The following report, which appeared in Motor Transport, January 7th., is disturbing s-
"Despite protests by the Trade Unions, the Transport Holding Company and Union Cartage Company Ltd. are pressing on with the merger between BROS. (Meat Haulage)Ltd. and Union Cartage Co. Ltde... Strong efforts by the unions to halt the merger, including a confrontation with Mr. Tom Fraser, when Minister of Transport, have head no effect. The Minister made it clear that this was an administrative matter with which he was not prepared to interfere,
"The signs are that opposition to the merger is particularly strong among the clerical staff, A joint meeting last month between clerks enrolled in the Transport and General Worker's Union and the Transport Salaried Staffs Association decided that the B.R.S. staff would not move over to the new company. The Union have asked the B.R.S. management eithe to find the staff alternative jobs within B.R.S. or to serve redundancy notices, with appropriate compensation. Some redundancy notices , I understand, are to be served today. The same problems do not arise with Union Cartage Staff, since under the deal Union Cartage, with a two thirds holding, has control, but negotiations to get staff to move from south London to east London are likely to prove difficult."
This report shows that the Government is allowing 2 measure of denationalisation in road transport in the face of union opposition. Tres Government has not changed the composition of transport one iota since it cane to power, The same clique of motor industry big wigs sit on the. toards of the nationalised concerns as under the Tories; the 1966 appoinvnents show no change, e.g, the London Transport Board, The merger of the meat haulage section of the B.R.S. with a private enterprise firm is in effect de-nationalisation, since the private firm will have a two thirds nolding, That the Labour Minister of Transport should igmore the protests of the B,R.«S. employees, who prefer redundancy to working for the private enterprise firm, is disgraceful. Send protests to Barbara Castle, if it is not too late ~ some of the redundancy notices were due on January 7th. according to the report.