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Some Special Interests => Occupation Interests => Topic started by: hols83 on Sunday 16 October 11 14:47 BST (UK)
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Hi all,
Cutting a very long story short am trying to find out some info on a ancestor Ferdinand Noel Buch, who was a ship brokers clerk. I've seen on another topic that there are records of trade unions, I have done a little digging and found ther was a union for shipping clerical staff guild, Liverpool and London, would a ship brokers clerk be a member of such an organisation or is there another union that would be more likely and if so where can I find the info like membership etc.
Thanks
Hols 83
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I’m not sure what time period you had in mind. Unions and union membership have changed greatly over the years. I’ll assume you’re talking late 19th, early 20th Century.
From bits and pieces in the London Times the Shipping Clerical Staff Guild was formed in 1919, ‘to protect the interests of shipping clerks as to hours, conditions, salary, etc”. In 1921 the London and Liverpool Guilds were amalgamated and became the Shipping Guild and ‘will cater for administrative, clerical, and supervisory employees, including practically all non-manual workers engaged in shipping’.
Here’s a limited preview of a book on Victorian Clerks, published 1976. You’ll read there that it was the shipping companies and some other industries in Liverpool that employed large numbers of clerks and that the vast majority of clerks worked for small companies or individuals in very small offices. It also says that most clerks’ unions were relatively weak and unsuccessful before 1914. http://tinyurl.com/3mugqb3
I think the shipping unions were more likely intended for those working for shipping companies, where there were large numbers of workers, rather than for employees of individuals.
Askan
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Thank you for getting back to me.
I was hoping there would be something for the 1880-1910 period but it's seems a bit futile unfortunatly. I'm basically trying to piece together an ancestors short life. I have tried looking through some of the trade directories, census records, ordering certificates etc, but I think I have exhausted those avenues now. So i was hoping to find things via unconventional methods.
Thanks again for the information
Hols 83
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Many historical trade Union records are held by Warwick University. Worth a look first I think?