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. A stalwart of the Norfolk Mini Owners Club for nearly a decade he is an enthusiast for all things Issigonis. History will show that Derek was unfairly maligned by the media as he aimed to find solutions to British Leylands industrial disputes and turn around the car company., Derek Robinson, trade union leader, born 1927, died 31 October 2017, Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. When the BBC decided to cut down on their numerous orchestras in 1980, there was a nine week strike that saw TOTP cancelled and The Proms badly effected, until a compromise was thrashed out that saw the very much underused Top of the Pops orchestra and singers redeployed.Also there was the ridiculous practice called needletime, which was also applied to commercial radio, where the MU dictated how many hours were dedicated to playing records and how much should consist of recordings of live music. The quota system mentioned seems to have been a relic of the deal to end piecework in the early 1970s. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. It happened, the tribunal at Birmingham heard, in June after a six-month investigation in alleged clock-card malpractices at the plant. Stories from those at the coalface. In the morning when they woke up they had large banging on the door it was the police. This was probably fine for something like Radio 3, which would use recordings of orchestras playing symphonies to fulfil the MU restrictions, but not so good for Radio 1 or independent stations that relied on pop records. The Government should also be enthusiastic. The British Leyland Motor Company, BLMC, was formed back in 1968. Giving the Tribunals decision, Mr Smith said it should be made clear that Mr Yates dismissal predated others, which came after publicity given to workers found sleeping on a night shift. Judge for yourself. BL began selling its interests in the 1980s, and by 1990 the Ford Motor . 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. Thatcher provided British Leyland with 2.9 billion pounds ($4.4 billion) of taxpayer money from 1979 to 1988, Rhys said. The night shift came in and went to sleep. The UCPI is a damage limitation exercise by the British state, established in 2015 after the exposure of widespread use of undercover police agents against political organisations. "The Communist Party then dominated the factory's workforce, with many hundred Daily Workers [newspaper] being sold every day," he wrote in his blog. The problem with British Leyland was that they designed their cars to only last three years, so you would start getting rust spots and other problems. The Musicians Union, which was the union for musicians employed directly by the BBC, dictated that Top of the Pops had to employ a staff orchestra and singers, even if their services werent needed, which in most cases they were not. Its just a shame that for a lot of the 70s they were rightly derided for their quality. Two of them had clocked 24 or 25 cards. 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. He will give evidence today. Another quasi nationalised organisation which had working practices that would look hilarious now was the BBC at that time. They had begun a policy of non-cooperation following the managements moves to stop workers leaving before the shift was completed. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. As shop steward at British Leyland in Longbridge, Birmingham, he was involved in a series of strikes and walkouts over . The struggle for equality at work. 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. People were not being properly paid and rewarded so they got together and formed their own alliance. 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. They made BL look like rank amateurs. Yet surely using cheap steel on what was classed as an upmarket product was a big mistake and the Lancia joined the lesser Fiat Strada on the list of cars to avoid due to premature rust. Good condition, owner's inscription on flyleaf. Buried deep somewhere in that automotive salmagundi: an old Punch magazine. for only $11.00 $9.35/page. However, the wife of one of the dismissed workers, Mrs Ray Pennell, of Chelmsley Wood, Birmingham, said the management knew of the practice and had asked men to double-load the conveyors if production fell behind. 1983 Cowley Moles. Harris Manns drawings were a lot more emotive than the car itself., Im not quite a BL revisionist, but Ive been of the opinion that its long and painful public suicide was merely the end result of a set of circumstances that had their roots in the mists of time long before most of the main human protagonists in this great industrial drama were old enough to drive. I recommend Ben Hampers excellent book Rivethead about working at a GM plant. We all worked like hell to make it work Inside British Leyland. Exterior view of British Leyland Strandard Triumph works entrance and gatehouse at Canley, Coventry . From Our Correspondent Birmingham. British Leyland, Britain's largest automaker, faced bankruptcy in 1975. Tributes have been paid to former British Leyland worker and trade unionist Derek Robinson, who has died, aged 90. The story first hit the headlines on 12 November 1979 when it was revealed that 14 night shift workers had been caught sleeping at a British Leyland plant. 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. Mr John Share, personnel manager, said the company was satisfied that Mr Yates had allowed men to sleep on a night shift and had allowed clocking offences in which he had taken part. Mr Robinson worked as an engineering apprentice during the Second World War, progressing on to become shop steward at a plant in Longbridge. 2023 BBC. 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. The paint turned dull and flat quite quickly. 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 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". Leyland Dozers Sacked. Over the years they have applied pressure to weaken work standards so that, against the already slack standards then applying, they are able to claim they have done their days work and management is powerless to give them more work to complete the shift.. RM 2J0F074 - British Leyland Wives of Strikers, in London, 24th January 1978. 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. When we walked the shop floor, I think 90 per cent of the employees had actually gone home. in the biggest management Sell Your Car On Honest John Classics For Free. Stories from those at the coalface. "I can sleep sound at night because I never betrayed the workers I was elected to represent," he said. The plant . Union convenor Derek Robinson had been dismissed months earlier by British Leyland's chairman Michael Edwardes. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. He told MPs in 2000 he regarded his Red Robbo nickname as a badge of honour. 20 illustrated plate. 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. 2023 BBC. The check, which was made during the night of Thursday 15 November, had been ordered by the General Manager, Mr Robert Watson. Kearsley has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the cars, down to the colour names and options, combined with a strong urge to save these underdogs. By 1975, it had been bailed out by the government, which now owned 95% of it. Workers were to occupy and work in to prevent closures. Only three men, none of them Mr Yates, had gone to the clocking point before 6.45 am, the end of the shift. Do I have to update my blue V5 to a red V5C? "I can sleep sound at night because I never betrayed the workers I was elected to represent," he said. . Ideal business/holiday rental Perfect for families, friends and work colleagues (a pet friendly home) The cottage is an attractive Grade ll listed property recently totally refurbished to a high standard maintaining its character and charm, an unusual build with Venetian type windows and a . Read about our approach to external linking. Location: Leyland, Lancashire. Job Type: Permanent, Full-Time. What's he waiting for? DAILY EXPRESS BUY BRITISH DRIVE FOR LEYLAND BOOST By David Benson An aggressive campaign to 'Buy British' is to be launched by Leyland British Leyland is to be granted a further 300m of state aid next year, with 133m to follow if the vehicle group's performance improves. DAILY EXPRESS BUY BRITISH By Peter Durisch Leyland chief Sir Michael Edwardes left Britain over Christmas with a special messagefor BL seals pact for Japanese to produce first car in Britain From our Correspondent Tokyo, Dec 27 BL and Honda today ratified an agreement Robert Taylor investigates recently released Cabinet papers that document the end of the 1974-79 Labour Government The newly-opened Mr Robert Yates, British Leyland foreman, last night lost a claim that he was. The whole process was predicated on piece work, says Seth Smith, so that every job was timed and they were given a price to do it. Following the election of Margaret Thatcher in May 1979, the government and BL sought to implement a recovery plan to save the ailing company. British Leyland's Truck and Tractor Plant, Bathgate, 1980. British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor . unfairly dismissed for sleeping on a night shift and DAILY MIRROR Night-shift workers were given a wake-up warning by British Leyland bosses yesterday . Late in 1979, as the Winter of Discontent raged, he was dismissed for signing a pamphlet criticising plans for 25,000 job cuts. In the 1980s and 90s, Mr Robinson worked as a tutor in trade union studies, teaching shop stewards. Six hundred workers had been laid off indefinitely because of a shortage of suspension units caused by a work to rule by 150 workers at the transmission plant at Drews Lane. Everybody laughs about the Marina now, says Seth Smith, generously, but when you consider the brief to use Morris Minor components to make a Cortina rival it was a reasonable achievement. Between 1977 and 1978, about 18,000 jobs were cut by the firm, leaving it still employing 20,000 people in Longbridge and a further 30,000 at plants elsewhere. Opinion : Derek Robinson: Victim or villain? We are looking for a Children's Residential Support Worker to join an outstanding Children's Home. Doubling up as it was known-working extra fast so you could bunk off-wasnt confined to BL either. 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!. 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. Yesterday they faced a disciplinary hearing. 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. The SOLICITOR-GENERAL for SCOTLAND (Lord McCluskey) Musgrovemay well have beenreferring to the Drews Lane plant in Birmingham. Following his death on Tuesday aged 90, BBC News examines his legacy. Sounds very like British Leyland at the start of the seventies, four out of ten new cars were British Leyland and imports were still rare, if slowly gaining ground, and a few customers werent happy about the quality of the new Maxi. 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. 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. In this occasional series Ian Nichollsrevisits some of these stories, using the newspaper articles of the time as the main source of information. 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. What fire was my friends answer to which the policeman pointed to the mess of the building next door and the thirty fire engines surrounding it! 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. As Glenns said, even the Princess and its older stable mates were not bad at all by the end. "He wasn't at all like what the media portrayed him as in the 1970s," he said. There is a long-standing tradition known as stint and finish. 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. So says Simon Pearson of his time at the much-maligned British Leyland. Robinson was born in Cradley Heath, near Birmingham, in 1927, to a family of chainmakers. British Motor Holdings merged with the Leyland Motor Company to form the British Leyland Motor Corporation on January 17, 1968. Five minutes afterwards Mr Yates came out. Fearing that its collapse would leave a million workers unemployed, the Labour government nationalized it. I can't think of anyone who . But by this time British Leylands crisis had become existential, extending beyond the ongoing battle with its unions. But instead of supporting him, the workers who gathered that February day turned on him. But if the SD1 receives a vote of confidence, what about the great unmentionables the likes of the Allegro, Marina and Princess? For Mr Stevenson, the dismissal of Red Robbo was "the first shot in the war that Thatcher began against working people and their families". My favourite was from an old work colleague working for an engineering firm in Glasgow back in the 80s. Martin Buckley gets the warts-and-all story of gifted designers, flawed gems and closed shops from a quartet of former . "These words are a suitable epithet for a stalwart of the trade union movement, whose passing we mourn.". He was a lovely guy, recalls Greenhill, when you werent in a meeting with him. Was he a communist infiltrator? British Leyland trade union leader. A firebrand union leader and former British Leyland worker has died aged 90. 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. He described Red Robbo as "forthright and honest" but added that "all he did was fight for the protection of the working class". The following day Robert Yates lost his appeal for unfair dismissal. The hours I spent with Simon, Richard, Alan and Tim confirm that belief. 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. RME11T1N - Feb. 02, 1980 - Leyland workers Shun Robinson: The gamble by Sir Michael Edwardes, chairman of British Leyland to dismiss Mr. Derek Robinson, finally paid off yesterday when the workforce at Longbridge refused to take strike action to force the reinstatement of the converner. 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. Functioned as body plant for Mini and Jaguar models, employing c9,000 workers in the 1970s, Plant taken over completely by Jaguar in 1977, and became the main . In his defence, Mr Yates claimed that British Leylands system of giving a measured quota of work for a shift resulted in his men never having enough work to do. Mr Robinson led the fight back, organising hundreds of disputes. I am worried sick." 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. 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 . Security officers kept watch from behind an extractor fan in a paint shop, from where they could see a clocking point. Following his dismissal, Mr Robinson worked as a tutor in trade union studies during the 1980s and 1990s, teaching shop stewards. These were blamed by managers for delays to production of 62,000 cars and 113,000 engines, costing the business an estimated 200m. 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 . The incident would be reported to the management and judged on the circumstances. Mr Robinson, one of the most famous trade unionists of the 1970s, was dubbed Red Robbo by the media. Am I being targeted by an overpayment scam? 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. The ultimate result we see today zero hours contracts, the use of self employment status to avoid paying NI and there general degradation of workers since 1979. 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. 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. DeSantis won't say he's running. An investigation disclosed that the 14 had devised a scheme that enabled them to complete their quota in half the allocated time. A communist, he had led 523 walkouts at the Birmingham car plant during a 30-month period, gaining the nickname Red Robbo from journalists and becoming an increasingly divisive national figure. Enter your username or email to reset your password. Once part of the sprawling British Leyland automotive empire that epitomised Britain's industrial decline . He worked variously for Morris, Austin, BMC, BLMC, BMLH, Leyland Cars, Austin-Morris and Jaguar-Rover- Triumph Thats roughly a new corporate brand every 10 months and on the launches of the Allegro, 18-22 Series, TR7 and XJ-S. At that time, BL had the biggest advertising budget in the UK, he says, and we gave Saatchi its first-ever car account, which was the Princess., Dapper, silver-haired Alan Zafer, who began at MG, goes further: It was probably the greatest range of cars under one umbrella. 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. Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: "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. 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. Five minutes afterwards Mr Yates came out. With 'Red Robbo' now out of the picture the Austin Metro was launched in October 1980. In 1975 Robinson succeeded Dick Ethridge, a fellow Communist Party member, as the AEU convenor at Longbridge. I realised that it wasnt going to sell somehow it had no presence. THE TOOLROOM workers at British Leyland did not win their demand for separate bargaining rights. 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. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. Derek Robinson, nicknamed Red Robbo, died on 31 October 2017, A motion for strike action protesting against Mr Robinson's dismissal in 1980 was overwhelmingly voted down, British Leyland, Mr Edwardes wrote, was perceived as being a business "at war with itself", Film-maker Ken Loach described Derek Robinson as a man of "iron principle", Strikes co-ordinated by Mr Robinson cost British Leyland 200m in lost production, according to chairman Michael Edwardes, The Winter of Discontent saw rubbish piled high, as seen here in London's Leicester Square, In 2000, Mr Robinson was among crowds in Birmingham campaigning to save jobs at MG Rover, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. 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. Security officers kept watch from behind an extractor fan in a paint shop from where they could see a clocking point. British Leyland tool room workers strike causes side effects across the region. Quite funny you mentioned the NHS as Harold Musgrove moved onto their after BL and as per the stories of the day left after cocking that up to. We will write a custom Article on Absenteeism at British Leyland specifically for you. Classic car tax exemption: what you need to know. The cars : Vauxhall Viva development story, Blog : Rover SD1 the Australian perspective, Yes we read all these stories from the News Of The World (the original fake news site) some were true,some were not. Inside British Leyland Stories from those at the coalface. This introduction is being written on 30 November 2011, the day we saw 2.5 million workers on strike, the biggest mass strike in Britain for generations. "But they are going to appeal against the decision. A quote from Austin Rover Managing Director Harold Musgrove (right) from 1984 underlines that. 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