Trade Unions and Industrial Unrest

Question 1

What did trade union membership increase by between 1910-14?

Answer 1

2.5 million to 4 million

Question 2

What was the trend of trade union membership during WW1?

Answer 2

The trend would continue strongly during the war and into the post-war period.

Question 3

When was the Triple Alliance formed?

Answer 3

1915

Question 4

How many members did the Triple Alliance have?

Answer 4

1.3 million

Question 5

What was the Triple Alliance?

Answer 5

The triple alliance was made up of railway workers, miners and transport workers.

Question 6

What were the main 3 reasons for strikes?

Answer 6

-From 1900 the value of real
+wages was gradually falling due to rises in the cost of living
-From 1910 there was a fall in the levels of unemployment which gave workers more confidence to confront employers.
-The middle and upper classes’ conditions were actually improving, which created bitterness amongst the working class, whose living standards had worsened.

Question 7

Describe the strikes in 1910.

Answer 7

The first major confrontation came in the South Wales coalfield in the autumn. Militancy in the area had increased for a number of years and had resulted in a rash of strikes causing confrontation between authorities and strikers.