Grunwick Dispute

Grunwick Film Processing Laboratories, Willesden, London

The Grunwick dispute oscillated around the poor treatment, low pay and lack of dignity and rights of mainly South Asian workers, who were often female, at the Grunwick photographic film-processing factory in Willesden, north London. The dispute began on 20 August 1976, when a factory worker was dismissed, leading to a small number of colleagues walking out in protest. Fellow worker Jayaben Desai joined the protest the same day, following a last-minute demand for overtime. The dispute went on for two gruelling years until July 1978 and was infamously led by Desai.

Desai, with other women who worked at the factory, found the last-minute demands for compulsory overtime problematic because their family life involved domestic labour before and after work. Whilst low pay was a factor in the strikes, mistreatment and the lack of dignity afforded by management propelled the strikers. Following the walkout on 20 August, and thereafter consultation with Citizens Advice Bureau by Desai’s son Sunil, workers joined a union: the Association of Professional, Executive, Clerical and Computer Staff (APEX). APEX declared an official strike on 1 September 1976.

The cause of Grunwick slowly picked up momentum over the months, with the support of the trade union. Mass pickets grew in number, from hundreds by late August 1976 to thousands the following year. Solidarity for the cause was widespread and diverse, coming from around the country as well as from white working-class men. Alongside support on the picket line, Cricklewood postal workers blackened (refused to handle) Grunwick mail. Postal worker action was fundamental to disrupting business at Grunwick, due to the nature of film processing at the time. This involved posting camera film reels for processing to then produce hard copy images. Widespread support for the dispute was a consequence of Desai, with fellow Grunwick workers, canvassing for the cause around the country. Strikers also mounted a hunger strike in 1977.

Despite extensive backing, the strike was called off in July 1978. This was in part a result of the trade union withdrawing its support for the strike. Another factor was that Grunwick management offered limited co-operation – for example, refusing to accept the recommendations from the 1977 Scarman Court of Inquiry. The Scarman report recommended the reinstatement of the strikers who were dismissed in 1976. Leading up to the end of the dispute on 15 May 1978, the managing director of Grunwick, George Ward, rejected the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) proposal. On 12 July 1978 ACAS announced that the dispute had ended, citing as its reason that there was no satisfactory means of ascertaining workers’ opinions. This was because Grunwick refused to supply the names and addresses of those still working in the factory. Without this consultation process the dispute came to an end.

The dispute marked a watershed moment in activism, being unique for its central concerns around gender and race. It brought to the forefront debates around equality for women and non-white workers, highlighting the lack representation and second-class working conditions for South Asian migrants.