Trade Unionism

Abstract

The rapid increase in the level of white-collar unionism in Britain in the late 1960s and early 1970s is an important and interesting phenomenon. In the years that immediately followed the Second World War, there was a considerable growth in the absolute numbers of white-collar unionists. This increase in numbers, however, served to mask trends of deep concern to the tradeunion movement as a whole; that is, the proportion of white-collar workers who were union members did not rise (Table 5.1), while manual employment — particularly in sectors that had traditionally been bastions of union membership — was in decline. A major review of patterns of union membership and growth argued: ‘Thus despite all the recruiting activity of white-collar unions during the post-war period, the real membership strength of white-collar unions in general is roughly the same today as it was in 1948, while the real membership strength of manual unionism and the trade union movement as a whole has actually decreased’ (Bain, 1970, p. 39).