Noah Ablett (4 October 1883 – 31 October 1935) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

trade unionist A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (s ...

and political theorist who is most noted for contributing to '

The Miners' Next Step ''The Miners' Next Step'' was an economic and political pamphlet produced in 1912 calling for coal miners through their lodges, to embrace syndicalism and a new 'scientific' trade unionism. The pamphlet was written by the 'Unofficial Reform Committ ...

', a Syndicalist treatise which Ablett described as 'scientific trade unionism. Ablett was born in 1883 in Porth,

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coal mining, coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fa ...

to John and Jane Ablett;Lloyd (1958), pg 1113. he was the tenth child of eleven. Originally intending to join the ministry, Ablett was turned to the plight of the poor pay and working conditions of the Rhondda coal miners. A keen learner, he won a scholarship to

Ruskin College Ruskin College, originally known as Ruskin Hall, Oxford, is an independent educational institution in Oxford, England. It is not a college of Oxford University. It is named after the essayist, art and social critic John Ruskin (1819–1900) an ...

, Oxford in 1907 and while there was part of the college strike and subsequent movement that saw the creation of the Marxist educational group, the

Plebs' League The Plebs' League was a British educational and political organisation which originated around a Marxist way of thinking in 1908 and was active until 1926. History Central to the formation of the League was Noah Ablett, a miner from the Rhondda who ...

. On returning to the valleys he set up Marxist educational classes and was part of minimum wage agitation. In 1911, Ablett became a checkweighman at

Mardy Colliery Maerdy Colliery was a coal mine located in the South Wales village of Maerdy ( cy, Y Maerdy), in the Rhondda Valley, located in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, and within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. Opened in 18 ...

Maerdy Maerdy (, cy, Y Maerdy) is a village and community (and electoral ward) in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, and within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying at the head of the Rhondda Fach Valley. History "Maerdy" i ...

and later that year was one of the founders of the Unofficial Reform Committee. The following year he was the main author of 'The Miners' Next Step', a pamphlet demanding a minimum wage for the miners and for the miners to take control of the mines. By 1919 Ablett was an executive of the

South Wales Miners' Federation The South Wales Miners' Federation (SWMF), nicknamed "The Fed", was a trade union for coal miners in South Wales. It survives as the South Wales Area of the National Union of Mineworkers. Forerunners The Amalgamated Association of Miners (AA ...

and was chairman of the board of governors of the

Central Labour College The Central Labour College, also known as The Labour College, was a British higher education institution supported by trade unions. It functioned from 1909 to 1929. It was established on the basis of independent working class education. The colle ...

. In 1919 Ablett was approached by the Labour Party to contest the Pembrokeshire constituency ahead of the 1922 general election. Ablett turned down the invitation, citing the demands of his other responsibilities. 1919 also saw the release of Ablett's sole book ''Easy outline of economics'', published through the Plebs' League. Between 1921 and 1926 he was an executive member of the

Miners' Federation of Great Britain The Miners' Federation of Great Britain (MFGB) was established after a meeting of local mining trade unions in Newport, Wales in 1888. The federation was formed to represent and co-ordinate the affairs of local and regional miners' unions in Engla ...

.Coalfield Web Materials
Noah Ablett In his later life, Ablett would struggle with alcoholism. He died in 1935 in Merthyr Tydfil.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ablett, Noah 1883 births 1935 deaths Alumni of Ruskin College Welsh trade unionists People from Porth Welsh syndicalists Plebs' League members