Miners strike

[macafee2]

It was 40 years ago when the miners went on strike following plans to close coal mines.
Here we are 40 years later looking to do away with fossil fuel.

If then was now, would there be so much trouble?

I drove past Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station a week or to ago which is coal fired, is massive

macafee2

[stevestrat]

Ratcliffe is the only remaining coal fired power station in the UK.

I was driving trains in 1984, you may wonder why the miners had no support from the rail unions. There was no love lost between the coal and rail unions stemming from a rail strike that happened before I started, 1970s? The railways were on strike and the coal industry put heavy wooden boards down in the rail coal loading plants allowing them to be used to load road transport. Rail unions never forgave them for that!

[WillyHeckaslike]

I have no connection to the coal industry but I do remember the miners striking and I did and still do have some empathy for them. In hindsight their timing was wrong and I don't condone the behaviour of those who went beyond peaceful and lawful action on either side. But I think that their cause was just, look at what has happened to the coal industry since and the cost of our energy. Despite the tosh from the expenses fiddlers et al there is still a big requirement for coal today which is now dragged across the globe from the likes of Russia, Australia, Colombia, USA and South Africa ... etc., etc., etc.. In the 3rd quarter alone of 2022 1.7 million tons were imported.

[stevestrat]

Originally Posted by WillyHeckaslike

there is still a big requirement for coal today which is now dragged across the globe from the likes of Russia, Australia, Colombia, USA and South Africa ... etc., etc., etc.. In the 3rd quarter alone of 2022 1.7 million tons were imported.

There were two deep mines and an open cast around here, we ran usually 25-30 trains a day from them to the nearby power station, also to a power station over in Fife and exported coal to Europe via Leith docks (cheap fags and drink off the Polish boats ). Took coal trains from the Scottish coalfields down to England as well, 36 wagons, 2x class 56 locos, over 1,900 tons.

[YHT]

Never had much to do with the coal industry other than as a domestic customer. My recollections were that the industry at that time was too big for demand but the result of the strike and Maggie's actions was to shrink it too fast and too much. Think the politics of the leanings of the two parties also had a lot to do with it.
I sympathize with the miners in some ways; the mining villages were totally dependent on the pit. No pit, no village, no shops, no employment no future in what were mostly lovely rural surroundings.
I was at sea at the time of the strike (engineer on oil tankers) and then went to Uni as a mature student. Worked for an employment agency in the holidays and one place I went to they stuck with the 3 day week (4 days actually but one day didnt use electricity). They were happy doing whatever for 4 x 10 hour days and having 3 day week ends. All a long time ago but the memories are stil on the tip of the rain cell; may fall off soon.

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by WillyHeckaslike

I have no connection to the coal industry but I do remember the miners striking and I did and still do have some empathy for them. In hindsight their timing was wrong and I don't condone the behaviour of those who went beyond peaceful and lawful action on either side. But I think that their cause was just, look at what has happened to the coal industry since and the cost of our energy. Despite the tosh from the expenses fiddlers et al there is still a big requirement for coal today which is now dragged across the globe from the likes of Russia, Australia, Colombia, USA and South Africa ... etc., etc., etc.. In the 3rd quarter alone of 2022 1.7 million tons were imported.

It is rare for strike action to be a help to one's industry. British coal could never compete in price for the market place and even for the home market if a country pursues a free trade policy. Australian open cast was a quarter of the price.

I had a little empathy with the miners (my father was an ex-miner) and would have kept the mines open for as long as practicable finalising on a rump for special coal (such as steam coal) and strategic production. This would still have necessitated a heavy subsidy which I would have accepted.

Doing the above would have helped "pit communities" to adjust over a slightly longer period. Why 40 years and not 50 or are the documentary producers already for that by doing 40 as the prequel?
Kev

[Nobby]

I agree that the closure of the majority of pits was a little rushed leaving no alternative employment opportunities for the communities that relied upon them and should have been better managed but, the industry was heavily subsidised by the taxpayer and its customer base was shrinking rapidly as it had priced itself out of the market and North Sea gas was a fast growing cleaner and cheaper alternative for many.

As an example, in the 70’s my parents had Park Ray central heating and the nearest anthracite pit was a mere 4 miles away yet it was almost 43% cheaper to buy a ton of Chinese anthracite shipped around the world and delivered to the door than buy the local produce. Sad but no contest – so beyond the limited strategic needs such as the power stations and the iron/steel industry there just was no future for British coal.

[Mick Brownhill]

I was a trade unionist at the time, not NUM. I remember Scargill and Co pleading for TUC support. TUC fell back on legality of the strike and pressure from Thatcher. Well before the strike Scargill rubbished the TUC leaders as he used to and they paid him back, even supporting the transport union to keep the coal moving. The TUC were in the background with the new coal union. They wanted rid of Scargill. The most disliked man in union history, my thoughts. Interestingly, Labour closed more pits than Tories but most were well spent of coal. Labour in the background pushing Scargill to cause chaos and force an election.
I stood on the picket line with the miners at Orgreave, yes I witnessed the cavalry charge. To support the lads not the strike as such. Some will remember from TV Scargill being hauled into the back of a police van, I was already in the back lol. Happy days.
The aftermath is that some families, father and son, brother and brother still do not talk to each other. Scargill took the NUM to court over his £1 million pension being stopped.
There are those who may disagree with my comments, please tell me you were there to witness these events.

[torque2me]

Originally Posted by Mick Brownhill

I was a trade unionist at the time, not NUM. I remember Scargill and Co pleading for TUC support. TUC fell back on legality of the strike and pressure from Thatcher. Well before the strike Scargill rubbished the TUC leaders as he used to and they paid him back, even supporting the transport union to keep the coal moving. The TUC were in the background with the new coal union. They wanted rid of Scargill. The most disliked man in union history, my thoughts. Interestingly, Labour closed more pits than Tories but most were well spent of coal. Labour in the background pushing Scargill to cause chaos and force an election.
I stood on the picket line with the miners at Orgreave, yes I witnessed the cavalry charge. To support the lads not the strike as such. Some will remember from TV Scargill being hauled into the back of a police van, I was already in the back lol. Happy days.
The aftermath is that some families, father and son, brother and brother still do not talk to each other. Scargill took the NUM to court over his £1 million pension being stopped.
There are those who may disagree with my comments, please tell me you were there to witness these events.

A good post Nobby. I doubt if the NUM membership realised that Scargill was in a union paid for housing, either rent free or a peppercorn rate if my memory has not totally gone. It was strange responses from Labour/TUC/ASLEF/TGWU et al but the public didn't want more disruption after the previous miners strike that led to the then present government falling on its sword.
Kev

[YHT]

Ref Unions; when I left sea I worked for as an engineer doing inspections ofpressure vessels and boilers. On a visit to a police garage there was a notice on the Police federation board " Scargill has done more for police pay than the Police federation ever did". Think they were referring to overtime and working away from home.