5 Public sector strikes
-
John Shepherd
Abstract
The Heath government had introduced five states of emergency in four years, which had led to its defeat at the polls in February 1974. The National Day of Action, a French-style one-day strike, had been organised jointly for the first time by four of the major unions for public service employees. The union had more women members than any other British trade union. By 1980 the National Association of Local Government Officers (NALGO) had 391,000 women members. The new union provided health service trade unionism and recruited from workers principally in the National Health Service (NHS). The principal cause of the public sector strikes was in fact chronic low pay. As Tara Martin has shown, women played a significant role in the 'winter of discontent' in the largely male world of trade union politics, particularly in the strikes in the service sector industries.
Abstract
The Heath government had introduced five states of emergency in four years, which had led to its defeat at the polls in February 1974. The National Day of Action, a French-style one-day strike, had been organised jointly for the first time by four of the major unions for public service employees. The union had more women members than any other British trade union. By 1980 the National Association of Local Government Officers (NALGO) had 391,000 women members. The new union provided health service trade unionism and recruited from workers principally in the National Health Service (NHS). The principal cause of the public sector strikes was in fact chronic low pay. As Tara Martin has shown, women played a significant role in the 'winter of discontent' in the largely male world of trade union politics, particularly in the strikes in the service sector industries.
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of illustrations viii
- Acknowledgements ix
- List of abbreviations xii
- 1 The 1970s 1
- 2 Election deferred and the collapse of the social contract 18
- 3 The Ford strike, 1978 38
- 4 The oil tanker drivers’ dispute and the road hauliers’ strike 59
- 5 Public sector strikes 82
- 6 Media coverage 108
- 7 The Conservative Party and the ‘winter of discontent’ 130
- 8 Political aftermath 147
- 9 In conclusion 168
- ‘Winter of discontent’, 1978–79 176
- Bibliography 179
- Index 196
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of illustrations viii
- Acknowledgements ix
- List of abbreviations xii
- 1 The 1970s 1
- 2 Election deferred and the collapse of the social contract 18
- 3 The Ford strike, 1978 38
- 4 The oil tanker drivers’ dispute and the road hauliers’ strike 59
- 5 Public sector strikes 82
- 6 Media coverage 108
- 7 The Conservative Party and the ‘winter of discontent’ 130
- 8 Political aftermath 147
- 9 In conclusion 168
- ‘Winter of discontent’, 1978–79 176
- Bibliography 179
- Index 196
