Jimmy Airlie
| Jimmy Airlie | |
|---|---|
| Born |
10 November 1936 Renfrew |
| Died | 10 March 1997 (aged 60) Erskine |
| Cause of death | Cancer |
| Occupation | Ship fitter |
| Known for | Trade Unionism |
Jimmy Airlie (10 November 1936, Renfrew – 10 March 1997, Erskine) was a leading Scottish trade unionist. While a shop steward, along with Sammy Gilmore, Sammy Barr and Jimmy Reid he was particularly remembered for his role as chairman of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders work-in committee of 1971.
A former fitter at Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, and was elected to the national executive of the Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) in 1983. This was the first time a communist had been elected to the AEU's national executive since the early 1970s.
Described in the Scottish Express - "Jimmy Airlie, the most astute strategist of the lot...the lost leaders of the UCS work-in were men of discipline, depth and dignity. What's more, they won." Paying tribute Tam Dalyell said "For any MP who saw Jimmy Airlie in action with employers who proposed to close a factory in his constituency, he was a marvellous sight in full flow".
Airlie was a great public speaker and effective negotiator. His speech style was described as 'joined-up shouting' - he said that a point made 'wittily and succinctly' was more likely to be understood - he said, 'we all have to die sometime, but in the meantime we don't have to be bored to death'. When asked by the press in 1971 whether the workforce at UCS intended to occupy the shipyard, he replied "We are not a foreign power, we were born in that area and we will work-in. The right to work is our birthright and we won't give it up for any hatchetmen".
Although uncompromising in his approach to negotiation and debate, and in his use of robust 'shipyard' language, it was clear that Airlie was highly intelligent and sophisticated in his approach to union matters. He would often advise against industrial action where nothing could be gained, and he believed in building broad alliances to achieve 'progressive' policies. Airlie was greatly influential to modern trade unionism in valuing both principle and pragmatism in full measure. In particular, as a trade union organiser, Airlie displayed the skills to bring together the workforce, even across sectarian divides which were common in the Glasgow shipyards - "Jimmy always seemed to unite them and break these barriers. He made them see the logic of combining together". His involvement in some notable labour disputes in the 1980s was influential: at Ford Motor Company, Caterpillar and Timex.
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