The massive strikes by the National Union of Mineworkers in the year 1926 and then again in 1970 had crippled the country to no limit. While it succeeded in pulling down the government in 1926, it sent the economy into a tail spin in 1970. Although, now it looks a pretty much weakened, pale shadow of its former self, facing dwindling fortunes and irrelevance in the 1990s, one cannot forget the all out war it fought with the Margaret Thatcher government in 1984-85 with Aurther Scargill leading from the front.

NUM entered the year 1984 with its roll at 171,000 comrades. The great war of attrition, as it is now known, saw the strength reducing to paltry 13,000 by 1998. Today the head count stands at a low 9,300 what with only 8 deep mines producing nationally. The strength swayed up and down between then and now, 2001 from 13 thousand odd to a tad above 24 thousand and back to the present 15,320.

The Carrot Called Compensation

However, it is noteworthy that the recent upswing in the number has got nothing to do with the prevailing employment situation. With the winning of a High Court test case in the days between 1997 and 1998 by NACODS (South Wales), and the ruling against British Coal for being negligent about the workers' diseases such as respiratory and vibration white fingers. The prospect of personal injury claims getting honoured at Courts saw a rush of workers wanting to join collieries.

Although, NUM was no longer seen as a scourge of the government, it is merrily occupying the position of friends of lawyers specialising in personal injury cases and was found busy regaining its lost wealth.

Membership Subscriptions at 300?

Whomsoever wanted to make a claim were asked to pay a hefty membership subscription in addition to the mandatory admission fees. Ex-NUM and the retired mining workers were being admitted back to the union upon payment of an all time high of up to a maximum of 300. Retired workers from Lancashire, South Derbyshire and Yorkshire were all admitted back to the union by collecting backdated subscriptions. The top carrot was to come in the form of assurance that the 300 membership subscription would be deducted from the award whenever it came.

However, this gold rush was not without its share of controversies and disputes too. The controversy that the personal injury lawyers misled the miners has raged over a long time. Ironically, the union which stood for the cause of its member comrades for decades, was alleged to have been luring more memberships by funding their claim suits. Surprisingly the denial was to come from the solicitors, who were acting for individual members, that it wasn't the case in majority of the cases.

It may be noted that no stones were left unturned in an effort to clarify their individual positions. Spokesmen for both the union as well as the law firm clarified that the funding from the union would have been necessary had the suits, in individual cases, were to be fought outside the agreement between the Government and the miners. The agreement was signed in 1999.

The Locus Standii

All having said and done, where does the litigations now stand? Of the 11,279 registered cases of vibration white finger and 44,642 of respiratory disease claims only 11 have been admitted for litigation by the Court, surprisingly all of them were from the former case. However, what was still unclear was whether the defendant was DTI or the private employer.