Last Wednesday a hundred and tity hospital workers, mainly nurses and medical students from Kings College Hospital and other hospitals, held a militant demonstration through the streets of Southwark. This was part of a seven week-old campaign against price rises in hospital canteens. The Caronstra on wus also sunnorted by Sourhtwark Trades Council, ASTMS Central and West London medical branches, and Southwark Teachers Associa tion.
The demonstraton clearly linbod die campaign for over hospital canteent prices with the need for canteen prices down.' At an open-air rally after the march, a nurse froin Dutwich Hospital und a member of Mandsworth Teachers A section posted out that had conditions in hospitats and schools are the result of Govertment cut-backs in all social spending These speakers also stressed the need to link the fight in hospitals and schools to the overall fight against the Tory Government and ints anti-working cinse policies. Al a working meeting in South Bank Polytechnic after the rally, murses decided to set up an inter-hospital committee to look into murses' pay, do fommulute pay claims, and to collate information about hospital canteen boycotts) can be planned.
Unfortinately, a secback came three days later with London to accept a P'hase 3 offer for hospital ancillary wurkers. This offer also entails a Ip per day increase in meal charges, an a lime when the Duiwich and Kings canteen boycotters, officially backed by NUPE, have already managed to squeeze a 2p decrease in meal priom out of hospital management. Despite this setback, however, the Dalwichi-King committee of nurses and medical students plans to continie to strengthen its links with nurses, ancillary worken, rescarch workers and medical students in ofer hospilals. The next stago of the campaign will in involve sending speakers to trades councils, trade union branches and other local working class organisa tions, as well as student unions, in order to explain (hat working class health care is suffering became of worseng Dospat Cors, any hospital worker wanting to be involved in the work of this committee shoull confact the Nurses Baycott Committee, Nurses' Entrance, Kings College Hospital, Denmark Hill, London, SES.
Red Weekly 21 December 1973 Page 3
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