Historical Directory Of Trade Unions Including Unions In Printing And Publishing Local Government Retail And Distribution Domestic Services General Employment Financial Services Agriculture

Despite widespread interest in the trade union movement and its history, it has never been easy to trace the development of individual unions, especially those now defunct, or where name changes or mergers have confused the trail. In this respect the standard histories and industrial studies tend to stimulate curiosity rather than satisfy it. When was a union founded? When did it merge or dissolve itself, or simply disappear? What records survive and where can further details of its history be found? These are the kinds of question the Directory sets out to answer. Each entry is arranged according to a standard plan, as follows: 1. Name of union; 2. Foundation date: Name changes (if any) and relevant dates. Any amalgamation or transfer of engagements. Cessation, winding up or disappearance, with date and reasons where appropriate and available; 3. Characteristics of: membership, leadership, policy, outstanding events, membership (numbers). 4. Sources of information: books, articles, minutes etc; location of documentation.

If you want to find out about the life of an ancestor who was active in the labor movement or was a union member, this handbook will be a fascinating introduction to the subject. Mark Crail provides a graphic and authoritative account of the history of the labor movement in Britain from the early nineteenth century to the modern day. He gives a vivid insight into the key stages in the development of labor relations - the battles fought by labor movement pioneers, the formation of the first unions, the influence of Chartism and the early socialist societies, the rise of the Labor Party and other left-wing groups, and the impact of organized labor on workers lives as ordinary people gradually won the right to vote over the course of 200 years. At the same time he describes in detail the various books, museums, archives, websites and other resources that researchers can use to explore labor history for themselves and to uncover the careers and experience of their ancestors. A mass of information is available relating to individuals and to labor history in general, and this handbook is an invaluable guide to it. 'Tracing Your Labor Movement Ancestors' should be essential reading for anyone who wishes to learn about the origins and development of the labor movement and the role of individuals within it.