Great Britain 1921, 1926

Synopsis

Industrial relations in the mining industry had long been fraught with contention. Miners' conditions improved during World War I and the immediate postwar period, when the mines were taken under government control and the demand for coal was high. However, an economic slump beginning in 1920 and the return of the mines to private ownership (despite an apparent promise to retain public control) created bitter industrial conflict. A national miners' strike in 1920 ended in compromise. Strike action against wage cuts and local pay bargaining in 1921 failed and was marked on "Black Friday" by the collapse of the Triple Alliance (of the unions of miners, transport workers, and rail workers) and its promise of joint industrial action. In 1925 the threat of joint union action helped resist wage cuts that were ultimately averted by a nine-month government subsidy. The renewed...