Stan and Jack are horrified to learn of the imposition of strict new rules concerning the use of the canteen, and that one of the staff - Elsie - is to be sacked. Jack calls an official strike.
On hearing he is to receive an generous productivity bonus, however, Jack tells everyone to go back to work. Angered by his U-Turn, Stan resolves to continue the strike single-handed - without union backing.
As the night approaches, poor Stan is alone in the cab of his bus. But not quite as alone as he thinks, as Blakey has stayed behind to try and lure him out...
As I've noted elsewhere in other reviews, trade unions were a familiar target in 70's sitcoms, often caricatured as cold, ruthless entities, run by small men with Hitler complexes who called for strikes whenever there was a football match on telly. This was because a lot of those shows were penned by Tory sympathisers, keen to play up the unpopularity of unions for all it was worth. The Boulting Brothers' classic 'I'm All Right Jack' in 1959 was widely credited with securing a Tory election victory the following year.
This episode features surprisingly little union bashing compared to 'Love Thy Neighbour', 'The Good Life', and the thankfully forgotten 'Up The Workers' ( which starred Lance Percival ), concentrating more on Stan's one-man protest. Even so Jack is portrayed here as hard-hearted and callous, ending the strike as soon as he is promised a bonus, reinstating it the moment it is safely in his pocket. Stan is the only one in the depot with any real principles, being prepared to risk his job so that Elsie can stay. Perhaps the staff should have made him 'Shop Steward' instead.
Funniest moment - a lengthy scene in the middle of the story where Stan attempts to wallpaper the kitchen ceiling, and ropes Olive, Arthur and Mum in. The result? A right old mess as you'd expect.
On hearing he is to receive an generous productivity bonus, however, Jack tells everyone to go back to work. Angered by his U-Turn, Stan resolves to continue the strike single-handed - without union backing.
As the night approaches, poor Stan is alone in the cab of his bus. But not quite as alone as he thinks, as Blakey has stayed behind to try and lure him out...
As I've noted elsewhere in other reviews, trade unions were a familiar target in 70's sitcoms, often caricatured as cold, ruthless entities, run by small men with Hitler complexes who called for strikes whenever there was a football match on telly. This was because a lot of those shows were penned by Tory sympathisers, keen to play up the unpopularity of unions for all it was worth. The Boulting Brothers' classic 'I'm All Right Jack' in 1959 was widely credited with securing a Tory election victory the following year.
This episode features surprisingly little union bashing compared to 'Love Thy Neighbour', 'The Good Life', and the thankfully forgotten 'Up The Workers' ( which starred Lance Percival ), concentrating more on Stan's one-man protest. Even so Jack is portrayed here as hard-hearted and callous, ending the strike as soon as he is promised a bonus, reinstating it the moment it is safely in his pocket. Stan is the only one in the depot with any real principles, being prepared to risk his job so that Elsie can stay. Perhaps the staff should have made him 'Shop Steward' instead.
Funniest moment - a lengthy scene in the middle of the story where Stan attempts to wallpaper the kitchen ceiling, and ropes Olive, Arthur and Mum in. The result? A right old mess as you'd expect.
