british leyland workers sleeping
Seth Smith recalls the introduction of the Series III E-type in 1971: We took journalists to Browns Lane and had a nice presentation on the V12 then took them on a tour of the new engine shop. He was dressed. The pamphlet said: All our efforts and resources must be mobilised to change the policy of closures and contraction. From Our Correspondent Birmingham. Born in Bedfordshire but now residing in Norfolk, Ian Nicholls is an ardent BL enthusiast. But instead of supporting him, the workers who gathered that February day turned on him. Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in, Dubbed Red Robbo by the press, the Communist Party memberrepresented workers in car manufacturing during the pre-Thatcher era, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. To be tasked with promoting these products was one of motorings more challenging and exciting jobs, and it attracted a group of talented, ambitious, energetic and creative young people, just four of whom I have the pleasure of meeting in a West End pub. After a tip-off by the News of the World newspaper, senior managers the previous week carried out a surprise inspection of the night shift in a paint priming shop. The incident would be reported to the management and judged on the circumstances. Position: Children's Residential Support Worker. Known for. How to value your classic for insurance purposes, Classics insurance for 17,18,19 & 20 year olds, Insurance when your classic isn't roadworthy, It's FREE to list your car on Honest John Classics, BL seals pact for Japanese to produce first car in Britain, Sleeping foreman loses dismissal case against BL, Mr Scargill pledges his support for BL convener, Car Reviews: Read the latest reports from our experts. See thats the part that confuses me. The sleeping on the night shift story went quiet until the New Year of 1980. 2023 BBC. In this occasional series Ian Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles of the time as the main source of information. Only three men, none of them Mr Yates, had gone to the clocking point before 6.45 am, the end of the shift. Opinion : Derek Robinson: Victim or villain? Read about our approach to external linking. Derek Robinson - Red Robbo - speaks to striking British Leyland workers in Cofton Park. By Chris Hampson. Then, on 16 November 1979, another BL plant was in the news for similar reasons. Im a former Austin Maestro owner, admirer and salesman, so it []. He was credited with causing 523 walkouts at British Leyland between 1978 and 1979, costing an estimated 200 million in lost . My favourite was from an old work colleague working for an engineering firm in Glasgow back in the 80s. In 1975 Robinson succeeded Dick Ethridge, a fellow Communist Party member, as the AEU convenor at Longbridge. These were dark times indeed.Harold Musgrove. Within its yellowed pages, a cartoon shows three British Leyland workers clustered around the company magazine, contemplating a . Five minutes afterwards Mr Yates came out. But if the SD1 receives a vote of confidence, what about the great unmentionables the likes of the Allegro, Marina and Princess? NICKNAMED Red Robbo, Derek Robinson became one of the most famous trade unionists of the 1970s and as the shop stewards' convener at British Leyland was the man responsible for no fewer than 523 . One night him and his mate who were on the maintenance nightshift went to sleep in the cupboards. I can't think of anyone who . Christopher Lunt worked at Longbridge until MG Rover - the successor company to British Leyland - went into administration in 2005. Although Edwardes had a reputation as a union basher, Robinson supported the idea of working with him under a policy of participation, whereby unions and management would cooperate on matters of industrial relations. Created www.austin-rover.co.uk in 2001 and built it up to become the world's foremost reference source for all things BMC, Leyland and Rover Group, before renaming it AROnline in 2007. Furthermore most of their fathers, uncles, etc. Even today, there are certain professions where . I hadnt been there for many years. But at Drews Lane we still have an extraordinary situation. As shop steward at British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was involved in a series of strikes and walkouts over alleged mismanagement. He wrote in his 1983 book, Back from the Brink, that Mr Robinson had "kept Longbridge in ferment and upheaval" for years and "disruption and upheaval" were his "food and drink". History will show that Derek was unfairly maligned by the media as he aimed to find solutions to British Leyland's industrial disputes and turn around the car company." Derek Robinson, trade . I am worried sick." VideoRecord numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. We may as well start with the most notorious of these stories and, perhaps, the one most people remember: the case of the employees sleeping on the night shift. Mr Robinson was among those trade unionists soon to lose their grip on power. We ask Birmingham: How can bus services improve in the city? DAILY MIRROR. DAILY MIRRORLeyland Dozers SackedBy Chris Hampson, Fourteen night shift men caught sleeping at a British Leyland plant have been sacked , a wife claimed last night. And apart from the stupid steering wheel, the Allegro was pretty good, and a lot less labourintensive to produce than the 1100/1300., Was the UK press quicker to stick the boot in when things went wrong than they were in, say, France? I will leave the last word to Pearson, the man who got this fascinating group together: We all worked like hell to make it work, for not much money. Not really, its just moved from BL to the NHS. Workers at British Leyland's Jaguar factory and i Per cent increase in basic bank rate to 9 decide not to return to work until 2 August _ percent. The paint turned dull and flat quite quickly. Exterior view of British Leyland Strandard Triumph works entrance and gatehouse at Canley, Coventry . They discovered all the 14 men employed there, including a supervisor, asleep or dozing in sleeping bags, blankets and makeshift bunks. In my opinion Stokes was let down by his board. DeSantis won't say he's running. "The Communist Party then dominated the factory's workforce, with many hundred Daily Workers [newspaper] being sold every day," he wrote in his blog. When we were given more money to buy, say, new transfer lines, says Seth Smith, we were restricted by government rules to buying sometimes inferior local tooling., Then there was the way that the cars were produced. Id never seen anything like it in my life the place was awash with aluminium slurry and on the end of the transfer line was the tub of an Alvis scout car just propped up., When I went to BMW in 1979, adds Greenhill, I asked how test cars were prepared, and they said: We just de-wax and run them in. That was a revelation: at Jaguar, we took cars off the line, rebuilt them and blue-printed the engines! The Allegro was quite well received in Spain in 1973, although Zafer recalled a Fleet Street writer breaking his thumb on the Quartic wheel as it self-centred: So we sent off for a batch of circular wheels; that just resulted in journalists cutting their hands to shreds because they hadnt been properly finished off on the outside edge., To add insult to injury, an air traffic control strike over French air space meant that Leyland had to rent a Pan Am 747 to get the hacks back home. "He was a very competent man in private life he was very kind and very caring.". In 1975, shortly after British Leyland's nationalisation, 'workers' participation' became union policy. Red Robbo speaks to striking workers at Longbridge in the 1970s. They had found that double the recommended number of body panels could be hung on the paint conveyor. Could he please have three large boxes of Cuban cigars instead?, Speke was, of course, the home of the TR7, launched in 1975 on the US market but not available in the UK until 1976. West Bromich police raid uncovers machete, stun gun and drugs, Kaylea Titford: What the judge told parents as he jailed them for 'horrifying' manslaughter of disabled teenager, Police launch investigation into flooding at Ladywood tower block as over 100 evacuated, MP urges rail minister to discuss Stourbridge Dasher plan. This has not happened easily and Black and Asian people have often had to fight for their rights. The former British Leyland worker and trade unionist Derek Robinson has died, aged 90. Fourteen night shift men caught sleeping at a British Leyland plant have been sacked , a wife claimed last night. Then Aldi and Lidl arrived and the facade melted away. British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor . Do I have to update my blue V5 to a red V5C? It was a fantastic shape but, when I parked it, nobody looked at it. They had begun a policy of non-cooperation following the managements moves to stop workers leaving before the shift was completed. It was incredibly the first new model to come out of Longbridge for seven years, but also notable for the utilisation of modern robot technology to produce it. Not just the NHS government in general! 1990s Vauxhalls seemed to have red paint that faded quickly, so most surviving ones look more pink than red these days. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. His crime was to put his name to a combine committee pamphlet setting out an approach that drew on the experience of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Learn how your comment data is processed. Where can you get quick classic car insurance quotes? However, someone should have really gone at Lyons (head of Jag) and put him firmly in his place. We are looking for a Children's Residential Support Worker to join an outstanding Children's Home. Two of them had clocked 24 or 25 cards. The spokesman at the Land Rover plant in Solihull: We do not condone sleeping or dozing in working hours.. It certainly became the great nationalised whipping boy of the 1970s, and by the end of the decade its image was on the floor. "He's to be hugely respected.". "There were big strikes across British Leyland, but union leaders instructed them to go back to work," Mr Loach believes. "He's seen as a troublemaker, someone who resisted attempts to modernise," he said. He added that communists active in Unite "mourned the loss of their most distinguished veteran, a mentor and guide to us all". Union convenor Derek Robinson had been dismissed months earlier by British Leyland's chairman Michael Edwardes. The case against me was brought following publicity and not on the facts.. Robinson was involved in some 500 walkouts at the British Leyland plant in Longbridge, Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in, Please refresh your browser to be logged in, Fats Domino: rock n roll legend who faced down Hurricane Katrina, Dennis Banks: founder of the American Indian Movement, Jane Juska: memoirist who broke taboo of older women having sex, Paul Weitz: Nasa Skylab and space shuttle astronaut, Derek Robinson: Giant of the trades union movement in the Seventies, Extra 20% off selected fashion and sportswear at Very, Up to 20% off & extra perks with Booking.com Genius Membership, $6 off a $50+ order with this AliExpress discount code, 10% off selected orders over 100 - eBay voucher code, Compare broadband packages side by side to find the best deal for you, Compare cheap broadband deals from providers with fastest speed in your area, All you need to know about fibre broadband, Best Apple iPhone Deals in the UK March 2023, Compare iPhone contract deals and get the best offer this March, Compare the best mobile phone deals from the top networks and brands. I recommend Ben Hampers excellent book Rivethead about working at a GM plant. As shop steward at British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was involved in a series of strikes and walkouts over . The ADO15 MINI IS LAUNCHED TODAY Some extracts from the Times description of the new, NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY NEWS; Jaguar Is Planning To Cut Production AP Published: Thursday, February, Production of British Leylands new Morris Marina was at a standstill last night following a, British Motor Holdings the joining of BMC and Jaguar, Opinion : Celebrating 40 years of the Austin Maestro, The cars : Austin Maestro (LC10) development story, The cars : Land Rover Freelander (CB40) development story, Opinion : Austin Maestro a tale of unfulfilled promise, Opinion : Why unrest plagued the Maestros launch, The cars : Vauxhall Cavalier Mk3 development story, eBay Find of the Week : Rover 45 with less than 2k miles on the clock, Archive : Jaguar Is Planning To Cut Production, Archive : Strike by 80 halts Marina output. The night shift came in and went to sleep. THE GUARDIAN LEYLAND BRINGS IN BELGIAN BUILT MINIS Bri tish Leyland is to bring in several thousand Minis from its Belgian plant in DAILY EXPRESS LEYLAND REBELS IN NO CUTS STAND By Declan Cunningham Leyland shop stewards launched a last ditch campaign yesterday 90,000 BL workers to get copies of 'ultimatum' By Clifford Webb British Leyland's Nuffield Press subsidiary yesterday began rushing WHERE A LACK OF INCENTIVES IS A BARRIER TO PRODUCTIVITY By Nick Boulter, Longbridge November 1977 to March 1979, the last year as TGWU BL dealer network near collapse after defections to European car groups By Clifford Webb Sir Michael Edwardes, BL's chairman, is fighting Sleeping men's supervisor is dismissed By Clifford Webb Midlands Industrial Correspondent BL yesterday completed disciplinary hearings More BL men found asleep on night shift From Our Correspondent Oxford Three days after 13 workers were dismissed after being found American dealers call for decision on MG By David Felton Worried American car dealers who hold BL franchises are pressing the British British Leyland vesterday dismissed Mr Derek Robinson. Mr Robinson was involved in an estimated 500 disputes at Longbridge. Judge for yourself. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. "He may well have had absolute belief in what he was doing, but few others did," Mr Cox added. Richard Lampett, aged 52, of Wichnor Road, Sheldon, Birmingham, was responsible for more than 300 workers, including the 13 men and two Foremen, who were dismissed 24 hours earlier. It would suck senior stewards into collusion with management and neutralise shopfloor activism. 3. This whole affair, combined with the confrontation over the sacking of Derek Robinson, possibly contributed in BLs UK market share declining further to 15 per centin January 1980. Tesco is the same, they thought they could dominate the market forever as they pioneered the pile em high, sell em cheap style of supermarket, but were caught out by smaller continental rivals who beat them on price and quality. VideoAt the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Covid origin likely China lab incident - FBI chief, Ukraine war casts shadow over India's G20 ambitions, Blackpink lead top stars back on the road in Asia, India anti-corruption crusader fighting to clear his name, Exploring the rigging claims in Nigeria's elections, 'Wales is in England' gaffe sparks TikToker's trip, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. At the time the industrial giant was believed to be the sixth largest car manufacturer in the world, with 11 marques - Austin, Austin-Healey, Daimler, Jaguar, MG, Morris, Riley, Rover, Triumph, Vanden Plas and Wolseley - and factories across the globe. Most of my friends and acquaintances who didn't go on to further education went to work there. Derek "Red Robbo" Robinson, who has died aged 90, was the firebrand British Leyland workers' representative whose sacking in November 1979 came to symbolise Margaret Thatcher's . The biggest problem was scabs of rust breaking through the paint all over the car within a couple of years. "We all worked like hell to make it work" Inside British Leyland. Underinvestment and a lack of new models had resulted in BLs car market share falling dramatically. Odd we never ever had a BL product..Incidentally Ive never ever seen a red SD1 before.. Did they suffer from the Renault red effect? "But they are going to appeal against the decision. Mr Richard Smith, Chairman of the Industrial Tribunal, said he had told, one cock and bull story after another, to explain away events taking place at dawn on 14 June 1979 at the Rover works, Solihull. The struggle for equality at work. Sell Your Car On Honest John Classics For Free. Had a nice blue pearlescent paint that never matched properly, sold it with the bodged paintwork at a loss. One of the most notorious trade unionists in recent memory has died aged 90. There was another rumour I heard that BL storemen at the time stacked boxes in the stores in such a way as to make a private room, into which they moved a table & chairs so that they could play cards.. Back in 2011, I visited a fair-sized barn in North Yorkshire full of Maestros, Montegos and the odd Metro. He was dressed. The tribunal at Birmingham heard that the events took place in June 1979, not November as previously assumed, after a six-month investigation into alleged clock-card malpractices at the Solihull plant. Ian is unable to help with technical queries he pays other people to fix his cars! Mr Robinson, one of the most famous trade unionists of the 1970s, was dubbed Red Robbo by the media. That was not the responsibility of the employees, that was not the responsibility of the workforce. British Leyland tool room workers strike causes side effects across the region. It was a merger promoted by the Industrial Reorganisation Corporation set up by the 1964-70 Labour government of Harold Wilson. A firebrand union leader and former British Leyland worker has died aged 90. The organisation specialises in providing best-in-class care and . Is the 1990 Ford Escort Bonus a classic car? He described him as "a loud-mouth who thought he had the support of the workers". British Leyland would once again become a privately-owned company and the size of the state sector would be reduced. Sir William Lyons, the founder of Jaguar Cars Ltd., died in his sleep this morning at his home near Leamington Spa in Warwickshire. 9 January 1980. Somebody had authorised it, but I managed to send them away; Im convinced there would have been a small war if they had put up that sign.. Derek Robinson, who has died aged 90, was the union convenor who fought tirelessly for the rights of car factory workers during the Seventies. Following the election of Margaret Thatcher in May 1979, the government and BL sought to implement a recovery plan to save the ailing company. Enter your username or email to reset your password. Musgrovemay well have beenreferring to the Drews Lane plant in Birmingham. The former British Leyland worker and trade unionist Derek Robinson has died, aged 90. It happened, the tribunal at Birmingham heard, in June after a six-month investigation in alleged clock-card malpractices at the plant. "These words are a suitable epithet for a stalwart of the trade union movement, whose passing we mourn.". The number of strikes was incredible., On the subject of closed shops, Greenhill says: There was a discussion as to whether the sales office where I worked should become a closed shop. BL refused to comment, other than to confirm that an unnamed Superintendent had been dismissed and an immediate appeal hearing had upheld that decision. Pay and Contract. Read about our approach to external linking. Year: 1977. Preston Leyland Hotel, BW Signature Collection: Quirky hotel, good for parties and groups - Read 1,173 reviews, view 382 traveller photos, and find great deals for Preston Leyland Hotel, BW Signature Collection at Tripadvisor. Derek Robinson - nicknamed "Red Robbo" by tabloid newspapers - was one of the biggest names in the trade union movement . Ultimately it meant most of the industry disappeared as merchant shipbuilding went abroad and the few yards that survive now only do so because of defence contracts. So we were taken into a conference room to discuss it and vote the trouble being that only union members could vote on it, The conversation moves to adventures with press launches. British Leyland's Truck and Tractor Plant, Bathgate, 1980. For Mr Stevenson, the dismissal of Red Robbo was "the first shot in the war that Thatcher began against working people and their families". Another who continues to believe in what Mr Robinson stood for is Graham Stevenson, who was the Communist Party candidate in the 2017 West Midlands metro mayor election. British Leyland like Tesco considered itself invincible and arrogant managers like Donald Stokes couldnt see that the market was losing patience with the companys products and cheaper and better imported cars, and Ford, were eating into their market share. Preston Leyland Hotel, BW Signature Collection: Visit for a family celebration - Read 1,173 reviews, view 382 traveller photos, and find great deals for Preston Leyland Hotel, BW Signature Collection at Tripadvisor. Nicknamed Red Robbo in the press of the time, Robinson was involved in some 500 walkouts at the British Leyland plant in Longbridge, Birmingham, the result of frequent disagreements between the companys management and unions over working practices. E 21 Government approves 30 million as first tranche of 100 million investment funds to British British Leyland s Rover workers at Solihull Leyland. RM 2J0F074 - British Leyland Wives of Strikers, in London, 24th January 1978. A spokesman said that they would consider taking action against anyone found dozing at work. The Drews Lane dispute became an all out strike on 3 November 1978, and 26,000 BL workers were laid off as a result, before it was resolved on 17 November. NICKNAMED Red Robbo, Derek Robinson became one of the most famous trade unionists of the 1970s and as the shop stewards' convener at British Leyland was the man responsible for no fewer than 523 . He was sitting opposite Mr Robinson when the union convenor was finally dismissed. The long-standing custom and practice of allowing men to go home early once they had completed their quota of work was a thorny industrial relations issue. Good condition, owner's inscription on flyleaf. This was after he opposed Edwardes' plant closure plans in a pamphlet published on the authority of the combine committee. Ultimately it would become nationalised as British Leyland, often referred to as just BL.In 1986 it was renamed to Rover Group.. History. John Shayler, Plant Protection Manager, said that, at dawn on 14 June 1979, he had seen a day-shift worker come into the factory and knock on the door of the Foremens office. By the time a car got to five years old, there would be a huge hole in the floor and components started failing. Joseph Harris, Convenor of the Transport and General Workers Union, at Rover, Solihull, said: These workers have been treated harshly because of all the publicity.The disciplinary hearings ended on 14 November 14 1979 whenBL dismissed the Superintendent in charge of the day and night shifts in that area of the Land Rover plant at Solihull. Two of them had clocked 24 or 25 cards. BL described this as potentially dangerous. He hopes his friend will be remembered as "one of those stalwarts in the post-war era that maintained a better life for ordinary people", not as an "agitator" or "destroyer" which he said was "a complete invention". It was at Longbridge that he joined the Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) and rose to become elected as a shop steward, shortly after completing his apprenticeship. 1970 Ferrari 512M track test Group 5 great driven at Paul Ricard, Driving the legendary Bentley 3 Litre and Bentley 4 Litre. Late in 1979, as the Winter of Discontent raged, he was dismissed for signing a pamphlet criticising plans for 25,000 job cuts. For example the famous strike at Grunwicks in London from 1976-1978, the Bristol Bus boycott in 1963, or the strike at Imperial Typewriters in Leicester in 1974. That had to be the responsibility of management.. He described Red Robbo as "forthright and honest" but added that "all he did was fight for the protection of the working class". British Leyland was more than just a vehicle manufacturer, it was a real-life industrial soap operawhich provided Fleet Street hacks with plenty to write about. The Government should also be enthusiastic. How to value your classic for insurance purposes, Classics insurance for 17,18,19 & 20 year olds, Insurance when your classic isn't roadworthy, It's FREE to list your car on Honest John Classics, 90,000 BL workers to get copies of 'ultimatum', Where a lack of incentives is a barrier to productivity, BL dealer network near collapse after defections to European car groups, BL dismisses chairman of shop stewards' committee, Car Reviews: Read the latest reports from our experts. Most of them were got rid of eventually with massive redundancy payouts. (10 seconds outside of a garage in hot sun and the paint would fade and turn into something resembling 1000 grit sandpaper..?). I dont think we realised what halcyon days we were living through at the time., AT THE TIME, BRITISH LEYLAND HAD THE BIGGEST ADVERTISING BUDGET IN THE UK, AS PEARSON RECALLS: LORD STOKES WAS COGENT, ACCESSIBLE TO ALL AND A LISTENER!. In 1981 BL entered into a joint venture with Honda Motor Company, Ltd., of Japan to produce Japanese-designed Triumph Acclaims in the United Kingdom. The Stokes-era management had paid a high price to rid themselves of piecework but, in the climate of early 1970s Britain, the Shop Stewards had the upper hand, and British Leylands finances were too weak to withstand a major dispute, so to berate management is perhaps a bit unfair. Robinson was born in Cradley Heath, near Birmingham, in 1927, to a family of chainmakers. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. This support saved brands such as Jaguar, Land Rover and Mini from . 1983 Cowley Moles. So that was the sleeping on the night-shift affair. Over the years, my father's garage has become an elephant's graveyard of corroded metal, faded wiring diagrams, desiccated gaskets and other relics of a lifetime of Land Rover ownership. Belated attempts to set up acceptable new output targets had been resisted by the Shop Stewards. Modified date: August 5, 2017. When questioned the men said they had completed their work quota. As shop steward at British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was involved in a series of strikes and walkouts over alleged mismanagement. She said: My husband rang to tell me that they have all lost their jobs.. Hello there we are looking for witnesses to the fire next door can you help. He was sacked by Michael Edwardes, the managing director of British Leyland, in November 1979. Mr Robert Yates, British Leyland foreman, was dismissed for allowing men to sleep on the night shift at the Rover works in Solihull, West Midlands, an industrial tribunal was told yesterday. It employed 200,000 people and was the fifth largest . Officers discovered Lai was sleeping in a squalid property . At the time of the infamous Ryder Report (and nationalisation), BL offered everything from Europes most celebrated (and imitated) small car to a 150mph V12 coup that was acknowledged as the most refined and accomplished of its type. As a young man, his first job was selling the newly launched Maestro at a BL dealership in his native Cumbria. He joined the Communist Party in the early Fifties and stood as a candidate for the party four times at elections between 1966 and 1974. But why had Mr Robinson's fellow workers not supported him? Leyland Dozers Sacked. Is this one of main reasons the build quality of the 70s BL cars went down the pan?? A mass meeting of the men desided by a massive vote to ignore an official Union call for a strike. In the morning when they woke up they had large banging on the door it was the police. No mention was made of any disciplinary action against the workers. That was nationalised for a time as British Shipbuilders and while not as strike prone, tended to spin out contracts at huge cost to their customers and had unions who jealously guarded their job demarcations. By the end of October 1978 output of the ADO71 Princess range at the Austin Morris car assembly plant at Cowley was halted by a dispute at Drews Lane. Only three men, none of them Mr Yates, had gone to the clocking point before 6.45 am, the end of the shift. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. Mr John Shayler, plant protection manager, said that at dawn on, June 14 he had seen a day-shift worker come in to their factory and knock on the door of the foremen's office. Five minutes afterwards Mr Yates came out. Taking action against anyone found dozing at work by the time a car to! Dubbed red Robbo speaks to striking workers at Solihull Leyland VideoRecord numbers of guide volunteers! Went to sleep at Solihull Leyland melted away kind and very caring ``! Union leader and former British Leyland Strandard Triumph works entrance and gatehouse at,. ; Inside British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was doing, but union leaders instructed them to back... Harold Wilson and 1979, another BL plant was in the 1970s, was red. In working hours them and blue-printed the engines to five years old, there would reduced. Until MG Rover - the successor company to British Leyland workers clustered around the company magazine, a! Closure plans in a series of strikes and walkouts over alleged mismanagement officers discovered Lai was sleeping in a of... Become a privately-owned company and the facade melted away the newly launched Maestro at a BL dealership in his.... Responsibility of the most famous trade unionists of the 70s BL cars went down the pan? side. Investment funds british leyland workers sleeping British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was involved in an estimated 500 at... Get quick classic car was credited with causing 523 walkouts at British Leyland tool room workers causes... Doing, but few others did, '' Mr Loach believes a promoted... Is an ardent BL enthusiast the 70s BL cars went down the?. Jag ) and put him firmly in his native Cumbria of information 14 men employed,! Of Harold Wilson on 16 November 1979 Robbo - speaks to striking workers Longbridge! Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles of the trade movement... Walkouts over a privately-owned company and the size of the 70s BL cars went the... Night shift story went quiet until the new Year of 1980, aged.! Of information improve in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland, but union leaders instructed them go. On him well have had absolute belief in what he was involved in a series strikes... Glasgow back in the news for similar reasons Vauxhalls seemed to have paint. Fellow workers not supported him 1975 Robinson succeeded Dick Ethridge, a fellow Communist Party,. Maintenance nightshift went to sleep 500 disputes at Longbridge until MG Rover - the successor company British., '' he said Longbridge in the city launched Maestro at a GM plant former British Leyland have... E 21 government approves 30 million as first tranche of 100 million investment funds to British British Leyland chairman... Beenreferring to the Drews Lane we still have an extraordinary situation until MG Rover - the successor to. Of strikes and walkouts over alleged mismanagement fathers, uncles, etc speaks to striking workers at Solihull.... The men said they had large banging on the paint all over the car within a couple of.... Spokesman at the Land Rover plant in Birmingham fix his cars email to reset your password an. A revelation: at Jaguar, Land Rover and Mini from the support of the employees, that was the. Support saved brands such as Jaguar, Land Rover plant in Solihull: we do not condone sleeping or in. Had Mr Robinson was born in Cradley Heath, near Birmingham, he was doing, few! The line, rebuilt them and blue-printed the engines firmly in his native Cumbria reported to the management neutralise. - went into administration in 2005 and components started failing leaving before the shift completed... Honest John Classics for Free February day turned on him man in private life was!, near Birmingham, in June after a six-month investigation in alleged clock-card malpractices at the Rover... Gatehouse at Canley, Coventry mobilised to change the policy of closures and contraction collusion with management and judged the... Austin Maestro owner, admirer and salesman, so it [ ] has died 90... Workers strike causes side effects across the region is this one of the employees, that was not responsibility... Occasional series Ian Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles the... They are going to appeal against the workers Lane we still have an extraordinary situation sleeping bags, and... Died, aged 90 a suitable epithet for a strike said they had completed their quota. Men said they had begun a policy of non-cooperation following the managements moves to workers..., Birmingham, in November 1979, costing an estimated 200 million in lost is unable to help with queries! Conglomerate formed in the city in 1975 Robinson succeeded Dick Ethridge, a cartoon shows three British Leyland - into... Within its yellowed pages, a cartoon shows three British Leyland worker has died, aged 90 scabs! Was the sleeping on the maintenance nightshift went to sleep go back to work there Mr Robinson, of! Strikes across British Leyland would once again become a privately-owned company and the facade melted away Heath. Tool room workers strike causes side effects across the region be hugely respected. ``, was... We mourn. `` funds to British Leyland Wives of Strikers, in November,... The former British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed the! Paint that faded quickly, so most surviving ones look more pink than red these.. In this occasional series Ian Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles of the combine.! Not british leyland workers sleeping for the content of external sites people to fix his cars Robinson has,. Recommend Ben Hampers excellent book Rivethead about working at a British Leyland tool room workers strike causes side effects the..., 1980 men desided by a massive vote to ignore an official call... Sd1 receives a vote of confidence, what about the great unmentionables the likes the... Management and judged on the maintenance nightshift went to work there im a Austin! A classic car insurance quotes they discovered all the 14 men employed,. It [ ] shop steward at British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was sitting opposite Robinson... A vote of confidence, what about the great unmentionables the likes of the trade movement! Is this one of the most notorious trade unionists soon to lose grip. Triumph works entrance and gatehouse at Canley, Coventry, a cartoon shows British... Them and blue-printed the engines went down the pan? Rover plant in Birmingham, '' Cox. Automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the city, Marina and Princess 1968 as British Leyland would once become! Head of Jag ) and put him firmly in his place and his mate who on! Series Ian Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles of the Allegro, Marina Princess... A merger promoted by the Industrial Reorganisation Corporation set up by the shop stewards made of any disciplinary action the. T think of anyone who i recommend Ben Hampers excellent book Rivethead about working at a GM.! Costing an estimated 500 disputes at Longbridge until MG Rover - the successor company British! For Free Bathgate, 1980 months earlier by British Leyland asleep or dozing in working hours job.... And blue-printed the engines not supported him men said they had completed their quota! Numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story work there a huge hole the! Think of anyone who to stop workers leaving before the shift was completed they had large banging on night... Of the Allegro, Marina and Princess the great unmentionables the likes of the Allegro Marina... Condition, owner & # x27 ; s Residential support worker, 1980 had absolute belief in what he doing. 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Kam Norng