"We have a Herculean task before us, but all the work must not be left to the willing horses; there's the danger of them getting used up."
J. Hereford
General Secretary RCA 1898.
The changes that had taken place at the Nottingham and Leicester conferences had reconstructed the union by giving it a new name, a new General Secretary, and, following discussions with the branches, a new rule book. The problems of finance still remained, with most branches inactive and in arrears; membership had dropped to 220 and communication from head office had virtually ceased. The Association was in a very precarious situation.
When John Hereford was appointed to the position of General Secretary at Nottingham in May 1898 he indicated to the delegates that it would be on a temporary basis; his health was not good and he only accepted because no-one else was willing to take on the responsibility. Although a branch was opened in Leeds, the union was on the verge of collapse and something had to be done. A meeting of the EC was held in Nottingham on 13th November 1898 and with Hereford now seriously ill and unable to be present, the mood was very sombre. Nine attended; Thomas Upton (London) was the chairman and the others were A.G. Walkden and F. Parrish (Nottingham); T. Williams (Manchester); Mr. Best (Leeds); Mr. King and J. E. Stopford-Challener (Doncaster); R. Patchett (Sheffield) and a Trustee, Ernest Brook (Nottingham). Some of them felt that it was not worth continuing and serious consideration was given to joining the ASRS.
John Stopford-Challener proposed that one more effort should be made to continue, and he was supported by Alexander George Walkden. The proposal was carried by 5 votes to 4! Frank Parrish was elected as General Secretary and the head office was transferred to Parade Chambers, Nottingham. For a time things began to improve although progress was slow and finance remained a matter of concern. In the next few months Parrish made an unsuccessful attempt to open a branch in Grimsby, but branches were opened in Cambridge and Burton-on-Trent. The EC also attempted to develop another magazine in addition to the Railway Herald; this was called Nibs and Quills. The Editor was a law clerk, and although the first copy was published on 1st December 1898 as The Official Organ of the General Railway Clerks' Association, and other Clerks' Associations
, the railway industry is not mentioned in any of the articles. All the copy was of a legal, banking or general clerical nature and mainly educational. The magazine was intended to be the medium for ventilating grievances which exist amongst the calling with a view to their ultimate remedy.
1 Walkden and Parrish were responsible for writing articles on railway matters, but the magazine's existence was extremely short and the Railway Herald continued as the union's official means of communication. At the annual conference in Leeds on 18th June 1899, William D. Leaver2 presided, as Batty Langley had resigned some months earlier owing to ill health. During the conference Parrish reported that there were receipts of £29 2s 0d (£29.10) but a deficit of 18s 3d (91p) still remained. The London, Liverpool, Manchester, York and Watford branches needed reviving but membership had now reached 527 based on the following:
With the departure of Batty Langley it was agreed that a new President should be found; several names were proposed, the first being that of H. Gladstone, MP for Leeds, the Liberal Chief Whip and son of the former Prime Minister W.E. Gladstone, but he declined. Gladstone eventually helped railway clerks in 1906 when he introduced the Workmen's Compensation Bill. He was lobbied by the Parliamentary Committee of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) who persuaded him to insert the words clerical work, or otherwise
into the Bill, thus making it applicable to a wider section of working people than originally envisaged. The Act proved to be of great benefit to the families of railway employees who were killed or seriously injured on duty, as they would now receive compensation. The importance of this legislation is underlined by the fact that between 1897 and 1914 the average number of railway workers killed each year was almost four hundred, with many thousands injured. Although clerical workers were only a small fraction of the total, nevertheless, in 1905, thirty-seven clerks and stationmasters were killed or injured. What was not recorded in the Board of Trade Annual Reports, was the death rate for clerks owing to the poor working environment and general social conditions of the period. These figures reached horrific proportions and between 1890 and 1902 approximately 28 per cent of the total number of deaths for commercial clerks was a direct result of consumption.3
After Gladstone had declined the Presidency others were contacted and finally, Sir Fortescue Flannery, MP for Shipley, accepted. A consulting engineer by profession, he was President of the Institute of Marine Engineers and had been appointed as the Admiralty Assessor to the Dockyard Committee for settling labour disputes in the engineering industry. Flannery was not only a member of the Carlton and Reform Clubs but also retained his membership of the Amalgamated Society of Engineers. A Justice of the Peace, he had received his knighthood in 1899 and was created a Baronet in 1904. Apart from being a director of Barclays Bank he had shares in virtually every railway company in the country. Politically he was a Unionist but he had many progressive ideas which he vigorously defended, and indeed, on a number of occasions, he was a thorn in the side of his own party. He sat for the Shipley Division from 1895 -1906 and then for some strange reason (and to the horror of his local party) decided, on the eve of the 1906 election, not to stand in Shipley but for a seat in Cardiff. His statement that he had left Shipley as it was a safe seat and that he thought he could do a greater service to his party in Cardiff where there was a harder battle to fight
,4 does not seem credible.
Fortescue Flannery had a charismatic personality, and attracted many people whilst offending others. During the election the Bradford Trades and Labour Council sent him their best wishes (because of his work in Parliament on behalf of working people) and a local labour leader said that, for a Tory, he showed exceptional sympathy with labour interests.5 He also had the support of the Amalgamated Society of Engineers which enabled the conservative Western Mail to say that he was the only Unionist candidate in the country to be officially commended to Labour voters. However, during the election campaign, Richard Bell MP (General Secretary of the ASRS) publicly voiced his opposition to Flannery even though he had had worked closely with him on a number of railway related issues, and had supported him during the 1900 election. Flannery's commitment to the Government's policy of importing Chinese labour into South Africa and his advocacy of Tariff Reform, led to Bell withdrawing his support. With all the bad publicity that Flannery had brought with him from Shipley, he had a difficult time during the campaign and with 2,000 railway workers in Cardiff undoubtedly influenced by Bell, he lost the election to a Liberal by 3,005 votes. He was eventually re-elected to Parliament and sat for Maldon from 1910-1922. During the 1918 election he claimed that he was as liberal as the Liberal candidate, and he had learned more about the conditions of workers in his long career as an engineer than had 99 out of 100 so-called Labour candidates.6
The railway companies had a massive parliamentary presence, and it was the union's objective to secure as much influence as possible. To this end, Flannery suggested appointing a number of vice-presidents, with branches being given the opportunity to make proposals. Some did so, but Flannery did most of the work. He even made approaches (one assumes with permission of the RCA) to a number of railway directors, but none accepted the offer. Eventually the following were elected as vice-presidents - Rt. Hon. Lord Avebury, Rt. Hon. Sir F.G. Milner MP, Sir J. Stirling Maxwell MP, Sir John Leng MP, J. Walton MP, F.A. Channing MP, Sir E. Flower MP, E.Gray MP, J.H. Yoxall MP, E. Robertson MP, R. Barron MP, C.E.Schwann MP, Sir Joseph Lawrence MP and T.Wintringham. This made a rich blend of Conservatives, National Liberals and Unionists but all were relatively progressive on social matters and some proved to be of considerable assistance to the Association. During 1904, the EC decided that sufficient vice-presidents had been acquired and shortly afterwards the policy was discontinued.
At the Leeds Conference in June 1899, most branch reports dealt with recruitment, but the Northampton delegate criticised the General Secretary Frank Parrish, and pointed out that his branch was not satisfied with the way in which the Association was being managed. He complained that there were occasions when the General Secretary had taken a month to reply to correspondence, and his branch was refusing to send any money to head office until its management improved. The branch had sent a strong letter to the General Secretary whose conduct was considered to be anything but creditable.
7 This criticism reflected a problem that had been growing for some time. Although progress had been made by Parrish, he was having considerable difficulty coping with union business as well as his normal clerical duties and he felt obliged to resign. Delegates accepted his resignation with some reluctance, being fully aware that whoever took on the responsibility would have to face the same burden. Parrish continued as an active member of the Nottingham branch and from 1905 -1908 he was elected as a member of the EC.
The difficulties experienced by the past three General Secretaries were known to virtually every member and it had to be an exceptional person who was willing to take on such a major responsibility. The one to respond to the challenge was John Ernest Stopford-Challener, the Northern Divisional Secretary, and it was he who was elected as the union's fourth General Secretary in twenty-five months.
From this moment on, the Association was transformed. The head office was transferred to 11, Bank Chambers, High Street, Doncaster, and Stopford-Challener set about his task with great enthusiasm and skill. The important matter of revenue was tackled head-on and collectors were introduced. This was not a new idea - it was simply that branches had been reluctant to appoint them, believing that members should attend branch meetings, where they would pay their subscriptions. Stopford-Challener immediately placed the branches on a businesslike footing with branch agendas and new rules being issued. Districts were redefined into the following areas - Lancashire, East Worcestershire, Gloucester and London. Representation on the EC was changed from one member per branch, to twelve members elected by the annual conference, with four members retiring annually. Conference procedures were reorganised and whereas up to now visitors could speak and vote at conference, this was discontinued. Indeed many of the Association's current procedures and practices were established in this era. Unlike his two predecessors, Stopford-Challener used the Railway Herald regularly to keep branches informed and this helped to breathe new life into the Association. To promote the RCA, a directory was included in the magazine listing the names and addresses of branch secretaries. Alfred Huntley was appointed as the union's first solicitor and a union badge was developed.
The RCA was formally registered as a trade union on 1st January 1900 but this decision was not taken lightly. There were many anxious discussions and considerable apprehension that if they registered as a trade union, rather than a Friendly Society, recruitment would be inhibited. Fortunately, bolder counsels prevailed and, far from the union's progress being impeded, the membership trebled in four years to 4,666. Perhaps most important of all, by the end of 1899 the Balance Sheet showed a surplus of £24 10s 11d (£24.55) whereas the previous year there had been a deficit of £5 13s 5d (£5.67). Improvements continued to be made and, in effect, the Association was being managed efficiently for the first time.
Notwithstanding the railway companies refusal to recognise the RCA, John Stopford-Challener tried to improve salaries and conditions of service and achieved some success. Salaries varied significantly throughout the industry and Stopford-Challener's first move came in late 1899, when the London members presented a petition to the Midland Railway. A few months later this was followed by one sent to the Great Northern Railway Directors which stated:
"Gentlemen, We respectfully beg to ask for your favourable consideration of the following proposals of our present conditions of service:-
During the next few months similar petitions were sent to other companies and although the replies were negative or simply evasive, slowly but surely improvements, particularly in the number of hours worked and staffing levels, did take place. Many of these petitions emanated directly from the membership and Stopford-Challener noticed that some contained wording that he considered unwise and leading to inconsistencies. To deal with this, the EC decided to establish a general policy for salaries and conditions of service, and that all petitions should be sent to the General Secretary for approval.
Gradually, Line Committees were formed with their secretaries often elected from among the bravest. The committee members were the ones who collected the signatures and the mass of detailed information required in order to produce the claim. These Memorials were occasionally grand affairs. After the signatures had been gathered, they were sometimes bound in leather and often decorated in gold lettering. They were then presented to the directors of the railway company by the committee. As the Association became more sophisticated, the General Secretary used to meet the staff representatives prior to their interview with the directors, advising them of pitfalls and teaching them how to present their case to best advantage. In almost every instance it was the secretary of the committee who made the case on behalf of the membership - a precarious honour indeed.
The RCA's approach to negotiations was always one of moderation. Its motto Defence not Defiance
had been carefully chosen; it reflected the attitude of its members and it was never their intention to open a Strike Fund, a point Stopford-Challener emphasised in a letter to the Hull Times on 8th December 1900. Stopford-Challener repeatedly argued against strike action as he considered it to be ineffective. When, at the 1901 TUC Ben Tillett, Secretary of the Dockers' Union, proposed compulsory arbitration, (with Conciliation Courts having an equal number of workers' and employers' representatives) Stopford-Challener regretted that this was not accepted. He strongly believed that Arbitration, compulsory or otherwise, is the only true solution of the industrial problem.
9 When, later that year, Richard Bell introduced a Conciliation and Arbitration Bill to Parliament it was supported by Sir Fortescue Flannery and two vice-presidents of the RCA, F.A. Channing and J. Walton. The Bill, which had the approval of the RCA's EC, sought to establish a Board of Conciliation and a Court of Arbitration whose award would be binding on both parties to the dispute. It failed to be given a Second Reading, owing to insufficient time.
In October 1899 the RCA's moderation was noted by Clericus
, a sub-editor of The Railway Review. He wrote that whilst the ASRS did not bear the RCA a grudge, their future relationship would depend on how it holds fast to the principles of Trade Unionism. As yet it is on trial. If it knows how to conduct itself when the time for testing arrives, well and good. If, however, its only ambition is to score for its own class, and it does not care for the welfare of the other branches of the service, it is not well.
Although the article went on to offer help and emphasised the importance of working together, it continued, If the clerk cannot see his way to assist, let him make sure he does not hinder, otherwise we shall count as foes those whom we would fain reckon amongst our friends.
10
Unfortunately this generated further criticism. A letter in The Railway Review from a Brighton ASRS clerk said,Very little was seen or heard of the RCA and they appear to dislike aggressive work, rather working by the obsolete and worthless method of petitioning for improved conditions.
11 To make matters worse he suggested it would be better if they all joined the ASRS. Stopford-Challener was furious and immediately sent a letter to George James Wardle,12 the Editor of The Railway Review, protesting against this attack on the RCA, which he could not believe had the sanction of the ASRS and trusting that there would be no repetition. Stopford-Challener also challenged the Brighton clerk to prove that the Association's methods were obsolete and said that the RCA had done more for clerical staff in the short period of its existence than had the ASRS.13 This was the voice of a confident General Secretary whose Association had doubled its membership in the first six months of 1900. Shortly afterwards he wrote to The Railway Review14 to say how pleased he was to see its altered tone. This was because of the new style that now emanated from Clericus
. Not only did he sincerely wish the RCA success but he went on to accept the leading role of the RCA in clerical life by stating If they succeed where we have failed, they can count on my congratulations.
15
During 1900 the NER Company reiterated its opposition to clerks joining the ASRS but said that it had no objection to them being members of the RCA. Stopford-Challener opposed this restriction, but obviously it helped to build the union's membership and by the end of 1901 the RCA had 2,473 members in 46 branches. This was an increase of 923 over the previous year with significant progress being made in London, largely as a result of the efforts of George F.V. Cutting.16 The London Central and London South branches were opened in 1900, and London West the following year. Membership in the capital was approximately 550 and London members held their first annual dinner at the Talbot Restaurant, London Wall, in April 1900.
Whilst the progress in London was a major step forward, Scotland had become the driving force of the Association. A branch was formed in Glasgow on 16th December 1900 with Andrew Wilson17 as its chairman. John Calder18 formed the Edinburgh branch in January 1901 and the Dundee branch was opened in February. Although there were only 449 members within Scotland, the growth in membership had been rapid and the prospects for the future were so good that it was decided to form a separate Scottish Board. This proposal originated from the Dundee branch and despite the reservations of Glasgow, who considered that more time was needed to get established, the 1901 Conference agreed. The Scottish Board was formed on 7th September 1901 with Oliver Moyes (Glasgow) as Secretary, W. B. Elder (Edinburgh) as Chairman and Dan Stewart19 (Dundee) as Treasurer. The decision to form the Board was a wise one and stimulated further progress. The Aberdeen branch was opened in 1903, Dumfries in 1905 and Greenock in 1907. In 1906 the Board was replaced by a Divisional Council and two years later Scotland had two Divisional Councils composed of eighteen branches, and had affiliated to the Scottish TUC. Joseph St. Clair Halfpenny20 and Graham Gillies21 were the first RCA delegates to attend the Congress in 1909.
Progress in Wales was somewhat slower. The first branch was opened at Swansea on 19th April 1902 and at Cardiff, Newport and Merthyr the following year; Pontypool was established in 1907 and Aberavon two years later. At the 1910 Annual Conference it was agreed to form a Divisional Council for South Wales and Monmouthshire, and this generated further activity with branches being opened at Bridgend, Brynmaer, Llanelli, Neath, and Pontypridd in 1911. The following year Bangor, Barry and Llandudno Junction branches were established. When the annual conference was held in Wales for the first time in 1916, the Divisional Council had fifteen branches and a membership of 1,500. The early development of the South Wales branches was primarily owing to the efforts of William Hill,22 a Welshman who, as one of the Association's Organisers, had also been responsible for opening a number of branches including Cambridge, Wellingborough, Peterborough, Luton, Bedford and Kettering.
Branch life had never been so good. There was a growing confidence in the membership, and the number of branches was increasing month by month. The EC understood the importance of having a social dimension to the union's activities and encouraged branches to organise events that would bring members closer together and raise money for the Association. An attempt was made to form a Guild
for wives, daughters and women friends, the intention being to organise social functions that would supplement the Benevolent Fund, but this failed to be taken up in a serious way. Concerts had been a feature of branch activity from the union's very earliest days, but nothing was quite like the one held at Nottingham in 1901 in aid of the Benevolent Fund. Attended by the President, several Vice-Presidents and the General Secretary, the guest of honour was the Duke of Portland KG. This was seen as the pinnacle of social activity but equally important events were also taking place throughout the Association. Rambles, smoking concerts, dances, picnics, football and cricket matches, debates, lectures and excursions during the summer months became a regular part of branch life. The subject of technical education also absorbed much of the members' energy, and lectures were held all over the country. The President of the Association, Sir Fortescue Flannery, was impressed and saw this as a means of advancing clerks' promotional prospects. He offered a gold medal to the writer of the best paper on the subject and this was won by Alexander Walkden in 1904, with a paper entitled Technical Education of Railway Clerks
.
Stopford-Challener was a very popular General Secretary and a regular attender at branch meetings, travelling all over the country after completing his railway duties. Nothing was too much trouble for him, and on the occasion of his marriage in 1900 he was presented with a magnificent desk and chair, the cost of which had been met by donations from members of every branch in the Association. Sadly, the effort that Stopford-Challener had made to generate such a rich feeling of comradeship and activity was beginning to take its toll, and at the 1901 Conference concern was voiced by delegates that he was working too hard. His health was clearly beginning to suffer and it was decided that he should be provided with a clerk to assist him in some of his routine work. The following year, conference recognised that the situation could no longer continue on an honorary basis and Stopford-Challener was appointed as full-time General Secretary on £100 p.a. After fourteen years on the railway the General Secretary threw himself into his new occupation with even greater zest; between October 1902 and the end of 1903 he made 73 journeys from Doncaster covering 16,360 miles attending 98 branch meetings, EC meetings and national conferences such as the TUC.23
Stopford-Challener attended the 1900 TUC as a visitor confident that the Association would affiliate, but he was to be disappointed. When the delegates met at the 1901 Annual Conference at Bradford, they turned down the proposal as they felt there was no need to incur the expense.24 The delegates, however, agreed to pay his costs. When he attended the TUC the following year, the Boer War had just ended and British imperialism was at its peak. Britain may have won the war, but it had been humiliated by a smaller nation, and the loss of life on both sides had been enormous. Stopford-Challener was outraged when TUC delegates declared the Boer War unjust
. As a staunch supporter of the war he considered that the TUC had made a terrible mistake, not only alienating public opinion but placing a weapon in the hands of the movement's opponents.
25 The Association never formally discussed the Boer War which is somewhat surprising considering the highly charged patriotic atmosphere that existed, with members often concluding their branch business by singing Rule Britannia and the National Anthem.
When delegates assembled at the Association's 1903 Annual Conference in Edinburgh they were told that membership had reached 4,034 and that there were now 51 branches. The conference was of historic importance to the Association for it was in 1903 that the RCA finally agreed to affiliate to the TUC. William J. West (Battersea) proposed affiliation and it was approved by 25 votes to 9. Both West and Stopford-Challener were elected to represent the RCA at the 1903 TUC.
The RCA was one of the earliest of the black-coated
, or what is known today as the white-collar
unions, to affiliate to the TUC. The Postal Clerks' Association was already affiliated, with a membership of 2,530, as was the Postal Telegraph Clerks' Association with 5,500 members. From 1903 onwards, RCA branches began to affiliate to their local trades councils bringing them closer to the wider trade union movement. At the 1904 TUC Stopford-Challener and A.G. Walkden were delegates, and the Association placed its first motion on the agenda. In his speech the General Secretary deplored the fact that railway clerks had to work on Sundays without extra pay and contrasted them with the railway shareholders, who walked about with sanctimonious faces and with bibles under their arms, but appeared utterly indifferent to the way their profits were earned.
26 The motion received the support of Congress.
[1]. Nibs and Quills 1st December 1898
[2]. W. D. Leaver (Leeds). Son of a stationmaster. Started work on Great Northern Railway 1878, joined Association August 1898. First area organiser for Lancashire, North of England and Scotland. Founded Leeds branch. instrumental in forming branches at Blackburn, Bolton, Burnley, Todmorden, Blackpool, Manchester, Carlisle, Newcastle, Blyth, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Bradford, Halifax, Dewsbury, Wakefield, Huddersfield and Keighley. EC member 1898-1907. Helped to draft first Memorial for better conditions on Great Northern Railway. Secretary and spokesman for Sunday Pay Movement 1904.
[3]. Victorian Clerks, Page 19. G. Anderson.
[4]. Shipley Times 5th January 1906.
[5]. Shipley Times 5th January 1906.
[6]. Essex Chronicle 2nd November 1918
[7]. RCA Annual Report 1899
[8]. RCA Annual Report 1899
[9]. Railway Herald 14th September 1901
[10]. The Railway Review 27th October 1899
[11]. The Railway Review 25th May 1900
[12]. George James Wardle JP. Clerk on Midland Railway. Member ASRS and ILP. Elected to Parliament 1906, known as Railway Clerks' MP. Wardle said at 1910 RCA conference, You have become an integral part of the Trade Union Movement; and although there was a time, in the earlier days, when you considered yourselves somewhat select, I am glad you now realise that you are part of the great Trade Union Movement of this country.
The Railway Clerk June 1910.
[13]. Railway Herald 2nd June 1900.
[14]. Railway Herald 16th June 1900.
[15]. The Railway Review 8th June 1900
[16]. G. F. V. Cutting JP (North London). Branch chairman and secretary. Joined GRWU 1889 and RCA 1899. Played leading part in superannuation matters, salaries, campaign for Sunday pay. Chairman, London Divisional Council. First RCA member to be appointed as a London JP. First Labour member to to sit on the Highgate bench
[17]. A. P. Wilson (Glasgow). EC 1901-1904.
[18]. J. Calder (Edinburgh). EC 1902-1903.
[19]. D. Stewart. Joined RCA 1901. Secretary Dundee branch and then Chairman Glasgow branch. Chairman Scottish Western Divisional Council. EC 1908.
[20]. J. St. Clair Halfpenny (East London). Joined RCA 1904. Member London Protection League. Stood for Woolwich Borough Council 1906. Helped to establish Labour paper Woolwich Pioneer. First RCA full-time organiser.
[21]. G. Gillies (Dundee). Branch secretary 1912-1920, Chairman Scottish Eastern Divisional Council 1910-1912, Member Scottish Advisory Council.
[22]. W. Hill. (Leeds). Joined RCA 1898. RCA EC 1901-1903. RCA Trustee 1906-1908, Secretary Yorkshire Divisional Council (formed 24th November 1906) in 1908. Member Labour Party, helped establish Leeds LRC.
[23]. Railway Herald 26th December 1903.
[24]. Railway Herald 31st May 1902
[25]. Railway Herald 13th September 1902
[26]. The Railway Clerk 1st November 1904
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