Arthur Henry Telling

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(born 28 March 1884) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

trade unionist.

Biography

Early life and career

Born in

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

, Telling became a plasterer. He joined the National Association of Operative Plasterers (NAOP), and began working full-time for the union in

Newport, Wales Newport ( ) is a city and Principal areas of Wales, county borough in Wales, situated on the River Usk close to its confluence with the Severn Estuary, northeast of Cardiff. The population grew considerably between the 2011 and the 2021 Unit ...

. 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 ...

, he served with the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) was a specialist corps in the British Army which provided medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. On 15 November 2024, the corps was amalgamated with the Royal Army De ...

, and was awarded the

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the British Armed Forces, armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, below commissioned o ...

As the NAOP general secretary

In 1920, Telling was appointed as Assistant General Secretary of the NAOP, working under T. H. Otley. Otley died suddenly in 1922, and Telling was appointed as acting general secretary of the union, winning an election to the permanent post in September. Telling immediately began reforming the union, ensuring that regional representatives could take seats on the executive, and appointing accountants to audit the union’s accounts, rather than electing members to fill the role. Later, he appointed full-time organisers for every region. Despite many disputes and the depression, membership of the union generally increased under Telling's leadership. In 1936, Telling visited the Soviet Union, but reported back that British building methods were superior. On 29 March 1941, he suffered a serious accident while travelling in a motorcycle sidecar, and took several months' sick leave. While he was off, the union's office was destroyed by bombing during

the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

. Union membership and finances struggled during the war, but rebounded afterwards, reaching more 19,967 in 1947. Membership then began declining, and in March 1949, Telling reached 65, the set age for retirement from union offices. The process to elect a replacement left him in office for a further year, but an operation near the end of 1949 led him to take several weeks off work. He finally stood down in March 1950.

Recognition

Telling was highly regarded by the union, and was awarded a testimonial cheque for £250. In retirement, he received a pension from the union, but this increased in line with inflation, rather than wage increases in the industry. Telling objected to this and took the union to court, winning the case. Telling was made an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in the

1950 New Year Honours The 1950 New Years Honours were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 2 January 1950 for the Unit ...

. He was active in the Labour Party and served as an

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Telling, Arthur Henry 1884 births Year of death missing Labour Party (UK) councillors General secretaries of British trade unions People from Gloucester Recipients of the Military Medal Royal Army Medical Corps soldiers Military personnel from Gloucester