Stanley Hirst (1876 – June 1950) 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 ...

. Born in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

, Hirst left school at the age of ten to work in a mill, then later became a tram driver. He joined the

Amalgamated Association of Tramway and Vehicle Workers The Amalgamated Association of Tramway and Vehicle Workers (T&VW) was a trade union representing workers on public transport in the United Kingdom. In 1889, the Manchester and Salford Tramway Company began offering a reward to members of the publ ...

, soon becoming its full-time assistant general secretary, then in 1917 the general secretary. Labour Party, ''Report of the Annual Conference'' (1950), p.37 He took this into a merger which in 1919 formed the

United Vehicle Workers The United Vehicle Workers was a trade union representing drivers in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1919 when the London and Provincial Union of Licensed Vehicle Workers merged with the Amalgamated Association of Tramway and Vehicle ...

, becoming general secretary of the new union,Paul Martin, ''The Trade Union Badge: Material Culture in Action'', p.65 then in 1922, he led the union into the merger which formed the

Transport and General Workers' Union The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate its ...

(TGWU), becoming financial secretary of the new union. Hirst was also active in the Labour Party, sitting on its

National Executive Committee National Executive Committee is the name of a leadership body in several organizations, mostly political parties: * National Executive Committee of the African National Congress, in South Africa * Australian Labor Party National Executive * Nationa ...

(NEC) from 1930, and serving as

Chairman of the Labour Party The Chair of the Labour Party is a position in the Labour Party of the United Kingdom. The Chair is responsible for administration of the party and overseeing general election campaigns, and is typically held concurrently with another position. ...

in his first year. He retired both from the NEC and from his union posts in 1941.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hirst, Stanley 1876 births 1950 deaths Chairs of the Labour Party (UK) Trade unionists from Huddersfield