The Combinations of Workmen Act 1825 had limited worker collective bargaining to matters of working hours and wages, and suppressed the right to strike.
The majority report of the Commission was hostile to the idea of decriminalising trade unions. Frederic Harrison, Thomas Hughes and the Earl of Lichfield produced their own minority report, recommending the following changes in the law:
Combinations of workers should not be liable for conspiracy unless it would be criminal if committed by a single person.
In its passage through Parliament, Mr Bruce introduced the First Reading of the Bill, quoting the Minority Report.[2]
Provisions of the Act
Section 2 provided that the purposes of trade unions should not, although possibly deemed to be in restraint of trade, be deemed unlawful to make any member liable for criminal prosecution.
Section 3 said the restraint of trade doctrine should not make any trade union agreements or trusts void or voidable.
Section 4 stated that any trade union agreements were not directly enforceable or subject to claims for damages for breach. This was designed to ensure that courts did not interfere in union affairs.
Section 6 provided a system of voluntary registration, which carried some small advantages.
