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The climax to the dilution disputes in Glasgow came with a strike of engineering workers in Glasgow which lasted from 17 March to 4 April 1916. The strike itself had originated at Beardmore's in Parkhead, but within days had spread to cover a host of engineering munitions plants throughout the Glasgow region. This collection of telegrams, sent by William Weir, Director of Munitions in Scotland, to David Lloyd George and the Ministry of Munitions in London, shows quite clearly the alarm in Government circles at the Clyde Workers' Committee-led strike and the close cooperation between Government agencies in London and Glasgow to ensure the defeat of the strike.
In recent years there has been some historical debate regarding the nature of the events which led to the strike at Beardmore's. Mystery still surrounds why Sir William Beardmore decided at this point in the governments 'dilution process' to withdraw a long-held right within the works which guaranteed shop stewards access to new employees. As a major employer in Glasgow with long experience with dealing with industrial grievances, Beardmore was likely to have been fully aware of the probable consequences of his actions.
The argument put forward by some historians is that Beardmore was instructed by the Ministry of Munitions, under William Weir, to revoke David Kirkwood's right to access as a way of initiating the strike. Once the strike was underway the Ministry of Munitions was then able to put into effect its plans to crush the Clyde Workers' Committee, which it did by rounding up the leaders and deporting them from Glasgow. These actions effectively put an end to the resistance to dilution and the level of strike action on Clydeside fell dramatically thereafter.
Source: Weir Papers, Glasgow University Archives
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