A History of the South African Mine Workers Union, 1902-2014

Dr. Wessel Visser is an Associate Professor in History at the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa. He obtained his Ph.D. in 2001, focused on the history of the South African labour, Socialist and Trade Union press in the early twentieth century.

Abbreviated Sample from Table of Contents; Foreword / Preface / Acknowledgements; Introduction; Chapter 1: Militant beginnings; The birth of a miners' union in the era of industrial strife 1902-1929; Introduction; The founding of the Transvaal Miners' Association; The Afrikanerisation of the union; The miners" strike of 1907; The miners' strike of 1913; The general strike of 1914; The volcano erupts. The Rand Revolt of 1922 and its aftermath; Chapter 2: Political forces at play; The struggle for executive control of the MWU 1929-1948; Introduction; The Harris administration and the Afrikanerbond van Mynwerkers; The Reformers' organization and commissions of enquiry into the affairs of the MWU; The politicization of the struggle for executive control of the union; The elections of 1948 and the double NP victory; Chapter 3: From the Ellis administration to the Time of Troubles.; The MWU in symbiosis with the National Party government, 1948-1977; Introduction; Renewed irregularities. Albert Hertzog and the Hook Commission of Enquiry; A bombshell is dropped. The 1951 Judicial Commission of Enquiry; The Visser-Ellis lawsuit and its aftermath; The Times of Troubles. The monthly wage experiment and its consequences for the MWU; Arrie Paulus and the re-stabilisation of the MWU; Chapter 4: The Wiehahn Commission of Inquiry and a shift to the hard-right, 1977-1987.