Britain Is Experiencing Its Biggest Strike Wave in a Generation
The last year has witnessed the highest level of strike action by British workers for the last thirty years. Workers are getting a taste of their collective strength: now they need to convert that strength into tangible victories.
Striking workers attend a “Right to Strike Rally” during joint strike action by train drivers, teachers, university staff, and civil servants in London, UK, on February 1, 2023. (Carlos Jasso / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Britain is experiencing the highest levels of industrial action in the lifetimes of many of the workers who have taken part in recent strikes. The Office of National Statistics recently reported that days lost to industrial action in 2022 surpassed all totals recorded in the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s.
More than 2.4 million working days were recorded as lost to strikes in 2022. This was the highest total since 1989, when the number of British trade unionists was significantly larger and accounted for a much higher proportion of the workforce.
Strikes have not been confined to a small number of industries. Disputes have grown to encompass increasingly large swathes of the public and private sector and have ranged from local to national disputes. Does this mark a decisive turning point in British class relations after decades of retreat for organized labor?
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