The Nine Hours Strike was an 1871 labour dispute in the engineering trade, in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

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. Its name refers to the engineers' demand that a normal working day should consist of no more than nine hours. The strike began in August 1871 when the engineers in

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

, and adjoining areas of

Tyneside Tyneside is a built-up area across the banks of the River Tyne in northern England. Residents of the area are commonly referred to as Geordies. The whole area is surrounded by the North East Green Belt. The population of Tyneside as published i ...

, formally requested that their "masters" (employers) place limits on working hours. This request was rejected, and a strike ensued. It was particularly bitter, and made more so when the masters refused to talk to the employees, only to legal advisors and then brought in foreign workers from abroad including many from

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and

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in an attempt to break the strike. Attempts were made by the strikers to persuade these foreign workers to return home; some (but very few) involved violence. It was not long before the vast majority of the foreigners realised that they were being used, were reinforcing the system described by some as "industrial slavery" and would lose their jobs anyway once the strike was resolved. Many agreed to leave, provided that their return fare would be paid. The money was quickly raised for this purpose by donations from all parts of industry, including from many far of places within

. Many attempts to mediate were made by many parties, but all failed when the masters refused to accept any compromise. Eventually the masters realised that if they did not negotiate, their only options would be to suspend or close their businesses, thus delaying contracts and facing at the best losing the orders and at the worst contractual penalties. Possibly more by good luck than judgement, the strike happened at a time when engineering was booming, it was a time of prosperity, huge profits were being made by the masters, order book were over-full and as a consequence labour was extremely scarce even without a strike. Victory was therefore almost assured by the strikers right from the start. The strike continued for fourteen weeks before the masters succumbed to the pressure, granting the strikers' request for a nine-hour day. Matthew Dryden, the

songwriter wrote "Perseveer " or "The Nine Oors Movement" (written in Geordie dialect and sung to the tune of "Nelly Ray") and sang this in many concerts held to provide funds for the strikers.

References

1871 labor disputes and strikes Labour disputes in the United Kingdom Working time History of Newcastle upon Tyne Manufacturing industry strikes August 1871 events 1871 in England Conflicts in 1871 {{labor-dispute-stub

See also

References