2016 Labour Party Conference, conference hall

Gail Cartmail (born 1955) is an Assistant General Secretary (AGS) at the

trade union 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 ...

Unite and also a member of the

Trades Union Congress The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions in England and Wales, representing the majority of trade unions. There are 48 affiliated unions, with a total of about 5.5 million members. Frances O ...

' (TUC) Executive Committee and

General Council General council may refer to: In education: * General Council (Scottish university), an advisory body to each of the ancient universities of Scotland * General Council of the University of St Andrews, the corporate body of all graduates and seni ...

Career

Cartmail attended Heronswood Secondary Modern School in

Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first new towns (designated 1948). It is unique in being both a garden city and a new town an ...

, having failed her

eleven plus exam The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardized examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academ ...

. She left school with no qualifications, Cartmail began her working life as an apprentice hairdresser. Later, she began working in the publishing industry, and eventually became

Mother of the Chapel A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company who represents and defends the interests of their fellow employees as a labor union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the union hold ...

for the print union, the

National Graphical Association The National Graphical Association (NGA) was a trade union representing typographers and related workers in the United Kingdom. History The union was formed in 1964 by the merger of two long-term rival unions, the Typographical Association an ...

, where she gained prominence for a campaign for

equal pay for women Equal pay for equal work is the concept of labour rights that individuals in the same workplace be given equal pay. It is most commonly used in the context of sexual discrimination, in relation to the gender pay gap. Equal pay relates to the ful ...

, and studied at the

London College of Printing The London College of Communication is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. It specialises in media-related subjects including advertising, animation, film, graphic design, photography and sound arts. It has approximately ...

. In 1977, Cartmail began to work as a trade union liaison officer for the

London Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...

, and ten years later became a full-time trade union official for the

Health Visitors' Association The Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association is a Trade union and professional association for health care staff in the UK and Ireland. It is part of Unite the Union. Its 18,500 members include health visitors, school nurses, nurse ...

. She left in 1990 to become a regional officer for the

Manufacturing, Science and Finance Manufacturing, Science and Finance (or the Manufacturing, Science and Finance Union; almost exclusively known as MSF) was a trade union in Britain. Over eighty members of Parliament (primarily members of the Labour Party) were members. Histor ...

union, being promoted to national officer before it became part of

Amicus Amicus is Latin for 'friend' or 'comrade'. The word may refer to: Organizations * Amicus (trade union), the former British trade union, now merged with the TGWU to form Unite * Amicus Bank, a former bank based in Canada * Amicus Books, an inde ...

, in which she was the national officer for the health sector. In 2007, Amicus became part of Unite, and Cartmail was appointed as its assistant general secretary with responsibility for public services. She contested the 2010 election to become the union's General Secretary, taking fourth place and 39,000 votes behind

Len McCluskey Leonard David McCluskey (born 23 July 1950) is a British trade unionist. He was General Secretary of Unite the Union, the largest affiliate and a major donor to the Labour Party. As a young adult, he spent some years working in the Liverpool D ...

who was elected. In 2016, when McCluskey stood down to contest a new election, Cartmail was chosen as acting general secretary. Cartmail is a Commissioner at the

UK Commission for Employment and Skills The UK Commission for Employment and Skills was a non-departmental public body that provided advice on skills and employment policy to the UK Government and the Devolved Administrations. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills closed in Mar ...

. In her spare time, she enjoys cold-water swimming. In 2020, Cartmail became the

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

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cartmail, Gail 1955 births Living people Alumni of the London College of Printing British trade unionists Labour Party (UK) people Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress Presidents of the Trades Union Congress Unite the Union British women trade unionists