Sir Herbert Richard Nicholas
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 ...
(13 March 1905 – 15 April 1997) was a
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 ...
and political organiser.
Early life
Born in
Bristol
Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
, Nicholas worked for the
Port of Bristol
The Port of Bristol comprises the commercial, and former commercial, docks situated in and near the city of Bristol in England. The Port of Bristol Authority was the commercial title of the Bristol City, Avonmouth, Portishead and Royal Portb ...
Authority until 1936, when he took a full-time post in the
Transport and General Workers' Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general union, general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland—where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU)—with 900 ...
(TGWU). He moved to
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to become National Officer in 1940, and in 1956 rose to become Assistant General Secretary. In the same year, he was elected to the
National Executive Committee of the
Labour Party, and from 1960 to 1964 he was the
party treasurer, appointed in order to maximise
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 ...
donations.
[ Jack Jones,]
Obituary: Sir Harry Nicholas
, ''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', 21 April 1997
Frank Cousins Frank Cousins may refer to:
* Frank Cousins (British politician) (1904–1986), British trade union leader and Labour politician
* Frank Cousins (American politician) (born 1958), American politician who served as the Essex County, Massachusetts ...
, General Secretary of the TGWU, served as
Minister of Technology
The Ministry of Technology was a department of the government of the United Kingdom, sometimes abbreviated as "MinTech". The Ministry of Technology was established by the incoming government of Harold Wilson in October 1964 as part of Wilson's am ...
from 1964 to 1966, and during this period, Nicholas became Acting General Secretary, also serving on the General Council 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 ...
. In 1967, he returned to the Labour NEC. He took early retirement from the union in 1968 to become
General Secretary of the Labour Party
The General Secretary of the Labour Party is the most senior employee of the British Labour Party, and acts as the non-voting secretary to the National Executive Committee. When there is a vacancy the National Executive Committee selects a pro ...
, having been offered the post by
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx (11 March 1916 – 23 May 1995) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1964 to 1970 and again from 197 ...
after several other candidates refused the position.
Nicholas was criticised after Labour lost the
1970 general election, and he stood down in 1972.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholas, Harry
1905 births
1997 deaths
Labour Party (UK) officials
British trade union leaders
Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress
Trade unionists from Bristol
Knights Bachelor
Officers of the Order of the British Empire