A Short History of the T.U.C

The Importance of Being Permanent: A Study of the North Staffordshire Miners' Federation from 1869 to 1874

“…Advancing technology and economic growth thus combined to push trade unions and employers into making institutional responses that were more appropriate. 66 Thus the varied struggles of the previous fifty years came together in an upsurge in union activity and organisation that allowed, really for the first time, the possibility of permanent bodies to represent workers in collective bargaining without endless recourse to strikes and/or collapse in the wake of employers' counter-offensives when trade fell away and wages dropped. In north Staffordshire this took the shape and form of the North Staffs Miners' Federation (NSMF), alongside other unions of local workers as for the potters (a more fragmented group at this time although with a strong history of union organization and strikes) 67 and ironworkers.…”

The Local Government Committee of the TUC—A Decade of Activity

“…For example, Lovell and Roberts contended that if the TUC "... is to be a genuine estate of the realm, exercising responsibility for a vital part of our economic activity, then it must make the adaptations that are necessary to meet the challenge of the next 100 years" 6 . More specifically, at the Annual Meeting of Congress, in 1969, Tom Jackson of the Union of Post Office workers, moved the following motion, 7 "This Congress draws attention to the growing need for co-ordinated action by the trade union movement to promote the achievement of trade union objectives.…”

150 years of the Trades Union Congress – reflections on the past and challenges for the future

“…In this introduction, we examine the key issues facing the trade union movement today. We do not seek to provide a history of the TUC as a plethora of these are already in existence (see Roberts, 1958;Lovell and Roberts, 1968;Martin, 1980;Taylor, 2000), nor do we intend to provide an in depth account of all the issues facing contemporary trade unions. Instead, we briefly reflect on the challenges faced by the TUC and its affiliated unions.…”