Frayne was born in Reddish and worked for several years as a stripper-and-grinder in a cotton mill in Stockport.
He was active in the Stockport Card, Blowing and Ring Room Operatives' Association, and in about 1916, he was appointed as full-time secretary of the union.
The union was affiliated to the Cardroom Amalgamation (CWA), and Frayne was accordingly appointed to its executive committee.
[2] In 1932, Frayne's two sons, aged eight and five, drowned in a pond in Reddish, the older boy while trying to save the younger.
[3] Frayne stood down as president of the CWA in 1936 to serve a two-year term as chair of the General Federation of Trade Unions.