1890년대 신조합주의와 영국 여성노동조합운동

The New Unionism in the 1890's and British Women's Trade Unionism

Women activists for equal rights led the British women's labor movement in 1870's and 1880's. But in the end of 1890's, the movement for equal rights could not lead the women's labor movement any more. At that time the New Unionism appeared as a new alternative for women's labor movement. The New Unionism based on socialism thought that issues of women labours came from the unequal relations between labour and capital. They suggested that issues of working women could be solved through the solidarity of labour class and the extension of the women's protective legislation. With this progress the camp of women activists for equal rights, which had been united in the opposition against women's protective legislation, was splitted. In the 1890's women's trade unionism based on the New Unionism, with the support of women workers, led the British women's labor movement. To the contrary, the movement for equal rights rapidly lost the influences on women's labor movement. Women's trade unionism extended the extent of women's protective legislation, and they actively organized their local chapters, not only in London but also in many other cities. However, from the late 1890's, the women's trade unionism based on the New Unionism began to decline. The economic recession of the period brought the change. But the chronic women's sweated labour, deep rooted exclusivism of men workers, and the proper conditions of women like pregnancy and childbirth, should be counted as more basic obstacles to the women's trade unionism. Though the New Unionism contributed to the expansion of class consciousness among women workers, and activated the women's trade unionism, it failed to become the alternative to overcome the chronic issues of women labours.