Collieries, Communities and the Miners' Strike in Scotland, 1984–85

Collieries, Communities and the Miners' Strike in Scotland, 1984–85 by Jim Phillips is finally available in paperback. This book deeply analyses the 1984-85 miners' strike with a focus on its critical Scottish dimensions, particularly the role of workplace politics and community mobilisation.

The year-long strike commenced in Scotland, where workers defended the moral economy of the coalfields and resisted pit closures and management attacks on trade unionism. The narrative connects the strike to an examination of the evolving coalfield community and industrial structures from the 1960s to the 1980s.

The book disputes the stereotyped view that the strike began in March 1984 as merely a clash between Arthur Scargill, the miners' leader, and Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government. In reality, by this time, fifty percent of Scottish miners were already on strike or involved in significant pit-level disputes, where management was notably more confrontational than in England and Wales.

Collieries, Communities and the Miners' Strike in Scotland, 1984–85 delves into key aspects of the strike in Scotland: the distinct industrial politics, the strong initial pattern of general solidarity, and the subsequent emergence of various levels of pit-level commitment.