Jack Jones, the Social Contract and Social Policy 1970–4

Abstract

Between 1970 and 1974 social policy had an importance in the strategy of the Labour Party which was unprecedented in the post 1945–51 period, becoming an integral part of the negotiations with the trade union movement over incomes policy. In response to the industrial strife under the Conservatives, both wings of the labour movement sought an accommodation which could be presented to the electorate as a means of achieving industrial peace and economic prosperity. To achieve this, they engaged in a process of political exchange in order to secure wage restraint, the Labour Party offering firm commitments in areas vital to the concerns of the trade union movement. Thus a number of social welfare policies formed the basis of the social wage component of a ‘social contract’ — the social wage representing policies which were of value to the standard of living of both workers and their families beyond the pay packet.