You may have heard about the open conference PCS Left Unity have organised for this Saturday. We are attempting to have a motion debated.

There will also be a fringe meeting after the conference, sponsored by us and others, for those who wish to discuss the strategy outlined in our motion. This meeting will take place immediately after the conference in Room B104 in the Brunei Gallery building at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), very near Russell Square tube.

The text of the motion is below.

This conference believes

1. That defeat in the pensions dispute – that is, anything short of defence of existing pensions arrangements – will embolden the government in its other attacks on the public sector and the whole working class.

This conference further believes

1. That our response to capitulation by some union leaderships cannot simply be to lobby. We need to fight for democratic control in the dispute, including:
– Demanding emergency meetings of all union executives to discuss and vote on proposals;
– Every union to call national reps meetings to do the same;
– Ballots on any proposed agreement or ′basis for negotiations’ cited as grounds for suspending the action;
– The widest possible discussion and voting in branches, strike committees and trades councils.
2. That those unions which do not accept the government’s “new” proposals should continue the campaign of action, announcing new strike dates quickly, and seek to draw others (back) in.
3. That one further day of action will not be enough to defeat the government.
4. That we need the widest possible discussion of how to win, including escalating national action, selective and targeted action, levies for strike funds, and sustained action short of a strike, as well as a political campaign focused on the need to fund d ecent pensions for all workers by making the rich pay.

This conference resolves

1. To launch a campaign on the lines set out above.
2. To elect an interim Steering Committee to oversee this.
3. To call a delegate conference, open to all but with voting delegates from branches, trades councils and other working-class organisations, and seek support for this from all the union broad lefts/rank-and-file organisations and national anti-cuts campaigns.