William McCall (6 July 1929 – 15 April 2021) was a British

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

leader. McCall attended

Dumfries Academy Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from the ...

before joining the

Civil Service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

in 1946. After a short period studying at

Ruskin College Ruskin College, originally known as Ruskin Hall, Oxford, is an independent educational institution in Oxford, England. It is not a college of Oxford University. It is named after the essayist, art and social critic John Ruskin (1819–1900) an ...

, he moved to work for the Social Insurance Department of 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 ...

(TUC) in 1954. Four years later, he joined the

Institution of Professional Civil Servants The Institution of Professionals, Managers and Specialists (IPMS) was a trade union representing managers and other people with professional qualifications in the United Kingdom, with a majority of members working in the civil service. History ...

(IPCS) as its Assistant Secretary.McCall, William
, ''

Who's Who ''Who's Who'' (or ''Who is Who'') is the title of a number of reference publications, generally containing concise biography, biographical information on the prominent people of a country. The title has been adopted as an expression meaning a gr ...

'' In 1963, McCall was appointed as General Secretary of the IPCS. In this role, he also joined the National Whitley Council for the civil service, chairing it from 1969 to 1971. In 1984, he 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 Trade Union Congresses (TUC). Organisation The council has 56 members, all of whom must be proposed ...

, while he also served on the Eastern Electricity Board and the Post Office Arbitration Tribunal. McCall retired from his trade union posts in 1989, becoming a member of the council of

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wo ...

, and joining the

Police Complaints Authority This is a list of notable authorities, agencies and similar bodies that are responsible for investigating or responding to complaints about police. Asia Hong Kong *Independent Police Complaints Council India * Police Complaints Authority (In ...

. In 1994, he joined the council of the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

, retiring completely in 1997. He died on 15 April 2021 at the age of 91.

References

1929 births 2021 deaths Alumni of Ruskin College People educated at Dumfries Academy British trade union leaders Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress People from Dumfries {{UK-trade-unionist-bio-stub