The Bristol Trades Council is a

trades council A labour council, trades council or industrial council is an association of labour unions or union branches in a given area. Most commonly, they represent unions in a given geographical area, whether at the district, city, region, or provincial or ...

representing workers in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

in England.

History

The first attempt to form a trades council in Bristol was in 1868, when the Council of Amalgamated Trades was created. However, by the following year, this had become part of the Board of Trades Delegates, a group focused on encouraging workers to vote for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

, and even this had dissolved by 1871.David Large and Robert Whitefield (1973),
The Bristol Trades Council: 1873-1973
', Bristol Branch of the Historical Association By 1873, most large cities in the UK had a trades council, and in January, John Cawsey assembled a group of trade unionists at the Cock and Bottle pub on Castle Green, where they founded the Bristol Trades Council. Initially, fifteen

craft union Craft unionism refers to a model of trade unionism in which workers are organised based on the particular craft or trade in which they work. It contrasts with industrial unionism, in which all workers in the same industry are organized into the s ...

s were affiliated, but their total membership was less than 3,000, and this figure changed little until 1890. The focus on craft exclusiveness excluded unskilled workers. Despite this, and its early insistence on remain neutral between the Liberal and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

parties, it began featuring in the city's public life, for example, by nominating a member to a committee to investigate the position of the poor people in the city. In 1885, it founded a local Labour League, to support trade unionists standing for public office. This was immediately successful, as John Fox of the Bristol, West of England and South Wales Operatives Trade and Provident Society was elected to the

School Board A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...

, while in 1887, R. G. Tovey was elected to

Bristol City Council Bristol City Council is the local authority of Bristol, England. The council is a unitary authority, and is unusual in the United Kingdom in that its executive function is controlled by a directly elected mayor of Bristol. Bristol has 34 wards ...

. The new unionism of the 1890s was supported by the trades council, and many new unions affiliated during the 1890s, taking total membership to around 10,000. During this period, it supported a wide variety of industrial action, and convinced the city council to pay its workers at union rates. It affiliated to the Labour Representation Committee, and became the body organising Labour Party activity in Bristol until 1918. It suffered divisions during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, with

Walter Ayles Walter Henry Ayles (24 March 1879 – 6 July 1953) was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for 11 years between 1923 and 1953. Early life Ayles ...

leading opposition to the war, while Frank Sheppard and

William Whitefield William Whitefield (4 January 1850 – 21 October 1926) was a British trade unionist. Born near Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Whitefield became a coal miners at the age of ten. He became active in the Northumberland Miners' Association, and served as ...

led support for it. After extended debates, it decided to oppose conscription. Although the Labour Party had split its political activity from trades councils in 1918, the following year, the trades council agreed to merge with the new Bristol Borough Labour Party, forming the Bristol Trades and Labour Council, with a full-time secretary for the first time. In 1921, it created the Bristol Unemployed Association to direct the existing movement of unemployed workers away from militant activity and towards joint campaigns with trades unions. Several other trades councils were inspired to create similar organisations, and in 1932 the

Trades Union Congress The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union centre A national trade union center (or national center or central) is a federation or confederation of trade unions in a country. Nearly every country in the world has a national tra ...

took over responsibility as part of a national scheme modeled on the Bristol example.{{cite book, last1=Clinton, first1=Alan, title=The Trade Union Rank and File: Trades Councils in Britain, 1900-40, date=1977, publisher=Manchester University Press, isbn=9780719006555, page
159
160, url=https://archive.org/details/tradeunionrankfi0000clin, url-access=registration, quote=Bristol Trades Council. The council co-ordinated local activity during the

UK general strike The 1926 general strike in the United Kingdom was a general strike that lasted nine days, from 4 to 12 May 1926. It was called by the General Council of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in an unsuccessful attempt to force the British governmen ...

, and although it had made no advance plans, its round-the-clock sessions and system of cycle messengers were deemed a success.

Secretaries

:as of 1878: George Fowler Jones :as of 1887: R. G. Tovey :1890: John Curle :to 1917: Thomas Lewis :1918: :1919: Edwin Parker :1942: E. V. Rees

Presidents

:1873: John Cawsey : :1893: Frank Sheppard : :as of 1931: A. W. Burgess : :1944: G. Bullock :1946: :1949: G. Bullock :1951: :1952:

Jessie Stephen Jessie Stephen, Order of the British Empire, MBE (19 April 1893 12 June 1979) was a twentieth-century British suffragette, labour activist and local councillor. She grew up in Scotland and won a scholarship to train as a teacher. Family financ ...

External links

Official website

References

Trade unions in the United Kingdom Politics of Bristol Trades councils 1873 establishments in England Trade unions established in 1873