British police strikes in 1918 and 1919

The Police Strikes of 1918 and 1919 in the United Kingdom resulted in the British government putting before Parliament its proposals for a Police Act, which established the Police Federation of England and Wales as the representative body for the police. The Act barred police from belonging to a trade union or affiliating with any other trade union body. This Act, drafted and passed into law, was passed in response to the formation of the National Union of Police and Prison Officers (NUPPO). A successful police strike in 1918 and another strike in June 1919 led to the suppression of the union by the government. On 1 August 1919, the Police Act of 1919 passed into law. Only token opposition from a minority of Labour Members of Parliament was voiced in Parliament.

The police strikes took place at a time of social unrest, which was widespread in several English-speaking nations and colonies during 1919 in the first year after the Great War. Race riots broke out in Liverpool, London and seven other major ports. In some cases, Afro- and Caribbean British were competing with Swedish immigrant workers, and both with native men from the British Isles. The union and racial unrest, including police strikes, also occurred in major cities in the United States, Caribbean and South Africa in this period. The economic competition of veterans trying to re-enter the job market and social displacement after the war heightened racial tensions and was expressed through riots of whites against blacks.

In 1870, police in Newcastle upon Tyne were recorded as 'in dispute' with their local Watch Committee over conditions of work and low pay, though they did not withdraw from duty. Two years later in 1872, 179 men of the Metropolitan Police refused to report for duty. They were protesting the poor conditions of their service and low pay, as had the police in Newcastle upon Tyne. The police were back on the beat within hours. Of the 179 men who refused duty, 69 were dismissed from the force. The rest were allowed back on duty after having had apologised for their conduct. They gained improvements in pay and conditions. This action was significant for establishing a precedent for collective action by police in order to improve working conditions.

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