News In Brief

British printers' union calls for one-day strike

Britain's most powerful print union, the National Graphical Association, has called a one-day national strike for Wednesday in what it regards as a fight for survival against new laws designed to curb unions.

The decision deepens a 24-week-old labor dispute which has seen the worst industrial violence since Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher took office in 1979, and resulted in nearly $980,000 in fines against the union for contempt of court. The strike will deprive Britain of virtually all newspapers on Wednesday.

The Trades Union Congress, which groups most of Britain's unions, was to consider its position today. So far, it has given only qualified support to the printers.