It makes me smile, it should make me angry, but life is too short.

Nevertheless some myths have to be exposed, especially when I read about the way working people are portrayed as having always been duped by their unions to take industrial action. I don’t know what meetings these detractors attended to be bullied by their fellow workers because my experience during the 60s and 70s at Cowley does not bear witness to the behaviour they describe.

Most of our meetings held on the factory sports field or works canteens were well attended, organised and chaired by elected senior trade union stewards. In fact most of the meetings ended with the meetings rejecting the platform’s recommendations and more often than not the floor of the meetings were wanting more action than that was being recommended by the elected shop stewards committee.

A vote to strike was always a serious affair not a frivolous matter taken lightly without considering the effect on your pocket, especially in the days when most of us subsisted on a weekly wage packet. For a majority to vote in favour meant that they felt very strongly about the issues in dispute.

This was especially true when they felt that their treatment was unfair and management was not listening to their real concerns.

What the detractors are really saying is that working people are stupid and easily led when the opposite is really the truth.

Far from being stupid, my workmates of those days were some of the most astute I have ever worked with and if they didn’t want to do something nothing could make them.

They understood all too well the issues and what was at stake.

JOHN FRAY
London Road
Wheatley