The Silk Mill Lock Out was the first major industrial dispute in Britain, which along with the struggle of Tolpuddle, marked the birth of the trade union movement. Image credit: Shutterstock.
Set in the heart of Derby at the site of the old Silk Mill, Derby TUC once again organises the Silk Mill Festival to commemorate the Silk Mill worker’s struggle of 1833.
On Saturday 8 June, the free festival will bring together families, workers and trade unionists to celebrate in solidarity.
The history of the Silk Mill Lock Out
The Silk Mill Lock Out was the first major industrial dispute in Britain, which along with the struggle of Tolpuddle, marked the birth of the trade union movement.
In 1833, mill bosses locked out workers for refusing to accept pay cuts and forming a trade union, leading to a year long dispute.
Workers were met with the full force of the Government and the Army in an attempt to force them back to work.
However, this was not before hundreds of other workers across the city joined the locked-out workers and stayed on strike for nearly a year.
As a trade union, the MU is proud to support the Silk Mill Festival and the history it commemorates, especially as workers to this day struggle to get decent pay, terms and conditions, and job security.
About the event
The festival will begin with a march from Derby Market Square at 10:15am, which will parade through the streets to the Festival site at Cathedral Green.
It’s a fun-packed day of activities for the whole family including live music, food and drink, face painting and speeches from the trade union community.
And it’s free to enter! Derby TUC Silk Mill Festival is not called the People’s Festival for nothing! Come along and say hello to fellow union members and come and chat to us at our stall there.
For more information, including march and rally times/locations, and details of the line-up for speakers and festival entertainment, please visit TUC’s event page or contact Moz Greenshields at mozgreenshilds@gmail.com.