Concluding remarks

The conclusion begins with an overview of the way the chapters in the volume have offered an exploration of three different levels of conflict – intra-organisational tensions, tensions which exist between different types of organisations, and tensions between labour organisations and spontaneous working-class protests – to collectively provide explanations to the paradoxes affecting the Labour movement. It then stresses the benefits of the volume’s integrated and multidisciplinary approach of the labour movement, underlining the fact that the contributors share a common concern for the future of the British labour movement. In the following section the conclusion ponders the future prospects for the labour movement and the Labour Party, sketching a number of possible scenarios. It stresses the fact that visions of the future differ according to political positioning. It then highlights the shared conviction of the contributors that class remains relevant as an analytical tool.

The British left’s attitude towards the Battle of Athens, December 1944–February 1945: commonalities and divisions

This chapter examines the wide range of discussions in British society sparked by the unprovoked shooting of unarmed civilians by the Greek police and British troops at Syntagma Square on 3 December 1944, the Battle of Athens between the EAM/ELAS forces and the British troops assisted by Greek royalist forces until January 1945, and the reconciliation between the warring parties on 12 February 1945, after the signing of the Varkiza Agreement. The British Left participated in, and actively shaped, the public conversation on the events in Greece and on the role of the British government. On the surface, the three examined parties of the British Left called for the same thing: the withdrawal of British troops from Greece, the end of the British Government’s interventionist policy in Greek political affairs, and the prosperity and sovereignty of the Greek people. However, the response to the events was not unanimous since differences between the parties examined existed on the ideological, rhetorical and practical levels.

‘The people’s main defence against monopoly’?1 The Co-op, the Labour Party and Resale Price Maintenance, 1918–1964

This chapter analyses the contentious political alliance between the Co-op and the Labour Party through a case study of the debate over Resale Price Maintenance during the period 1918-1964. In particular, it tests the hypothesis that there was an inherent tension between the Co-op’s voluntarism and Labour’s state socialism, while scrutinising the extent to which organisational issues regarding forms of affiliation inhibited the coordination of RPM policy. The chapter argues that by supporting state regulation of profiteering trusts, trade associations and cartels, the Co-op moderated its opposition towards state action and channelled it into an anti-monopolist critique, which became a more prominent source of disagreement with Labour than has hitherto been recognised. It concludes that the degree of dysfunctionality generated by internal Co-op differences over its anti-monopoly strategy and divisions with Labour over national affiliation rendered the coordination of RPM policy nearly impossible, reinforcing the Co-op’s junior status in the alliance of consumer and producer democracy.

The ‘movementisation’ of the Labour Party and the future of labour organising

Drawing from political science and organisational studies, but also from social movement analysis, this chapter examines the current terms of the debate on the future of Labour organising and tracks the emergence of hybrid forms of political parties with emphasis now placed on social movement activities alongside traditional election campaigning. This process of ‘movementisation’ is couched by some in optimistic terms as a way to reconnect the party with civil society, while others point on the contrary to the dangers such an evolution may entail, arguing that radicalisation will alienate the party further from the interests of the wider electorate. The analysis starts with some methodological considerations, continues with a presentation of Labour supporting groups and movements, with particular focus on the most recent one – Momentum – and then leads to an appraisal of the impact which this process is having on the structure and mobilising power of the Labour party.

Re-framing the debate on breakaway trade unions in an era of neoliberalism

Breakaway unions have been a feature of labour organisation since the dawn of trade unionism. Despite this long history, the historiography of the subject remains undeveloped. The process of breaking away from an established union and setting up a rival organisation can be triggered by a range of impulses and inducements, fostered by both progressive and reactionary forces. On one level they can be considered a product of intra-union conflict, but a fuller understanding comes from viewing breakaways in the context of the broader economic and political circumstances in which they are embedded. The systematic remapping of the political and industrial relations landscape during the neoliberal epoch has brought into question the pluralist assumptions that have traditionally underpinned the notion of breakaway unions. Building from a historically-contingent approach, this chapter contends that the ideological onslaught unions have faced since the 1980s has encouraged division among union members and the breakaways that have emerged have generally given voice to a more moderate approach, sometimes couched in a ‘non-political’ narrative. In shining a light on the reasons behind these ideologically-motivated breakaways, this chapter contributes to the knowledge of this important but neglected area of trade union history.

Domestic servants and the labour movement, 1870s–1914

Between the 1870s and 1914, there was no occupation with a higher proportion of women workers than domestic service. Female servants, however, faced the problem that many working-class people, including most socialists and trade unionists, did not see them as members of the working class. Refusing to take for granted the servants' proverbial deference and lack of class-consciousness, this chapter examines the numerous ways in which domestic servants tried to overcome the barrier separating them from the organised labour movement. Servants were not as isolated as one might think from other working-class people. Physical proximity with employers could actually fuel class resentment, and in comparing themselves to animals, slaves and machines, the servants signaled their commonality with the rest of the working class. The chapter also focuses on some of the servants' attempts to form unions of their own, in particular in Dundee and London. Through their obstinacy servants eventually gained inclusion in workers’ compensation and health insurance legislation between 1906 and 1913. This study of a long-neglected branch of the British proletariat suggests that the working class cannot be understood only in terms of industrial wage labourers and conventional trade union organisation.

Introduction: the British labour movement between unity and division

This introduction explains how the Labour Party’s current difficulties have made a number of concerns that seemed outmoded topical again and have rekindled the interest of both academics and practitioners in organisational matters. It shows that there is a need to put present troubles into historical perspective, to demonstrate that the present disunities are nothing new, and that they are far from capturing every source of disagreement within the British labour movement, which was, from its inception, never a homogeneous entity, and was formed of different groups trying to achieve different things. This does not imply that those different components did not seek to achieve some form of unity, since for practical reasons it was often felt that divergences over long term objectives should not be an obstacle to united action around short term goals. In order to better bring out these long-term trends, the book follows a diachronic approach, from the 1830s to the present day, progressively zooming on the dilemmas experienced by the contemporary Labour Party.

English teachers’ unions since 2010: ‘a teachers’ lobby divided against itself’?1

This chapter deals with the three largest teachers’ unions (NUT, NASUWT and ATL) in England from 2010 to 2017 through key issues such as pay, pensions, working conditions, inspections, the curriculum, tests, performance tables and school reforms. Contrary to ATL, NUT and NASUWT have long had links with the left and the Labour Party. The 2015 Labour manifesto was disappointing for these unions and although Corbyn’s leadership has offered some hope it has not yet ushered in a new era in their relationships. Since 2010, there has been greater activism among teachers’ unions but there has also been a relative lack of ideological consensus among them, particularly on pensions and on alternative provision for inspections and tests. ATL and NUT had just merged at the time of writing but professional unity is still some way off since the NASUWT has been unwilling to follow the trend.

The decline of revolutionary pragmatism and the splintering of British communism in the 1980s

The 1980s are often remembered as a period of divisions and splits in the Labour Party. However, it was not the only part of the British labour movement to experience this type of problem since the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was also concerned. Like the Labour Party, it was divided over how to react to the political successes of the Conservatives and the rapid decline of traditional industries. But its internal difficulties also resulted from a number of factors which were specific to the CPGB itself. This chapter contends that a greater understanding of these factors can be achieved by developing a modified version of Nina Fishman’s concept of ‘revolutionary pragmatism’ and applying it to British Communism in the 1980s. It will become apparent that during this decade the very framework within which most Communists acted was challenged and undermined but not successfully replaced.

Contested coordinator: the Hull Trades Council, 1872–1914*

Founded in 1872, the Hull Trades Council, like its counterparts in other towns and cities, was created to unite the efforts of trade-union activists pertaining to different industries. Yet its unifying vocation did not prevent it from internal conflicts. This chapter seeks to identify the diverging factors at the root of those conflicts, from the Trades Council’s origins to 1914, to understand the way the question of working-class unity was debated, and how those conceptions changed over time. The chapter illuminates the role of Trades Councils in general in the growth of class-consciousness, the possibilities they offered to encourage a kind of proletarian unity different from the one elaborated in the parliamentary milieu, as well as the obstacles that left-wingers had to face in their attempts to build that unity. The Hull scenario, although it shows that Trades Council activists often displayed more imagination, initiative and firmness than national leaders, also makes clear how difficult it was to overcome at the local level the powerful tendencies that went contrary to their efforts at the broader national or even international levels.