“In the place of conflict”, the law? Labor and conservatives in the crisis of British Fordism (1968-1972)

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15175/1984-2503-202416205

Keywords:

Britain, crisis of Fordism, anti-union legislation

Abstract

The crisis of Fordism implemented in post-World War II Europe began to show its most explicit symptoms at the end of the 1960s, during a period of growing organizational strength among the working class. In the British case, the inflationary spiral and the low productivity of the economy began to have as a scapegoat the design of industrial relations in that country defined in the first decades of the 20th century. In this paper, we will analyse the first two attempts to get around the trade union issue in the period: the proposal for state control and interference by Labour based on the In Place of Strife bill at the end of the first Wilson government (1964-1970) and the failure of the attempt at judicialization and control contained in the Industrial Relations Act by the Conservatives led by Edward Heath in 1972. In common, the attempt by the British ruling classes, through the state and the law, to bend the organized power of labor.

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Author Biography

Thiago Romão de Alencar, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ, Brasil

Doutor em História Social pelo Programa de Pós-Graduação em História da Universidade Federal Fluminense (PPGH-UFF, 2020). Mestre em História pelo PPGH-UFF (2015). Graduado em História pela UFF (2010). Possui como áreas de interesse a história do capitalismo contemporâneo na Grã-Bretanha e na Europa Ocidental, com ênfase no pós-Segunda Guerra, sob hegemonia do fordismo-keynesianismo, estudando a atuação política da socialdemocracia e do trabalhismo no continente europeu no período e a formulação das políticas públicas do Estado de Bem-Estar Social enquanto processos generificados e racializados. No mestrado, estudou a relação entre ideologia imperialista, cultura popular e política na sociedade britânica do pós-Segunda Guerra.

References

Fontes

CASTLE, Barbara. In Place of Strife: A Policy for Industrial Relations, Cmnd 3888. HM Government: London, 1969.

CONSERVATIVE PARTY MANIFESTOS. A Better Tomorrow. ConservativeManifest.com, 1970. Available at: http://www.conservativemanifesto.com/1970/1970-conservative-manifesto.shtml. Accessed on: Dec. 23, 2023.

CONSERVATIVE PARTY MANIFESTOS. Firm Action for a Fair Britain. ConservativeManifest.com, 1974. Available at: http://www.conservativemanifesto.com/1974/Feb/february-1974-conservative-manifesto.shtml. Accessed on: Dec. 23, 2023.

CONSERVATIVE POLITICAL CENTRE. Fair Deal at Work: The Conservative approach to modem industrial relations. C.P.C., n. 400, April 1968. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8543.1968.tb00553.x

RADICE, Gilles; VICKERS, James Oswald Noel. Divide and Rule: Industrial Relations Bill. Londres: Fabian Society, 1971.

TRADE UNION CONGRESS. Reason: the Case Against the Government's Proposals on Industrial Relations. Londres: T.U.C., 1970.

Referências

BEYNON, Hum. Trabalhando para Ford: trabalhadores e sindicalistas na indústria automobilística. São Paulo: Paz e terra, 1995.

DONEGAN, Lawrence. Times have changed, Blair tells the unions. The Guardian, Sept. 11, 2001. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2001/sep/11/politicalnews.uk. Accessed on: Dec. 23, 2023.

HYMAN, Richard. Understanding European Trade Unionism. Londres: Sage, 2001.

JONES, Jack; MORRIS, Max. A-Z of Trade Unionism and Industrial Relations. Londres, Heinemann: 1982.

KALECKI, Michal. Political Aspects of Full Employment. In: ______. Selected Essays on the Dynamics of the Capitalist Economy. Cambrige: Cambridge University Press, 1971. p. 138-145.

MCILROY, John; CAMPBELL, Alan. The High Tide of Trade Unionism: Mapping Industrial Politics, 1964-1979. In: MCILROY, John; FISHMAN, Nina; CAMPBELL, Alan (Org.). The High Tide of British Trade Unionism: Trade Unions and Industrial Politics, 1964-1979. Monmouth: Merlin, 2007. p. 93-130.

PANITCH, Leo. Social Democracy and Industrial Militancy: The Labour Party, The Trade Unions and Incomes Policy, 1945-1974. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1976.

TRAVIS, Alan. National archives: Margaret Thatcher wanted to crush power of trade unions. The Guardian. Aug 1, 2013. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/aug/01/margaret-thatcher-trade-union-reform-national-archives. Accessed on: Dec. 23, 2023.

WHITE Papers. UK Parliament. ©2024. Available at: https://www.parliament.uk/site-information/glossary/white-paper/. Accessed on: May 25, 2024.

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Published

2024-06-12

How to Cite

Alencar, T. R. de. (2024). “In the place of conflict”, the law? Labor and conservatives in the crisis of British Fordism (1968-1972). Passages: International Review of Political History and Legal Culture, 16(2), 258-274. https://doi.org/10.15175/1984-2503-202416205

Issue

Vol. 16 - Nº 2 - Maio a Agosto (2024)

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Articles

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