Industrial Relations & Labour's Decline, 1964-1970 (AQA A Level History: Component 2: Depth study): Revision Note

Industrial relations and the trade unions

Unions and the post-war consensus

• Trade union influence formed an important part of the post-war consensus

  • Labour and Conservative governments after 1945 aimed to maintain full employment

  • Governments also tried to involve the unions in economic decision-making

• Trade unions had broad public support

  • In opinion polls during the early 1960s, close to 60% of people viewed them favourably

• Wilson's economic plans depended on cooperation with the unions

  • Trade union leader Frank Cousins became Minister of Technology in 1964

  • The prices and incomes policy relied on unions accepting limits on wage increases

  • The TUC agreed to a voluntary pay norm of 3.5% in 1965

  • The Trades Disputes Act (1965) restored legal protections removed by the Rookes v Barnard judgment (1964)

Relations break down, 1966–1967

• Major strikes affected the economy and relations with the government

  • The National Union of Seamen held a long strike in 1966

    • This contributed to a sterling crisis

  • A national dock strike began in autumn 1967

    • It reduced exports

    • It worsened the balance of payments

• Wilson's handling of the seamen's strike angered parts of the Labour left

  • The government opposed the strike

  • Wilson called the seamen's leaders "a tightly knit group of politically motivated men"

• Frank Cousins resigned from the Cabinet in 1966

  • He opposed the government's prices and incomes policy

• The Prices and Incomes Freeze introduced in 1966 did not prevent further disputes

  • Workers continued to strike for higher pay

The wildcat strike problem

• A growing amount of industrial action began outside the control of national union leaders

  • These unofficial disputes became known as wildcat strikes

  • They were often organised by shop stewards (local union representatives)

• National union leaders could not always control action at local level

  • Agreements made with union leaders were, therefore, difficult to enforce across every workplace

• The Donovan Commission (Royal Commission on Trade Unions, 1965–1968) blamed unofficial strikes on weak bargaining at workplace level

  • Its report in 1968 rejected legal controls on strikes, but Castle's In Place of Strife went further

• The Conservative opposition developed its own proposals for reform

  • Under Edward Heath, the party published the Fair Deal at Work in 1968

    • It proposed legal limits on trade union power

• Strike activity continued to increase

  • By 1970, Britain was losing around 11 million working days a year to strikes, more than double the 1968 figure

• Union confidence grew as membership rose from 10.2 million in 1964 to 11.2 million in 1970

  • New left-wing leaders such as Hugh Scanlon (AEU) and Jack Jones (TGWU) were less willing to compromise

'In Place of Strife', 1969

Castle's white paper

• Barbara Castle became Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity in April 1968

  • She began planning legal controls on unofficial strikes

• Castle sat on the Labour left

  • She supported a strong trade union movement

  • She also believed unions needed to accept greater responsibility for industrial action

• In January 1969, Castle published "In Place of Strife"

  • It was a white paper

    • This set out a proposed direction for government policy

    • It did not introduce a new law

    • The proposals could be changed or withdrawn before legislation reached Parliament

The main proposals

• Castle's proposals also expected employers to follow agreements reached with unions

  • This was intended to make industrial relations rules apply to both employers and workers

Why did the plan collapse?

• In Place of Strife received support from some voters and politicians

  • Opinion polls suggested that many voters approved of the proposals

  • Chancellor Roy Jenkins supported the white paper

  • Some Labour MPs also backed legal reform

• Opposition from trade unions and within the Labour Party was stronger

  • Jack Jones of the Transport and General Workers' Union led the union campaign against the proposals

  • Over a million workers stopped work in protest on 1st May 1969

  • Home Secretary James Callaghan opposed the plan inside the Cabinet

  • At least 50 Labour MPs were prepared to vote against the government

• Wilson withdrew In Place of Strife in June 1969

  • The Trades Union Congress (TUC) gave a "solemn and binding" undertaking to deal with unofficial strikes itself

    • This allowed the government to drop the proposals without losing a vote in the House of Commons

• No new legal controls on strikes were introduced before Labour left office in 1970

  • Edward Heath introduced the Industrial Relations Act (1971)

Labour divisions and the end of the post-war consensus

Wilson as a uniting leader

• The traditional division between Labour's left and right became less visible after 1964

  • Nye Bevan died in 1960

  • Hugh Gaitskell died in 1963

    • This removed the established leaders of both wings

• Wilson's modernisation programme gave the two wings a shared policy

  • The white heat of technology linked Labour with science and industrial change

• Older disputes received less attention

  • This included the argument over Clause IV and nationalisation

• He was also able to appeal to various sections of the Labour Party, including the left, centre and right

Rivalries at the top

• Wilson faced tensions with several senior Labour politicians, although they did not form a united group against him

• George Brown remained resentful after losing the Labour leadership election in 1963

  • Their relationship became increasingly difficult

  • Brown was moved to the Foreign Office after the 1966 election

• Wilson was also suspicious of Roy Jenkins, a leading figure on the Gaitskellite right

  • During the sterling crisis of 1966, Jenkins supported devaluation

  • Wilson feared that Jenkins might be using the crisis to strengthen his own position

• However, Jenkins and James Callaghan disagreed on several major issues

  • These included Europe, devaluation, liberal reform and trade union policy

  • Callaghan later opposed the union reforms supported by Jenkins

Discontent of the left

• Criticism from the Labour left grew from 1966

  • Foreign and defence policy caused particular anger

  • British support for the United States over Vietnam became a major issue

• Left-wing critics argued that Labour had continued several Conservative policies

  • They called for faster socialist reform

• Discontent also spread outside Parliament

  • Trade union activists became more critical

  • Some members of local government and younger Labour supporters also became frustrated

Approach: The source is useful for showing the concerns of Labour’s left, especially over Vietnam and defence policy. However, it represents one section of the party and should be compared with evidence from ministers, the Labour right and government records

The consensus under strain

• By 1970, parts of the post-war consensus were being questioned

  • Economic difficulties continued despite government planning

  • Poverty and other social problems remained

• Relations between the government and the trade unions had also deteriorated

  • The failure of In Place of Strife showed the limits of voluntary cooperation

• The Conservatives were beginning to question established economic policies

  • Heath and his shadow cabinet criticised close state planning

    • They also questioned whether full employment should remain the government's main economic priority

    • At the Selsdon Park conference in January 1970, they backed tax cuts, less state intervention and trade union reform

The loss of the 1970 election

Why did Labour expect to win?

• The economic position had improved by 1970

  • Roy Jenkins had achieved a balance of payments surplus by 1969

• Labour led in almost every opinion poll during the campaign

• Wilson had won two general elections, while Heath had lost heavily in 1966, his only election as leader

  • Wilson was also more popular with the public than Heath, who was often described as "dull"

• The economic recovery gave Labour confidence before the election

  • Wilson's government appeared to have moved beyond some of the difficulties of 1966–1968

Factors working against Labour

• Labour's record included several setbacks between 1966 and 1969

  • Devaluation in 1967 affected its reputation for economic management

  • The withdrawal of In Place of Strife showed the level of opposition inside the Labour movement

• Heath had developed a reputation for hard work and competence

• Conservative policy had become clearer

  • The Fair Deal at Work offered proposals for trade union reform

  • The Conservatives promised less government involvement in the economy (laissez-faire)

• Immigration remained a political issue

  • Enoch Powell's 1968 "Rivers of Blood" speech may have moved some voters towards the Conservatives

    • However, Heath dismissed Powell from the shadow cabinet due to this speech

• Some voters were concerned about social change

  • Parts of the electorate associated Labour with the permissive society

The election result

• The final result differed from most opinion polls

  • The Conservatives won 330 seats

  • Labour won 288 seats

  • The Conservative majority was 30 seats

• The Conservatives received 46.4% of the vote

  • Labour received 43.1%

• Turnout fell to 72%

  • Some voters moved towards the Conservatives during the final days of the campaign

    • Some disillusioned Labour voters abstained

• A fall in the Liberal vote helped the Conservatives win a number of marginal seats

Why did Labour lose power in 1970?

• Labour's defeat in 1970 was caused by a combination of political, economic and social factors, rather than one single issue

  • Some of the factors are listed below with key evidence

Industrial relations and In Place of Strife

• Strike activity increased during the second half of the 1960s

  • The seamen's strike of 1966 affected confidence in sterling

  • The dock strike of 1967 reduced exports

• The government did not improve industrial relations

  • In Place of Strife was withdrawn in June 1969

  • Union leaders, Labour MPs and members of the Cabinet opposed the proposals

• Heath used trade union reform as part of the Conservative campaign

Labour's economic record

• The government spent much of the period responding to economic crises

  • Sterling crises occurred in 1965, 1966 and 1967

  • The pound was devalued in 1967

• Jenkins's recovery policies involved:

  • tax increases

  • reductions in government spending

• The economic position had improved by the election

  • A balance of payments surplus had been achieved by 1969

  • Inflation remained high during 1969-1970

• Unemployment rose above 500,000 (about 2.5%) after 1967

  • However, economic growth remained slow

Divisions within the Labour Party

• Wilson maintained a public appearance of party unity for much of the period

  • Modernisation gave the left and right a shared policy

  • The deaths of Bevan and Gaitskell removed the leaders of the two established wings

• Internal tensions remained

  • Wilson feared challenges from Brown, Callaghan and Jenkins

  • Callaghan opposed union reform from inside the Cabinet

  • The Labour left criticised the government over Vietnam, defence and the pace of reform

Approach: Paul Foot was a journalist and campaigner from the far left. His claim that Wilson had united Labour is useful for showing the party’s public appearance. The fact that the comment came from a left-wing critic makes the praise notable. However, it should be compared with evidence of Cabinet rivalries and criticism from within the party

Conservative policies under Heath

• Heath had led the Conservatives since 1965

  • He had a reputation for hard work and competence

• The Fair Deal at Work gave the Conservatives a clear policy on trade unions

• The Conservatives questioned parts of the post-war consensus

  • They criticised close state planning and whether full employment should remain the main economic aim

• Late polling in marginal seats showed movement towards the Conservatives

Social and cultural concerns

• Some voters reacted against recent social change

  • Parts of the electorate connected Labour with the permissive society

  • Powell's speech kept immigration in public debate

• Expectations of Labour had been high in 1964

  • Several plans for modernisation had not met their original targets by 1970