The Modern Records Centre and the new extension of the library
The Modern Records Centre (MRC) is the specialist archive service of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, located adjacent to the Central Campus Library. It was established in October 1973 and holds the world's largest archive collection on British industrial relations, as well as archives relating to many other aspects of British social, political and economic history.
The BP corporate archive is located next to the MRC, but has separate staff and facilities.
Holdings
Trade unions
The Modern Records Centre holds by far the largest collection of archives of British trade unions in the country. The largest collection held in the centre is the archive of the Trades Union Congress (TUC).
Other significant collections of archives relating to British trade unions include:
Frank Chapple, Baron Chapple of Hoxton, general secretary of the Electrical Trades Union and Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunication and Plumbing Union
Percy Collick, assistant general secretary of ASLEF and Labour MP
Frank Cousins, general secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union and Minister of Technology
Frank Crump, general secretary of the National Amalgamated Union of Life Assurance Workers
Sir Joseph Hallsworth, general secretary of the Amalgamated Union of Co-operative Employees, National Union of Distributive and Allied Workers, and Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers
Clive Jenkins, general secretary of ASSET, ASTMS and the MSF
Jack Jones, general secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union
Ron Todd, general secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union
Paul Tofahrn, assistant general secretary of the International Transport Workers' Federation and general secretary of Public Services International
Bob Willis, general secretary of the London Society of Compositors, London Typographical Society, and National Graphical Association
George Woodcock, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress
Large collections of papers of more junior trade unionists include:
Jon Appleton, of NALGO and Unison
Alfred Best, of the National Amalgamated Union of Life Assurance Workers
Cyril Collard, of the Association of Teachers in Technical Institutions
John Dore, of the Association of Scientific Workers, ASTMS and the MSF
David and Tamar Edwards, of the Amalgamated Engineering Union and the Transport and General Workers' Union respectively
Dick Etheridge, of the Amalgamated Engineering Union
R. Leonard Fagg, of the Post Office Engineering Union
Monty Hughes, of the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation
Norman Jacobs, of the Civil and Public Services Association
J. C. McLauchlan, of the Institution of Professional Civil Servants
David Michaelson, of the Amalgamated Engineering Union
Peter Morgan, of NALGO
Peter Nicholas, of the Amalgamated Engineering Union
Aaron Rapoport Rollin, of the National Union of Tailors and Garment Workers
William Henry Stokes, of the Amalgamated Engineering Union
Alan Thornett, of the Transport and General Workers' Union
Arthur Willitt, of the Post Office Engineering Union, Society of Post Office Engineering Inspectors, Society of the Post-Office Engineering Inspectorate, Society of Telecommunication Engineers, Association of Post Office Executives, and Society of Post Office Executives
Amicia Young, of the Association of Scientific Workers
A second part of the Modern Records Centre's collecting base is the archives of pressure and campaigning groups. Significant among these are the archives of the:
Other political holdings include the papers of former general secretary of the Labour Party Jim Mortimer, Conservative MP Derek Coombs, National Front activist Wayne Ashcroft, and the Warwick and Leamington Constituency Labour Party.
The Modern Records Centre holds the National Cycle Archive, the principal archive covering all aspects of cycling history in the United Kingdom. This includes the archives of the Auto-Cycle Union, the Cyclists' Touring Club, and the National Cyclists' Union, as well as archives of many other cycling organisations and clubs, manufacturers of bicycles and accessories, and individuals connected with cycling, such as Eric Claxton, Tony Hadland, Alex Josey, Derek Roberts and Frank Rowland Whitt.
The Centre holds the organisational archives of the University of Warwick itself and also Coventry College of Education, which amalgamated with it in 1971. It also holds the papers of some individuals connected with the university, notably the sociologists Gillian Rose and Meg Stacey, and Sir Arthur Vick, who was the university's chairman of council and pro-chancellor.
The Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) is the national trade union centre in Scotland. With 40 affiliated unions as of 2020, the STUC represents over 540,000 trade unionists.
In British politics, an affiliated trade union is one that is linked to the Labour Party. The party was created by the trade unions and socialist societies in 1900 as the Labour Representation Committee and the unions have retained close institutional links with it.
The Transport and General Workers' Union was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland – where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU) to differentiate itself from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union – with 900,000 members. It was founded in 1922 and Ernest Bevin served as its first general secretary.
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the labour movement of Singapore, comprising 59 affiliated trade unions, 5 affiliated trade associations, 10 social enterprises, 6 related organisations and other enterprise partners. It helms May Day celebrations and organises an annual rally in support of workers' solidarity and commitment to tripartite partnership. The NTUC has had a symbiotic relationship with the People's Action Party (PAP) since its inception in 1961.
The Iron and Steel Trades Confederation (ISTC) was a British trade union for metal-workers and allied groups, being the largest union in these fields. It was formed on 1 January 1917 as a merger of existing steel-workers' unions and it is now part of Community.
Community is a British trade union which formed in 2004. The union represents workers in a diverse range of sectors, including iron and steel, justice and custodial, domestic appliance manufacturing, textiles and footwear, road transport, betting, the third sector, education and early years as well as the self-employed.
The General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) is a national trade union centre in the United Kingdom. It has 35 affiliates with a membership of just over 214,000 and describes itself as the "federation for specialist unions".
The Amalgamated Society of Boilermakers, Shipwrights, Blacksmiths and Structural Workers (ASB) was a trade union in the United Kingdom. Many of its members worked in shipbuilding, in which industry it was the leading trade union, while over time it also developed strength in engineering and construction.
The Irish Trades Union Congress (ITUC) was a union federation covering the island of Ireland.
The Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions (CSEU), often known as the Confed is a trade union confederation in the United Kingdom.
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions, formed in 1959 by the merger of the Irish Trades Union Congress and the Congress of Irish Unions, is a national trade union centre, the umbrella organisation to which trade unions in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland affiliate.
The Amalgamated Society of Engineers (ASE) was a major British trade union, representing factory workers and mechanics.
The General Council of the Trades Union Congress is an elected body which is responsible for carrying out the policies agreed at the annual British Trade Union Congresses (TUC).
The National Federation of Building Trades Operatives (NFBTO) was a trade union federation in the United Kingdom, consisting of unions with members in construction and related industries.
The National Union of Wallcoverings, Decorative and Allied Trades (NUWDAT) was an industrial union representing workers connected with the manufacture of wallpaper in the United Kingdom.
The Printing and Kindred Trades Federation (P&KTF) was a trade union federation in the United Kingdom.
The Joint Committee of Light Metal Trades Unions (LMTU) was a trade union committee consisting of unions based in the United Kingdom with members involved in producing castings for industry and construction.
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