Margaret Thatcher had refused to concede to any of the NUMs demands, and new miners' unions had started to gain traction among workers who lost faith in the NUMs ability. Slowly throughout the year, more and more miners returned to work nationally, and solidarity amongst other mining communities started to dwindle. First, the miners were divided. AETNUK. Here, historian Dominic Sandbrook revisits the longest and most acrimonious industrial dispute in Britains modern history: the miners strike of 198485. Clashes between the police and strikers resulted in injuries and deaths and demonstrated a legalising of state violence against protesters, hailing in a new era of state control. In 1972 and 1974, strikes shut down every coal mine in Britain, and a combination of solidarity strikes by the steel and railway unions and targeted picketing of coking works, ports and industrial sites brought the country to a standstill. But galloping over the horizon would be the woman who would prove to be their nemesis Margaret Thatcher. Since 1979, Nigel Lawson, the Secretary of State for Energy, stockpiled up to 6 months' worth of coal in case of further strikes. Read more about: Popular Culture The defeated miners returned to work and the pit closures would go ahead. While the miners of Kent, Scotland, the North East, Yorkshire and South Wales downed tools and took to the picket lines, their counterparts in the Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, South Derbyshire and North Wales coalfields carried on working. Eight deaths were attributed to the strike, including picketers, workers, and a taxi driver. The strikers used a strategy known as a "flying picket", in which miners would be transported around the country to join picket lines and gain other miners' support. But this time was different. Many miners suspect the South Yorkshire police operation at Orgreave in June 1984 was a trap, pre-planned for confrontation, co-ordinated for the courts. The massacre was the culminating event of the 1913-14 Colorado coal miners' strike. What crisis?" Following a vote of no confidence in parliament, Callaghan called a general election for May 1979. McGregor's approach to the mining industry was the same as it had been towards steel - close unprofitable pits and drastically reduce the workforce. Therefore, in 1984, miners were not being paid, and their families were the only ones suffering from the strikes. "Even now people ignore me if I say hello," says Yvonne Woodhead, 35 years since her husband decided to join miners across the UK in going on strike. The miners asked for 20-percent wage increases, and most were given a 10-percent increase. The California Gold Rush took place between 1848 and 1855. Only a quarter of the county's miners joined the national strike, according to the National Coal Mining Museum. He determined that at least twenty unprofitable pits must be closed immediately for economic reasons, which was met with great suspicion by the National . The loss of the UK coal industry caused devastation across large swathes of the country, and some places are still only now recovering from it. All major credit and debit cards accepted, The Benefits of Burning Fuel at Christmas, How Relative Humidity Affects the Seasoning Process, The benefits of smokeless coal and what not to do, Preparing and making the perfect fire this winter, The Maintenance and Benefits of Wood Burning, 3 Reasons Why Coal Makes an Excellent Residential Fuel, The rules surrounding smoke controlled zones in the UK, Things to remember when seasoning firewood, The Difference Between Hardwood and Softwood. document.write(new Date().getFullYear()) How was James Callaghan ousted as Prime Minister in 1979? On the 6th of March 1984, the decision to strike was made in protest of the governments long-term plan to close up to 20 collieries. The three most famous strikes in Modern British history are the 1972, 1974 and 1984 Miners' Strikes. Three times Scargill pushed his members to vote for a national strike; three times they voted no. Deep mining for coal was already on its death bed by 1984 as cheaper exports from abroad combined with a reluctance on the part of government to continue with subsidies, a changing energy culture and a rising environmental movement all conspired against the industry. With this said, the real challenge is ensuring that a lit fire [], Here at Pearson Fuels, we know how overwhelming it can be for clients to find the perfect fuel for the needs of their property. the 1974 strike was a result of a similar dispute over wage increases and coordinated with the 1973 Oil Crisis. 5 West Midlands Police in 1984 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Day_147_-_West_Midlands_Police_-_Miner%27s_strikes_-_1984_(14495625275).jpg) by West Midlands Police (https://www.flickr.com/people/61718807@N07) licensed by CC BY SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en). But as the dispute went on, she became ever more outspoken, even describing the miners leaders as Britains enemy within. Amid the crisis, on June 28 Pres. It can be a [], Now that our wood burning stove is going to be seeing very little action with the warmer weather taking care of our homes temperature for us, and we all have plenty of time on our hands due to the COVID-19 lockdown, its a good time to give our stove a little maintenance. From the onset of the Industrial Revolution, working men and women have been withholding their labour as a means of bargaining for better pay and conditions. With coal stocks high, the miners divided and public opinion firmly against the strike, he was always facing an uphill struggle. Over 2000 strikes took place across the country, demanding pay increases - the government's reputation was severely damaged. This time around the gloves would be off. The miners struck for four weeks, and the East End docks were brought to a halt for two months. Mrs Woodhead and her family gave up "luxuries" like television and heating because they couldn't afford them, and relied on donations from solidarity movements in the USSR and Poland for Christmas presents for their children that year. It was suppressed by the government and resulted in the, The NUM and Thatcher negotiated her plans to cut subsidies to coal mining. Read on as []. On the one hand, the government, along with the National Coal Board, were increasingly aware of the growing costs of the mines, along with the fall in demand. When did Margaret Thatcher become the first female Prime Minister of Great Britain? The strike was declared illegal five months after it started in September 1984. "In Ollerton, there's them that talk to each other and them that don't," she says. When another miners' strike began in 1974, Mr Heath called a snap general election hoping to rally public support against the miners. Of 27,551 Nottingham miners who took part in the ballot, 20,188 voted to defy the national executive committee and their fellow miners across the country and continue working. When the strikes finally ended on 3rd March 1985, the NUM had made no headway with their demands. Let's look at the two critical strikes in the 1970s. Fig. Copper Strike 1913-14. When was the 'Three-Day working week' introduced by Edward Heath? Life for the residents of Grimethorpe got worse following the closure. All Rights Reserved. The nationwide strike was a last attempt by the mining unions to save the industry after the National Coal Board announced 20 pits in England would have to close with the loss of 20,000 jobs. In particular, the miners supporters were outraged by the so-called Battle of Orgreave in June 1984, when mounted policemen charged pickets outside a South Yorkshire coking plant an event that has gone down in political folklore. The proximate cause of the 1984-85 miners' strike, the longest mass strike in British history, was a round of colliery closures announced by the National Coal Board (NCB, now British Coal) in March 1984 as part of the restructuring of the British coal mining industry. By 1992, Grimethorpe Colliery had ceased operating and the miners had all been made redundant. A widespread workers' consciousness formed in the UK from the peak of the Chartist movement in the 1830s, leading to a wave of strikes . 6th March 1974: Harold Wilson became prime minister and immediately offered the miners a 35% pay rise, ending the strike and the three-day working week. Create the most beautiful study materials using our templates. As these towns and villages were often built solely around employment in the mine, closures meant mass redundancy in an area with little-to-no other employment opportunities. Stop procrastinating with our study reminders. Neither he, nor anybody else called out the miners, writes David Rainbird. In fact, anthracite, the oldest variety of coal, is the only option for homeowners living inside Smoke Control Zones. What happened in the Ukraine helicopter crash? This act ultimately failed as the TUC refused to cooperate with the measures and increased their opposition. The pit closures the miners had fought so hard to prevent began in earnest. Read about our approach to external linking. Eventually, this worked and many defeated strikers re-entered the mines after a new agreement with the management was formed. Will you pass the quiz? This would often end in violent clashes with police. Published 11 October 2015 by Greg Thelen. Who was in power for the 1972 UK Miners' Strike? Why did the miners go on strike? Even the miners themselves werent all of one mind as many disagreed with the NUMs decision to strike. Get FREE access to HistoryExtra.com. Thatcher had taken note of the way the miners had brought down her predecessor and was determined the same thing would not happen to her premiership. Free and expert-verified textbook solutions. Arthur Scargill, president of the National Union of Mineworkers from 1982 to 2002. Although she says she never resented anyone for not striking, when people treated her differently she thought: "You can get stuffed - you know something ducky, my husband is fighting for such as you. 1 The 1926 General Strike was coordinated by the Trade Union Congress to protest against miners' wages. One aspect that people sometimes fail to take into consideration is checking whether their home falls in [], If you have a wood burning stove then you are going to need a good supply of firewood to keep warm throughout the colder months. "It goes deeper than deep. Blackout: The Three-Day Week - the UK's original energy crisis, The 7 longest serving British Prime Ministers, Winters of discontent: 6 of the worst winters in British history, Blood feud: 4 conflicts between royal siblings, The Tyburn Tree: London's premier execution spot, The real-life women who inspired WW2 screen heroines, 7 reasons Captain Scott's Antarctic expedition failed, The Reluctant King: The life of King George VI, Yorkshire's Nostradamus: The life and prophecies of Mother Shipton. Many other industries joined in solidarity with the miners. After all, bituminous coal is thought to be the most popular residential fuel [], As a fossil fuel, our supplies of coal are limited and this means that we will eventually run out. The 1984 miners strike, perhaps the most infamous of them all, not only ended in disaster for the miners but spelt the end of the power that the unions had held over the government since the conclusion of World War Two. Their tenure in the area was marked by peaceful protection of non-union workers and chaperoning parades of picketers. By the 1980s the British coal industry was one of the safest and most efficient in the world. From removing [], Now were coming out of winter and into much warmer months, you may be wondering what to do with your home stove now that it isnt getting much use. The NUM members put on a brave face, many marching back . The miners' strike started on 6th March 1984 and ended almost a year later on 3rd March 1985. The aim was to shut down both coal production and its transportation to all but vital services such as hospitals and nursing homes. Under immense pressure, the government compromised with the NUM, offering a wage increase of around 30%. However, there was nothing good about communities being smashed to bits while a government that appeared more interested in the increasing economic success of the south east of England did very little to help them. In Stanley Baldwin. However, as funds ran dry and families found it harder and harder to put food on the table, destitute miners started to trickle back to work through picket lines where they were branded scabs and sometimes physically assaulted. Email: [email protected] After all, it is a renewable fuel that is available in abundance. Over 300,000 people rushed to California to find gold and "strike it rich". In fact, we may be known for our range of high-quality coals, but that doesnt mean that we [], As the government continues to crack down on the use of residential fuels like bituminous coal, it is safe to say that alternative options are becoming more and more popular. In 1972, Miners for Democracy candidate Arnold Miller was sworn in as the President of the UMWA. The Public Administration sector, Education sector and the Transport, Storage, Information and Communication sector have seen the most working days lost to strikes per 1,000 employees since 2006. Grimethorpes story was repeated up and down the land. By 2017, only about 1,000 people were working in an industry which, at its height, employed more than a million people, according to government statistics. The failure of the 1984-85 miners' strike helped revive the British economy, but had major implications for the future of labor unions and coal mining in Britain. Compared to todays standards of production, the UKs coal production throughout the 1700s was considerably low with an annual coal output of under [], Coal is a fossil fuel which means that it was formed from the geological remains of living organisms. But was it a good thing for the country that the miners lost their last battle? Since no formal ballot had taken place, the courts ruled the strike illegal and, in a bid to prevent miners from striking for a prolonged period of time, it was also deemed illegal to claim state benefits. Red Arrows warning to Nottinghamshire drone operators, Kerbside glass recycling service consultation in Newark, Club that enjoyed rub of the green to liquidate, Nottinghams Victoria Centre looks back at big birthday year, Hucknall man fined for being part of shoplifting trio that tried to swipe goods from shopping centre, UN's top women meet Taliban over female aid worker ban, Zelensky says no accidents in war after fatal crash, Iran man who beheaded wife jailed for eight years, How a baffling census delay is hurting Indians, Sense of injustice lingers after Seoul Halloween crush, Power shift in Vietnam as president quits. In order to ensure that our clients are able to make the most out of their investment in [], Here at Pearson Fuels, we recognise the appeal of firewood and why it has remained such a popular fuel despite the abundance of coal throughout the 20th century. Neither he, nor anybody else called out the miners.David RainbirdWallasey, Merseyside, Charles Foster is undoubtedly right indescribing Arthur Scargill as a fool for all the reasons he lists. Child gold miners are often found in the Sahel region of Africa (mainly in Burkina Faso and Niger). Wider implications, however, meant that it was perceived as a much larger class battle being waged by the government. As mentioned, the film is set during the miners' strike of the 1980s, a period of time that continues to have a huge effect on mining communities across Northern England and Wales. Police from outside affected counties were bussed in to prevent picketing and strike action, and to ensure no disruption to supply lines. On 9th January 1972, coal miners across the country began striking. The miners' strike of 1984-85 was a brutal clash between the miners' union, which was defending jobs, and the Thatcher government, committed to destroying 'militant' trade unionism. 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