In 1890 Mundella became chairman of the Trade and Treaties Committee, responsible for keeping the Board of Trade informed on expiring treaties and new tariffs and duties. In 1891 and 1892, on the urging of Gladstone, he became an Opposition frontbench representative on the Royal Commission on Labour. He chaired the section dealing with conditions in the chemical, building, textile, clothing and miscellaneous trades. Remarkably, he was also able to institute the appointment of four women inspectors to examine the position of women in industry.