Winter of Discontent

The term Winter of Discontent (English for Winter of Discontent ) for the winter of 1978-79 in the UK goes to the input lines from William Shakespeare's Richard III. back: " Now is the Winter of our Discontent ". ( In the classic translation of Richard III. By August Wilhelm Schlegel is Shakespeare's phrase " Now was the winter of our discontent .") [Note 1]

It was first used by Larry Lamb, the former chief editor of the newspaper The Sun, in an editorial to the strikes this winter.

Early 1977 could not help the British Chancellor of the Exchequer Denis Healey, to avoid financial ruin of his country to accept tough economic policy conditionality by the IMF in Washington, in return for a 3.9 - billion - dollar loan. The thus imposed austerity was controversial within the ruling party Labour, as specifically from the left wing of the party whose duty was demanded after profits seemed by newly discovered oil fields in the North Sea to resolve the problem.

A collaboration between the Labour government and the unions had at that time with the aim of combating a problematic inflation - existed in a social contract, its second phase, which should keep the average wage growth at 4.5 percent - in 1977 it was 17 percent expired in July 1977 and really should be extended. However, trade union leader Jack Jones could not prevent that again demands for wage increases of up to 90 percent were in the room itself with a sincere appeal to reason against organized. Prime Minister James Callaghan was forced to admit: " The social contract is broken. "

For the first time since the Second World War in 1977 decreased the standard of living and it came in the winter of 1978-79 to extended strikes by unions demanded wage increases and the introduction of a 35 - hour week. The strikes were a response to the continued attempt by the Labour Government under Prime Minister James Callaghan, to keep wage increases below 5 percent. Workers of the car manufacturer Ford stopped work for more than two months, and thus brought the company to a standstill - which eventually resulted in a wage increase of 16 percent. Moss Evans, a man with a rather limited understanding of major economic or political contexts, was, in 1978 Jack Jones succeeded as general secretary of the powerful Transport Workers Union and had mainly challenged his election campaign this with the demand for completely free collective bargaining without interference from the government. From the public perspective, the trade unions were increasingly the "real rulers of the country and economy." With the so-called " secondary picketing " even those areas have been affected by the blockade of the port exits, industrial premises and warehouses that were difficult to draw in a labor dispute. Several weeks went on strike even the gravedigger, so no funerals were possible. The strikes by garbage collection resulted in large garbage dumps in public parks.

Ultimately, this led strikes to the resignation of James Callaghan and election of Margaret Thatcher on May 3, 1979 This change of government ushering in a conservative era ( Thatcher to November 1990, John Major to May 1997).. The change of government in 1979, is generally regarded as the end of the so-called " post-war consensus."