Richard Pickering (22 September 1942 – 10 October 1996) 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. Born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

on 22 September 1942, Pickering became active in the local Labour Party and in the

National Union of General and Municipal Workers The GMB is a general trade union in the United Kingdom which has more than 460,000 members. Its members work in nearly all industrial sectors, in retail, security, schools, distribution, the utilities, social care, the National Health Service (N ...

.Keith Harper, "Dick Pickering: International union man", ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 12 October 1996 He began working for

Manchester City Council Manchester City Council is the local authority for Manchester, a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. Manchester is the sixth largest city in England by population. Its city council is composed of 96 councillors, three ...

in 1967, and soon became

shop steward A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company who represents and defends the interests of their fellow employees as a labor union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the union hold ...

for the city's refuse workers,

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 ...

, "Obituary: Dick Pickering", ''Annual Report of the 1996 Trades Union Congress'' then later was elected as secretary of the union's Manchester branch. In 1982, he became the chair of the union's executive, and he was subsequently also elected to the

General Council of the Trades Union Congress 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 ...

(TUC).Peter Hetherington, "Union leader quits over policy clash", ''

'', 25 March 1987 In 1987, Pickering resigned as chair of the union, by then known as the GMB, in protest at increases in membership fees and reductions in shop stewards' commission for collecting these dues. In a surprise move, he stood for the post again when a new election was held but was defeated by Olga Mean,David Gow, "AEU chief urges unions to work with ministers," ''

'', 25 March 1987 and only won the post back in 1992. This post, which was subsequently renamed "president" of the union, brought him prominence in the trade union movement; he chaired a TUC investigation into

repetitive strain injury A repetitive strain injury (RSI) is an injury to part of the musculoskeletal or nervous system caused by repetitive use, vibrations, compression or long periods in a fixed position. Other common names include repetitive stress disorders, cumula ...

, and he also represented the TUC to the

European Economic and Social Committee The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is a consultative body of the European Union (EU) established in 1958. It is an advisory assembly composed of "social partners", namely: employers ( employers' organisations), employees (trade ...

. Pickering devoted much of his spare time to supporting the

Anti-Apartheid Movement The Anti-Apartheid Movement (AAM), was a British organisation that was at the centre of the international movement opposing the South African apartheid system and supporting South Africa's non-White population who were persecuted by the policie ...

, and

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

recognized his support when the two met in 1993. Pickering also enjoyed playing and watching cricket. He died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

in 1996, shortly before he was due to become President of the TUC.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pickering, Dick 1942 births 1996 deaths Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress Trade unionists from Manchester Presidents of the GMB (trade union)