125th ANNIVERSARY OF THE MATCH WOMEN'S STRIKE

That this House notes the 125th anniversary of the Match Women's Strike in July 2013; further notes the strike involved over 1,400 women who worked at the Bryant and May match factory in Bow, East London; further notes that the Match Women were on strike for three weeks against appalling working conditions, low pay and the use of white phosphorous which produced a terrible disease known as phossy jaw; further notes the support for the Match Women from Annie Besant, the radical member of the House Charles Bradlaugh and the London Trades Council amongst others, that the strike led to the creation of The Union of Women Matchworkers and that the strike led to a wave of new unionism in which general trade unions came into existence to represent unskilled and semi-skilled workers; and believes that the courage and the example set by the Match Women's Strike should be much more widely known.