ABSTRACT
The collapse of steel employment in many countries of the developed world and the failure of anti-closure campaigns have had a devastating impact in localities previously dependent upon the industry as a sole, or major, source of livelihood. This decline exemplifies the de-industrialization of many of the former manufacturing heartlands of the advanced economies (see for example Martin and Rowthorne 1986). It has been both a social and a political process, accompanied by the increased exploitation of labour. Large groups have become virtually excluded from the employed labour force: the old and the young, and those living in parts of the peripheral regions (see Bytheway 1987; Coffield eta/. 1986; Hudson 1986). High levels of registered unemployment have acted to encourage acceptance of changes such as flexibility both within work, and in and out of work (see Purcell eta/. 1986; NEDO 1986b). New patterns of industrial relations have been established both in the steel industry (see Chapter 2) and in other sectors (see Bassett 1986; Morgan and Sayer 1985). Traditional forms of employee rights and bargaining have been terminated or truncated, either by imposition or 'voluntarily' through self-employment or the creation of a precarious small business.
