ABSTRACT
When a mechanics union or even a textile union resorted to strike action all concerned knew that broadly speaking the same people would be working again with one another after the end of the dispute. The economic problems of semi-skilled and unskilled trade unionists were very different to those of the skilled worker and their industrial methods and tactics had to be different as well. Casual trades meant a large pool of ever available unskilled labour could replace the strikers with relative ease. This affected trade union activity. Building public support was an important part of the early Dock strike of 1889 and the development of effective picketing became of vital importance. As Saville points out [see Saville, J. Essays in Labour History, 1960] even the use of the Gas-workers slogan – ‘Eight Hours Labour’ was widely resented by the middle and upper classes as a sign of a slippery slope towards the curtailment of laissez faire.
