Trades Union Congress Collection (1920 - 1987)

IDENTITY STATEMENT AREA

Reference code(s): MSS.292

Title: Trades Union Congress Collection (1920 - 1987)

Date(s): 1920 - 1987

Level of description: Fond

Extent and medium of the unit of description: 160.56 cu. m.

CONTEXT AREA

Name of creator(s): Trades Union Congress

Administrative/Biographical history: The Trades Union Congress is a voluntary association of trade unions which was formed in Manchester in 1868. It forms the largest pressure group in the United Kingdom and works to improve the rights and conditions of working people. In achieving its aims the TUC has played a role both in many Government organisations and in the political wing of the Labour movement. Such a history has resulted in its archives being a rich source for the study of the political, economic and social history of the United Kingdom in the twentieth century.

The TUC is governed by an annual Congress at which representatives of affiliated trade unions meet to determine policy and to elect the executive body of the organisation. Between 1869 and 1921, the executive work of the Congress was carried out by the Parliamentary Committee. In 1920, the Committee was composed of sixteen members who dealt with a relatively narrow range of labour affairs. Changes in society during the First World War led to a widening of the TUC's functions and consequently the formation of the General Council in 1921, which was composed of a representative sample of trade unionists. The General Council is assisted by a number of committees, including Finance and General Purposes, Disputes, Education, Organisation, Social Insurance, International, Economic and Production. These in turn are served by departments, the number and nature of which varies according to the needs and priorities of the time. The responsibility for the everyday work of the General Council lies with the General Secretary who is assisted by a Deputy General Secretary and one or two Assistant General Secretaries.

In the regions, the TUC is organised into Regional Councils which cover England and Wales. Trade union activity in Scotland and Northern Ireland is co-ordinated by the Scottish TUC and the Northern Ireland Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, both of which are separate organisations with close working relationships with the TUC. At a local level branches of affiliated trade unions unite to form trades councils.

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer:

CONTENT AND STRUCTURE AREA

Scope and content: Predominantly the files of the TUC's central registry, 1920-1987, comprising correspondence, internal and external documents, minutes, reports, printed material and press statements.MSS.292, MSS.292B and MSS.292C have been catalogued to file level. There is a depositor's box list of MSS.292D.

The TUC kept its records in a central registry which was developed in the early 1920s. It was during this period that it started to keep detailed subject files. These files record the growth and development of the TUC, its relationship with affiliated unions, government, employers and unions in other countries. They were arranged by subject according to a decimal classification scheme. This scheme forms the basis of the catalogue of the archives :

000-099 : Trade unionism

100-199 : Labour conditions

200-299 : Industrial relations

300-399 : Capitalism

400-499 : Public finance

500-599 : Commerce and economics

600-699 : Industries

700-799 : Politics and government; publicity

800-899 : Social issues

900-999 : International These were further sub-divided into smaller units, e.g. 966 is the classification for West Africa and 966.1 for the Gambia

The Centre's catalogue combines these references with its own prefix, so that a file on the Gambia dating from 1960-5 would become MSS.292B/966.1/1.

The prefix MSS.292B identifies the records as belonging to the 1960-70 archive, records catalogued as MSS.292 belong to the 1920-60 archive and those with the prefix MSS.292D to the most recent 1970-87 deposit. Files with the prefix MSS.292C belong to the supplement to the 1920-60 archive. These files did not originate from the central registry and were deposited at the Centre at a later date than the registry files for the same period.

The catalogues for the 1920-60 archive (MSS.292) and supplement (MSS. 292C) and the 1960-70 archive (MSS.292B) are available in paper format in the Centre's searchroom, at the National Register of Archives and in the National Inventory of Documentary Sources series. A box list of the 1970-87 archive (MSS.292D) may be consulted in the Centre's searchroom, where a photocopy of the TUC's subject index is also available. The finding aids for the 1920-1960 archive (MSS.292), the 1960-70 archive (MSS.292B), the supplemental 1920-60 material (MSS.292C) and the collection level description of the 1970-1987 material (MSS.292D) are also available electronically .

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information:

Accruals:

System of arrangement:

CONDITIONS OF ACCESS AND USE AREA

Conditions governing access: The archive is open to researchers without need for prior permission from the TUC. It is subject to a general ten year closure rule.

Conditions governing reproduction: Modern Records Centre. There are no restrictions on the use of this archive, apart from the requirements of copyright law.

Language/scripts of material: English

Physical characteristics:

Finding aids:

ALLIED MATERIALS AREA

Existence and location of originals:

Existence and location of copies: The Parliamentary Committee and General Council minutes, Annual Congress Reports, TUC pamphlets and selected other series of papers are also available in microform

Related units of description:

Publication note:

DESCRIPTION CONTROL AREA

Recorder's note:

Rules or conventions: Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions:

Interest:

Specific group:

Subjects

Trade unions

Black and Asian seamen

Lascars

Personal/Corporate names

National Amalagamated Union of Labour

National Sailors' and Firemen's Union

Trades Union Congress

Places