The Society of Lithographic Artists, Designers and Engravers (SLADE) was a
British trade union representing workers in the printing industry.
History
The union was formed in
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 ...
in 1885 as the National Society of Lithographic Artists, Designers and Writers, Copperplate and Wood Engravers, and it became the Society of Lithographic Artists, Designers, Engravers and Process Workers in 1903.
[Arthur Marsh and Victoria Ryan, ''Historical Directory of Trade Unions'', vol. 1, p. 200.] In 1919, it relocated to
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...
.
[Jack Eaton and Colin Gill, ''The Trade Union Directory'' (1981), pp. 170–171.]
The
United Society of Engravers merged into SLADE in 1972, which promptly formed a wallpaper and textiles section. In 1975, the Slade Art Union was formed as an autonomous section of SLADE, hoping to attract workers involved in preparing photography and art.
In the 1970s, SLADE was one of several trade unions targeted for criticism by Conservative Party politicians and the right-wing press as part of their campaign against the
closed shop
A pre-entry closed shop (or simply closed shop) is a form of union security agreement under which the employer agrees to hire union members only, and employees must remain members of the union at all times to remain employed. This is different fr ...
. SLADE was attacked for seeking to extend unionisation into new areas of the print origination sector where they were trying to recruit and to negotiate 'Union Membership Agreements' or 'Agency Agreements' (a type of 'pre-entry closed shop' where the trade union acts as a staff recruitment agency) with employers. Such arrangements largely disappeared in the printing industry (and elsewhere) following anti-Union legislation passed by
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...
's Conservative government in the 1980's and the successful assault on the print unions (after SLADE had merged with the NGA) led by
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
's
News International Company in 1986.
SLADE amalgamated with the larger skilled workers' (craft) union in the printing industry, the
National Graphical Association
The National Graphical Association (NGA) was a trade union representing typographers and related workers in the United Kingdom.
History
The union was formed in 1964 by the merger of two long-term rival unions, the Typographical Association and ...
(NGA), in 1982 to form the National Graphical Association (1982).
Sponsored Members of Parliament
The union sponsored two Members of Parliament from 1979 onwards. Although SLADE had merged into the NGA by the
1983 general election, the MPs were sponsored in that election by the specific SLADE section of the NGA, rather than the merged union.
General Secretaries
:1885: Charles Harrap
[Arthur Marsh and John B. Smethurst, ''Historical Directory of Trade Unions'', Vol. 5, pp. 17–18.]
:1899: Robert Barnes
:1917: Rupert Kneale
:1941: Victor M. Butler
:1956: H. G. Bellingham
:1969: Len Knapp
:1972:
John Jackson
References
External links
Catalogue of the SLADE archives held at the
Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick
1885 establishments in the United Kingdom
Defunct trade unions of the United Kingdom
Lithographers' trade unions
Organisations based in the London Borough of Lambeth
Trade unions established in 1885
Trade unions disestablished in 1982
Trade unions based in London
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