John Hodge (29 October 1855 – 10 August 1937) was a Labour Party and later Coalition Labour politician in the United Kingdom. He was the UK's first Minister of Labour, and the second Minister of Pensions.

Early life

Hodge was born in Linkeyburn, Ayrshire and attended Ironworks School and Hutchesons' Grammar School. When he was thirteen Hodge left school to become a solicitor's clerk and then worked a grocer's shop before joining the local iron works as a puddler—the same job as his father. Hodge first became involved with trade unionism while at the local iron works. Hodge helped form the British Steel Smelters' Association in 1885, of which he would be elected secretary, after bosses at Colville in

Motherwell Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lana ...

informed workers that their wages would be twenty per cent lower than before. The BSSA was a success and by the summer of 1886 practically every smelter 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 ...

had become a member and by 1888 the BSSA had members joining from England and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

and become affiliated with the TUC. The BSSA rarely organised strikes, but Hodge was successful at negotiating increases in wages. Hodge also helped form the Associated Society of Millmen, acting as its secretary and treasurer for a year before its members could hold an election.Arthur Marsh and Victoria Ryan, ''Historical Directory of Trade Unions'', vol.2, pp.271-272

Political career

Hodge was a member of the

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 ...

City Council from 1897 to 1901. At the 1900 general election, Hodge unsuccessfully contested Gower. He was unsuccessful again in

Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...

at the by-election in May 1903. He finally won a seat at the

1906 general election The following elections occurred in the year 1906. Asia * 1906 Persian legislative election Europe * 1906 Belgian general election * 1906 Croatian parliamentary election * Denmark ** 1906 Danish Folketing election ** 1906 Danish Landsting electi ...

, when he was elected as the Labour Party Member of Parliament for

Manchester Gorton Manchester Gorton is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament by Labour's Afzal Khan, who was elected at the 2017 general election. It is the safest Labour seat in Greater Manchester by numerical majority and ...

. When the United Kingdom declared war and entered

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

in 1914, Hodge took a very patriotic stance and criticised other Labour politicians for opposing it. From 1915 to 1916 Hodge was Acting Chairman of the Labour Party. In 1916 he was part of the Mesopotamia Commission of Inquiry. He was also elected as president of the British Iron, Steel & Kindred Trades Association which he had helped to form with other iron and steel unions. He was Chairman of the 'patriotic labour' British Worker's National League From December 1916 to August 1917, Hodge was the first Minister of Labour and had a seat in the Cabinet. At this job Hodge claimed that all strikes during war-time were acts of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

and Hodge successfully made striking boilermakers to go back to work by threatening to charge them with the

Defence of the Realm Act The Defence of the Realm Act (DORA) was passed in the United Kingdom on 8 August 1914, four days after it entered the First World War and was added to as the war progressed. It gave the government wide-ranging powers during the war, such as th ...

. Hodge supported the Empire Resources Department Committee, signing its manifesto. From August 1917 to January 1919, Hodge was Minister of Pensions in the

Lloyd George Coalition Government Liberal David Lloyd George formed a coalition government in the United Kingdom in December 1916, and was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by King George V. It replaced the earlier wartime coalition under H. H. Asquith, which had ...

. In 1919 he appeared in the film ''

Broken in the Wars ''Broken in the Wars'' is a 1919 British silent film, silent drama film directed by Cecil Hepworth and starring Henry Edwards (actor), Henry Edwards, Chrissie White and Alma Taylor. The Pensions Minister John Hodge (politician), John Hodge appear ...

'' directed by

Cecil Hepworth Cecil Milton Hepworth (19 March 1874 – 9 February 1953) was a British film director, producer and screenwriter. He was among the founders of the British film industry and continued making films into the 1920s at his Hepworth Studios. In ...

to advertise a fund set up for ex-servicemen. Hodge kept his seat in both the general election of 1918 and the general election of 1922 but retired from

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

at the general election of 1923. Hodge continued to argue against strikes during the

General Strike A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coa ...

of 1926 and retired from the presidency of the British Iron, Steel & Kindred Trades Association in 1931. Hodge was turned down for military service because he was too old.

Arthur Griffith-Boscawen Sir Arthur Sackville Trevor Griffith-Boscawen PC (18 October 1865 – 1 June 1946) was a British politician in the Conservative Party whose career was cut short by losing a string of Parliamentary elections. Biography Griffith-Boscawen was bor ...

, who served under Hodge, called him a "fat, rampaging and most patriotic Tory working man".Sir Arthur Griffith-Boscawen, ''Memoirs'' (1925), p. 207.

Notes

External links

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John Hodge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodge, John 1855 births 1937 deaths Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress Councillors in Manchester UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 UK MPs 1918–1922 UK MPs 1922–1923 People from East Ayrshire Presidents of the Trades Union Congress Scottish trade unionists Chairs of the Labour Party (UK) Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Hutchesons' Grammar School