{{short description, Former trade union of the United Kingdom
The United Rubber Workers of Great Britain was an organisation representing workers involved in the processing of
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...
and other waterproof materials in the United Kingdom.
The union was founded in 1889 as the Waterproof Trade Union, then in 1891 changed its name to the India Rubber, Cable and Asbestos Workers' Union. Before
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 ...
it was renamed the United Rubber Workers of Great Britain. Its membership fell to only 312 in 1936, at the end of a long trade depression, but it survived and by 1945, membership had risen to more than 4,000 people. It then changed its name to the Rubber, Plastic and Allied Workers' Union.Arthur Marsh and Victoria Ryan, ''Historical Directory of Trade Unions'', vol.2, pp.316-317
In 1974, the union merged into the
National Union of General and Municipal Workers
The GMB is a general trade union in the United Kingdom which has more than 460,000 members. Its members work in nearly all industrial sectors, in retail, security, schools, distribution, the utilities, social care, the National Health Service (N ...
.
Secretaries
:1910s: H. H. Duke
:
:1936:
Herbert Eastwood
Herbert Eastwood (1881 – 9 January 1954) was a trade unionist and politician.
Born in Leeds, Eastwood was an early supporter of the ''Clarion'' movement, before becoming an organiser for the Independent Labour Party. He joined the Labour P ...