by Chris McLaughlin
The final curtain came down on the T&G this week at the launch of a film and book to mark the history of Britain’s biggest ever union.
The legendary leader Jack Jones was present to hear the union’s last general secretary, Tony Woodley, recall the epic struggles of the labour movement portrayed in the “fantastic record” of the union’s 86 years.
“This film does justice to our movement and brings a real sense of pride when you see the real struggles so vividly portrayed, “ said Mr Woodley. “It puts the present day moans and groans of the movement into perspective.”
The T&G, which had more than two million members in the late 1970s and was in the forefront of the battle for social reform and employment rights, merged with Amicus last year to form Unite.
The film was written and narrated by veteran industrial correspondent Geoffrey Goodman who told an audience of hundreds gathered at the TUC headquarters in London that the T&G had “given this country leaders of a quality unequalled by any other country, people not only of national but of international quality”.
Mr Woodley said the vision which originally brought 14 separate unions under the single T&G banner would be at the forefront of the “great instrument” that is now Unite while joint general secretary Derek Simpson praised the T&G’s history of unity and strength through the membership.
