Grey sky snow view from the B6114 Saddleworth Road towards the M62, closed by industrial action (a lack of gritting) in the Winter of Discontent 1978-79, crossing Scammonden Dam, in its traverse of the South Pennines, West Yorkshire, UK
The Winter of Discontent refers to the winter of 1978-79, when public sector trade unions, such as the former NUPE (National Union of Public Employees), undertook industrial action in response to James Callaghan's Labour Government's imposition that public sector pay rises be kept below 5 per cent to control inflation. The industrial action involved public sector workers ranging from school caretakers to those gritting the roads. The industrial action coincided with the coldest winter in sixteen years. Here we see the M62, at Scammonden Dam, west of Huddersfield, in its South Pennines crossing, closed by industrial action (a lack of gritting) in February 1979. The view, looking east, is from the B6114 Saddleworth Road. The road in the foreground is a relic from the days when the motorway was being built in the early 1970s. The B6114, disrupted by a motorway cutting at Scammonden (behind the camera) had to descend to the motorway then rise on the other side, hence the road in the foreground, now a walkway. With the Pennine section closed, vehicles had to leave the motorway east of Leeds, causing chaos on local roads.
Size: 1805px × 970px
Location: M62 crossing Scammonden Dam, viewed from the B6114, west of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, UK
Photo credit: © robert harrison / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1979, action, closed, dam, discontent, employees, february, frozen, grey, hills, hilly, industrial, landscape, m62, motorway, pennines, public, reservoir, scammonden, sector, sky, snow, south, trade, uk, unions, valley, view, water, west, winter, workers, yorkshire
