Harold Francis Collison, Baron Collison, CBE, (10 May 1909 – 29 December 1995) was a British trade unionist. Born in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

, Collison grew up in Gloucester and attended the Crypt School, before working on a farm from the age of seventeen. He joined the National Union of Agricultural Workers and was also active in the Labour Party. From 1946, he worked at the union headquarters in London, and in 1953 he was elected General Secretary. In 1960, he became President of the

International Federation of Plantation, Agricultural and Allied Workers The International Federation of Plantation and Agricultural Workers (IFPAAW) was a global union federation bringing together unions representing land workers. History The federation was created on December 2, 1959, when the Plantation Workers In ...

, serving until 1976, and he was also a member of the executive of the International Labour Organization. In the

1961 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1961 were appointments by many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 31 December 1960 in the U ...

he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). He was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

on 14 December 1964 as Baron Collison, ''of Cheshunt, in the County of Hertford''. In 1965, Collison served as

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 d ...

. In 1969, he resigned as General Secretary of the union to become Chairman of the Supplementary Benefits Commission.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collison, Harold 1909 births 1995 deaths General Secretaries of the National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers Labour Party (UK) life peers Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress People from Gloucester Presidents of the Trades Union Congress People educated at The Crypt School, Gloucester Life peers created by Elizabeth II