The London dock strike formed an important breakthrough in the unionisation movement of the late nineteenth century. Although trade unions had been effectively decriminalised in 1875, unions were most prevalent among skilled craft workers, and unskilled and casual labour was still subject to exploitative and precarious conditions. The dock workers had very unpredictable working hours with few guarantees, as men would be hired on a very short-term basis (often just a few hours) when a ship came in. The strike began at the West India dock, and quickly spread to the East India and other docks, bringing the port of London to an effective standstill. The dockers met with support from diverse sources, including Cardinal Manning, and when it …
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Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "London dock strike". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 30 August 2013 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=2061, accessed 23 November 2024.]
