Women and Trade-Unionism, 1890–1914

Trade unions and women workers grew in numbers between 1890 and 1914. However, the majority of women workers remained outside the ranks of the trade union movement. Despite many other problems of trade union organization of women between 1890 and the First World War, one enduring feature was the continued existence of the Women's Protection and Provident League (WPPL). The WPPL was the organizational residue of the years of heightened industrial conflict and trade union growth. The primary function of the WPPL was to encourage the trade union organization of women. However, the composition of the WPPL made its philosophy governed more by philanthropic concerns than by aggressive trade unionism.