3. Under Attack - The war on Trade Unions

How the Conservatives dismantled union power.

Episode 3 of the Activism in the 80s podcast, hosted by Ardent Theatre Company, titled "3. Under Attack - The war on Trade Unions" was published on December 11, 2023 and runs 35 minutes.

December 11, 2023 ·35m · Activism in the 80s

Summary

On a June morning in 1984, one of the most violent episodes in British industrial relations unfolded. 5000 striking miners gathered at the Orgeave Coke processing plant in South Yorkshire. They'd face an assault by some 6000 police. "Thatcher and her cronies decided to try and smash the trade union movement and they organised set pieces in order to do that." As police and picketers clashed. John Hendy, now Lord Hendy Casey was a legal rep for the National Union of Miners. Len McCluskey, later head of Unite the Union, was a full time official. "The miners have a special place in the heart of ordinary working people. And once they were defeated, it was really, really bleak." In this episode, Justice for Grenfell co-founder Yvette Williams explores how the 80s changed the face of British trade unions. Introduced by Ardent Theatre Creative Director Andrew Muir. In this Episode: 1:35 - The Dunnes Store strike as viewed from the UK 5:47 - The unions fail to properly resist the attacks against them 9:51 - Company closures and the tactics of resistance 13:10 - The Conservatives learn from their defeats of the 1970s 14:03 - How the Unions intersected with other movements 16:15 - The international face of British trade unions 19:53 - Restrictions imposed on unions and their legacy today 26:36 - An alternative vision of labour laws 29:36 - The power of working class solidarity Activism in the 80s is a Creative Kin production for Ardent Theatre. Executive Producer & Producer: Jason Caffrey Production music: Ellie Parker Mixing and Mastering: Adam Double This production has been supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Links: https://www.ardenttheatre.co.uk/strike-about https://www.creativekin.co.uk/ https://www.heritagefund.org.uk/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Len_McCluskey https://www.ier.org.uk/blog-author/john-hendy-qc/ https://www.ier.org.uk/blog-author/yvette-williams-mbe/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Orgreave https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thatcherism#:~:text=Thatcherism%20represents%20a%20systematic%2C%20decisive,regulation%20of%20the%20British%20economy https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-caffrey/ https://www.ardenttheatre.co.uk/andrew-muir http://www.adamdouble.com/about https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellie-parker-9ba9aa195/ Remember to share, subscribe and leave a five-star review!

Episode Description