Great Britain 1889

Synopsis

The London dock strike during the summer of 1889 was a crucial victory for British trade unionism in two main ways.First, the strike secured the "dockers' tanner," increasing pay to six pence per hour, and altered the arbitrary system of hiring ("contracting") men at the dock gates. Second, the strike marked the advance of "new unionism" or organizing among less skilled workers and deploying more militant tactics, often with socialist leaders. Although the advances of new unionism were soon contested by employers, the breakthrough could not be reversed. Public support and effective leadership were at the heart of the strike's success. Moreover, the events of 1889 were a noteworthy representation of the power and imagery of a burgeoning labor movement and of international solidarity marked by the dockers marching and demonstrating through the city of London. Australian dockers lent international support by...