John Anderson 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 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 ( ...

leader. Anderson was a member of the

Amalgamated Society of Engineers The Amalgamated Society of Engineers (ASE) was a major British trade union, representing factory workers and mechanics. History The history of the union can be traced back to the formation of the Journeymen Steam Engine, Machine Makers' and M ...

(ASE), and served for many years as its

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 ...

District Secretary.

, ''Amalgamated Society of Engineers: Jubilee Souvenir 1901'', p.86 In 1883, he was elected as the third assistant secretary of the union. In 1887, Anderson stood to become general secretary of the ASE. He took 9,100 votes, and was narrowly defeated by Robert Austin, who won 9,956 votes. Austin died in 1891, and Anderson stood in the election to replace him, proposing a relatively conservative platform of maintaining the union's positions. On this occasion, he narrowly won, with 18,102 votes to 17,152 for the socialist

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 ...

, and 738 for William Glennie. Anderson took up the general secretaryship in April 1892. At the same time, the union agreed to a major reorganisation, including a full-time executive council and full-time regional officers; an orientation towards standing candidates in Parliamentary elections; the admission of apprentices into probationary membership; and the creation of a pension fund for members. Anderson personally was active in 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 its

Parliamentary Committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

for a year, and representing the TUC at the Zurich International Congress. In 1895,

George Nicoll Barnes George Nicoll Barnes (2 January 1859 – 21 April 1940) was a British Labour politician and a Leader of the Labour Party (1910–1911). Early life Barnes was born on 2 January 1859 in Lochee, Dundee, the second of five sons of James Barnes, a ...

, one of the ASE's assistant secretaries, resigned his post, arguing that the union was insufficiently militant, and that the executive council monopolised power. He challenged Anderson for the general secretaryship, and came close, Anderson winning by 12,910 votes to 11,603. However, the following year, Anderson was dismissed by the union executive on a charge of "wilful neglect of duty". He was permitted to stand for re-election, but could only take second place, 8,000 votes behind Barnes.Alan Haworth and Dianne Hayter, ''Men Who Made Labour'', p.24

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, John Year of birth missing Year of death missing Trade unionists from Manchester General Secretaries of the Amalgamated Engineering Union Members of the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress