Conciliation, Co-operation, and Consensus: The One Nation Conservative Approach to Industrial Relations and Trade Unions, 1945-1990

Although the relationship between Conservative Party and trade unions has often been characterised by mutual distrust hostility, there was a unique period, from 1945 until early 1960s, when senior Conservatives pursued conciliatory constructive approach to unions, insisted that harmonious industrial relations could not be secured punitive legislation or political diktats. Instead, paternalistic One Nation who dominated during this time, such as Rab Butler, Joseph Godber, Ian Macleod, Harold Macmillan, Walter Monckton, emphasised peace in industry only developing trust via closer co-operation, dialogue partnership. This reflected view conflict consequence of workers feeling alienated, insecure under-valued large-scale, impersonal, industries, where growing gulf managers developed, minor grievances smouldered. It envisaged consensual strategy would result reduced union militancy, thus fewer strikes pursuit inflationary wage increases. This, turn, reduce pressure right-wing for repressive against unions. From 1970s onwards, though, cohort superseded new generation MPs Ministers heralded an ideological transformation Party. Often emanating lower middle class petit bourgeois backgrounds, many these newer, younger, were self-made men women, saw themselves representatives symbols small businesses, individual entrepreneurs, self-employed especially. They openly hostile towards believing they their militancy responsible Britain’s economic problems, excessive increases, high inflation, low productivity, management’s inability take tough commercial decisions, including introduction working practices technologies, due likelihood prompt concerned with defending jobs. The decline therefore accompanied much more combative confrontational since 1970s.