National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers
Former trade union of the United Kingdom
National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers
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Merged into | Transport and General Workers Union |
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Founded | 1936 |
Dissolved | 1982 |
Headquarters | National House, Bradford |
Location | |
Members
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85,500 (1939) [1] |
Key people
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Jack Peel, Bill Maddocks |
Affiliations | ITGLWF , Labour Party , NAUTT , TUC |
The National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers (NUDBTW) was a trade union in the United Kingdom .
History
The union was founded in 1936 with the merger of the National Union of Textile Workers , which was the main union representing workers in the woollen and worsted industries, the Amalgamated Society of Dyers, Finishers and Kindred Trades , and the Operative Bleachers, Dyers and Finishers Association , which represented workers in Lancashire . [2] [3] The NUDBTW represented a membership of 85,500 in 1939, of whom 25,500 were women. [1] Dyeing and finishing were predominantly male trades, and thus had a greater union presence than other sections of the British textile industry. The woollen and worsted industries, by contrast, were poorly organised. [4] Closed shop agreements covered the majority of workers employed in textile finishing. [5]
From 1966 to 1973, the union was led by Jack Peel , a controversial figure who left to work for the European Economic Community and later led many attacks on trade unions in the UK. One successor, Bill Maddocks, described him as a " Judas ". Under Maddocks' leadership, the union became more campaigning, particularly in opposing the use of benzidine -based dyes. [6]
By the start of the 1980s, membership had fallen to 56,843 due to widespread job losses in the industry. However, membership was boosted when several other unions joined the NUDBTW: the Union of Jute, Flax and Kindred Textile Operatives in 1979, [6] and the Yorkshire Society of Textile Craftsmen and the Huddersfield and District Healders and Twisters Trade and Friendly Society in 1980. [7] After initially considering amalgamation with the National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers the NUDBTW merged into the Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU) in 1982, forming a Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers Trade Group within the TGWU. Existing members of the TGWU who worked in the textile industry transferred into the new trade group, doubling its size. [8] [9]
Election results
The union sponsored a Labour Party candidate at the 1955 general election . [10]
Election | Constituency | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Position |
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1955 general election | Shipley | Ernest Gardner | 17,251 | 43.3 | 2 |
General Secretaries
- 1936: Arthur Shaw
- 1939: George Bagnall
- 1948: Wilfred Heywood
- 1957: Leonard Sharp
- 1966: Jack Peel
- 1973: Fred Dyson
- 1979: Bill Maddocks
See also
References
- 1 2 Cole, G.D.H. (1939). British Trade Unionism Today . Gollancz. p. 251.
- ↑ Lemon, Hugo. How to find out about the wool textile industry . p. 74.
- ↑ Cole, G.D.H. (1939). British Trade Unionism Today . Gollancz. p. 393.
- ↑ Cole, G.D.H. (1939). British Trade Unionism Today . Gollancz. p. 377.
- ↑ McCarthy, William Edward John (1964). The Closed Shop in Britain . University of California Press . p. 39.
- 1 2 Exton, Jack; Gill, Colin (1981). The Trade Union Directory . London: Pluto Press. p. 179.
- ↑ Chaison, Gary N. (1996). Union Mergers in Hard Times: The View from Five Countries . Ithaca, N.Y.: ILR Press. p. 175 . ISBN 9780801483806 .
- ↑ Chaison, Gary. Union Mergers in Hard Times . p. 176.
- ↑ Waddington, Jeremy; Kahmann, Marcus; Hoffmann, Jürgen (2005). A Comparison of the Trade Union Merger Process in Britain and Germany: Joining forces? . Abingdon: Routledge . p. 124. ISBN 0-415-35378-5 . Retrieved 11 April 2013 .
- ↑ Report of the Fifty-Fourth Annual Conference of the Labour Party (Report). pp. 255–275.
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