Dramatic Interlude No. 2
' The Sheffield Outrages ' or ' Trades Unions at the Crossroads'
By R. S. LAMBERT
Produced by J. INGLIS
Cast :
Time: 1867-1869
Place : First at various Public Houses in Sheffield; subsequently in London, at Whitehall, and at the offices of the Amalgamated Society of Engineers, etc.
BROADCASTS in this series to date have been designed to show listeners the necessity for trade unions ; they are to hear now of their development.
After various failures, the movement revived again in the late 'forties, 'fifties, and 'sixties, and its progress was due in the main to the amalgamation of small unions into large ones. There were three factors against peaceful progress all the time: (1) Strikes and lock-outs, which invariably went against the workers; (2) A tradition of violence on the part of the small unions; (3) The lack of legal protection for Trade Union funds.
A series of riots at Sheffield and Manchester in 1865 to 1866 led to the appointment of a Royal Commission to investigate the general state of Trade Unionism. The employers' representatives demanded severe restrictions on the freedom of the Unions, but the large Unions saw and seized the opportunity to bring forward evidence which showed without doubt that an improvement in Trade Union status would make both for responsibility and for moderation. Thus a legal basis of Trade Unionism was defined and secured.
This dramatic interlude deals with the Sheffield Outrages, and shows their cause and effect.
An article on the Sheffield Outrages, by R. S. Lambert , will* be found on page 261.