Britain is suffering a catastrophic economic shock that resembles the one that knocked the economy sideways in the 1970s, but strike action by workers offered below-inflation pay rises ranks low on the list of similarities.
The UK is being affected by inflationary pressures and steadily rising wage demands, but both remain modest by comparison with the 1970s. Much more important are the circumstances of 21st-century life, which are very different from those that prevailed almost five decades ago.
