BARNOLDSWICK, England — After nine weeks on the picket line, the Unite union Jan. 8 suspended strike action by Rolls-Royce workers here after the company backed off threatened job cuts. Mark Porter, Unite union convener at the plant, told the Militant that the bosses have agreed to keep at least 350 jobs at the factory here and pledged there will be no compulsory redundancies for two years.
“Through hard work and determination we have saved jobs,” Porter said. Their fight gained needed solidarity when a union delegation from Rolls-Royce’s main U.K. plant in Derby joined more than 70 strikers on the picket line Dec. 16. “If there is no progress,” Mahf Khan, deputy union convener from the Derby plant, said, “this fight will become a national issue for all Rolls-Royce workers.”