Joe Marino (born 1946,

Wythenshawe Wythenshawe () is a district of the city of Manchester, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Cheshire, Wythenshawe was transferred in 1931 to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a massive housing estate there in the ...

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 ...

) is a British

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 ...

. Marino joined the

Bakers, Food and Allied Workers' Union The Bakers, Food and Allied Workers' Union (BFAWU) is a trade union in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1847 in Manchester, it represents workers in the food industry. History The union dates its origin to 1847. The Manchester Friendly Association ...

(BFAWU) in his youth, and was elected as a

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 ...

in 1968. He was active in attempts to build a shop stewards' movement, and in 1971 was elected to the union's National Executive Council, soon also becoming involved in national negotiations over pay and conditions.Mark Baimbridge, Brian Burkitt and Philip Whyman, ''Implications of the Euro: A Critical Perspective from the Left'', pp.xiv-xv He had worked previously as a baker at the Old Trafford factory of Knightsbridge Cakes. BFAWU members undertook a national strike in 1978; this ended in defeat, but Marino's profile increased to the extent that he was elected as the union's general secretary the following year. At this time, he was a member of

Militant The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin " ...

, a

Trotskyist Trotskyism is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Ukrainian-Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky and some other members of the Left Opposition and Fourth International. Trotsky self-identified as an orthodox Marxist, a rev ...

group in the Labour Party. Marino left the Labour Party in the 1990s, and joined the Socialist Labour Party, for which he stood unsuccessfully in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

at the European Parliament election, 1999, championing a

Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...

position. Marino remained general secretary of BFAWU until his retirement in 2010. From 1998, he also served on the executive of the General Federation of Trade Unions, and as its chair from 2009 until 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marino, Joe 1940s births Living people General secretaries of British trade unions Militant tendency supporters Presidents of the General Federation of Trade Unions (UK) Socialist Labour Party (UK) members