Lets get that debate started! Police in Lanarkshire are appealing for help in finding 14-year-old schoolgirl Helena McFadden who has been missing from her home since 1pm on Saturday afternoon. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. At the start of it, Birmingham was one of the most . [6], On March 17, 1970, in New York City, members of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 36 met in Manhattan and voted to strike. View our online Press Pack. The performances and writing seem to be more suited to a school production than a television show and the most irritating aspect is the word " Pigging " as in Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations. Personal prints, cards and gifts, or reference for artists. These workers decided to strike against the wishes of their leadership. The conversation will go back to what it should be about people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Christopher Jullien's two word Celtic response as Jota strike dumps Rangers out Scottish Cup. This website and associated newspapers adhere to the Independent Press Standards Organisation's [10] Strike [ edit] The nastiest strike in City history wasnt really supposed to happen. In addition I remember the queues of cars at garages in Stevenage to get the little petrol that there was. [1], The postal strike influenced the passage and signing of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970. Possibly the most notorious industrial action during the Winter of Discontent was the strike of grave diggers around Liverpool and Manchester. That and starting primary school in 72 and my mother dying in 74 by heart disease; something which could easily fixed today like myself by having a bypass. The first strikes The 'Winter of Discontent' began on 24 August 1978, when Ford car workers put in a claim for a 20 per week rise and a 35-hour week, which amounted to a rise of 25 per cent in annual pay. I don't remember it myself, but I was born in 1979 in Swansea, South Wales. Operation Graphic Hand had at its peak more than 18,500 military personnel assigned to 17 New York post offices, from regular Army, National Guard, Army Reserve, Air National Guard and Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps Reserve. Still an 'unofficial' strike by early October, the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU), fearing the level of rank and file control over the day to day running of the strike, decided to support it on October 5. What is the Spanish language plot outline for The Dustbinmen (1969)? Many people know that Martin Luther Kings final campaign was in Memphis, where he gave his Ive Been to the Mountaintop speech in support of striking sanitation workers. An exciting addition to Battlefield Road, coffee brand Kothel has opened its latest cafe in the south side of the city, with residents delighted by the announcement. Every day a new challenge. REUTERS/Hugo Correia (PORTUGAL - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT) The sign reads, 'No bus cuts! JD Constantine, now, Fairfax, VA, USA; then, London NW2, England. Phase III saw the Chancellor of the Exchequer Denis Healey reintroduce free collective bargaining workers being able to agree pay rises with their bosses without Government involvement. ', Police and demonstrators clash in a residential street following picketing action by union members of the Grunwick film processing factory in Willesden during a labour dispute in 1977, British Leyland's workers at their giant Longbridge plant voted overwhelmingly for a strike and pickets were immediately mounted at every gate in 1979, Local media reported the Leicester Square's rubbish mound as being infested with rats. The TUC were infuriated by the limit as inflation had decreased. Find the right content for your market. The union-management GM strike, 1970 - Jeremy Brecher GM strikers in Detroit, September 14, 1970 A brief history of the interesting national strike of the United Auto Workers union at General Motors, organised in conjunction with management to allow workers to blow off steam. There are a number of different measures of inflation in use. How wouldNew York look if no one picked up the trash for nine days? The crew nicknamed their Corporation dustcart Thunderbird Three in homage to. Due to the lack of control many unions had over their members by this time, many strikes did not end immediately after the agreement, testimony to the initiative exercised by many rank and file workers throughout the period who were willing and able to work and initiate strikes outside of their union's control. [9] Some feared that the stock market would have to close entirely. But the trade unions agreed to stick to Phase II increases. 15 Public Art Installations to See in NYC, May 2023, Strikingly Realistic Miniature Art Depicts Scenes of Gritty NYC. The work done by these recollections is peculiar in lots of ways. The power went out and we never did see the end of the filmLouise Warren, Leicestershire UK, The main effect of the drivers' strike was lack of fuel delivery. 56,514 people are reading stories on the site right now. An event that is often recalled clearly from memories of the period, the strike prompted one local health official to confide in a journalist that burials at sea were being considered by the local authority if the strike became prolonged. We would sit around the coal fire and my dad told me fairies lived in it. His socialist blueprint for power harks back to 1970s Labour governments who were plagued by high inflation, low growth and irresponsible trade union power. [7], President Nixon appeared on national television and ordered the employees back to work, but his address only stiffened the resolve of the existing strikers and angered workers in another 671 locations in other cities into walking out as well. Published 26th Aug 2022, 12:35 BST. A strike began when 15,000 Ford workers walked off the job on September 22 and by September 26 had been joined by 57,000 others, leaving 23 Ford factories up and down the country empty. The strike showed how important cleansing workers are to the upkeep of the city with rubbish piling high and there being fears over disease spreading and increased numbers of rats. The reason for the strike in the 70s was over a dispute about pay and conditions. 21 episodes 1969-1970 Tim Wylton Eric 21 episodes 1969-1970 John Barrett Smellie Ibbotson 18 episodes 1969-1970 Brian Wilde Bloody Delilah 14 episodes 1970 John Woodvine Bloody Delilah 6 episodes 1969 Paula Wilcox Naomi 2 episodes 1969-1970 Mary Hignett Mrs. Ibbotson 2 episodes 1969 Stephanie Turner Bridesmaid 2 episodes 1969-1970 About 140,000 people took part in the demonstration in London. I will always remember watching my mother pulling a shapeless lump of half cooked dough out of the oven, made to look even more obscene by candle light because the power was off. USA Leader John DeLury threatened a strike, but content that his threathad leverage Mayor John Lindsay to the max, happily reported a $400 wage increase (about 5%), better pensions and double-pay for Sunday. So thats why weve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. RM DWJDM2 - Vulcan bomber at start of take-off run at RIAT air-show in UK This image could have imperfections as its either historical or reportage. My eldest daughter wants to go into nursing when she leaves school this summer. history. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to Industrial action was alarmingly common throughout the. The winter of discontent caused a lot of disruption through all the strike action but to a teenager who cared for little else but music, fashion and boys, most of the politics just passed me by! [8], The strike crippled the nation's mail system. In July of that year, Healey announced guidelines that payrises should be capped at five per cent. [1] Isaac & Christiansen identify the civil rights movement as a major contributor to the 1970 strike as well as other radical labor actions. The army were put on standby to take over from tanker drivers who eventually settled on a 15 per cent rise. NUPE, isolated from the other unions, eventually decided to accept a slightly modified version of their early March pay offer. We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The union's grip was total, and the atmosphere was poisonous. The butcher had to come round the counter with a spade as it wasnt the first time it had happened. They flew in bread from France until that was stopped and, if there was flour in the house, one had to bake (or not). Following the initiative of BP and Esso tanker drivers who had begun to refuse to work overtime in support of a 40% pay increase, all TGWU drivers struck on January 3. In 1974, employment was in excess of one million- it had been less than 600,000 at the start of the decade, Chancellor of the Exchequer Denis Healey covers his face in 1977. Wearing their orange hi-vis overalls, the two . The direct action help stem the tide of effective pay cuts by inflation eating up the value of their wages and won significant improvements for many tens of thousands of workers. I spent 30 minutes with a bucket and sponge and the damage magically disappeared.Bill Huggins, Birmingham, As a trainee engineer in 1976, I remember changing a toilet roll when on secondment to our Sheffield factory and being seriously worried that someone might find out and accuse me of doing somebody else's job. I had to stay in hospital two extra days because of the snow. My abiding memory of the rolling power cuts was having to write university essays by candle light. I had my second son in Feb 1979 when hospital workers strike was on .We had paper sheets on the beds, no hot food, the babies had paper baby gowns and then it snowed really hard, cutting off Chelmsford where I was in hospital from my home in Maldon. Kwiecie 2023. During the 1960s, however, their pay fell behind other workers, and by 1970 miners were earning 3.1% less than the average worker in manufacturing. It is the rate of increase in prices for goods and services. Vincent Cannato wrote of the Lower East Side, Garbage was piled chest-high. Comments have been closed on this article. Striking postal workers felt wages were very low, benefits poor and working conditions unhealthy and unsafe. [1], An immediate trigger for the strike was a Congressional decision to raise the wages of postal workers by only 4%, at the same time as Congress raised its own pay by 41%. We need clean communities. The factors that provoked the widespread stoppage of work by thousands of British workers in the winter of 1978-79 began with the Labour government of James Callaghan's attempt to enforce limits on pay rises to curb inflation. [4], The strike ended after eight days with not a single worker being fired, as the Nixon administration continued to negotiate with postal union leaders. For the first time in 25 years, the army was brought in to break a strike and clear the rubbish away. Search with an image file or link to find similar images. Their walkout caused petrol stations to close as the oil could not be transported around the country, A refuse collector who is employed by Westminster City Council empties bins around Leicester Square in 1979, A passer-by signs a petition to keep open the casualties department at Bethnal Green hospital, which was due to be closed down because of budget cuts in 1978, A concerned patient discusses the impending closure of the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson hospital with a nurse in 1976, Coffins in a disused Liverpool warehouse waiting for gravediggers to end their strike before funerals can take place, December 1978, Protesting postal workers march through the streets of London in support of industrial action at Grunwick photo-processing laboratory in Willesden, Dozens of police officers hold back feuding protesters at the Grunwickdispute, Hundreds of officers were deployed to restrain demonstrators during the 1977 industrial disputes, Unofficial strikers are photographed with placards outside Wandsworth bus depot in 1976. With their budget being cut time after time, workers are fed up with not being able to do their job properly. Councillors unanimously backed moves to hold more surgeries online, saying it 'reduced risk' to members as one councillor admitted a recent experience left her feeling 'vulnerable and scared'. [12] This was not necessarily very effective. Guess what? If we continue to neglect our sewers and drains and dont empty bins regularly then we run the very real risk of our rat population increasing very fast and potentially increasing the risk of spreading diseases such as hepatitis, e.coli, tuberculosis and several other illnesses related to rats. The public was outraged that Rockefeller had caved, but Lindsay and the USA earned the lions share of the blame for letting the situation escalate. pic.twitter.com/S05fx93Urm. Hosepipes were banned in London. During the ambulance drivers strike in mid-January it was also reported that staff in 1,100 NHS hospitals were refusing to treat anything but emergencies. The stunning bright yellow exterior of the property is one of several pastel-hued homes on the street - and the interior is every bit as beautiful as the outside. After several weeks the TGWU agreed on a 17% pay increase, the idea of a shortening of hours having been completely dropped, and urged the strikers to return to work on November 22, which they did. This began with a large demonstration in London on 22 January 1979 and continued with partial strikes at various hospitals. Admitted to Westminster Hospital to undergo tests related to leg thrombosis, Ennals was promised full medical attention from the hospitals nursing staff, but the local branch of the National Union of Public Employees decided to deny him his morning cup of tea, newspapers and mail. In Williams and Fryers history of NUPE they detail how the union continued to organise selective strike actions, starting in South Tees, Cardiff, Yorkshire and Glasgow, timed to affect different regions at different times. I can't really recall what we did with them, but did tell me mum later what we had found and she rang the council office to complain, not that it did any good. It wasn't a great success. They were offered 5 per cent, and on 22 September 1978 they struck. The most significant ones are the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) and Retail Prices Index (RPI). The strikes, from the perspective of the TUC and the government, ended on February 14 after weeks of negotiation. India has seen a wave of strikes this month. [10] This announcement was accompanied by Proclamation 3972, which declared a national emergency. Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that Robert Warnock was involved in the chaos as parcels fell into the exercise yard and prisoners tried to stop guards removing them. That crowd was 70 percent of the entire sanitation workforce. 08:47, 6 DEC 2021. After talks over pay between the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and PM Edward Heath's Conservative government broke down, the NUM called for industrial action at the start of 1972. This strike against the federal government, regarded as illegal, was the largest wildcat strike in U.S. history.. President Richard Nixon called out the United States armed forces and the National Guard in . Stunning canary yellow house on pastel-coloured Shawlands road up for sale. In the following year, inflation peaked at an abysmal 26.9 per cent in March 2017 it stood at 2.3 per cent. Another memorable strike occurring towards the end of the winter was that of the waste collection workers. A 37-year-old man has been taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital after hit by a car driver on Balshagray Avenue in the early hours of Monday morning. 2022 Scotland bin strikes: Scotland: United Kingdom: 2022-2023 2022-2023 United Kingdom railway strikes: Nationwide United Kingdom: The Winter of Discontent has come to stand for a wider narrative about the 1970s as a period where everyone was constantly on strike, electricity was rationed and the unions ran the country. Piles of rubbish building up in Dunchattan Street, due to a dustcart drivers strike in Glasgow. Trash accumulates quickly. Meanwhile, negotiations between Lindsay and the USA went poorly. On March 16, 1976 Britain was stunned by Wilsons shock resignation with him succeeded by former Foreign Secretary James Callaghan. When it became obvious in mid-November that Ford was going to offer a pay deal over the 5% limit, government-TUC negotiations commenced in order to be able to work out a concrete agreement on pay policy in an attempt to halt further strikes. Nearly 60,000 workers at Ford of Britain car plant, a major government contractor, had goneon strike in October of that year. Untapped New York unearths New York Citys secrets and hidden gems. The Light Blues lost out at Hampden in the Scottish Cup semi-final to Ange Postecoglou's men - who are now on course to complete a domestic Treble after Jota's winner in the first-half. Lindsay rejected Rockefellers suggestion to settle at $425, claiming that $400 was already too high, the strike was illegal, and, Now is the time to break these public-service unions. His intermediaries told the union that Lindsay wouldnt go beyond $400 on principle, to which their lawyer replied, Principle aint gonna clean your streets.. Riled up and frustrated, workers rejected the deal, demanded a $600 raise, and struck on February 2. Bond; "Your time is up Stromberg" In addition to this, the power station was picketed by miners so that we had extreme difficulty receiving coal supplies and getting rid of our waste product - ash. Council workers strike 1970. I don't agree with all that Margaret Thatcher did, but let's not pretend that drastic action was not required.AJ, Dorset, UK, I remember one time I had to wait two hours outside a fruit shop just to get some milk!Maffew, Glasgow, Scotland, I remember the three-day week; going to school in groups, all wearing luminous yellow bands on our coat sleeves so that we could be seen in the dark. The strike lasted 13 weeks in total. Matthew Wyatt, Stevenage, As a 10-year-old in 1978 I remember the piles of garbage piled up in our local recreation ground in Stanmore (a council estate in a posh part of the UK) Winchester. Phase II of the proposal was agreed in May of that year and stated pay increases would be limited to a maximum of 4 per week for the following 12 months. Postal Service strike of 1970: nationwide United States: 1970-71 Colour Strike: nationwide United Kingdom: 1970-71 Salad Bowl strike: nationwide United States 1971 1971 NYPD Work Stoppage: . Rubbish piles up in the streets of the west end London. She calculated that after loan payments, utilities and food, she had just 5 a month left for clothes for her and the kids, as well as any other expenses. Less well known is that Memphis sanitation workers, inspired by their counterparts in New York, began their strike two days after the New York strike ended, on February 12, 1968. [3], Striking postal workers highlight the disparity in wages between themselves and the politicians, Last edited on 14 December 2021, at 21:35, "Wildcat Postal Strike Worsens; 3 States Hit", "Stocks Sag on Low Volume Due to Postal Strike", "Text of Nixon Speech on Post Office Crisis", "Video of President Nixon announcing federal intervention in the postal strike & strikers speaking", "Chapter 7: Nixon and Ford Administrations, 19691977", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=U.S._postal_strike_of_1970&oldid=1060332060, This page was last edited on 14 December 2021, at 21:35. READ MORE:COP26: Glasgow cleansing workers vote for strike action during summit. on January 24, 2007 Pride flag to to fly above West Dunbartonshire as council backs event. I remember the struggle my parents had to make ends meet, food shortages caused by people panic buying only to throw it away when supplies were restored. Editors' Code of Practice. And then three months later being charged for the repainting of my room in Halls because of the smoke "damage" in my room. Copyright 01/05/2023 Alamy Ltd. All rights reserved. 27 kwietnia. British Airways has started disciplinary proceedings against three shop stewards following August's unofficial strike at Heathrow Airport. Mum made it sound exciting like the Blitz but it wasn't. Newsquest Media Group Ltd, 1st Floor, Chartist Tower, Upper Dock Street, Newport, Wales, NP20 1DW Registered in England & Wales | 01676637 |. Greggs post impossible quizso can YOU tell which pastry is which? Their actions were disruptive and perceived as a crisis precisely because they were abnormal for the period, not because they were typical of it. National newspapers reported extensively on any real or potential effects of the strikes, casting the protests as the work of callous union militants and accusing strikers of targeting amongst others sick children. Photographs of the dispute reveal how hard public criticism hit many of the poorly-paid, marginalised workers who took part, undercutting some of the popular 1970s narratives about heartless trade union monsters. The U.S. postal strike of 1970 was an eight-day strike by federal postal workers in March 1970. Mass demonstrations were held in many cities, including London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast. Eventually the management hired some dumper trucks which were used to ferry coal from the reserve stock area. Pictures of the 1970s cleansing crisis sent in by Living Rent. The loan meant the UK economy could be stabilised whilst drastic budget cuts were implemented. Join Untapped New Yorks First Trivia Night with The Gotham Center! Trying times, but we managed to keep generating as long as we were needed.John Blackburn, Wetherby UK, I don't remember all the political chaos, but I do remember playing Scrabble by candlelight and the fact that we couldn't bury my deceased grandfather. Tories criticised the power of the unions and the lack of any stricter policy going forwards. Workers in other government agencies also announced they would strike if Nixon pursued legal action against the postal employees. Tourist seasons always up litter on the street in Scotland, bin men strikes and litter collector strikes just make the true extent so much worse. The nice thing about electricity shortages was that they were announced on the wireless, by area, beforehand. 537 Bin Man Uk Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images Video FILTERS CREATIVE EDITORIAL VIDEO bin man uk full length 537 Bin Man Uk Premium High Res Photos Browse 537 bin man uk photos and images available, or search for bin man uk full length to find more great photos and pictures. Following January 22, many workers remained on strike indefinitely. Learn more about how you can collaborate with us. If this leads to industrial action we must remember the events of the past that took place in Glasgow in the 1970s during the bin man strike. Unfortunatelythese ideas were rebuffed by Governor Nelson Rockefeller and local unions, respectively,neither of whom were big Lindsay fans. The public feared what would happen if strike action continued with speculation burials at sea would be considered. The spark that began the wave of industrial action that was to hit the UK in the following months was lit by the workers at Ford Motors. As a subscriber, you are shown 80% less display advertising when reading our articles. Real wages for NHS and local council employees dropped 19 per cent in this period, pushing many further into poverty. Many have said this was complete nonsense as the dustcart drivers were paid so poorly that it was very unlikely to affect inflation. Phases I and II, announced in July 1975, proposed a rise of 6 a week for all workers earning below 8,500 annually. The government announced a limit on wage rises of 6 per week for all workers earning under 8,500 a year on July 11 and the TUC general council soon voted in favour of the proposals. Continuing its constant campaign throughout the winter criticising the strikers through the medium of the "breakdown of public convenience", the pictures of the piled rubbish presented itself as yet another front on which to attack the workers. Captions are provided by our contributors. An old man in our neighbourhood used to so slowly pace his green front garden after dark with a hosepipe down his trousers so no one could see it. COP26: Glasgow cleansing workers vote for strike action during summit. 19th March 1975. In an attempt to bring down this figure, the government had agreed a "social contract" with the TUCs in which the payrises for public sector workers were held at limits set by Parliament. You can see photographs by a man named Dennis Harper on his Flickr account. Family 'shattered' as Glasgow-born MasterChef judge Jock Zonfrillo dies at 46. Copyright 01/05/2023 Alamy Ltd. All rights reserved. Your 1970s: Strikes and blackouts People improvised in the blackouts The Magazine is compiling a people's history of modern Britain - featuring your written memories and photos. (Photo by Staff/Mirrorpix/Getty Images), Attempted murder in Glasgow as pensioner rushed to hospital and detectives launch investigation. Should you wish to remove a comment you have made, please contact us, This site would like to use cookies to track your usage of the site, Insulin and Diabetes: Alan Nabarros Story. By 1978 inflation had fallen below tenper cent. contact IPSO here, 2001-2023. 17,029 pages were read in the last minute. In late 1978, after being forced into taking a 2.3billion IMF loan, the Governmentwas also facing the Winter of Discontent. In 1970 there had been a decision made by the National Joint Council for Local Authorities that local government should automatically pay the rate set by the Scottish Joint Industry Board (SJIB).