THREE REGIONAL ORGANISERS SAY CHEERIO

RMT helpline 0800 3763706 :: january 2010 :: RMTnews 24 R MT general secretary Bob Crow and outgoing president John Leach presented Greg Hewitt from the Brighton and Hove City branch with his TUC diploma on Employment Law. Greg said that he had heard about the course from the RMT union learning rep in the South East Region, Mike Sergeant. “The course takes nearly a year and covers many of the issues in depth that reps need to know about in their day to day business of representing members. “It also explains how issues become law, regulations and statutes,” he said. Greg said that he would recommend the course to anyone who wanted to help our members. “It gave him plenty of information about discrimination, victimisation and Employment Tribunals and Appeals, as well as delving into the historical and political aspects of trade unionism,” he said. On the advice of the general secretary, Greg chose to do his research project on the European Court Justice Viking, Ruffert and Laval rulings, which have a profound effect on all trade unions. The ECJ effectively ruled that European law could overrule the sovereignty of EU states and trade union agreements. Greg said he was grateful for all the help and support that the union had given him and also wanted to thank Network Rail for releasing him from duty. “It’s a perfect example of how the union and employer can work together to encourage individuals to improve their knowledge. “What was interesting was learning from the representatives in other trade unions and how they approached things. “It was also a great opportunity to make further contacts,” he said. Greg said that although it was hard work over the 36 weeks of study and learning, he would do it all again. “It was a great experience that has expanded my knowledge of the law and I would thoroughly recommend the course to any active trade union rep who wanted to learn more,” he said. R MT regional organisers Phil McGarry, Allen Heath and Bob Raynor all retired last month after contributing over 50 years of service to the union between them. At their joint retirement event in London recently all of them spoke to RMT News about their experiences at work and serving the members. PHIL MCGARRY Scottish regional organiser Phil McGarry saw out his last year as Scottish TUC president. “It was a great honour to serve the STUC in such a way before retiring,” he said. Phil joined the National Union of Railwaymen in 1979 when he joined the industry as a guard and by 1985 he had been elected to the executive committee of the union. He has also served the Labour Party in many positions from branch secretary to election officer. He joined the NUR executive at the height of the miners’ strike and it was a turbulent time for the NUR. Phil was involved with the fight against driver-only operation in Scotland which led to the sacking of 289 guards. Today he is involved with the fight against DOO being introduced on the Bathgate line. “I came in fighting DOO and I’m going out fighting DOO!” he said. Phil was elected regional organiser in 1988 at the first attempt and served on the STUC general council since 1993. “It all that time I learnt something new every day yet it still remains true that the role of the union is to educate, agitate and organise,” he said. ALLEN HEATH North East regional organiser Allen Heath joined the union in 1960 when he worked at the BREL workshops at Doncaster. By 1975 he was a full time rep and then branch secretary to a branch with around 2,500 members. He was tutor at the union’s education centre at Frant Place and by 1987 he was a regional organiser. He says one of his proudest achievements was the restructuring deal he negotiated at Jarvis, which are still the best conditions in the country. “The job has changed dramatically over the years and today you deal with all grades and negotiate a lot more pay deals locally. “It is a stressful job but it has been very rewarding and a privilege to serve working people,” he said. BOB RAYNOR London and East Anglia regional organiser joined the National Union of Seamen as a deck boy in 1962. By 1965 he had joined the Communist Party and, when docked in Chinese ports, often had rigorous debates with the infamous Red Guard created during Mao’s Cultural Revolution. “I would ask why Chinese foreign policy was so close to the imperialist United States, but they seemed to enjoy the chance to speak English,” he laughs. By 1968 Bob was on a British merchant vessel anchored in a northern Chinese port and the ship owner was asked to deliver trucks to North Vietnam, fighting US occupation of the their country. “We had already refused to deliver aviation fuel to the south to assist US puppet forces defeat the north. “These shipowners didn’t care what side they were on as long as they made money,” he said. Bob’s ship entered Ha Long Bay in the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, as the north was called, and he remembers seeing the vapour trials of B52 bombers on their way to bomb the capital city of Hanoi. Bob became a dock official in London in 1975, then a branch secretary in Harwich in 1985 and dealing with many major disputes including the 1988 national seafarers’ strike. By 1996 Bob was an RMT regional organiser and has dealt with countless tribunals and disputes and served all grades of the union. “Every RMT member can be proud of their union and it can only go from strength to strength with Bob Crow as general secretary,” he said. THREE REGIONAL ORGANISERS SAY CHEERIO GREG WINS DIPLOMA Bob Crow Greg Hewitt and President John Leach Allen Heath, John Leach, Phil McGarry, Bob Crow, Bob Raynor