General Strike

What was the General Strike?

A strike of workers in a lot of industries, including coal mining, ship building and the railways, took place in 1926. It is known as the General Strike.

When was the General Strike?

The General Strike took place in May 1926.

Who was involved in the General Strike?

It involved the coal miners and the Trades Union Congress (TUC), which covered a lot of different industries.

Why did the General Strike happen?

There were 4 key reasons:

• ❖ There was a fall in the demand for coal after 1918.
• ❖ Countries such as Germany and the USA were using more modern mining methods and therefore selling coal cheaper.
• ❖ Mine owners called for a drop in wages and a rise in the hours for mine workers. The miners threatened to strike but on Red Friday, Prime Minister Baldwin agreed to subsidise the coal industry.
• ❖ When the subsidy ran out the TUC announced a General Strike.

What happened in the General Strike?

There were 4 key events:

• ❖ The TUC announced a General Strike.
• ❖ The government used the 1920 Emergency Powers Act to arrange for the army and volunteers to take over the jobs of striking workers.
• ❖ The government created a newspaper, 'The British Gazette', as propaganda against the strikers.
• ❖ The TUC created their own newspaper, 'The British Worker', to explain the reasons behind the strike.

When did the General Strike end?

The strike ended after 9 days once the TUC had ran out of money and could not continue with the strike.

What was the significance of the General Strike?

There are 4 reasons the General Strike is significant:

• ❖ It failed to achieve its aims. All strikers returned to work and the miners accepted longer hours and lower wages. In 1927, the Trade Disputes Act made this type of strike illegal. TUC membership declined after the failure of the strike.
• ❖ The government successfully dealt with the strike action as 250,000 people volunteered to fill the jobs.
• ❖ Even though the strike was lost it showed the power of the TUC and its ability to coordinate action across the country.
• ❖ It inspired further union action, such as the Winter of Discontent, a series of widespread strikes, in 1978.
• ❖ The power of the unions was eventually broken by Margaret Thatcher's government after the Miners' Strike in the 1980s.