The Monmouthshire and South Wales Miners' Association was a

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 ( ...

representing coal miners in south eastern Wales. Miners in Monmouthshire were organised in the 1870s in various small unions affiliated to the

Amalgamated Association of Miners The Amalgamated Association of Miners (AAM) was formed in 1869 in Lancashire, at a time of increasing industrial conflict in the British coalfields. History The union was founded by Thomas Halliday and William Pickard, two miners' union agents who ...

. This collapsed in 1875, and there was little trade union activity until 1886, when A. Stanley represented Monmouthshire miners at a conference of the

Miners' National Union The Miners' National Union (MNU) was a trade union which represented miners in Great Britain. History The union was founded in November 1863 at a five-day long conference at the People's Hall in Leeds. It was originally known as the National Ass ...

(MNU). This provided the spur for the formation of the Monmouthshire Miners' Association, in January 1888, which affiliated to the MNU. Unlike the

Cambrian Miners' Association The Cambrian Miners' Association, also known as the Rhondda District Miners' Association, was an early trade union representing coal miners in the Rhondda Valley, in Wales. The Amalgamated Association of Miners (AAM) began recruiting members in ...

, the Monmouthshire Miners opposed the sliding scale of wages, whereby payments varied in accordance with the export price of coal. In 1889, the Miners' Federation of Great Britain (MFGB) was established at a conference in

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

. The Monmouthshire Miners was a founding member, and the MFGB shared its position on the sliding scale. In the hope of recruiting more widely, the union changed its name to the Monmouthshire and South Wales Miners' Association. In 1892, the union joined a committee, which for the first time brought together those Welsh coal-mining unions which supported the sliding scale, and those which did not. Subsequently, the employers ended the sliding scale in response to the

Welsh coal strike of 1898 The Welsh coal strike of 1898 was an industrial dispute involving the colliers of South Wales and Monmouthshire. The strike began as an attempt by the colliers to remove the sliding scale, which determined their wage based on the price of coal. ...

. This led the Monmouthshire Miners to merge with the other local unions, forming the

South Wales Miners' Federation The South Wales Miners' Federation (SWMF), nicknamed "The Fed", was a trade union for coal miners in South Wales. It survives as the South Wales Area of the National Union of Mineworkers. Forerunners The Amalgamated Association of Miners (AA ...

. The union was led by Samuel Mills, its general secretary, and its agents,

William Brace William Brace (23 September 1865 – 12 October 1947) was a Welsh trade unionist and Liberal and Labour politician. Early life and career Born in Risca, in the coal-mining district of Monmouthshire, he was one of six children of Thomas and Ann ...

and Ben Davies.{{cite news , title=Miners' Federation of Great Britain , work=South Wales Echo , date=25 September 1893

General Secretaries

:1888: Samuel Mills :1895: Moses Severn

References

Trade unions established in 1888 Trade unions disestablished in the 1890s Defunct trade unions of the United Kingdom Mining trade unions Coal mining in Wales Monmouthshire Trade unions in Wales