LABOUR PARTY COMMON MARKET CONFERENCE SPECIAL pp 5-8 Three days after Healey's savage deflationary Budget the Labour Government caved in to the consultants and gave them a 35 per cent pay rise. After the British Medical Association had waged a work-to-contract campaign that had disrupted the health service particularly hitting working class patients Mrs. Castle responded like a shot to their decision to go back to normal working Withen two hour of the BMA ending its sanctions, Castle was announcing rise than the gross pay of many napses an ancillary workers. Last year the manse following the strugglo of the ancillary workers in 1973, fought a many-months ong battle to improve their pay and con OPPOSITION The struggles of these low-paid worker met the bitter opposition of both the Tory Goverument in 1973 and the Labou Government in 1974, and both section were lobbed off with derisory awards that have been eaten away by aflation Their fight was made in the interest of a better health service, in contrast to the privileged doctors who have fought to maintain massive differentiais and to Keep the privale practice racket going The extent to which the Labour Government has capitulated to the doctors demands to preserve privileged dittentials in the NHS is shown by the fact that Castle dishes put 34.5 per cont to the top consultants whilst junior doe tons get the lowest awurds Tanging from 12.6 to 25,4 per cent.
The EMA, feuling cock-whoop with Mrs Castle's hand our, now say that the was in clear for improving the existing contract with consultants and the NUS. They obviously think that more gains can be made wroued the domand that consultan should be free to do their Coan work CONCESSIONS The extreme right-wing Hospital WISHENIS SEA SELLS SIS SILEN have not called off beir work to rule They ac confident that the Goveroment give in because of their disrup tive action and bebove that toey can now screw even more cuncessions around their con Laces 300 lot specia Day awards By failing to give bucking to Lie actions of houlth workers who put embar gon on private patients, and by Falling to grant the legitimate demands of the under doctors Castle has only encouraped the reactionaries in the medical protession. For the warkers the Lab our Govem ment has the big stick. For the rich and privileged the Labour Government bas concessions wrapped in hig fat pay cheques After the Budget - see page
red weekly, 24 april 19/3