Civilization / Society, Economy & Law

Trade Unions & Labour Law

Workers' associations win legal recognition (UK 1871) and bargain over wages, hours and safety.

Britain repealed the Combination Acts in 1824-25 and gave unions legal status in 1871; limits on working hours, safety rules and the ILO (1919) followed. The labour movement shaped the social insurance of the 1880s and the later welfare states.