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Eight interviews conducted by David Walker in pursuit of his doctoral research on ‘Occupational health and safety in the British chemical industry, 1914-1974’ (PhD thesis, University of Strathclyde, 2007: http://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/6429).

The oral history project was designed to capture the human experience of working within the British chemical industry. The desired outcome was to find respondents with a range of job descriptions that had worked in different types of plant. Although comparatively small, the cohort interviewed represents a good coverage of the industry in that the plastic, chromate, explosive and fertiliser sectors are all represented.

In total, nine respondents were interviewed with one, Richard Fitzpatrick, being interviewed twice (Mr Fitzpatrick was 87 years old at the time and grew visibly tired during the first interview). Three respondents from Cheshire (who were related to one another) were interviewed as a group. Normally interviews were conducted on a one-to-one basis in the homes of the respondents although wives and other family members were also present in all cases, with the exception of one of the anonymous respondents from Dumfries who was alone.

The average age of those interviewed was 71, with birth dates ranging from 1917 to 1945. The employment histories of the respondents ranged from the late 1930s to the late 1970s.

All those interviewed were asked standard questions at the outset such as the respondent’s name, date of birth, where they were born, if they had brothers or sisters, if they had children, at what age did they leave school and what was their first job. Thereafter, in a relatively unstructured manner questions were asked of the respondents about the experiences they had in connection with the chemical industry.

With the exception of one former manager of a chemical plant all the respondents had worked as process workers or were related to family members who also worked as process workers. Why no former directors or technologists came forward to participate in this study cannot be explained by reference to the design of the recruitment material. One reason that may explain the general problem in recruiting respondents was made by two former process workers from Dumfries who admitted that their former colleagues had seen the recruitment article published in the local press but had refused to make contact because they were fearful that Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) would stop their pension if they talked to an outsider. Although ICI would not take such a step it is nonetheless interesting that former employees of the firm offered this as the reason for not sharing their memories.

Oral history project conducted in 2016 by Rory Stride as research for his undergraduate history dissertation, ‘“Proud to be a Clyde shipbuilder. Clyde built”: The changing work identity of Govan’s shipbuilders, c.1960-present.’ The collection comprises interviews with seven men who were employed as shipbuilders between c.1960 and 2016 at Govan’s three shipyards: Alexander Stephen and Sons, Fairfield’s, and Harland and Wolff. The interviews were conducted in a variety of places across Glasgow. The interview questions were semi-structured and largely directed by the responses of the participants. Topics discussed include trade unions, working conditions, occupational injury, masculinity, politics, staff camaraderie, redundancy and periods of employment at different companies. There is a focus throughout the interviews on indicators and expression of masculine identity including alcohol consumption, paid employment and macho attitudes in the yards. The interviews also cover the workers' interactions with the trade union movement, focusing on their experiences of strike action. In addition, some of the key episodes in the Clyde’s shipbuilding history during the twentieth century are covered including: the closure of Harland and Wolff; the closure of Alexander Stephen and Sons; the Norwegian company Kvaerner’s takeover of the Fairfield yard from British Shipbuilders in 1988 and the withdrawal of Kvaerner from Govan in 1999 which threatened the existence of shipbuilding on the Clyde heading in to the twenty-first century.

‘Get A Chinese: stories of the Chinese community inside and outside the Chinese takeaway’ was an eighteen month oral history project funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and carried out by the Chinese Community Development Partnership. The aim of the project was to record the experiences of the older generation of Chinese people who migrated to the UK after 1950 and how they survived in an environment completely new and strange to them.

Fifteen elderly people from Chinese communities in the central belt of Scotland were interviewed by volunteer researchers in 2017. Almost all of the interviewees were born in Hong Kong and migrated to the United Kingdom after 1950. At that time, life was not easy in Hong King even in the city. In the rural areas where facilities were very limited, it was even worse. In these remote areas, young people lacked education and job opportunities. Unable to earn a living, many villagers tried to build a new life in the United Kingdom. After working hard for several years and saving up enough money, many set up Chinese restaurants and takeaway food shops. Working long hours in these eateries, many found it difficult to find enough time to learn English. Although managing to pick up some basic English in their daily life, language remained a big barrier and restricted their ability to integrate into wider society. By interviewing members of this ‘hidden community’ as the older Chinese community in Scotland has sometimes been described, the project hoped to help the public better understand their courage and determination and to change attitudes that had arisen towards the community due to a lack of understanding.

The interviews focus on the interviewees’ lives before they emigrated, their early experiences of living in Scotland, their current lives and the changes in Scottish society witnessed by them.

The culmination of the project was the publication of a book in both Cantonese and English recounting the interviewees' stories.

The collection comprises:

• 15 recorded interviews (in Cantonese)
• Time-coded summaries (in English)
• Publication: Mitford, T. (ed.) (2019) Get a Chinese: stories of the Chinese community inside and outside the Chinese takeaway. Chinese Community Development Partnership.

Oral history project, conducted in May - September 2018 by Rory Stride, with women formerly employed at James Templeton & Co., carpet manufacturers, between c. 1960 and 1981. A total of six women were interviewed. The interviews last approximately between 45 minutes and 1 hour 15 minutes and were conducted at a variety of places across Scotland. The interview questions were semi-structured and largely directed by the responses of the participants.

The interviews focus on the women’s working lives and their first experiences of employment after secondary school but specifically exploring their experience of work at James Templeton & Co., the preeminent carpet manufacturers in Glasgow during the 1960s and 1970s. The company had seven factories, located in the east end and southside of Glasgow with the company’s Crown Street factory being the last to close in early 1981 when Templeton Carpets amalgamated with Stoddard Carpets. Topics discussed include trade unions, working conditions, gender divisions in labour, staff camaraderie, management and staff relationships, and periods of redundancy, unemployment and re-employment after leaving James Templeton & Co. The interviews also cover the women's feelings and opinions regarding the gentrification and redevelopment of the former headquarters and factory of James Templeton & Co. located at Templeton Street on the north eastern edge of Glasgow Green.

The Scottish Oral History Centre Archive is an extensive collection of oral history recordings focussing on the history of work, occupational health and the social impact of de-industrialisation. Most of the recordings originate from projects carried out by Scottish Oral History Centre staff and students but there are also large collections of interviews originating from other organisations, for example Glasgow Museums and the Scottish Working People’s History Trust.

Oral history project conducted on 1st and 8th October 2014 by Rebekah Russell for her history honours dissertation entitled 'Deindustrialisation in Springburn and the impacts on women's lives in 1960-1990' at the University of Strathclyde. The project aimed to gather information as to the nature of working life and the impact of local factory closures on women who lived or worked in the Springburn area of Glasgow during the period 1960-1990. 8 retired women were interviewed at the Alive & Kicking Project, Springburn: Betty Long, Catherine Rogers, Isabella Martin, Joan Pollock, May McAleese, Molly Roy, Margaret Cullen and Susan McFarlane. Topics covered in interview included descriptions of daily life during the period, details of job losses, redundancies, health issues, gender stereotypes encountered in the workplace, struggles for equal rights and equal pay with male work colleagues, and the effect upon the women, their families and their community of local factory closures in Springburn during the Thatcher Government of the 1980s. Some transcripts are incomplete.