National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
NUDBTW

Merged into	Transport and General Workers Union
Founded	1936
Dissolved	1982
Headquarters	National House, Bradford
Location	United Kingdom
Members	85,500 (1939)
Key people	Jack Peel, Bill Maddocks

The National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers (NUDBTW) was a trade union in the United Kingdom.

History

The union was founded in 1936 with the merger of the National Union of Textile Workers, which was the main union representing workers in the woollen and worsted industries, the Amalgamated Society of Dyers, Finishers and Kindred Trades, and the Operative Bleachers, Dyers and Finishers Association, which represented workers in Lancashire. The NUDBTW represented a membership of 85,500 in 1939, of whom 25,500 were women. Dyeing and finishing were predominantly male trades, and thus had a greater union presence than other sections of the British textile industry. The woollen and worsted industries, by contrast, were poorly organised. Closed shop agreements covered the majority of workers employed in textile finishing.

From 1966 to 1973, the union was led by Jack Peel, a controversial figure who left to work for the European Economic Community and later led many attacks on trade unions in the UK. One successor, Bill Maddocks, described him as a "Judas". Under Maddocks' leadership, the union became more campaigning, particularly in opposing the use of benzidine-based dyes.

By the start of the 1980s, membership had fallen to 56,843 due to widespread job losses in the industry. However, membership was boosted when several other unions joined the NUDBTW: the Union of Jute, Flax and Kindred Textile Operatives in 1979, and the Yorkshire Society of Textile Craftsmen and the Huddersfield and District Healders and Twisters Trade and Friendly Society in 1980. After initially considering amalgamation with the National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers the NUDBTW merged into the Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU) in 1982, forming a Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers Trade Group within the TGWU. Existing members of the TGWU who worked in the textile industry transferred into the new trade group, doubling its size.

Election results

The union sponsored a Labour Party candidate at the 1955 general election.

General Secretaries

1936: Arthur Shaw

1939: George Bagnall

1948: Wilfred Heywood

1957: Leonard Sharp

1966: Jack Peel

1973: Fred Dyson

1979: Bill Maddocks

See also

• Transport and General Workers' Union
• TGWU amalgamations