ITF statement 13 January 1997
Following on from their circular of 10 January encouraging direct
action against ships calling in Liverpool, the ITF has now set a
wider context for next week's action:
Casualisation and Liverpool
...As you probably know the dispute originates from a decision by
the employers in the port of Liverpool to replace permanently
employed dock workers with casual labour on temporary contracts.
Industrial action taken by the dockworkers in a dispute on the
implementation of the collective agreement was used by the employer
to sack the permanent workers and replace them with casual temporary
workers. Employers' policies of cutting labour costs in this way and
even, in many cases, of employing staff not properly trained as dock
workers, have always been strongly opposed by the ITF and its
affiliates worldwide. For this reason the action we have requested in our
circular dated 10 January should be viewed in the broader context of
the ITF's policy against the unacceptable casualisation of port
labour.
It would be a great achievement if we could say that our action has
not only supported the Liverpool dockworkers and their union, but
has also highlighted that attempts to use casualisation to cut
labour costs at the expense of dockworkers are opposed by ITF
affiliates. The action next week should be a sign to employers that
the ITF and its affiliates are ready to organise international
co-ordinated action to defend dockworkers' interests...
The ITF and Liverpool
