for only $11.00 $9.35/page. The original Hummer isn't the first vehicle I'd think of to do a "green" trip to the South Pole. Calling for him to step in to end the 12 week . British Leyland trade union leader. Our picture shows Maureen Crook and her seven woman party, wives of striking workers at British Leyland's Triumph No.2 factory in Speke, with their petition of over 1000 signatures for Prime Minister Jim Callaghan. So says Simon Pearson of his time at the much-maligned British Leyland. He was credited with causing 523 walkouts at British Leyland between 1978 and 1979, costing an estimated 200 million in lost . However, someone should have really gone at Lyons (head of Jag) and put him firmly in his place. My god it was awful, it was bought . Mr Lampett, who joined Rover 22 years earlier as a Tool Setter, said: I believe I have been treated very harshly. What's he waiting for? If youve done all the work you are paid and contracted to do how is that bunking off? "But they are going to appeal against the decision. The statement added that the company regarded the investigation as private. Enter your username or email to reset your password. On nightshift they realised that they could convert one of the giant metal cupboards into a bed, and when they closed the doors it was sound insulated. The British Leyland era at Longbridge became a byword for wildcat walkouts, union militancy and industrial chaos - and helped clear the path to political power for Margaret Thatcher. A little later, through a window, he saw two men, naked from the waist up. Mrs Thatcher, who came to power following the general election in May that year, regarded Mr Robinson as a "notorious agitator" and thought him a militant communist determined to stand in the way of progress. 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. In 1975 Robinson succeeded Dick Ethridge, a fellow Communist Party member, as the AEU convenor at Longbridge. Whatexactly happened and whenare not easy to decipher. But the political mood of the country was changing. A spokesman said that they would consider taking action against anyone found dozing at work. Absenteeism is simply defined as an individual's frequent pattern of evasion from an obligation or duty. "He's to be hugely respected.". 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. acquired by BMC in 1953. In May 1968 Britain's two largest car manufacturers merged to form British Leyland Motor Corporation. 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. He was in charge of 32 men on the night shift who were dismissed, disciplined, or 'who resigned rather than be dismissed. ( Somehow an orchestra trying to perform a punk record would be comical). Two of them had clocked 24 or 25 cards. I had a bright orange one as my company car a year before anyone had one over here, says Greenhill. 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. He also stood as a Communist Party candidate in four general elections in the city between 1966 and 1974. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. A stickler for historical accuracy he has recently performed the marathon task of mining the online newspaper articles for all BMC>MG related stories. When questioned the men said they had completed their work quota. The demise of the firm was nothing to do with the design and engineering. He often had to sort problems with shop stewards, though on many occasions we ended up discussing nothing more profound than the colour of the ladies toilets., As PR man for the Comps Department, Zafer spent a lot of time at Abingdon: One day after the merger, a Standard Atlas van turned up with two men from Canley to take down the MG Octagon off the front of the building and replace it with the Flying A**ehole Leyland insignia. 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. It needs the shock treatment of standing on its own two feet like any other business. But why had Mr Robinson's fellow workers not supported him? 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. Not at first, says Seth Smith, but they sure as hell were once it was nationalised, Our four protagonists fail to agree on how good or bad the promisingly specified five-door, five-speed Maxi really was. He was dressed. 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. This means employees can complete their daily stint, or work quota, and then go home at any time from 3.00pm onwards, but still be paid to the end of the shift. All Tescos success masked the reality that it was a bloated organisation staffed by inept bunglers.The brand value of Tesco was all conquering.The world is full of management knobs with university degrees in unrelated subjects, who make unrealistic demands of their underlings and tell their own bosses what they want to hear. Mr Alan Walters, a Supervisor, said he had seen another man come from the office carrying a Land Rover seat capable of being used as a bed. When we walked the shop floor, I think 90 per cent of the employees had actually gone home. Known for. How did you not hear that he said to which my friend blatantly lied I had ear muffs on we were grinding most of the night! 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". Over 50,000 workers across British Leyland immediately came out on strike, including the 20,000 workers at Longbridge in . Heal opens up on shock mid-season move. Within its yellowed pages, a cartoon shows three British Leyland workers clustered around the company magazine, contemplating a . For Mr Stevenson, the dismissal of Red Robbo was "the first shot in the war that Thatcher began against working people and their families". 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. He was in charge of 32 men on the night shift who were dismissed, disciplined, or 'who resigned rather than be dismissed. Formerly a convenor and shop steward within car manufacturer British Leyland for much of the 1970s, he was commonly known as " Red Robbo " in the British press. The biggest problem was scabs of rust breaking through the paint all over the car within a couple of years. Derek Robinson - nicknamed "Red Robbo" by tabloid newspapers - was one of the biggest names in the trade union movement . Read about our approach to external linking. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. "He is quoted as saying: 'If we make Leyland successful, it will be a political victory. Here, after all, was the worlds fourth-biggest car maker building the planets most complete and ambitious range of vehicles. Most of them were got rid of eventually with massive redundancy payouts. A British Leyland workers' co-op would be a splendid opportunity to test his suggestion. 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. 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. By Chris Hampson. If you work in primary schools or social, emotional and mental health or learning disability settings, your work will also involve liaising with parents and carers. He was 83 years old and had been in poor health for several . Then Aldi and Lidl arrived and the facade melted away. They made BL look like rank amateurs. BL began selling its interests in the 1980s, and by 1990 the Ford Motor . Linda Fisher's interview. E 21 Government approves 30 million as first tranche of 100 million investment funds to British British Leyland s Rover workers at Solihull Leyland. Back in 2011, I visited a fair-sized barn in North Yorkshire full of Maestros, Montegos and the odd Metro. 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. 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. 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. Opinion : Derek Robinson: Victim or villain? 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. Email Print. It was a fantastic shape but, when I parked it, nobody looked at it. People were not being properly paid and rewarded so they got together and formed their own alliance. Leyland Dozers Sacked. Rugeley man apprehended with crack and heroin in Staffordshire town, Human error to blame for deadly train crash, says Greek PM, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. A combination of poor steel and corrosion, so Lancia werent entirely to blame. The case against me was brought following publicity and not on the facts.. The Government should also be enthusiastic. Workers were to occupy and work in to prevent closures. He was a controversial figure throughout his lifetime but Derek Robinson remains a working class hero to many. DeSantis won't say he's running. Leyland was his idea from the beginning, says Seth Smith, and he told Stokes that if he didnt agree to the merger he would nationalise both companies anyway. When Wilson opened the Speke plant, it was Seth Smiths job to find the Labour PM a meaningful gift as a thank you to commemorate the event: I thought a handmade briar on a stand would be appropriate, but was told that he only smoked a pipe outdoors in public. 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. The Allegro that went through three gearboxes was BLs fault, since theyd put the wrong one on originally and the drones just replaced the wrong box with another wrong box by the part number.. And reduced my dads colleague to tears.. Clocked 24 or 25 cards but, when I parked it, nobody looked at it 2011... 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