Great Britain Historical Database: Board of Trade/Ministry of Labour Strike Register, 1903-1938

<P>Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.</P><p>The <span style="font-style: italic;">Great Britain Historical Database</span> has been assembled as part of the ongoing Great Britain Historical GIS Project. The project aims to trace the emergence of the north-south divide in Britain and to provide a synoptic view of the human geography of Britain at sub-county scales. Further information about the project is available on <a href="https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/gbhdb/" target="_blank">A Vision of Britain</a> webpages, where users can browse the database's documentation system online.</p><br><p>This study contains a systematic transcription of information on individual strikes in every fifth year, as recorded by the Board of Trade Labour Department, and later the Ministry of Labour, in their Strike Registers, now held in class LAB.34 in the UK National Archives.</p>
<p>They were computerised by the Great Britain Historical GIS Project and its collaborators. They form part of the Great Britain Historical Database, which contains a wide range of geographically-located statistics, selected t<span>o trace the emergence of the north-south divide in Britain and to provide a synoptic view of the human geography of Britain, generally at sub-county scales.</span></p><br><B>Main Topics</B>:<BR><br><p>The Board of Trade/Ministry of Labour Strike Registers record information on individual industrial disputes and formed the basis for official strike statistics. They contain information supplied by employers via a questionnaire, and consequently should not be assumed to be either comprehensive or entirely reliable; but they still provide the most complete source of information available for the period.</p>
<p>The information provided includes the geographical locality and the industry involved; the start date, duration and number of working days lost. It also includes the dispute's cause, result and settlement, but these are recorded by codes whose meanings have not been established.</p>
<p>The Strike Registers exist continuously, but this transcription is limited to every fifth year with these numbers of disputes in each year:</p>
<ul>
<li class="x_firstLi">1903: 354</li><li>1908: 397</li><li>1913: 1476</li><li>1918: 1290</li><li>1923: 642</li><li>1928: 299</li><li>1933: 354</li><li class="x_lastLi">1938: 863</li></ul>
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