Through this time period artisans and workmen had begun to organise themselves into clubs for the mutual benefit of its members, whether that was insurance, higher wages, job markets or unemployment.
Trade Societies and Friendly Societies became the forerunners to the more official Trade Unions. The Friendly Societies Act 1793 gave members of these clubs the legal rights to hold meetings and have their funds protected.
However industrialisation led to the flow of workers into more concentrated areas in large cities which gave them opportunities to exchange ideas and problems. These larger populations led to improvements in efficiency and organisation.
These advancements scared the new capitalist employers who then complained to Parliament about strike threats to the ‘restraint of trade’.
This led to Parliament passing the Combination Acts of 1799 which made the combination of workers in restraint of trade (strike action) illegal thus making all associations of working men illegal.
No opposition was faced in Parliament showing the establishments support for a capitalist agenda.
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