Alfred Roberts (30 November 1897 – 18 November 1963) was a

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trade unionist A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

. Roberts was born in

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

, his father being a coal carter. He studied at the Chalfont Street Council School, but left at thirteen to work in the office of a builders' company, before moving to work in the cotton industry. After a break during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, during which he served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

, he became active in the National Association of Card, Blowing and Ring Room Operatives (Cardroom Amalgamation), and by the age of thirty was the union's Preston secretary."Sir Alfred Robert", ''

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'', November 1963 In 1935, Roberts was elected as General Secretary of the Cardroom Amalgamation. In 1948, he was appointed to the Cotton Board, and in 1950/51 he served as

President of the Trades Union Congress The president of the Trades Union Congress is a prominent but largely honorary position in United Kingdom, British trade unionism. History Initially, the post of president was elected at the annual Trades Union Congress (TUC) itself, and would serv ...

. He was awarded the

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, an honorary master's degree by the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

, and was knighted in 1955. He was a vice-chairman of the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is one of the firs ...

from 1954 until 1960, while, in 1956, he joined the board of directors of the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...

.ROBERTS, Sir Alfred
, ''

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'' Roberts retired from his general secretaryship in 1962, but he continued to acquire new positions on committees, including becoming a governor of the

Commonwealth Institute The Commonwealth Education Trust was a registered charity established in 2007 as the successor trust to the Commonwealth Institute. The trust focuses on primary and secondary education and the training of teachers and invests on educational pr ...

and a member of the Nationalised Industries Advisory Committee. However, he died in 1963.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Alfred 1897 births 1963 deaths General secretaries of the Amalgamated Association of Card and Blowing Room Operatives Trade unionists from Bolton Presidents of the Trades Union Congress Royal Navy sailors Royal Navy personnel of World War I Military personnel from the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton Commanders_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire