For a long time, Swedish legislation contained obstacles to the formation of unions, negotiations and industrial actions as means of influencing working conditions. Most of these obstacles were abolished when freedom of trade was introduced in 1864. It is true that the Statute on Vagrancy of 1833 followed a tradition from medieval times by prescribing compulsory annual employment for poor people, which meant that a worker who refused to obey orders could be taken into custody as a vagrant and compelled to do forced labour.This method was used in1879 against striking sawmill workers in Sundsvall. In1885, however, the rules on compulsory employment were abolished, and so was the important, century-old legal obstacle to refuse work tasks.377 When the trade union movement gained strength, the state authorities began to question the far-reaching freedom of downing tools.Three legislative methods were discussed to limit strikes and establish increased protection for those workers who did not wish to partake in a strike, namely, legislation concerning either criminal law sanctions, individual contracts of employment or mandatory arbitration of labour conflicts.378 p a r t i v, c h a p t e r 8 182 8The road to recognition 1885-1914 8. 1 re pre s s ion or tole rat ion? 1885-1905 377 Gårdlund 1942, p. 275; Eklund 1974, pp. 208-209; Karlbom1979, pp. 117, 195; Göransson 1988, pp. 87-96, 414-415. 378 Westerståhl 1945, pp. 13, 238; Göransson1988, p. 162; Kjellberg 2000, p. 164; Linderborg 2001, p. 336.
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