The Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section (TASS) 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 ( ...

History

The union was founded in 1913 by 200

draughtsmen A drafter (also draughtsman / draughtswoman in British and Commonwealth English, draftsman / draftswoman or drafting technician in American and Canadian English) is an engineering technician who makes detailed technical drawings or plans for m ...

, as the Association of Engineering and Shipbuilding Draughtsmen (AESD). It expanded rapidly, and had more than 14,000 member by the end of the decade. Although it declined during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, it retained most of its members by offering unemployment benefit, and by 1939 established a new high of 23,000 members, this rising to 44,000 by the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and over 75,000 by 1968. From 1960, it accepted technicians in ancillary roles, changing its name to the Draughtsmen's and Allied Technicians' Association (DATA).Peter Armstrong et al, ''White Collar Workers Trade Unions and Class'', pp. 163–164. In 1970, DATA amalgamated with the

Amalgamated Union of Engineering and Foundry Workers The Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) was a major British trade union. It merged with the Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunications and Plumbing Union to form the Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union in 1992. History The history of t ...

(AUEFW) and

Constructional Engineering Union The Constructional Engineering Union (CEU) was a trade union representing steel erectors and other workers involved in steel construction in the United Kingdom. History The union was founded in 1924 as a section of the Iron and Steel Trades Co ...

(CEU) to form the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers (AUEW). The former members of DATA formed the Technical and Supervisory Section of the new union. At the 1973 Representative Council Conference it was agreed to rename it the Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section (TASS). In 1985, after considerable problems within the AUEW, TASS broke away to become an independent union. TASS absorbed the National Union of Gold, Silver and Allied Trades (NUGSAT) in 1981, the

National Union of Sheet Metal Workers, Coppersmiths, Heating and Domestic Engineers The National Union of Sheet Metal Workers, Coppersmiths, Heating and Domestic Engineers was a trade union in the United Kingdom and Ireland. History The union was founded in July 1920 as the National Union of Sheet Metal Workers and Braziers wit ...

in 1983, the Association of Patternmakers and Allied Craftsmen in 1984, the

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in 1986, and the

National Society of Metal Mechanics The National Society of Metal Mechanics (NSMM) was a trade union in the United Kingdom which existed between 1872 and 1985. History The organisation was founded in Birmingham in 1872 as the Amalgamated Brassworkers Society. Led for many years ...

in 1987. In 1988, it merged with the

Association of Scientific, Technical and Managerial Staffs The Association of Scientific, Technical and Managerial Staffs (ASTMS) was a British trade union which existed between 1969 and 1988. History The ASTMS was created in 1969 when ASSET (the Association of Supervisory Staffs, Executives and Techni ...

(ASTMS) to become the

Manufacturing Science and Finance Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a range ...

Union (MSF). MSF in turn merged with the

AEEU The Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union (AEEU) was a British trade union. It merged with the MSF to form Amicus in 2001. History The union was founded in 1992, when the Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) finally achieved a merger w ...

to form Amicus in 2002. This resulted in TASS and the former AUEW (by then part of the AEEU) being re-united within one union.

Election results

The union sponsored Labour Party candidates in each Parliamentary election from 1950 onwards.

Leadership

General Secretaries

:1913: L. Blair :1918:

Peter Doig Peter Doig ( ; born 17 April 1959) is a Scottish painter. One of the most renowned living figurative painters, he has settled in Trinidad since 2002. In 2007, his painting ''White Canoe'' sold at Sotheby's for $11.3 million, then an auction rec ...

:1945: James Young :1952:

George Doughty George Doughty may refer to: * George Doughty (politician) * George Doughty (trade unionist) George Henry Doughty (17 May 1911 – 25 July 1998) was a British people, British trade union leader. Early life and career Born in Birmingham to pa ...

:1974:

Ken Gill Ken Gill (30 August 1927 – 23 May 2009) was a British trade union leader. He was the General Secretary of the Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section (TASS), from 1974 to 1988, when it merged with ASTMS to form the Manufacturing, Sc ...

Assistant General Secretaries

:1919: David Manteklow :1920: David Manteklow and James Young :1929: ''Post vacant'' :1946: John Holland :1956: J. Dickinson

Deputy General Secretaries

:1968:

:1973: John Forrester :1979: Eric Winterbottom :1983: Barbara Switzer

References

External links

Catalogue of the TASS archives
held at the

Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick The Modern Records Centre (MRC) is the specialist archive service of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, located adjacent to the Central Campus Library. It was established in October 1973 and holds the world's largest archive collecti ...

.
Catalogue of the DATA archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick. {{portal, Organized labour 1913 establishments in the United Kingdom 1988 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Amalgamated Engineering Union Defunct trade unions of the United Kingdom Trade unions established in 1913 Trade unions disestablished in 1988 Trade unions based in London