Richard Squance
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William John Richard Squance (1 January 1880 – 22 August 1948) was a
Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...
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 ...
. Born in the
Landore Landore () is a district and community in Swansea, Wales. The district falls in the Landore council ward. A mainly residential area, it is located about 2.5 miles north of Swansea city centre. The north-easterly part of Landore is known as ...
area of
Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...
, Squance found work as a cleaner for the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
in 1894, and four years later became a fireman on the railway. He joined the
Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen The Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF) is a British trade union representing drivers of trains including services such as the London Underground (Tube). It is part of the International Transport Workers' Federation ...
(ASLEF), at which time he was based in
Aberdare Aberdare ( ; ) is a town in the Cynon Valley area of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, at the confluence of the Rivers Dare (Dâr) and River Cynon, Cynon. Aberdare has a population of 39,550 (mid-2017 estimate). Aberdare is south-west of Merthyr Tydf ...
. ntitled article ''Railway Gazette International'', vol.89, p.249 In 1907, Squance became an engine driver. He moved to
Goodwick Goodwick (; ) is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, immediately west of its twin town of Fishguard. Fishguard and Goodwick form a community that wraps around Fishguard Bay. As well as the two towns, it consists of Dyffryn, Stop-and-Call, H ...
to take up the post, and was elected as secretary of the local branch of ASLEF, and he maintained leading roles in local branches as he moved, first to Newport, then to
Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...
. There, he chaired a joint committee of unions during the railway strike of 1911. Increasingly radical, he supported two drivers who refused to move Irish freight during the 1913
Dublin lock-out The Dublin lock-out was a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers that took place in Dublin, Ireland. The dispute, lasting from 26 August 1913 to 18 January 1914, is often viewed as the most severe and s ...
, organising solidarity action which ultimately led to most of the South Wales railway workers going on strike. Robert Griffiths,
1911 When the State fired on civilians
, Socialist History Society
ASLEF set up a GWR Delegation Board in 1915, and Squance was chosen as its first secretary; he was elected to the union's executive the following year, then served as vice-president in 1919/20 and president in 1920/21. In 1920, he was appointed to the
National Wages Board The National Wages Board () is a Norwegian body for resolving labour disputes. Its task is to perform a compulsory arbitration () when negotiations of parties in Norwegian working life (employers and employees) stall, and if the conflict (strike or ...
, serving for eight years."Obituary: Mr W. J. R. Squance", ''Annual Report of the 1948 Trades Union Congress'', p.316 Following Squance's presidency, he became the union's full-time organising secretary. Active during the
UK general strike The 1926 general strike in the United Kingdom was a general strike that lasted nine days, from 4 to 12 May 1926. It was called by the General Council of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in an unsuccessful attempt to force the British government ...
of 1926, he was imprisoned for his role, but this only increased his prestige in the union, and in 1927 he was promoted to Assistant General Secretary. Squance was a member of the Labour Party, and was selected as the
Prospective Parliamentary Candidate In British politics, a prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) is a candidate selected by political parties to contest under individual Westminster constituencies in advance of a general election. The term originally came into use because of ...
(PPC) for Bassetlaw at the
1935 UK general election The 1935 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 14 November 1935. It resulted in a second (though reduced) landslide victory for the three-party National Government, which was led by Stanley Baldwin of the Conservative Party aft ...
. However, ASLEF decided that, if he were elected, he would need to resign his union posts, and Squance decided instead to stand down as PPC. During the early 1930s, ASLEF's general secretary, John Bromley, suffered from increasingly poor health, and Squance frequently deputised for him. As such, when Bromley retired in 1936, Squance was the natural choice as his successor.''Dictionary of Labour Biography'', vol.XIII, p.55 He also served on the
General Council of the Trades Union Congress The General Council of the Trades Union Congress is an elected body which is responsible for carrying out the policies agreed at the annual British Trades Union Congresses (TUC). Organisation The council has 56 members, all of whom must be proposed ...
from 1936, until his retirement in 1939. As general secretary, Squance was known as an outspoken anti-fascist, close to the
Communist Party of Great Britain The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was the largest communist organisation in Britain and was founded in 1920 through a merger of several smaller Marxist groups. Many miners joined the CPGB in the 1926 general strike. In 1930, the CPGB ...
. He took a leading role in the People's Convention of 1940/41, and as a result was expelled by the Labour Party.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Squance, Richard 1880 births 1948 deaths General secretaries of ASLEF Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress Trade unionists from Swansea Welsh trade unionists