Audrey Mary Prime (1915 – 2 May 2001) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

trade unionist A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

Career

Prime grew up in

Sutton-in-Ashfield Sutton-in-Ashfield is a market town in Nottinghamshire, England, with a population of 36,404 in 2021. It is the largest town in the district of Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, Ashfield, four miles west of Mansfield, from the Derbyshire border and ...

and attended the local grammar school. She began working in

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

as a shorthand typist at the town hall in

Kirkby-in-Ashfield Kirkby-in-Ashfield is a market town in the Ashfield District of Nottinghamshire, England. With a population of 25,265 (according to the 2001 National Census), it is a part of the wider Mansfield Urban Area. Kirkby-in-Ashfield lies on the ea ...

in 1936, immediately after leaving school, and joined the

National Association of Local Government Officers The National and Local Government Officers' Association was a British trade union representing mostly local government "white collar" workers. It was formed in 1905 as the National Association of Local Government Officers, and changed its full ...

(NALGO). She was soon elected to a local union committee, then in 1944 began working full-time for the union in London. She was appointed as assistant national organiser of the union's local government section in 1957, then in 1962 as its national organiser for health staffs. From then until 1972, she also chaired the staff side of the

Whitley Council Whitley may refer to: Places ;United Kingdom *Whitley, Berkshire, a suburb of Reading *Whitley, Cheshire, a village near Warrington *Whitley, Coventry, a suburb of Coventry, West Midlands *Whitley, Essex, near Birdbrook * Whitley, Wigan, Greater ...

for Professional and Technical staff, and for Administrative and Clerical Staffs. Prime also became active at the

Trades Union Congress The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union center, national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions that collectively represent most unionised workers in England and Wales. There are 48 affiliated unions with a total of ...

(TUC), and in 1968 was elected to the

General Council of the TUC The General Council of the Trades Union Congress is an elected body which is responsible for carrying out the policies agreed at the annual British Trades Union Congresses (TUC). Organisation The council has 56 members, all of whom must be proposed ...

, one of only two women to serve on it in this period. She was the founding chair of the TUC's Health Services Committee, and also served on its Economic Committee, International Committee, Social Insurance and Industrial Welfare Committee, Employment Policy and Organisation Committee, Equal Rights Committee and Women's Advisory Committee. In addition, she was a member of the Consultative Committee on Women Workers of the

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) was an international trade union. It came into being on 7 December 1949 following a split within the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), and was dissolved on 31 October 2006 whe ...

. In 1977, Prime retired from her trade union posts, but she continued to serve on the

Royal Commission on the National Health Service The Royal Commission on the National Health Service was a Royal commission set up by the Wilson government in 1975. It was to consider the "best use and management of the financial and manpower resources of the NHS". The Royal Commission reporte ...

, and also chaired a committee which set pay scales for TUC staff. Prime was made an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in the

1975 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1975 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1975 to celebr ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prime, Audrey 1915 births 2001 deaths British trade unionists Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress People from Sutton-in-Ashfield