Matthew Arrandale (died 18 September 1913) 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 ...

and politician. Born in the Clayton area of

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 ...

, Arrandale's father was killed in a mining accident. As a result, Arrandale was sent out to work at the age of nine, working as a half-timer in a cotton mill. Four years later, he began working full-time in a dye works. General Federation of Trade Unions, "Matthew Arrandale", ''Proceedings and Reports, 1908 to 1909'', p.23 In 1863, Arrandale decided he wished to move into engineering, and found employment at a railway carriageworks. After a variety of jobs, he joined the

United Machine Workers' Association {{Infobox union , name = United Machine Workers' Association , location_country= United Kingdom , affiliation = TUC, FEST, GFTU , members =14,000 (1915) , full_name = , image = , founded = 1844 , dissolved =1920 ...

in 1874, and soon rose to prominence, being elected as president of the

Manchester and Salford Trades Council The Manchester Trades Union Council brings together trade union branches in Manchester in England. History Efforts to bring trade unionists together across Manchester go back to the eighteenth century. In 1818 the cotton spinners persuaded othe ...

three years later, and as the Machine Workers' part-time general secretary in 1885. Arrandale was a delegate to 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) for this first time in 1886, and gave speeches opposing overtime and

piecework Piece work (or piecework) is any type of employment in which a worker is paid a fixed piece rate for each unit produced or action performed, regardless of time. Context When paying a worker, employers can use various methods and combinations of ...

which gained national attention. As a result, he was sacked from his job, but the Machine Workers agreed to make his role with the union full-time. He proved highly successful, increasing membership from 371 in 1885 to 5,200 by 1909. Arrandale was also politically active, and was elected to

Manchester City Council Manchester City Council is the local authority for Manchester, a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. Manchester is the sixth largest city in England by population. Its city council is composed of 96 councillors, three ...

in 1895; he also served as a

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

. He was the TUC's representative 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 1902, served on the

Parliamentary Committee of the TUC 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 ...

from 1908,

, "Obituary: Mr Matthew Arrandale, JP", ''Annual Report of the 1915 Trades Union Congress'' was on the Management Committee of the General Federation of Trade Unions, and was vice-president of the

Federation of Engineering and Shipbuilding Trades The Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions (CSEU), often known as the Confed is a trade union confederation in the United Kingdom. History The confederation was founded in December 1890 as the Federation of Engineering and Shipbuil ...

. In mid-1913, Arrandale became ill, and resigned his union positions. He died in September that year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arrandale, Matthew Year of birth missing 1913 deaths Councillors in Manchester Trade unionists from Manchester Members of the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress