How far do you agree that new model unionism in the years 1850-70 was more effectively organised than trade unionism in the years 1785-34

Question 1

How should you assess this question?

Answer 1

1) Internal organisation / Leadership
2) Money / Strike organisation
3) Political Opinion /Relationship with government
4) Technology

Question 2

What is a key part of strike organisation?

Answer 2

The effectiveness of their economics

Question 3

Assess strike action for the NMUs

Answer 3

There was less of it due to the conservative tendencies of the leadership, however what there was was much more effective

Question 4

Perhaps the NMUs’ strikes were not better because of their organisation, but instead because of their what?

Answer 4

profession, they were representing industries upon which the economy relied highly

Question 5

What strike shows the better funding of the NMUs?

Answer 5

1859-60 builders strike in London where builders were paid 3 donations of £1000 from the ASE which allowed them to come to an agreement with their employer Trollope and hold out for three months

Question 6

Compare the ASE builders’s strike to the Grand National’s ability to strike

Answer 6

The Robert Owen Grand National 1834 could only get 16 000 of its members to pay subscriptions. This meant that come the Derby Mill Workers strike in 1834, 1500 mill workers were locked out of their place of work for failing to abandon their union for four months before they had to return to work.

Question 7

When did weavers in Wigan organised themselves into an association to strengthen their hand in seeking to stop wage reductions?

Answer 7

1799

Question 8

What happened to the Wigan weavers’ practice?

Answer 8

spread throughout the region

Question 9

What shows how the Wigan weavers’ associations spread throughout the region?

Answer 9

the association had 14 branches across Lancashire by May 1799.

Question 10

What did the Wigan weavers have in common with the ASE?

Answer 10

They were both from respected professions who commanded higher than average wages

Question 11

When did cotton workers in Lancashire strike that shows good organisation of early unions?

Answer 11

Major strikes by the cotton spinners of Lancashire in 1810 and 1818 suggests that their organisation was significant.

Question 12

How long did the 1810 Lancashire strike last?

Answer 12

4 months

Question 13

What happened with the 1818 lancashire strike?

Answer 13

spread to other industries so threatened a nationwide stoppage

Question 14

What did industrialisation compel for workers?

Answer 14

As employers were allowed a free hand in setting wages, workers were forced to bind together simply to protect themselves.

Question 15

Who was the ASCJ leader?

Answer 15

Robert appelgarth

Question 16

Who was the ASE leader?

Answer 16

William Allan

Question 17

Describe the internal organiseiaotn of the ASE

Answer 17

The ASE had a rigid administrative system, an elected Executive Council which was formally in charge and a paid General Secretary to manage the day to day affairs of the union and the co-ordination of local branches.

Question 18

The ASE had a rigid administrative system, an elected Executive Council which was formally in charge and a paid General Secretary to manage the day to day affairs of the union and the co-ordination of local branches. What was different between this and earlier unions?

Answer 18

Inescapably, no earlier union had this rigid an internal administrative structure

Question 19

What kind of level were trade societies effective on?

Answer 19

Local

Question 20

What were many early trade societies?

Answer 20

Protectionist labour exchanges

Question 21

Who had been employing the technique of strike in wales since when and what had they failed to do?

Answer 21

Coal miners since 1765 and they had failed to expand on a national level

Question 22

Summarise why a large union had not grown early on

Answer 22

Local loyalties to unions even could be said to have hindered the growth of a single national representative union by 1834.

Question 23

Why could it be said that early unions failed that was not because of government resolve?

Answer 23

It was not necessarily because of their organisation that early unions failed, but because of the strength of government resolve and population changes that reduced the role of the individual.

Question 24

What government action surrounding the 1818 strikes belongs in the internal organisation factor?

Answer 24

The fact that their initially successful strikes of 1818 were ended simply by arresting 5 of the leaders is indicative of quite how fragile their cause and indeed their support was.

Question 25

Fundamentally, what is the judgement for the early unions

Answer 25

In limited areas, early unions were highly organised, something which the Wigan Weavers were testament to. They were not, however, national nor permanent in the way that the NMUs were.

Question 26

What two reasons meant that the what union failed in 1835?

Answer 26

The Grand National because of being unable to fund itself and the document dividing it

Question 27

What two organisations failed in 1818?

Answer 27

The 1818 Philanthropic Hercules in London and the Philanthropic Society in Lancashire both failed.

Question 28

Why did the the 1818 Philanthropic Hercules in London and the Philanthropic Society in Lancashire fail?

Answer 28

they could not surmount the realistic difficulties of organising the old unions together.

Question 29

What two organisations were set up by who in 1829?

Answer 29

Grand General Union of the Operative Spinner of Great Britain and Ireland and his National Association for the Protection of Labour

Question 30

Assess the Grand General Union of the Operative Spinner of Great Britain and Ireland and his National Association for the Protection of Labour?

Answer 30

More successful than previous attempts such as the Philanthropic Society in 1818 but still lasted for fewer than 2 years

Question 31

What government act acknowledged the value of peaceful strikes?

Answer 31

The 1859 Molestation of workmen act

Question 32

How does the royal commission established to investigate the sheffield outrages show how much better organised the NMUs were?

Answer 32

When the 1867 Royal Commission was established to investigate the ‘Sheffield Outrages’ of 1866 to decide whether or not to improve the rights of the trade unions, they were particularly impressed with the organisation and funding mechanisms of the Amalgamated Societies.

Question 33

Summarise and give a judgement that shows how the government relationship with NMUs shows them to be better organised

Answer 33

The fact that governments were willing to increase rights once the NMUs had been established but had only reduced rights and sanctioned the document with the old unions is perhaps indicative of how much better organised the NMUs were.

Question 34

The fact that governments were willing to increase rights once the NMUs had been established but had only reduced rights and sanctioned the document with the old unions is perhaps indicative of how much better organised the NMUs were. What fact undermines this?

Answer 34

as late as 1870 there were 10 000 prosecutions a year in England and Wales under the 1823 Master and Servant act suggests that there fundamentally, for all the improvements, there was still a distinct and fundamental opposition between workers and employers

Question 35

What two other factors influenced government logic?

Answer 35

More liberal MPs like Peel and Hume, rather than a real change in unionism.
The French revolution had spurred many of the early government repressions of trade unionism.

Question 36

What did NMUs have to control spending?

Answer 36

Dedicated account managers

Question 37

What happened in 1868?

Answer 37

NMUs were untied under the TUC

Question 38

Which is a more important factor, money or leadership?

Answer 38

Leadership

Question 39

Why is leadership more significant than the economic factors?

Answer 39

they were now a national force and fully representative of the workers. This was key in ensuring efficiency for workers as well as strong foundations for further growth.

Question 40

How were early finances sorted?

Answer 40

A pub landlord looked after finances and kept the money in his safe

Question 41

What happened to the Tolpuddle martyrs which shows how resistant government was to early unions?

Answer 41

transported to Australia

Question 42

Is political opinion more or less important than strong leadership?

Answer 42

Less important

Question 43

What is the most important factor?

Answer 43

Strong leadership

Question 44

How many members did the ASCJ have nationally?

Answer 44

47 000

Question 45

How does technology mean that the NMUs were better organised?

Answer 45

As they were so important to industry, government couldn’t suppress them so easily.