Hubert Nathaniel Critchlow

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(18 December 1884 – 14 May 1958) is notable as the founder of the modern trade union movement in

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

Background

Critchlow was born in

Georgetown, Guyana Georgetown is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Guyana. It is situated in Demerara-Mahaica, region 4, on the Atlantic Ocean coast, at the mouth of the Demerara River. It is nicknamed the "Garden City of the Caribbean." It is t ...

. Little is known of his early childhood but in his late teens, after leaving school, he was a dock worker. At the age of 21, he began his struggle for the interest of waterfront workers' wage negotiations and rights. His struggle continued into 1917 when he founded the

British Guiana Labor Union 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, ...

(BGLU). The BGLU is officially the first trade union in the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

. In 1945 he attended the

World Trade Union Conference The World Trade Union Conference between 6–17 February 1945 was participated in by countries from all around the world, at County Hall, London. Regarded as a significant moment within the international labour movement as it was the first time tha ...

as President of the British Guiana Trades Union Council. Often referred to as 'The father of Trade Unions', Critchlow was the first man in British Guiana to formalize labor negotiations. He died in Georgetown in 1958.

Legacy

On 2 December 1964 then premier of Guyana, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, unveiled a bronze statue of Critchlow in the compound of the Parliament Building. Hubert Nathaniel Critchlow devoted his life to changing the harsh conditions under which men were forced to work in those days. His work is especially remembered on 1 May, which is designated as: * Labor Day * Workers' Day * May Day. On this day, wreaths are laid at the base of Critchlow's statue by leaders of the government and prominent trades unionists. Workers parade through the streets of the township dressed in red and white. They march under the banner of their particular trade union in a show of solidarity for workers' rights

References

Guyanese trade unionists 1884 births 1958 deaths Afro-Guyanese people People from Georgetown, Guyana {{worker-activist-stub