Margaret Taylor Naysmith Fenwick (19 August 1919 – 8 February 1992), born Margaret Mands, was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

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 ...

, who became the leader of her trade union. Born in

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

, Fenwick was educated at Stobswell School, leaving at the age of fourteen to undertake an apprenticeship as a weaver at the Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society's Taybank Works. She followed in a family tradition of becoming an active trade unionist, joining the Dundee and District Union of Jute and Flax Workers, and within a year achieved success in campaigning for apprentices to be paid at the same rate regardless of age.Ed. Elizabeth Ewan et al, ''The Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women'', pp.115-116 In about 1948, Fenwick was elected to the Management Committee of the union, and that year married Andrew Small Fenwick, a co-worker; the couple had four children. She tried to become a

shop steward 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 trades/labour union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the un ...

in 1950, but the company management refused to allow this, claiming that because she was married and had young children, she would be unable to fulfil the role to the same standard as a single person. Fenwick continued her activity in the union, which was renamed as the Union of Jute, Flax and Kindred Textile Operatives. She was elected as Assistant General Secretary in 1960, then as General Secretary in 1971. she served on various government committees relating to the jute industry, and was made a

Member of the Order of the British Empire 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 ...

in 1973. In 1976, Fenwick served as chair of the General Federation of Trade Unions, the first woman to hold the post. Fenwick announced her retirement in 1978.Carlo Morelli, ''The Decline of Jute: Managing Industrial Change'', p.58 Her post was not filled, as the union merged into the

National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers The National Union of Dyers, Bleachers and Textile Workers (NUDBTW) was a trade union in the United Kingdom. It amalgamated with the Transport and General Workers' Union in 1982. History The union was founded in 1936 with the merger of the N ...

the following May. In retirement, she focused on her role as a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

, and also served on industrial tribunals.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fenwick, Margaret 1919 births 1992 deaths General secretaries of British trade unions Presidents of the General Federation of Trade Unions (UK) Activists from Dundee Scottish women trade unionists