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J. Deane

The Stalinists and the Dock Strike

(November 1945)


From Socialist Appeal Supplement, Mid-November 1945, p. 2.
Transcribed by Iain Dalton.
Marked up by Einde O’Callaghan for the Encyclopaedia of Trotskyism On-Line (ETOL).



THE DOCK WORKERS HAVE GIVEN THEIR TRADE UNION LEADERS 30 DAYS IN WHICH TO GAIN THEIR DEMANDS OF 25/– A DAY AND A 40 HOUR WEEK.

The strike, which has lasted for more than five weeks, was part of a movement begun by the London Dockers and Stevedores in July this year. Despite the efforts of the Union misleaders and His Majesty’s “Communist” Party to undermine the morale of the dock workers, their feeling and confidence is still very high. They expect, and are prepared, to come out again if the bosses continue to resist their just demands.

Twice, the bosses and Trade Union leaders have reached a deadlock. But these leaders have issued no report to the Strike Committees, or to the rank and file. Instead, they are endeavouring to whitewash the bosses.

The Strike Committees, knowing well the aims of Donovan and Deakin, are counter-acting their efforts to compromise with the bosses, by issuing a resolution which calls upon the trade union leaders to call a national stoppage if the wealthy shipowners refuse to grant the demands of 50,000 dock workers. This resolution will go to all Transport and General Workers Union Branches throughout the country.
 

Public Support Growing

The action of the Strike Committees in returning to work solid, has impressed the whole Labour movement. The thirty days’ truce, which was necessary for the Dockers to prepare their organisations and win public support, has gained the dock workers the support of wide sections of the working class, in whose opinion the Dock workers have given the Trade Union leaders every possibility to prove the success or failure of negotiating machinery. In the event of failure, the organised workers will consider the dockers thoroughly justified in once more taking strike action.

A great number of Union Branches, District Committees, Trades Councils, and Labour Party Branches have passed resolutions of support and solidarity with the dockers’ struggle. The opposition to these resolutions has come mainly from His Majesty’s Communist Party.

The lying press reports and statements of Labour Ministers could not deceive the public for long. Apart from the growing sympathy and working class solidarity, the Strike Committees are contacting other sections of the workers and bringing their case before them through leaflets and public meetings.
 

Stalinist Policy Exposed

The strike-breaking policy of the Communist Party was exposed from the beginning in its attempts to smash the dockers’ strike. The “Daily Worker” of October 9th, printed the following statement:

“Merseyside area committee of the C.P. has pointed out that the dockers have achieved public recognition but that to continue attacking the Union would mean playing into the employers’ hands and weakening their own unity”

This slanderous and strike-breaking statement received great prominence in the capitalist press. Between Donovan and the C.P. there was no difference. By saying that 50,000 dockers were “attacking the Union” the C.P. was playing Donovan’s game. This statement issued by the Mersey area Committee of the C.P. was not the result of a hasty local decision; it expressed more openly the real policy of the Communist Party.

Because the growing pressure of the rank and file, the Daily Worker instead of directly saying “Go Back to work”, persistently featured the strike breaking speeches of Issacs and Donovan. For example, to give a few headlines during the strike: “GO BACK AND CASE WILL BE CONSIDERED”, “SOUTHAMPTON DOCKERS TO URGE KEY PORTS TO RETURN”, “DOCKERS AT THREE PORTS GOING BACK”, “TILBURY MEN WLL GO BACK ON CONDITIONS.”

Instead of giving space to the dockers’ case, which the rank and file members of the Communist Party expected and demanded the Daily Worker reported for a few issues only, dockers’ meetings. But rank and file members of the C.P. were soon to learn that the policy had not changed. Barratt and Dickens, two leading Stalinist union officials continued their policy of strike-breaking.

The dockers must be on their guard. The Communist Party is trying to sabotage their national movement, and it will spare no effort to undermine the confidence of the dock workers and prevent any future struggle for better conditions.
 

What Was Gained?

The Trade Union leaders and the C.P. are attempting to undermine the morale of the dock workers by stating that the strike has won nothing, except empty bellies for the dock workers and their families! They claim that negotiations could have achieved more for the workers. To these strike breakers, the national rank and file movement forged during the strike; the unity and confidence of this important section of workers; the fear struck into the hearts of the cowardly Labour and Trade Union leaders; and the defeat of the capitalists who had hoped to smash the dockers’ organisations and worsen their conditions – to these strike-breakers, all this means nothing!

In actual fact, the present struggle of the Dock workers is distinct from all other industrial movements of recent times, insofar as it has established the basis for a rank and file movement; has raised the struggle against the conservative Union leadership to a new and higher level; has raised the most fundamental political questions facing the working class. If the unity and the national movement of the dockers were the only gains from the five weeks’ strike, in themselves, they are entirely sufficient to justify the action of the dock workers. These gains mark a tremendous victory against the sabotage of the Donovans and Deakins, Isaccs’ and Wikinsons, the Pollitts and Gallachers.
 

We Stood with the Dockers

The class conscious and politically minded dockworkers recognise that the only Party which came to their aid is the Revolutionary Communist Party. In discussions with the dock workers and the leading militants among them, they have said time and again that the Socialist Appeal is the only truthful workers’ paper. As one leading dock worker put it: “The Labour Party has replaced the Liberal Party; the Communist Party has replaced the Labour Party; and the Trotskyists are the only real Communists.”

It is recognised by all the leading dock workers that the Revolutionary Communist Party and the Socialist Appeal rendered invaluable aid to their struggle, both in the formation and organisation of the national movement, and during the strike in gaining the support and sympathy of other sections of the workers.


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