Robert Bryce Stevenson (26 June 1926 – 2 July 2003) 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 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 ...

. Born near Airdrie in

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark (; ), is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. The county is no l ...

, Stevenson was educated at Caldercruix Advanced School before joining the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served with the

Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (the Duke of Albany's) to form ...

. In 1947, he left the Army and settled in

Shepton Mallet Shepton Mallet is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England, some southwest of Bath, Somerset, Bath, south of Bristol and east of Wells, Somerset, Wells. It had an estimated population of 10,810 in 2019. ...

, finding work with Clarks Shoes and joining the

National Union of Boot and Shoe Operatives The National Union of Boot and Shoe Operatives (NUBSO) was a trade union in the United Kingdom which existed between 1873 and 1971. It represented workers in the footwear industry. History The union was founded in 1873, when many riveters and ...

(NUBSO)."Bob Stevenson", ''

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'', 18 August 2003 In 1951, Stevenson was elected as president of his local branch of NUBSO, and ten years later he began working full-time for the union, based in

Street A street is a public thoroughfare in a city, town or village, typically lined with Building, buildings on one or both sides. Streets often include pavements (sidewalks), pedestrian crossings, and sometimes amenities like Street light, streetligh ...

. He remained in this post as the union became part of the National Union of Footwear, Leather and Allied Trades (NUFLAT). In 1980, he was elected as NUFLAT's General President.Stevenson, Robert Bryce
, ''

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'' As leader of NUBSO, Stevenson focused on a campaign to reduce the length of the working week, and for

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policy to support British shoemaking. Stevenson represented the union the

Trades Union Congress The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union center, national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions that collectively represent most unionised workers in England and Wales. There are 48 affiliated unions with a total of ...

(TUC), and served on the

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from 1984. He promoted education among trade union members, and served on the council of

Ruskin College Ruskin College, originally known as Ruskin Hall, Oxford, is a higher education institution and part of the University of West London, in Oxford, England. It is not a Colleges of the University of Oxford, college of Oxford University. Named ...

. Faced with declining membership, Stevenson negotiated a merger between NUFLAT and the National Union of Hosiery and Knitwear Workers which formed the National Union of Knitwear, Footwear and Apparel Trades; he retired at the end of 1990, as the merger was effected. In retirement, he continued to serve on the board of the Footwear Benevolent Society until 2002.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, Bob 1926 births 2003 deaths British Army personnel of World War II Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress People from Airdrie, North Lanarkshire Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders soldiers Scottish trade unionists Military personnel from North Lanarkshire