How the miners’ strike changed the role of women

It has been 40 years since miners in the UK embarked on a year-long dispute. No one knew quite how challenging that year would be. The miners are still fighting to keep their industry going 40 years on from the start of the dispute. They are still battling to keep the industry going.

Sian James was married to a miner and the mother of two children. Her husband worked at Abernant Colliery, near Pontardawe in the Swansea Valley. Her father, father-in-law and brother all worked underground too. She was one of many women to join support groups in south Wales.

Michaela Hawkins, from New Tredegar, was a housewife and mother in 1984. She joined the Rhymney Valley Women’s Support Group as soon as the strike started, collecting money in buckets and helping with food banks. Michaela said the strike helped to change men’s attitudes. Ann Jones, from Hirwaun in the Cynon Valley, had never spoken in front of a crowd before the strike.

Her husband John worked at Tower Colliery, where miners had a reputation for militancy. She travelled around Wales to spread the message and was involved in some of the strike’s most notorious clashes. Ann was on a stage in Sweden when she was told the strike was over. I didn’t go and burn my bra, I went back and darned the socks,” she said.

The Women Who Fought Back will be on BBC One Wales and BBC iPlayer on Tuesday 12 March.

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