Hospital and Welfare Services Union facts for kids
The Hospital and Welfare Services Union (HWSU) was a special group, like a club, for workers in hospitals and welfare services. It started way back in 1918. Back then, it was called the Poor Law Workers Trade Union. This union helped people who worked in the "poor law" system. The poor law was a system in the UK that provided help to people who were very poor.
Within just one year, about 10,000 people joined this union! Over time, the union changed its name a few times. In 1922, it became the Poor Law Officers Union. Then, in 1930, it was called the National Union of County Officers (NUCO). Finally, in 1943, it got its well-known name, the Hospital and Welfare Services Union.
Contents
Leaders Who Made a Difference
A man named Vincent Evans (1889-1946) was very important in starting this union. In 1918, he worked as a deputy clerk at the Paddington Board of Guardians. This "Board of Guardians" was a local group that managed help for the poor. Vincent Evans brought together poor law staff to talk about forming a union.
The first person to lead the union as General Secretary was Archibald Milne. He worked at the Willsden Board of Guardians. But soon after, Vincent Evans took over as the General Secretary. He helped guide the union in its early years.
Special Groups: The Guilds
The union had a clever way of organizing its members. It created special groups called "guilds." These guilds were like smaller clubs within the main union, each for a different type of worker.
The most successful of these was the Guild of Nurses. It was set up in October 1937 by the NUCO. But there were also guilds for doctors, ambulance staff, and other support workers. This guild system was so good that it even continued when the union later joined with others to form COHSE.
Nurses Speak Up: The Masked Protest
The NUCO Guild of Nurses was led by brave nurses like Iris Brook, Doris Westmacott, and Beatrice Drapper. They helped nurses speak up for their rights.
One famous event was the Masked Nurses protest. It happened on November 26, 1937. Nurses wore their white uniforms and white masks. They marched through London to show their demands. The police stopped them from going into the City of London. About 500 nurses went to a meeting at St Pancras Town Hall. A famous politician named George Lansbury spoke to them. They demanded a "96-hour fortnight," which meant working 96 hours over two weeks. This was a way to ask for better working hours.
Joining Forces: Becoming COHSE and UNISON
In 1946, the Hospital and Welfare Services Union joined with another union. This was the Mental Hospital and Institutional Workers Union. Together, they formed a new, bigger union called the Confederation of Health Service Employees (COHSE).
Later, in 1993, COHSE joined with two other large unions. These were NUPE and NALGO. When they all came together, they formed one of the biggest unions in the UK today: UNISON. This shows how the original union grew and changed over many years to help more and more workers.
