The Dock, Wharf, Riverside and General Labourers Union (DWRGLU), often known as the Dockers' Union, 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 ...

representing dock workers in the United Kingdom.

History

The union was founded in 1887 as the Tea Operatives and General Labourers' Association, to organise opposition to a cut in wages for workers involved in unloading and processing tea at the

East and West India Dock Company East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

's Cutler Street warehouse. From the start, it included other supportive workers, with secretary Ben Tillett working at nearby Monument Quay Warehouse. Considered part of the New Unionism movement, it grew rapidly, with 2,300 members by the end of 1888.Arthur Marsh and Victoria Ryan, ''Historical Directory of Trade Unions'', vol.3, pp.280-281 The union was central to the

London dock strike of 1889 The London dock strike was an industrial dispute involving dock workers in the Port of London. It broke out on 14 August 1889, and resulted in victory for the 100,000 strikers and established strong trade unions amongst London dockers, one of whi ...

, many of the participants in the strike joining the union immediately after the strike. By the end of the year, it had 30,932 members, and had been renamed as the "Dock, Wharf, Riverside and General Labourers' Union", reflecting the broader base of its membership. However, most dock labourers working in the docks on the south bank of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

instead joined a new rival, the

South Side Labour Protection League The South Side Labour Protection League was a trade union organising dock porters and stevedores in the United Kingdom. Until the mid-1880s, dock porters in the docks on the south side of the River Thames in London were represented by the Labou ...

, in protest at the degree of centralisation in the Dockers' Union, and its refusal to allow branch meetings to take place in pubs. The Dockers' Union rapidly became the principal union for dockworkers in London,

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 ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

, and other ports in the south and south-west. In South Wales it attracted a large following amongst metal-workers.

Keith Laybourn Keith Laybourn (born 13 March 1946) is Diamond Jubilee Professor of the University of Huddersfield and Professor of History. He is a British historian of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century specialising in labour history and the work ...

, ''A History of British Trade Unionism'' (1992) pp 72-76 The union was renamed the Dock, Wharf, Riverside and General Workers' Union of Great Britain and Ireland in 1899.

Jonathan Schneer Jonathan Schneer (born August 9, 1948) is an American historian of modern Britain whose work ranges over labor, political, social, cultural, and diplomatic subjects. He is an emeritus professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology. In addition ...

, ''Ben Tillett: portrait of a labour leader'' (1982) By this time, it had lost most of its members in London, but continued to grow as more workers joined elsewhere in the country. The union was a constituent of the

National Transport Workers' Federation The National Transport Workers' Federation (NTWF) was an association of British trade unions. It was formed in 1910 to co-ordinate the activities of various organisations catering for dockers, seamen, tramwaymen and road transport workers. Histor ...

and was keen to amalgamate with other similar unions.

Ernest Bevin Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 – 14 April 1951) was a British statesman, trade union leader, and Labour Party politician. He co-founded and served as General Secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union in the years 1922–194 ...

became a prominent official in the union from 1910, and he initiated the merger process which formed the

Transport and General Workers' Union The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...

in 1922. The union published the ''Dockers' Record'' as a monthly report of its activities.

Election results

The union sponsored Labour Party candidates in two general elections, some of whom won election:

Leadership

Secretaries

:1887: Ben Tillett 1889 Frank Brien

Presidents

:1887:

Harry Orbell Harry Orbell (4 November 1860 – 27 March 1914) was a British trade unionist. Born in Bethnal Green on 4 November 1860, Henry Joseph (Harry) Orbell trained as a writing desk maker, but was unable to find sufficient work, and so instead fou ...

:1889:

Tom Mann Thomas Mann (15 April 1856 – 13 March 1941), was an English trade unionist and is widely recognised as a leading, pioneering figure for the early labour movement in Britain. Largely self-educated, Mann became a successful organiser and a ...

:1901: Thomas Merrells :1902: J. Howell :1905:

James Wignall James Wignall (21 July 1856 – 10 June 1925) was a British Labour Party politician. He sat in the House of Commons for seven years from 1918 to 1925. In 1893 Wignall was appointed Secretary of the Swansea branches of the Dockers' Union and be ...

:1908: J. Howell :1911: :1913: Dan W. Milford

References

External links

Catalogue of the DWRGLU archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick Defunct trade unions of the United Kingdom Water transport in the United Kingdom Port workers' trade unions 1887 establishments in the United Kingdom Transport and General Workers' Union amalgamations Trade unions established in 1887 Trade unions disestablished in 1922 Trade unions based in London {{UK-trade-union-stub