The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU) was a

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

representing transport workers, and at times workers in other sectors, in South Africa. The union was founded in 1973, inspired by the PUTCO workers' strike in Transvaal the previous year. It set up headquarters in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, but represented workers in Transvaal, Natal and the

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...

. The majority of its members worked in passenger and good transport, but it also had significant membership in hospitals, cleaning, security and cement, in addition to municipal workers in all sectors. In 1974, the union affiliated to the Trade Union Advisory Co-ordinating Council, and in 1979 it was a founding affiliate of the Federation of South African Trade Unions (FOSATU). Its membership varied from 44,500 in 1977, down to only 4,500 in 1980, but back up to 18,281 in 1986. In 1985, it transferred to FOSATU's successor, the Congress of South African Trade Unions. The following year it absorbed the rival General Workers' Union, along with three small unions: the Amalgamated Cleaners' Union of South Africa, Cleaning Services and Allied Workers' Union, and South African Scooter Transport and Allied Workers' Union. Refocused on transport, cleaning and security, its other members were gradually transferred to other unions; for example, those in metalworking and engineering moved to the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa in 1987. In the late 1990s, the TGWU began negotiations on a merger with the South African Railways and Harbours Union; by this point, the TGWU had about 50,000 members. The merger was finally completed on 18 May 2000, forming the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union.{{cite web , title=The History of SATATWU , url=https://www.satawu.org.za/our-history/ , website=SATATWU , access-date=7 March 2021

General Secretaries

:1970s: Isobel Shongwe :1985: Jane Barratt :1989: Nkosinathi Nhleko :1994: Randall Howard

References

Trade unions established in 1973 Trade unions disestablished in 2000 Trade unions in South Africa Transportation trade unions