The General Strike, 1926 (AQA GCSE History)

Summary

At the end of the First World War, the government and miner’s unions came into conflict. Mine owners wanted to make their mines more efficient which meant lower wages for miners. The government topped up the miner’s wages but, when this subsidy stopped, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called a General Strike. 

The General Strike had a dramatic effect on the country but lasted just nine days before it was called off. The government had predicted the strike and had prepared well for it. It also did a better job of winning the public’s support than the TUC. The strike ended in defeat for the unions; the workers returned to their jobs and the miners were forced to accept worse pay and conditions. 

Although defeat in the General Strike greatly weakened the unions, they recovered in the years after the Second World War. By the 1970s, they were very powerful and strikes were common. Widespread industrial action only came to an end with the defeat of the miner’s strike by Margaret Thatcher's government in 1985.

Causes of the General Strike

• During the First World War, there was a great demand for coal and goods produced by Britain’s factories

  • The coal mines had been nationalised

  • Wages were high

  • There was plenty of work 

  • Relations between the government and unions were good

• When the war ended in 1918, demand for coal fell dramatically 

  • This led to a decrease in the price of coal

  • The government returned the mines to their private owners 

• The lower price of coal meant the owners were eager to make savings

  • Mines that were expensive to run were closed which made the miners unemployed

  • New technology was introduced that reduced the need for as many miners

• This was still not enough for the mine owners

  • In April 1921, the mine owners announced that the miners would have to work longer days for less money

• The miners decided to strike 

  • The Trades Union Congress (TUC) encouraged other industries to strike in support of them

  • This support did not arrive as workers in other industries were worried about losing their jobs

  • The miners called off the strike and returned to work

• In 1925, the price of coal decreased further 

  • The mine owners once again announced changes to the miners’ pay and conditions

  • To prevent the miners from going on strike, Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin agreed to subsidise (top up) miners’ wages for the next nine months

• When the subsidy ended in April 1926, the TUC met to discuss what action to take 

The TUC Actions

• The action the TUC decided upon was to call a general strike starting on 3 May 1926

• The 800,000 striking miners were joined by dockers, railway workers and those who worked in the iron and steel industries

• The longer the strike went on, the more industries the TUC called out on strike

• With so many workers on strike, food and goods were not delivered

  • Those not striking struggled to travel to work and almost the entire country was brought to a halt

The Government Response to the General Strike

• The government knew the strike was coming

• Over 9 months the government had put aside £10,000 and resources to deal with the strike 

Impacts of the General Strike

• The general strike lasted just nine days 

• After this, the TUC ordered its members to return to work because:

  • The TUC had run out of funds

  • The violence had started to alarm its leaders 

  • Strikers did not have the support of the public

• The government offered only minor improvements to the miners’ terms that had triggered the strike

• The miners stayed on strike until November 

  • Eventually, they accepted the longer hours and lower pay

The Development of Workers’ Rights

1940s

• At the end of the Second World War, a Labour government was voted into power 

  • They passed a new Trades Disputes and Trade Unions Act which gave the unions far greater freedom and power

1950s and 1960s  

• Full employment meant that:

  • Wages were high 

  • Relations between the government and unions were good

1970s 

• The Conservative government passed the Industrial Relations Act of 1971 which made ballots for strikes compulsory

• The Labour government repealed the Industrial Relations Act in 1974 

• Economic recession and inflation of 24% led to large numbers of strikes

  • This resulted in the 'Winter of Discontent' in 1978-79 where widespread strikes led to:

    • Power cuts

    • Rubbish piling up in the streets

    • Bodies being unburied

• In 1979, the Conservative Party was voted into power under Margaret Thatcher who had promised to tackle the unions

1980s

• The Employment Acts of 1980 and 1982 changed the laws on picketing and made dismissal due to 'closed shops' illegal

• Arthur Scargill led the miners out on strike over pay and pit closures

  • The miners' strike ended in defeat for the unions and a victory for Thatcher's government

• The Conservative government passed the Trade Union Act in 1984 

  • This required 80% of union members to vote for a strike for it to be legal

• Union membership fell and Thatcher was widely seen as having 'broken' the power of the unions