Why were artisans the first to organize trade unions and launch strikes

Because artisans had a long history of labor organization that dates back to the Middle Ages

Explanation:

They did not really form labor unions in the modern sense of the world until the nineteenth century, when industrializaton started, however, they had formed guilds for centuries before that. Guilds were labor organizations mainly focused on job training, and labor supply control, the latter still being one of the most important functions of most labor unions today.

We can see day, that it was only natural to expect artisans to make the transition from guilds to labor unions, and then to launch strikes.