IT MAY be more than three years since the end of the Magnet strike, but for Phil West the emotional and physical scars still run deep.

Phil joined the company from Eastbourne Comprehensive School in 1979. He thought he had a job for life.

But instead, after 16 years with the firm, he found himself among 320 workers, each fighting for their futures.

The topic of conversation when ex-workers meet up is still dominated by the strike.

Families had their homes repossessed, some, including Phil, have not worked since, and many are still struggling with the financial burden which came with one of the longest disputes in British history.

The bitterness will not go away, and like the self-inflicted scars which are etched on Phil's arms, many carry with them permanent reminders of their battle.

Phil, 38, has been unable to work since the strike ended, although he would love to return to his trade as a woodcutter machinist.

He remains an outpatient at Darlington Memorial Hospital's psychiatric unit and takes each day as it comes.

"I feel exactly the same as I did five years ago - very, very bitter," he said.

"I still see a few of the lads, and the first thing we talk about is who's doing what and where, and the second is the strike.

"It's there from when you go to bed and when you wake up.

"I think it will be with me for the rest of my life."

The men walked out on August 22, 1996, after months of talks between union officials and bosses over pay and conditions broke down.

Nine days later, they were told to be back at work by 9am on the following Tuesday or they would be sacked. They decided to make a stand.

Phil was to spend the next 21 months manning the pickets at night with work mates, standing defiant in the wind and rain, from 10pm to 6am, five to six nights a week.

He said: "I didn't vote for the strike to end because I wanted my job back.

"But it didn't work out that way.

"The emotional scars run very deep. It is difficult to let go."

The Magnet strike ended in 1998 when the workers finally accepted a settlement from the company.