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Why did the General Strike happen
01:00 Mon 21st May 2001 | History
A. Aah, a topical question. It's 75 years since it ended. Put in a nutshell, it was a national strike by workers in Britain's major industries, lasting from 3 to 12 May, 1926. It began when the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called out its members in support of the miners, who had refused to accept a reduction in wages.
Q. And what was the background
A. The coal-mining industry was in a bad state. Coal prices had dropped because of cheap imports. In 1925 the mine-owners announced that they intended to reduce the miners' wages. The Conservative government granted the owners a year's subsidy to bring miners' pay up to its previous levels. This victory for workers became known as Red Friday.
Q. Then what
A. Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin also set up Royal Commission on the Coal Industry under Sir Herbert Samuel. The commission recommended the industry should be reorganised as soon as possible.
Q. And 'reorganisation' usually means bad news, doesn't it
A. Oh yes. The government subsidy was due to expire in May, 1926, and the mine-owners gave a cruel ultimatum: the seven-hour working day would be extended and pay cut by between 10% and 25%. The owners announced that if the men did not accept their new terms of employment from 1 May, they would be locked out of the pits.
Q. Hmm. Not too sensitive.
A. The TUC called a conference and said a general sympathetic strike should support the miners' cause from midnight on 3 May.
Q. And did the workers respond
A. The vast majority downed tools, although essential services were carried on by volunteers according to government contingency measures.
Q. Any peace talks
A. On 7 May, Samuel approached the TUC and offered to help bring the strike to an end. Without telling the miners, the TUC negotiating committee met Samuel and worked out plans to end the strike. These included: a national wages board with an independent chairman; a minimum wage for all colliery workers; workers displaced by pit closures to be given alternative employment; the wages subsidy to be renewed while negotiations continued.
Q. And did everyone agree
A. Not everyone. The terms were accepted by the TUC, but were rejected by the Miners' Federation. On 11 May, TUC agreed to accept Samuel's plan and call off the strike. The General Strike was over, but the miners' action went on. In July, the mine-owners announced an eight-hour day. The miners were furious, but by October hardship forced men to drift back to the pits. By November most had gone back.
In 1927 the government passed the Trade Disputes and Trade Union Act, which made all sympathetic strikes illegal, ensured the trade union members had to voluntarily 'contract in' to pay the political levy, forbade Civil Service unions to affiliate to the TUC, and made mass picketing illegal. The General Strike involved more than two million workers, and caused the loss of about 162 million working days.
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By Steve Cunningham
