'Voices in Frickley' : the struggles of the miners at a Yorkshire colliery, 1984-1993
In this study the author focuses on the activities of the National Union of Mineworkers at Frickley Colliery during ten years of industrial conflict prior to the pit's closure in November 1993. While the initial part of this period, the 1984-85 miners' strike, has been well documented by scholars, the conflict in the following years has received scant attention. Following the miners' defeat, the NUM members at Frickley played an important part in sustaining the tradition of militant trade unionism in the Yorkshire coalfield at a time of general retreat for the British labour movement. Other studies have concentrated mainly on the activities of union leaders and management figures when chronicling the confrontation in the coalfields. In contrast, a substantial part of the present author's account is based on the oral testimonies of pit level activists, thus aspects of the conflict that have been otherwise ignored or overlooked are brought to light. At the core of the study is the contention that the labour movement had become disabled by the defeatist notion of 'new realism'. Moreover, it is illustrated how the NUM leadership in Yorkshire, conventionally portrayed as being militant, was often instrumental in
Nightingale, J. E.
Industrial action; Pit closures; Miners strike
'Voices in Frickley' : the struggles of the miners at a Yorkshire colliery, 1984-1993. In this study the author focuses on the activities of the National Union of Mineworkers at Frickley Colliery during ten years of industrial conflict prior to the pit's closure in November 1993. While the initial part of this period, the 1984-85 miners' strike, has been well documented by scholars, the conflict in the following years has received scant attention. Following the miners' defeat, the NUM members at Frickley played an important part in sustaining the tradition of militant trade unionism in the Yorkshire coalfield at a time of general retreat for the British labour movement. Other studies have concentrated mainly on the activities of union leaders and management figures when chronicling the confrontation in the coalfields. In contrast, a substantial part of the present author's account is based on the oral testimonies of pit level activists, thus aspects of the conflict that have been otherwise ignored or overlooked are brought to light. At the core of the study is the contention that the labour movement had become disabled by the defeatist notion of 'new realism'. Moreover, it is illustrated how the NUM leadership in Yorkshire, conventionally portrayed as being militant, was often instrumental in
voices struggle miner yorkshire colliery study author focus activity national union colliery industrial conflict prior pit closure initial part period miner strike well_documented scholar conflict receive_scant attention following miner defeat num member play_important part sustain tradition militant trade_unionism yorkshire coalfield time general retreat british_labour movement study_concentrate mainly activity union leader management figure chronicle confrontation contrast substantial_part present author account base oral_testimony pit level activist thus aspects conflict otherwise ignore overlooked bring_light core_study contention labour_movement become disabled notion new realism moreover illustrate num leadership yorkshire conventionally portray militant often instrumental