The United Operative Masons' Association of Scotland 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

stonemason Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, mo ...

s in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Active for nearly ninety years, its membership and importance varied greatly over time; at its peak, it represented the large majority of stonemasons in the country. The union was founded in

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

in 1831, and by the end of the decade had fifteen branches including Glasgow and Edinburgh. However, most were very small, and in 1840 it had only 433 members. Despite this, it had strong financial reserves, and in 1841 it donated £500 to the Operative Society of Masons, Quarrymen and Allied Trades of England and Wales, which enabled it to remain on strike and eventually win a partial victory in a dispute relating to the construction of the

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

. Each branch operated largely autonomously, and this led to serious disagreements between the Aberdeen and Glasgow branches. The Aberdeen branch broke away in 1842, forming the rival Northern Union of Operative Masons. By 1846, most members had left the United Operatives, and the union nearly collapsed. However, the Glasgow branch remained operational, and in 1851 it re-established the union on a national basis, with the support of the English and Welsh union. The reorganised union proved far more successful, growing to 3,000 members by 1855, and peaking at 13,759 members in 1878, organised in 116 branches. By then, it had built up reserves of £18,000, but had most invested in the

City of Glasgow Bank The City of Glasgow Bank was a bank in Scotland that was largely known for its spectacular collapse in October 1878, which ruined all but 254 of its 1,200 shareholders since their liability was unlimited. History The bank was founded in 1839 wi ...

, and lost them when the bank collapsed. In an effort to rebuild, the union registered with the government in 1879, but it wished to have more freedom to change its rules, and so deregistered just three years later. Its membership gradually declined, falling to 11,000 by 1896, but then went into a more rapid decline, as the rival United Operative Masons' and Granite Cutters' Union attracted potential members. By 1907, membership had fallen to just 1,769, but it did increase a little during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. 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 ...

was unhappy that there were two rival stonemasons' unions in Scotland, and in 1919 it persuaded the United Operatives to merge with the Granite Cutters, along with the smaller Associated Paviors' Federal Union, and Scottish Amalgamated Society of Mosaic and Encaustic Tile Fixers, Marble Workers and Fireplace Builders. They formed the

Building and Monumental Workers' Association of Scotland The Building and Monumental Workers' Association of Scotland was a trade union representing stonemasons in Scotland. While never a large union, it brought together all the unionised stonemasons in the country. The union was founded in 1919, whe ...

Central Corresponding Secretaries

:1855: John M'Neill{{cite book , last1=Postgate , first1=Raymond , title=The Builders' History , page=462 , url=https://archive.org/details/unset0000unse_a5k8 , date=1923 , publisher=National Federation of Building Trade Operatives , location=London :1855: R. Willox :1860: John Paton :1862: James Hart :1866: D. McLaren :1867: Matthew Allan :1883: Thomas Walker :1885: John Craig :1895: G. B. Craig :1911: William Gordon :1913: J. F. Armour and H. Macpherson

References

Trade unions established in the 1830s Defunct trade unions of the United Kingdom 1831 establishments in the United Kingdom Stonemasons' trade unions Defunct trade unions of Scotland Trade unions disestablished in 1919