But if the SD1 receives a vote of confidence, what about the great unmentionables the likes of the Allegro, Marina and Princess? 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. Judge for yourself. I am worried sick." 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. "We all worked like hell to make it work" Inside British Leyland. VideoRecord numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. Leylands future was assured over the next two decades through reluctant government financial support, the new Mini Metro model and a joint venture with Honda. Over 50,000 workers across British Leyland immediately came out on strike, including the 20,000 workers at Longbridge in . after annual holidays (see 5 July). Permanent Salary: 27,043 - 33,453pa; Hours: Monday - Friday 09:00-17:00 Friday 09:00 - 14:00; Person Specification 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 foremens office. employing c9,000 workers in the 1970s, Plant taken over completely by Jaguar in 1977, and became the main Jaguar assembly plant after the closure of the Browns Lane Coventry plant in 2005. Dark days, but I never realised British Leylands market share fell as low as 13 per cent in June 1980 due to an industrial dispute, although I did hear dealers pre the Metro were offering hefty discounts on new cars just to get them off the forecourt as they werent selling. As a young man, his first job was selling the newly launched Maestro at a BL dealership in his native Cumbria. Mr Robinson was among those trade unionists soon to lose their grip on power. The company assumed its current name in 1982. Throwback Thursday - BL's unseen concepts, 28 April 1993 (AutoCar) "The worst crime the managers of British Leyland committed during the nightmarish 1960s and 1970s was refusing pig-headedly to build decent cars - or so the critics . 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. He was in charge of 32 men on the night shift who were dismissed, disciplined, or 'who resigned rather than be dismissed. British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor . Transcribed & marked up by Einde O'Callaghan for ETOL.. It would suck senior stewards into collusion with management and neutralise shopfloor activism. The sleeping on the night shift story went quiet until the New Year of 1980. Statement from a Lucas representative who confirms the Lucas toolroom . 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. Mr Robinson led the fight back, organising hundreds of disputes. 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 . acquired by BMC in 1953. Back in 2011, I visited a fair-sized barn in North Yorkshire full of Maestros, Montegos and the odd Metro. When, a few years later, he was chosen to run Leyland Special Tuning, he brought the wing into profit a rare beast in the money-haemorrhaging world of BL. When we walked the shop floor, I think 90 per cent of the employees had actually gone home. These were dark times indeed.Harold Musgrove. . She said: My husband rang to tell me that they have all lost their jobs.. Had a nice blue pearlescent paint that never matched properly, sold it with the bodged paintwork at a loss. A firebrand union leader and former British Leyland worker has died aged 90. 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. 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. 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. Underinvestment and a lack of new models had resulted in BLs car market share falling dramatically. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. When former Triumph and Leyland Special Tuning man Richard Seth Smith arrives, proffering a rare Rover SD1 press pack, all concerned nod sagely at the suggestion that this was yet another brilliantly conceived but indifferently executed car. It happened, the tribunal at Birmingham heard, in June after a six-month investigation in alleged clock-card malpractices at the plant. Read about our approach to external linking. Political party. I just wish theyd said it while he was alive., Harold Wilson appears to be much more the villain of the piece. Perhaps more importantly, the rational economy, which includes companies like ICJ, Racal and . After two days of disciplinary hearings and . Born in Cradley Heath in the Black Country in 1927, Mr Robinson had begun working at the Longbridge plant aged 14 and was in his 50s when the axe fell. Ian is unable to help with technical queries he pays other people to fix his cars! It will prove that ordinary working people have got the intelligence and determination to run industry'. 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. A little later, through a window, he saw two men, naked from the waist up. Derek Robinson pictured leading several thousand trade unionists on a protest march after he was sacked in 1979, Mr Robinson with his partner Phyllis Davies, who was at one time a shop stewardess at Longbridge. In 1975, shortly after British Leyland's nationalisation, 'workers' participation' became union policy. Absenteeism is simply defined as an individual's frequent pattern of evasion from an obligation or duty. work. A stalwart of the Norfolk Mini Owners Club for nearly a decade he is an enthusiast for all things Issigonis. Mr Robinson worked as an engineering apprentice during the Second World War, progressing on to become shop steward at a plant in Longbridge. The former British Leyland worker and trade unionist Derek Robinson has died, aged 90. The idea was that they should be able to make triple time: do each job in a third of the time allowed which meant that by half past two everyone would pack up and bugger off home!, And you cant discuss BL without including Red Robbo Derek Robinson, the shop steward. Following his death on Tuesday aged 90, BBC News examines his legacy. Seth Smith joined Leyland Motor Corporation as Triumph press officer in 1967, and in 1968 helped with the famous announcement of the Leyland and BMH merger. 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. Buried deep somewhere in that automotive salmagundi: an old Punch magazine. The men were found tucked up in sleeping bags when management swooped on the priming shop at the Range Rover plant in Solihull, near Birmingham. But surely there is an alternative, more positive spin on this dark industrial history, or at least one that makes it a little easier to see the reasons for the failures. Fearing that its collapse would leave a million workers unemployed, the Labour government nationalized it. He will give evidence today. 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. I had a bright orange one as my company car a year before anyone had one over here, says Greenhill. I recommend Ben Hampers excellent book Rivethead about working at a GM plant. E 21 Government approves 30 million as first tranche of 100 million investment funds to British British Leyland s Rover workers at Solihull Leyland. Whether or not unions in the UK took industrial action more than unions in Europe and North America is a moot point, much of the rubbish produced by the NoW, Daily Mail etc is treated as if it was historical fact nowdays where it should be regarded as propaganda. British Leyland tool room workers strike causes side effects across the region. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? My god it was awful, it was bought . The British Leyland Motor Corporation (BLMC), was a vehicle manufacturing company formed in the United Kingdom in 1968. I couldnt say, says Seth Smith, but there was a lot of leftwing ideology about, and he was a smart and quite powerful individual, a natural leader., Talking of leaders, history has not been kind to Lord Stokes, but all here recall him as a capable boss who had simply been handed one of the most thankless tasks imaginable. As shop . Be the first to rate this post. The company remained a ward of the state for 13 years. Michael Edwardes, who has died aged 88, was the chair of the car giant British Leyland during the critical period of the company's transformation from 1977 to 1982. 8vo, green cloth with bright gilt lettering and decoration on cover and spine. Where can you get quick classic car insurance quotes? VideoRecord numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. "These words are a suitable epithet for a stalwart of the trade union movement, whose passing we mourn.". 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. Bits of hardware still running off BBC B computers..! But taking a bed to work was a deliberate act of anticipation.. The paint turned dull and flat quite quickly. "He may well have had absolute belief in what he was doing, but few others did," Mr Cox added. Following his dismissal, Mr Robinson worked as a tutor in trade union studies during the 1980s and 1990s, teaching shop stewards. DAILY MIRROR. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. Late in 1979, as the Winter of Discontent raged, he was dismissed for signing a pamphlet criticising plans for 25,000 job cuts. A British Leyland workers' co-op would be a splendid opportunity to test his suggestion. 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. Derek Robinson - Red Robbo - speaks to striking British Leyland workers in Cofton Park. What's he waiting for? The struggle for equality at work. for only $11.00 $9.35/page. We had a LDV van at work for about 7 years. Good condition, owner's inscription on flyleaf. 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 . It was the only new car on the books when [British] Leyland was formed on 2 January 1968, says Seth Smith, and it was abysmal particularly the gearchange., There is, however, consensus that the Princess was a better car than it was given credit for, but Greenhills account of the Princess 2 launch in the late 1970s is a microcosm of the ingrained and intractable cultural problems they were up against: We took a set of cars to Nardo in Italy to do two years driving in two weeks to prove the new O-series engine. There are inept managers everywhere.Tesco were once omnipotent. Around here (Nottingham) Royal Mail used a wide range of Vauxhall vans, and a few years ago every one of them had changed from Post Office red into a faded pink. 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. An uncompromising and . Ultimately it would become nationalised as British Leyland, often referred to as just BL.In 1986 it was renamed to Rover Group.. History. The case against me was brought following publicity and not on the facts.. Pay and Contract. 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. Mr Share also said there was nothing wrong with workers having a snooze provided it was in a chair. The hours I spent with Simon, Richard, Alan and Tim confirm that belief. Derek 'Red Robbo' Robinson led a long-running battle against management at the British Leyland plant in Longbridge throughout the 1970s. Mr Robinson, one of the most famous trade unionists of the 1970s, was dubbed Red Robbo by the media. W[/dropcap]e tend to think of British Leyland as a sprawling, unwieldy and inefficient industrial giant shambling its way from crisis to crisis, a universal joke lampooned by everyone from Fleet Street to The Two Ronnies. The former British Leyland worker and trade unionist Derek Robinson has died, aged 90. Back in 2011, I visited a fair-sized barn in North Yorkshire full of Maestros, Montegos and the odd Metro. The Lancia was supposed to be the Italian version of BMW, and I do recall the Beta being a desirable car to own in the late seventies. He added that communists active in Unite "mourned the loss of their most distinguished veteran, a mentor and guide to us all". In November of that year BL sacked Robinson for supporting the pamphlet titled A Trade Union Response to the Edwardes Plan, which criticised the plans proposals and the companys management. The odd 1m going missing (I would have paid money to see the auditors face when they found that little gem), contractors doing nothing for weeks at 100 a day because the bloke who set the administration lock password buggered off for sunnier climes without telling anyone what it was. Thatcher provided British Leyland with 2.9 billion pounds ($4.4 billion) of taxpayer money from 1979 to 1988, Rhys said. Born in Bedfordshire but now residing in Norfolk, Ian Nicholls is an ardent BL enthusiast. Appointed in 1977, the combative South African businessman Sir Michael Edwardes cut the number of workers almost in half at British Leyland, from 172,000 to 90,000. By the time a car got to five years old, there would be a huge hole in the floor and components started failing. Inside British Leyland Stories from those at the coalface. 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 dressed. Graham Stevenson, the Communist Party candidate in the 2017 West Midlands metro mayor election, said Mr Robinson joined the Amalgamated Engineering Union as an apprentice at Longbridge during World War II. 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. He was a controversial figure throughout his lifetime but Derek Robinson remains a working class hero to many. He told MPs in 2000 he regarded his Red Robbo nickname as a badge of honour. Whatexactly happened and whenare not easy to decipher. British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 asBritish Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd . Most of my friends and acquaintances who didn't go on to further education went to work there. With 'Red Robbo' now out of the picture the Austin Metro was launched in October 1980. BL still conjures images of half-finished Marinas and Allegros on desolate production lines and a militant workforce that appeared to be looking for any reason to down tools. Continue with Recommended Cookies. In this occasional series Ian Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles of the time as the main source of information. This kind of thing was riff everywhere. 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.. A mass meeting of the men desided by a massive vote to ignore an official Union call for a strike. Mr Stevenson, a former union official from Coventry, said Mr Robinson held the position during a time when more than 18,000 jobs disappeared at the company, plants closed and car production fell. A certain British steel plant would have early workers finish their work quota, do part of the late shift quota, then the late shift came in, finished off their quota and did the night shift quota too. it was just part of a long running campaign by the mainly right wing press that had gone on since the end of WW2 against organized labour. Film-maker Ken Loach, who made a documentary about Mr Robinson, said his story encapsulated a "critical moment" in the battle between Thatcherism and the power of the unions. "But they are going to appeal against the decision. British Leyland would once again become a privately-owned company and the size of the state sector would be reduced. Fearing that its collapse would leave a million workers unemployed, the Labour government nationalized it. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The men were found tucked up in sleeping bags when management swooped on the priming shop at the Range Rover plant in Solihull, near Birmingham. Strikes co-ordinated by Mr Robinson cost British Leyland 200m in lost production, according to chairman Michael Edwardes Former Leyland worker Stephen Cox said Mr Robinson was regarded by many . Like ICJ, Racal and Leyland would once again become a privately-owned company the... He regarded his Red Robbo by the media you get quick classic car insurance?... Had actually gone home of guide dog volunteers after BBC story an &., Montegos and the odd Metro the employees had actually gone home stalwart of the time as the source! Of the 1970s, was a vehicle manufacturing company formed in the floor components. 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