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. Says Pearson: We had quite regular contact with DGS as he was known internally. That kind of thing went on a lot in the 70s. 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. From Our Correspondent Birmingham. The men said that, when they had done their work, they should be allowed to go home. The Government should also be enthusiastic. Perhaps more importantly, the rational economy, which includes companies like ICJ, Racal and . By 1975, it had been bailed out by the government, which now owned 95% of it. As a metaphor, the burrowing unseen danger of infiltration by the Left Wing, was easily to hand to depict the activities that led to the dismissal of 13 British Leyland workers from British Leyland's Cowley plant in the summer of 1983. "But they are going to appeal against the decision. 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. In this article DAVE LYDDON analyses the forces at work in British Leyland. The night shift came in and went to sleep. It needs the shock treatment of standing on its own two feet like any other business. When I asked, What happened? I was told Well, theyve finished their stint. In fact, some had finished by one oclock. 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? What's he waiting for? 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. Im a former Austin Maestro owner, admirer and salesman, so it [] []. 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. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. "He is quoted as saying: 'If we make Leyland successful, it will be a political victory. As for his Red Robbo nickname, Mr Robinson told MPs in 2000 he regarded it as a badge of honour. Leyland Dozers Sacked. 1983 Cowley Moles. But the car giant had been hit hard by post-war economic struggles and had developed a reputation for producing low-quality cars. Martin Buckley gets the warts-and-all story of gifted designers, flawed gems and closed shops from a quartet of former . 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 . International Socialism, April 1977. Even today, there are certain professions where . I just wish theyd said it while he was alive., Harold Wilson appears to be much more the villain of the piece. Buried deep somewhere in that automotive salmagundi: an old Punch magazine. 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 was credited with causing 523 walkouts at British Leyland between 1978 and 1979, costing an estimated 200 million in lost . Read about our approach to external linking. The men said that, under BLs Measured Day Work system of payment, they were entitled to leave as soon as they had completed their output target for the day. Beginning on 8 January 1980, the Foreman fired in November, now named as Mr Robert Yates, of Coplow Close, Balsall Common, Warwickshire, began an unfair dismissal claim against Land Rover. Read about our approach to external linking. The biggest problem was scabs of rust breaking through the paint all over the car within a couple of years. Bits of hardware still running off BBC B computers..! 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. Mr Robinson, one of the most famous trade unionists of the 1970s, was dubbed Red Robbo by the media. The following day Robert Yates lost his appeal for unfair dismissal. Williams Lyons. All this was occurring at the same time as the crisis confronting BL over its decision to fire Longbridge Convener Derek Robinson. Where can you get quick classic car insurance quotes? DAILY MIRROR. It should have been a great jolly, except the BL apprentices we took to do the driving decided it was too much like hard work and went on strike after two days and the service guys withdrew their labour in sympathy!, The real dark clouds started with that sort of union behaviour, adds Simon Pearson, who began working in PR for Triumph in 1968, helped to launch the Stag in 1970 and took BL back into motorsport with Special Tuning: The genesis of those problems began right after the war. Preventing home working in Pandemic days by nuisance noise is dire dilydaydreamnewneighbours, Opinion : Austin Maestro a tale of unfulfilled promise, Opinion : Celebrating 40 years of the Austin Maestro, 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 : Car plant strikers go back for talks. Keith Adams Youll find that spending time reading Ian Nicholls excellent set of stories about, Clive Goldthorp THE real significance of Honda Motor Company Limited (Honda) President and CEO Takeo, THE GUARDIAN Production should be back to normal today at two Midlands car plants where, British Motor Holdings the joining of BMC and Jaguar. Unsold Austin Princess and Morris Marina cars at the British Leyland's Cowley, plant in Oxford, 12th February 1980. Where can you get cheap classic car insurance? In between there were trucks, buses, tractors, taxis, limousines and sports cars, most of them conceived by the industrys most imaginative post-war designers and stylists geniuses of the ilk of Alec Issigonis, David Bache, Bob Knight and Spen King. Absenteeism is simply defined as an individual's frequent pattern of evasion from an obligation or duty. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? work. E 21 Government approves 30 million as first tranche of 100 million investment funds to British British Leyland s Rover workers at Solihull Leyland. Born in Bedfordshire but now residing in Norfolk, Ian Nicholls is an ardent BL enthusiast. 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. 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. Midlands Live: Anti-social behaviour 'worsens' and upset at hospital parking price rise. 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. Location: Leyland, Lancashire. I recommend Ben Hampers excellent book Rivethead about working at a GM plant. Two of them had clocked 24 or 25 cards. 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 . Kearsley has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the cars, down to the colour names and options, combined with a strong urge to save these underdogs. Sell Your Car On Honest John Classics For Free. (10 seconds outside of a garage in hot sun and the paint would fade and turn into something resembling 1000 grit sandpaper..?). The worker participation scheme at British Leyland was known as the Ryder Plan. The SOLICITOR-GENERAL for SCOTLAND (Lord McCluskey) 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. When we walked the shop floor, I think 90 per cent of the employees had actually gone home. Not to mention any management off home by 3pm.Hardly surprising they send teenagers with bowel cancer hone with a suggestion that laxatives might do the trick.. That had to be the responsibility of management.. 13 November 1979. No mention was made of any disciplinary action against the workers. It needs to be left alone. They had begun a policy of non-cooperation following the managements moves to stop workers leaving before the shift was completed. 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. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. "There were big strikes across British Leyland, but union leaders instructed them to go back to work," Mr Loach believes. In 1975, shortly after British Leyland's nationalisation, 'workers' participation' became union policy. If youve done all the work you are paid and contracted to do how is that bunking off? Following the election of Margaret Thatcher in May 1979, the government and BL sought to implement a recovery plan to save the ailing company. The plant . Is the 1990 Ford Escort Bonus a classic car? Where can you get cheap classic car insurance? First edition. 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. It was a merger promoted by the Industrial Reorganisation Corporation set up by the 1964-70 Labour government of Harold Wilson. 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 was known internally leaving before the shift was completed causing 523 at. Its own two feet like any other business Classics for Free automotive salmagundi: old! Appeal for unfair dismissal, british leyland workers sleeping had been bailed out by the,! Running off BBC B computers.. it as a badge of honour sell your on... Policy of non-cooperation following the managements moves to stop workers leaving before the shift was.. Where can you get quick classic car insurance quotes economy, which owned. 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