{{Infobox organization , name = Power Loom Carpet Weavers' and Textile Workers' Union , location_country=

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, members = 6,023 (1980){{cite book, last1=Eaton, first1=Jack, last2=Gill, first2=Colin, title=The Trade Union Directory, date=1981, publisher=Pluto Press, location=London, isbn=0861043502, pages=181–182 , image = , founded = 1865 , dissolved = 2000 , merged =

Iron and Steel Trades Confederation The Iron and Steel Trades Confederation (ISTC) was a British trade union for metal-workers and allied groups, being the largest union in these fields. It was formed on 1 January 1917 as a merger of existing steel-workers' unions and it is now pa ...

, headquarters = Callows Lane,

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a market town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester, England, Worcester. Located north of the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour and east of the River Severn, in th ...

, key_people = , affiliation = TUC, NACTU, Labour Party The Power Loom Carpet Weavers' and Textile Workers' Union (PLCWTWU) was a

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 ...

representing workers in the textile industry in the

area of

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The union was founded in 1865 and was initially named the Power Loom Brussels Carpet Weavers Defence Association. In its early days, it advocated for the

emigration Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

of unemployed carpet weavers, in order that they could find alternative work elsewhere, and competition in the industry would be reduced. This idea was soon abandoned, and in 1869 the union began admitting

tapestry Tapestry is a form of Textile arts, textile art which was traditionally Weaving, woven by hand on a loom. Normally it is used to create images rather than patterns. Tapestry is relatively fragile, and difficult to make, so most historical piece ...

weavers in the area, changing its name to the Power Loom Carpet Weavers Mutual Defence and Provident Association.Arthur Marsh, Victoria Ryan and John B. Smethurst, ''Directory of British Trade Unions'', vol.4, pp.498-499 In its early years, the union was very small, with only 588 members by the end of the 1860s. It focused on providing benefits for members who were unable to work, but did organise a strike in 1884. Its membership peaked at 1,384 in 1893, but then declined. In 1917, the union began admitting women and textile workers outside carpet and tapestry weaving, changing its name to the Power Loom Carpet Weavers' and Textile Workers' Association. This produced a jump in membership, which reached 4,500 by the end of 1918, and remained fairly constant thereafter, peaking at 6,000 in 1980. The 1980s proved a difficult time for the union as the industry declined in the Kidderminster area, and membership had fallen to 2,300 by 1991. It changed its name slightly to the "Power Loom Carpet Weavers' and Textile Workers' Union" then, in 2000, it merged into the

.Gary Daniels and John McIlroy, ''Trade Unions in a Neoliberal World: British Trade Unions Under New Labour'', pp.134-136

References

Further reading