1. Aim: Examine Unionization and Legislative Reform

2. Unionization
Factory workers faced long hours, dirty and dangerous conditions, & the threat of being laid off
To press for reforms, workers joined together in voluntary labor associations called unions.
Union spoke for all the workers in a particular trade
Unions engaged in collective bargaining, negotiations between workers and their employers
If owners refused these demands, union members could strike or refuse to work 2

3. Unions in Great Britain
Union movement underwent slow, painful growth in Britain
British government denied workers the right to form unions
Government saw unions as a threat to social order and stability
Combination Acts of 1799 & 1800
Outlawed unions and strikes
Factory workers joined unions anyway
1824: Parliament repealed the Combination Acts
British unions shared goals of raising wages & improving working conditions for their members 3

4. Reform Laws
Reformers and unions forced political leaders to look into abuses caused by industrialization
New laws reformed some of the worst abuses of industrialization
1820’s & 1830’s: Parliament began investigating child labor & working conditions in factories
1833: Parliament passed the Factory Act- Illegal to hire children under 9 years old
Children ages 9-12 couldn’t work more than 8 hours
1842: Mines Act prevented women & children from working underground
1847: Ten Hours Act- Limited workday to ten hours for women & children who worked in factories 4