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One of the key turning points in late 20th-century history
The UCS shop stewards paved the way for the creation of the Scottish Assembly, followed by the Scottish Parliament – but how does this legacy link in with the struggles of today? TOM MORRISON takes a look
James Reid (left foreground) chief spokesman for shop stewards, and James Airlie (right), co-ordinator, shop stewards’ committee, during a press conference, 1971
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IN JULY 1971 8,500 shipyard workers took control of four shipyards on the Upper Clyde: Govan, Linthouse, Scotstoun and Clydebank to stop their closure.
The shop stewards remained in control of the yards for the following 15 months and only ended their “work-in” when the government had fully capitulated and financially guaranteed the survival of all four yards.
This action on the Clyde had a much wider national impact. The Tory government was alarmed at the growing shop stewards’ militancy with good cause, as the workers’ successful enforcement of their right to work gave encouragement to workers in hundreds of other workplaces facing closure during the recession years of 1971-73.
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