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Francis Chandler (1849 – 6 October 1937) was a
Francis Chandler (1849 – 6 October 1937) was a British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
trade unionist
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 Employee ben ...
.
Born in Harrow, Chandler became an apprentice joiner
A joiner is an artisan and tradesperson who builds things by joining pieces of wood, particularly lighter and more ornamental work than that done by a carpenter, including furniture and the "fittings" of a house, ship, etc. Joiners may work in ...
in Notting Hill
Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road M ...
at the age of fourteen. On completing the apprenticeship, he joined the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners
The Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners (ASC&J) was a New Model Trade Union in the 1860s in the United Kingdom, representing carpenters and joiners.
History
The formation of the Society was spurred by the Stonemason's strike, 1859, ...
(ASC&J). Later in 1872, he became the secretary of the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners in its Hammersmith
Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
...
branch.Samuel Higenbottam, ''Our Society's History''
In 1876, Chandler became secretary of the London United Trades Committee, a body bringing together various building trades unions in the city. The following year, there was a major strike among union members 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 ...
, and Chandler co-ordinated fund-raising in London, sending £50 to £60 each week to the striking trade unionists. As a result of his efforts, his health suffered, and he stood down as secretary soon afterwards.
Chandler was also elected to the general council of the ASC&J in 1876, and when the union's general secretary, J. S. Murchie, died in 1888, he won the election for the post.Francis Chandler, ''Amalgamated Society of Carpenters & Joiners: History of the Society, 1860-1910'' While in office, Chandler served on the Royal Commission on the Poor Laws,"Mr Francis Chandler", ''Manchester 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 ...
'', 8 October 1937 signing the minority report
Minority Report may refer to:
* Minority report (Poor Law), published by the UK Royal Commission on the Poor Laws and Relief of Distress 1905–09
* "Minority Report", a 1949 science fiction short story by Theodore Sturgeon
* "The Minority Report ...
. Chandler also represented the union at 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), serving on the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress
A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...
on several occasions, and chairing the committee in 1899. He represented the TUC to the American Federation of Labour
The American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States that continues today as the AFL-CIO. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions eager to provide mutual ...
in 1901.
In his spare time, Chandler served on the Chorlton Board of Guardians, becoming its chairman in 1906.
Chandler retired in 1919, but maintained his connection with the union and its successor, the Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers
The Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers (ASW) was a British trade union representing carpenters, joiners and allied trades. The ASW was formed in 1921 by the amalgamation of two smaller unions. It was itself merged into the Union of Constructio ...
, which marked his seventy-year-long membership shortly before his death in 1937.
References