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The UK, once regarded as a strike-prone country, is now one of
the least militant in the industrialised world.
On average there were only 62 working days not worked per 1,000 employees in all UK industries and services because of disputes between 1988 and 1997. This contrasts with losses of 80 working days per 1,000 in Sweden; 201 working days in Italy; 253 working days in Canada and 150 working days in Australia. Over the same period strike-day losses were less in the US (54 working days per 1,000 employees); Japan (three working days), Austria (four working days) and Switzerland (only one working day). The general picture indicates that the strike has become increasingly rare in western industrialised societies since the 1970s. Union militancy tends to be dominated by a small number of large disputes. In the UK in 1996, for example, 60 per cent of lost days were due to a strike by railway workers |
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E-mail address: geoff.riley@dial.pipex.com |