The Miners' Strike 1984/85

The TUC Congress

The TUC congress opened on 3 September in 1984. There was still time to rally the working class to the miners. But months before the TUC had been manoeuvring to get themselves in as mediators between the miners and the government, so that a deal could be fixed that would end the strike. But the congress would want something better. So the leaders were forced to trim and fake. The NUM had put down an amendment calling “for industrial action involving all trade unions.” The furniture union FTAT called for a 24-hour general strike. But under pressure, these were withdrawn in favour of a...

The miners' strike 1984-5: lies, damned lies and the press

Every day the smooth-faced pundits forecast on the box. The miners' strike is lost, they say, and Scargill's on the rocks Lies, defamation, misinformation, this is the testing time He kept faith with the men who elected him, and that is a major crime. The Media, Ewan McColl By Mick Duncan The limits of the "free press" under capitalism were graphically shown up during the miners' strike. It is impossible to describe how polarised political life was during the strike. It was a time for taking sides. For the most part the media threw its weight behind the Government, and the Government's use of...

Miners' strike: the events of August 1984

Beginning August: After South Wales NUM is fined £50,000 the NUM calls on the TUC and the rest of the trade union movement for solidarity action. Nothing happens. The movement begins to go into retreat, although the miners would remain, fundamentally, solid until November. There was nothing inevitable about this: many groups of workers had their own battles to fight, battles which could have turned into support for the miners, but either these were not seriously fought or the Government intervened to ensure that they were settled quickly. 8 August: 50p a week trade union levy in support of NUM...

Learning from solidarity: the miners' strike 1984-5

"Support groups are beginning to assume the status of one of the positive lessons of the 1984-85 strike in much the same way that mass picketing was seen as the lesson of the 1972 strike". Paul Mackney The great miners' strike of 1984-85 was a historic defeat for the British working class - a defeat that continues to haunt and enervate our movement to this day. But it was not simply a negative experience. Many valuable lessons were learned by the 150,000 miners out on strike for over a year and by the tens of thousands of working class people who actively supported them. The support committees...

The miners' strike 1984-5: The events

The second in our series looking back at the miners' strike details the events up to April 1984. 21 March 1984: power unions (including the GMB) advise their members to cross picket lines. Steelworkers will also cross picket lines. Third week in March: women in Barnsley, having formed Women Against Pit Closures, hold first activity, a picket of the National Coal Board local offices. Other women's groups spring up. Initially they are involved in organising food collections and distribution and fund raising. Soon they are organising pickets, rallies, demonstrations and public speaking. 26 March...

The miners' strike 1984-5

The events 13 July: Government withholds tax refunds to striking miners. 19 July: NUM/NCB talks last three days. Despite NUM willingness to negotiate, the NCB are ordered to stand firm by the government. Some of the NCB officials wanted to settle. They were later sacked or resigned. 31 July: South Wales NUM fined £50,000 and the High Court seizes South Wales NUM funds. The union had defied an injunction against picketing granted to two haulage firms. The Tories are beginning to up the stakes. The miners and the socialists Karen Waddington, speaking at "Ideas for Freedom" When your safe little...

The miners' strike 1984-5

The events 1 July: Leon Brittan endorses the use of Criminal Law rather than Civil Law against the miners. 5 July: National Coal Board and NUM talks. 6 July: Management visits NUM members at home encouraging them back to work. 8 July: High Court declares NUM Annual Conference unlawful. National dock strike called against the movement of coal. The dock strike The most dramatic point in the struggle to broaden the strike came on 9 July when the dockers came out on strike. Dockers today are many many times smaller in number and weaker in organisation than they were in 1984. At the time of the...

The miners' strike 1984-5

A look back at the events of May-June and the Battle for Orgreave. May 29-18 June: Thousands of pickets and police fight battles outside Orgreave coking plant, near Sheffield. Coke runs from Orgreave were suspended on 18 June. 30 May: Major confrontations at Orgreave. 82 arrests including Arthur Scargill, 62 injured. 31 May: 3,200 police in riot gear at Orgreave confont unarmed strikers. 7 June: Transport unions agree to not only boycott coal and coke, but also to block substitute oil movements. By 13 July only 10 coal trains are running daily in Britain out of a normal 356. House of Commons...

The miners' strike 1984-5

We continue our look at the miners' strike by following the events of May 1984 and looking at international solidarity with the British miners. The events Beginning of May 1984: series of mass pickets in Notts coalfield. On 2 May police estimate 10,000 at Haworth and on 3 May almost as many at Cotgrave. 14 May: 40,000 march in Mansfield. The strike is now at its peak. 17 May: Leon Brittan admits in Parliament that plain clothes police are operating in the Notts coalfield. 23 May: National Coal Board walks out of talks with NUM and demand pledge of union co-operation in the closing of...

The miners' strike 1984-5

We continue our analysis of the miners' strike with a recap of the events of 25 April-12 May 1984 and a look at how Labour should have fought. The events 25 April: Labour Party national executive votes to support the strike and to ask every Party member to donate 50p a week. 26 April: High Court says "No" to NUM policy on investment of pension funds in Britain. 30 April: 150 strong women's picket at Thoresby colliery, Notts. They broke through the police lines twice. End of April: Support committees begin to be set up. 2 May: Central Electricity Generating Board figures show more oil being...

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