Workers Action

Workers' Action ran from January 1976 to March 1981, and was the paper associated with the International-Communist League, a forerunner of what since 1992 has been called the Alliance for Workers' Liberty.

The launch of Workers' Action came after the Workers' Fight group, active since 1966-7 and producing a magazine and then a paper under the name Workers' Fight, merged with Workers' Power (the former Left Faction of IS/SWP, expelled from the IS/SWP in late 1975) to form the International-Communist League. (In September 1976, a section of the former Left Faction people broke away and took up the name Workers' Power again. That division is commented on in Workers' Action 30 and following issues).

From late 1978 the people producing Workers' Action were also active with a range of others in producing Socialist Organiser, first as an occasional publication, then monthly, then more frequently.

From about 1980 some of the others involved in Socialist Organiser moved away. (The main political dividing line was whether the left-wing Labour council leaderships then numerous should "buy time" before any confrontation with the Thatcher government, by raising local taxes to avoid cuts, or should go directly for battle with the government. The core people who moved away initiated London Labour Briefing). Socialist Organiser remained a paper with a broad range of debate, but it also became more frequent and broadened its coverage, so those producing Workers' Action decided that the additional paper had become redundant.

The last number of Workers' Action, in March 1981, was a magazine issue, with the thought of possibly making it into a regular magazine. In that event that "magazine" function was served more by occasional special "pamphlet" issues of Socialist Organiser.

The I-CL merged with the Workers' Socialist League (associated with Alan Thornett and Tony Richardson) in July 1981: the merged organisation was called WSL, but continued to work with Socialist Organiser as its weekly paper. After Thornett, Richardson, and others moved away to produce Socialist Viewpoint, in 1984, Socialist Organiser continued, and the WSL was merged into its supporters' group, the Socialist Organiser Alliance. After Socialist Organiser was banned by the Labour Party in 1990, its supporters launched the Alliance for Workers' Liberty in 1992.

These files were provided by Rob Madsen of the Red Mole Rising Project and the Splits & Fusion blog.

Contents by Issue


No. 1, January, 1976

No. 2, January, 1976

No. 3, January, 1976

No. 4, February, 1976

No. 5, February, 1976

No. 6, February, 1976

No. 7, February, 1976

No. 8, March, 1976

No. 9, March, 1976

No. 10, March, 1976

No. 11, March, 1976

No. 12, April, 1976

No. 13, April, 1976

No. 14, April, 1976

No. 15, April, 1976

No. 16, April, 1976

No. 17, May, 1976

No. 18, May, 1976

No. 19, May, 1976

No. 20, June, 1976

No. 21, June, 1976

No. 22, June, 1976

No. 23, July, 1976

No. 24, July, 1976

No. 25, July, 1976

No. 26, July, 1976

No. 27, August, 1976

No. 28, September, 1976

No. 29, September, 1976

No. 30, September, 1976

No. 31, October, 1976

No. 32, October, 1976

No. 33, October, 1976

No. 34, November, 1976

No. 35, November, 1976

No. 36, November, 1976

No. 37, November, 1976

No. 38, December, 1977

No. 39, December, 1977

No. 40, December, 1977

No. 41, January, 1977

No. 42, January, 1977

No. 43, January, 1977

No. 44, February, 1977

No. 45, February, 1977

No. 46, February, 1977

No. 47, February, 1977

No. 48, March, 1977

No. 49, March, 1977

No. 51, March, 1977

No. 52, March, 1977

No. 53, April, 1977

No. 54, April, 1977

No. 55, May, 1977

No. 56, May, 1977

No. 57, May, 1977

No. 58, May, 1977

No. 59, June, 1977

No. 60, June, 1977

No. 61, June, 1977

No. 62, July, 1977

No. 63, July, 1977

No. 64, July, 1977

No. 65, July, 1977

No. 66, August, 1977

No. 67, August, 1977

No. 68, August, 1977

No. 69, September, 1977

No. 70, September, 1977

No. 71, September, 1977

No. 72, September, 1977

No. 73, October, 1977

No. 74, October, 1977

No. 75, October, 1977

No. 76, October, 1977

No. 77, October, 1977

No. 78, November, 1977

No. 80, November, 1977

No. 81, December, 1977

No. 82, December, 1977

No. 83, December, 1977

No. 84, December, 1977

No. 85, January, 1978

No. 86, January, 1978

No. 8,7 January, 1978

No. 88, January, 1978

No. 89, February, 1978

No. 90, February, 1978

No. 91, February, 1978

No. 92, February, 1978

No. 93, March, 1978

No. 94, March, 1978

No. 95, March, 1978

No. 96, March, 1978

No. 97, April, 1978

No. 98, April, 1978

No. 99, April, 1978

No. 100, April, 1978

No. 101, May, 1978

No. 102, May, 1978

No. 103, May, 1978

No. 104, May, 1978

No. 105, June, 1978

No. 106, June, 1978

No. 107, June, 1978

No. 108, June, 1978

No. 109, July, 1978

No. 110, July, 1978

No. 111, July, 1978

No. 112, August, 1978

No. 113, August, 1978

No. 114, August, 1978

No. 115, September, 1978

No. 116, September, 1978

No. 117, September, 1978

No. 118, September, 1978

No. 119, October, 1978

No. 120, October, 1978

No. 121, October, 1978

No. 122, October, 1978

No. 123, November, 1978

No. 124, November, 1978

No. 125, November, 1978

No. 126, November, 1978

No. 127, December, 1978

No. 128, December, 1978

No. 129, December, 1978

No. 130, January, 1979

No. 131, January, 1979

No. 132, January, 1979

No. 133, February, 1979

No. 134, February, 1979

No. 135, February, 1979

No. 136, March, 1979

No. 137, March, 1979

No. 138, March, 1979

No. 139, April, 1979

No. 140, April, 1979

No. 142, May, 1979

No. 143, June, 1979

No. 144, June, 1979

No. 145, June, 1979

No. 146, July, 1979

No. 147, July, 1979

No. 148, July, 1979

No. 148, July - supplement, 1979

No. 149, August, 1979

No. 150, August, 1979

No. 151, September, 1979

No. 152, September, 1979

No. 153, September, 1979

No. 154, October, 1979

No. 156, October, 1979

No. 157, October, 1979

No. 158, November, 1979

No. 160, November, 1979

No. 161, December, 1979

No. 162, December, 1979

No. 163, January, 1980

No. 164, January, 1980

No. 165, January, 1980

No. 166, February, 1980

No. 167, February, 1980

No. 168, February, 1980

No. 169, March, 1980

No. 170, March, 1980

No. 171, March, 1980

No. 172, March, 1980

No. 173, April, 1980

No. 174, April, 1980

No. 175, May, 1980

No. 176, May, 1980

No. 177, May, 1980

No. 179, June, 1980

No. 180, June, 1980

No. 182, March, 1981/a>

Labour Party Young Socialists supplement


 

Last updated on 21 May 2020