Arthur Deakin
The Right Honourable Arthur Deakin CH CBE | |
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Born | (1890-11-11)11 November 1890 Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire, England |
Died | 1 May 1955(1955-05-01) (aged 64) Leicester, Leicestershire, England |
Nationality | British |
Occupation | Trade Union official |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Our_Trade_Union_Brothers_in_the_Forces_are_Giving_their_All_to_Rid_the_World_of_Fascism_Art.IWMPST15517.jpg/300px-Our_Trade_Union_Brothers_in_the_Forces_are_Giving_their_All_to_Rid_the_World_of_Fascism_Art.IWMPST15517.jpg)
Arthur Deakin CH CBE PC (11 November 1890 – 1 May 1955) was a prominent British trade unionist who was acting general secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union from 1940 and then general secretary from 1945 to 1955.
Background
Arthur Deakin was born at Holland Street, Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire, on 11 November 1890, the son of a domestic servant, Annie Deakin. His birth certificate did not record the name of his father. At the age of ten he moved with his mother and stepfather to Dowlais in South Wales.[1]
Career
Deakin began his working life at the age of 13 at the Dowlais Ironworks.[2] https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/32761
In 1910, Deakin moved to Shotton in North Wales and took a job with another steel firm as a roll turner.[3] He became an active trade unionist during the First World War and a full-time official in 1919.[2]
In 1932, Deakin became national secretary of the General Workers National Trade Group within the TGWU. In 1935, he became assistant general secretary.
In 1940, Deaken effectively took over the position of general secretary, following the appointment of Ernest Bevin as a cabinet minister. Deakin's period as general secretary was marked by a consolidation of the powers of executive, occasional serious outbreaks of unofficial strike action among union members and a fierce anti-communist line.
During the 1950s he aligned with the right-wing Gaitskellite wing of the Labour Party, and favored expelling the leader of the left-wing faction Aneurin Bevan from the party. Although Bevan remained in the party, Deakin's union's endorsement was crucial for Hugh Gaitskell's victory over him in the 1955 Labour Party leadership election.[4]
Death
Deakin was due to retire in November 1955 but on 1 May 1955 Deakin was addressing a Labour Day rally at the Corn Exchange in Leicester when he collapsed, he was dead on arrival at hospital.[5] He was succeeded as general secretary by Jock Tiffin.
References
- ^ "Deakin, Arthur (1890–1955), trade unionist". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/32761. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ a b "Mr. Arthur Deakin." Times [London, England] 2 May 1955: 17. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 6 July 2013.
- ^ "Deakin, Arthur (1890–1955), trade unionist". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/32761. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ Thorpe, Andrew (1997). A History of the British Labour Party. London: Macmillan Education UK. pp. 139–142. doi:10.1007/978-1-349-25305-0. ISBN 978-0-333-56081-5.
- ^ "Mr. A. Deakin Dead." Times [London, England] 2 May 1955: 12. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 6 July 2013.
External links
- Newspaper clippings about Arthur Deakin in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW
Trade union offices | ||
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Preceded by | Secretary of the General Workers' Group of the Transport and General Workers' Union 1932–1945 | Succeeded by T. H. Hodgson |
Preceded by | Assistant General Secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union 1935-1945 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | General Secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union 1945–1955 (acting 1940–1945) | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | President of the World Federation of Trade Unions 1946–1948 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by Tom O'Brien and Sam Watson | Trades Union Congress representative to the American Federation of Labour 1947 With: Robert Openshaw | Succeeded by |
Preceded by Alfred Roberts | President of the Trades Union Congress 1952 | Succeeded by Tom O'Brien |
Preceded by | President of the International Transport Workers' Federation 1954–1955 | Succeeded by |
- v
- t
- e
- 1922: Ernest Bevin
- 1940: Arthur Deakin
- 1955: Jock Tiffin
- 1955: Frank Cousins
- 1969: Jack Jones
- 1978: Moss Evans
- 1985: Ron Todd
- 1992: Bill Morris
- 2004: Tony Woodley
- 1974: Harry Urwin
- 1980: Alec Kitson
- 1986: Bill Morris
- 1992: Jack Adams
- 1999: Margaret Prosser
- 2002: Tony Woodley
- 2003: Jack Dromey
- 1924: John Cliff
- 1935: Arthur Deakin
- 1940: Harold Clay
- 1948: Jock Tiffin
- 1955: Frank Cousins
- 1956: Harry Nicholas
- 1968: Harry Urwin
- 1974: Vacant
- 1985: Eddie Haigh and Larry Smith
- 1988: Eddie Haigh
- 1991: Vacant
- 1999: Barry Camfield and Jimmy Elsby
- 2000: Barry Camfield and Ray Collins
- 1922: Harry Gosling
- 1930: Herbert Kershaw
- 1934: Harry Edwards
- 1948: Edgar Fryer
- 1960: Len Forden
- 1976: Stan Pemberton
- 1982: Walter Greendale
- 1986: Brian Nicholson
- 1988: Daniel Duffy
- 1996: Andy Smith
- 2002: Peter Landles
- 2004: Jimmy Kelly
- Amalgamated Society of Watermen, Lightermen and Bargemen
- Amalgamated Carters, Lurrymen and Motormen's Union
- Amalgamated Association of Carters and Motormen
- Associated Horsemen's Union
- Dock, Wharf, Riverside and General Labourers' Union
- Labour Protection League
- National Amalgamated Labourers' Union
- National Union of Docks, Wharves and Shipping Staffs
- National Union of Ships' Clerks, Grain Weighers and Coalmeters
- National Union of Vehicle Workers
- National Amalgamated Coal Workers' Union
- North of England Trimmers' and Teemers Association
- North of Scotland Horse and Motormen's Association
- United Vehicle Workers