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

trade union 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 ...

Unite and also a member of 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) Executive Committee and General Council.

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 movement, garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first New towns in the United Kingdom, new towns (designated 1948). It is ...

, having failed her

eleven plus exam The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardised 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 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 full ...

, and studied at the

London College of Printing The London College of Communication is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. Its origins are in education for the printing and retail industries; it now specialises in media-related subjects including advertising, animation ...

. In 1977, Cartmail began to work as a trade union liaison officer for the London Borough of Greenwich, and ten years later became a full-time trade union official for the Health Visitors' Association. 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, 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. 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 United Kingdom, British trade unionism. History Initially, the post of president was elected at the annual Trades Union Congress (TUC) itself, and would serv ...

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