The Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) was a major

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 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 ...

. It merged with the Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunications and Plumbing Union to form the

Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union The Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union (AEEU) was a British trade union. It merged with the MSF to form Amicus in 2001. History The union was founded in 1992, when the Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) finally achieved a merger w ...

in 1992.

History

The history of the union can be traced back to the formation of the Journeymen Steam Engine, Machine Makers' and Millwrights' Friendly Society, in 1826, popularly known as the "Old Mechanics". They invited a large number of other unions to become part of what became the

Amalgamated Society of Engineers The Amalgamated Society of Engineers (ASE) was a major British trade union, representing factory workers and mechanics. History The history of the union can be traced back to the formation of the Journeymen Steam Engine, Machine Makers' and M ...

(ASE).Arthur Marsh and Victoria Ryan, ''Historical Directory of British Trade Unions'', vol.3, pp.12-16 In 1920, the ASE put out a fresh call for other unions to merge with it in a renamed Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU). Seventeen unions balloted their members on a possible merger, and nine voted in favour of amalgamation: *

Amalgamated Association of Brass Turners, Fitters, Finishers and Coppersmiths The Amalgamated Association of Brass Turners, Fitters, Finishers and Coppersmiths was a trade union representing brassfounders and people in related trades in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1912 with the merger of ten local unions. ...

Amalgamated Instrument Makers' Society The Amalgamated Instrument Makers' Society was a trade union representing workers involved in manufacturing scientific instruments in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1887 as the Scientific Instrument Makers' Trade Society. In 1891, ...

* Amalgamated Society of General Tool Makers, Engineers and Machinists * East of Scotland Brass Founders' Society * London United Metal Turners', Fitters' and Finishers' Society * North of England Brass Turners', Fitters' and Finishers' Society *

Steam Engine Makers' Society The Steam Engine Makers' Society (SEM) was an early trade union representing engineers in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in Liverpool in 1824, and was able to meet openly in Manchester by 1826, despite the Combination Act 1825 severel ...

(SEM) *

United Kingdom Society of Amalgamated Smiths and Strikers The United Kingdom Society of Amalgamated Smiths and Strikers was a trade union representing foundry workers in the United Kingdom. The union's origins lay in the Sons of Vulcan Smiths and Strikers, a union representing workers in northern Engl ...

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 ...

The resulting union had a membership of 450,000, about 300,000 coming from the ASE. Jack Leckie addressing a rally, 1922

In 1922 employers, represented by the

Engineering Employers' Federation Make UK, formerly the Engineering Employers' Federation, represents manufacturers in the United Kingdom. Purpose Make UK provides businesses with advice, guidance and support in employment law, employee relations, health, safety, climate and envi ...

, launched an industry-wide lockout in an attempt to reverse the gains made by the AEU during WWI and its aftermath. Exploiting the downturn in economic conditions in the engineering industry, they demanded the union forfeit control over

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...

. The lockout lasted from 11 March to 13 June and involved 260,000 workers, 90,000 of them represented by the AEU. The lockout ended with the union conceding some of the employers' demands. The AEU continued to grow and absorb smaller unions. From 1926, it accepted members who had not completed an apprenticeship. In 1933, it had 168,000 members, and 390,900 by the end of the decade. Its largest membership growth came during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

when its all-male membership voted to admit women for the first time and 100,000 joined almost immediately, membership reaching 825,000 by 1943. It admitted women due to the increasing role of female industrial workers in the British home front, as well as to prevent either female workers joining rival unions or non-union female workers from undercutting union wages. However, the AEU also lost its overseas branches in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

, and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

, which became independent unions. From the 1940s, the AEU also absorbed various smaller unions: the

Amalgamated Society of Glass Works Engineers Amalgamation is the process of combining or uniting multiple entities into one form. Amalgamation, amalgam, and other derivatives may refer to: Mathematics and science * Amalgam (chemistry), the combination of mercury with another metal **Pan ama ...

Amalgamated Society of Vehicle Builders, Carpenters and Mechanics The Amalgamated Society of Vehicle Builders, Carpenters and Mechanics was a trade union representing workers in building railway carriages in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1873, as the Amalgamated Society of Railway Wagon and Carria ...

Amalgamated Machine, Engine and Iron Grinders' and Glaziers' Society The Amalgamated Machine, Engine and Iron Grinders' and Glazers' Society was a small but long-lasting trade union representing machine workers in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The union was founded in 1844, but grew only very slowly; by 1897, it h ...

, Leeds Spindle and Flyer Makers' Trade and Friendly Society,

United Operative Spindle and Flyer Makers' Trade and Friendly Society The United Operative Spindle and Flyer Makers' Trade and Friendly Society was a trade union representing workers involved in making textile machinery in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1856. In 1860, it applied to merge into the Ama ...

, and the Turners', Fitters' and Instrument Makers' Union. The AEU merged with the

Amalgamated Union of Foundry Workers __NOTOC__ The Amalgamated Union of Foundry Workers (AUFW) was a trade union representing workers in foundries in the United Kingdom. The union was founded in 1946 with the merger of the National Union of Foundry Workers, the Ironfounding Workers' ...

(AUFW) on 1 January 1968 to form the Amalgamated Union of Engineering and Foundry Workers (AEF), and with the

Draughtsmen and Allied Technicians' Association The Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section (TASS) was a British trade union. History The union was founded in 1913 by 200 draughtsmen, as the Association of Engineering and Shipbuilding Draughtsmen (AESD). It expanded rapidly, and ...

(DATA) and

Constructional Engineering Union The Constructional Engineering Union (CEU) was a trade union representing steel erectors and other workers involved in steel construction in the United Kingdom. History The union was founded in 1924 as a section of the Iron and Steel Trades Con ...

in 1971 to form the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers (AUEW). The union was now organised on a federal basis, with four sections: Engineering, Foundry, Construction, and Technical, Administrative and Supervisory (TASS). This approach was not a success, as the various sections fell into dispute with each other. In 1984, the Engineering, Foundry and Construction Sections were merged and in 1986 adopted the name Amalgamated Engineering Union once more, while the TASS remained separate and, in 1988, it became entirely independent of the union once more.Chris Cook, ''The Routledge Guide to British Political Archives: Sources since 1945'', pp.223-224 Despite this series of amalgamations, declines in the number of workers in heavy industry saw membership drop from a peak of 1,483,400 in 1979, to 858,000 in 1986. The AEU became a mainstay of the moderate right in the trade union movement through the 1980s and 1990s, leading the manufacturing unions in 1989–1991 in a successful push for a shorter working week, but failing to merge with a number of unions, notally the

Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians The Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians (UCATT) was a British and Irish trade union, operating in the construction industry. It was founded in 1971, and merged into Unite on 1 January 2017. It was affiliated to the Trades U ...

. In 1992 the AEU finally achieved a merger with the Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunications and Plumbing Union, EETPU, after a hundred years of off and on discussions. The new union took the name

Elections results

Like the ASE before it, the AEU affiliated to the Labour Party, sponsoring candidates at each election, many of whom won seats in Parliament.

Leadership

General Secretaries

;AEU :1921: Albert Smethurst :1933: Fred A. Smith :1943: Benjamin Gardner :1956:

Cecil Hallett Cecil Walter Hallett (10 December 1899 – 5 December 1994) was a British trade unionist. Born in London, Hallett left school aged fourteen. He worked as a messenger before securing an apprenticeship as a fitter and turner in Beckton. In 1 ...

:1965: Jim Conway ;AEF/AUEW ;AEU :1988: Gavin Laird

Presidents

:1920:

James Thomas Brownlie James Thomas Brownlie (23 June 1865 – 13 October 1938) was a British trade unionist and politician. Born in Port Glasgow, Brownlie was educated at Wason’s Academy in Paisley. Who Was Who,Brownlie, James Thomas He became an apprentice bla ...

:1931:

William Harold Hutchinson William Harold Hutchinson (25 April 1878''1939 England and Wales Register'' – 19 May 1965) was a British trade unionist and Labour Party activist. Educated to secondary school level, Hutchinson became active in the Amalgamated Society of E ...

:1933: John C. Little :1939: Jack Tanner :1953:

Robert Openshaw Robert Openshaw (1891 – 6 November 1962) was a British trade unionist. Born in Bolton, Openshaw was a keen cricketer, and once took all ten wickets in a Bolton Cricket League match. He moved to Crewe to find work, and became an engineer i ...

:1956:

William Carron William John Carron, Baron Carron, KSG, FRSA (19 November 1902 – 3 December 1969) was a British trade unionist and activist, who served as President of the Amalgamated Engineering Union (AEU) from 1956 until 1967. Early life Carron was born ...

:1968:

Hugh Scanlon Hugh Parr Scanlon, Baron Scanlon (26 October 1913 – 27 January 2004) was a British trade union leader. Scanlon was born in Melbourne, to parents who had emigrated from Britain. His mother brought him back from Australia to the UK when he ...

:1978: Terry Duffy :1986: Bill Jordan

References

External links

Catalogue of the AEU, AEF, and AUEW archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick
Catalogue of further AUEW archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick
Catalogue of the AUEW Construction Section archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick
Catalogue of the AEF/AUEW Foundry Section archives
held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick {{Portal, Organized labour Defunct trade unions of the United Kingdom Engineering trade unions 1920 establishments in the United Kingdom Trade unions established in 1920 Trade unions disestablished in 1992 Trade unions based in London