Film remembers print workers

A documentary film about the history of print workers in Fleet Street , called “Banging Out”, was released last month with the support of Unite. The film, produced by pupils at two primary schools near Fleet Street, features interviews with former print workers and documents their battle for jobs against the Murdoch Empire.

At its peak, 100,000 employees worked on Fleet Street 24 hours a day. Up until the 1990s, printing was one of the few jobs for working-class people that paid well, aside from docking. A printing apprenticeship would take six years, and those who finished were congratulated with a “banging out” – all of their co-workers would bang pieces of metal together to celebrate.

Fleet Street was a closed shop, so every worker was a union member. The former print workers interviewed in the film have fond memories of their unions.

“I was very happy because the union looked after us,” remembers Marie Alvarado, a former print scrutineer.

Ivy Smith, who worked as a finisher, added, “The union was a wonderful thing. We had convalescent houses before the national health came in. We had sick pay schemes. From the cradle to the grave, the union was there for you.”

Many print workers interviewed for the film recalled the sense of camaraderie — the parties, the buzz and the friendships. One former print worker explained that people tolerated the poor working conditions because of the comradeship and the fun. “It made for very tight working relationships,” he said.

Scene from Banging Out 2014

Print making was indeed a dangerous and dirty job, with ink particles flying around the print rooms and incredible noise that deafened many of the workers. One worker remembers a time when miners from Stoke-on-Trent came down during a dispute and asked, “How can you work in these noisy, filthy conditions?”

The documentary tells of how media mogul Rupert Murdoch, whose money was made on the backs of his workers, decided in the mid-1980s that he wanted to increase his already monstrous profits even further. His plan was to cut wages and increase working hours. The film explains how his legal team advised him to force the print workers to strike. With the support of Thatcher’s brutal anti-union legislation, Murdoch successfully sacked the workers without any negotiation or settlements.

This led to the Wapping Dispute of 1986-7, a yearlong strike by Fleet Street print workers for their jobs and livelihoods. The picket lines saw hideous police brutality, with police horses charging into defenceless crowds and hundreds arrested on false charges.

Mike Hicks, a branch official for the print union SOGAT at the time of the dispute, recalls the abuse he suffered at the hands of the police. “I was arrested 5 or 6 times,” he remembers. “They did it directly to intimidate me and make me scared.”

Banging Out is a fantastic opportunity to learn about the Wapping dispute from the point of view of the people who lived it.

Unite assistant general secretary Tony Burke said of the film, “Unite is proud to have been involved with support for Banging Out. Our former national officer Ann Field who is in the film played a great part in helping ensure funds were available for the project.”

“It’s great that the young school students were involved as they can learn from the past in order to deal with the problems of the future and learn about print trade unionism’s proud history,” he added.