch firm operating only five vehicles, and not a member of the Road Haulage Association, had given way to union pressure and agreed to pay their men an extra £2 a week—the amount of the original differential claimed. The union will no doubt use this agreement as a lever to force other firms to fall into line one by one.
So far as RHA members in the Midlands are concerned, they stand by their offer to accept unreservedly any decision of the National Negotiating Committee. But short of this they will continue to resist the claim for a differential which they feel is completely unjustified.