The Scottish Commercial Motormen's Union 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 ...

in the

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 ...

. It merged with 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 ...

in 1971.

History

The union was founded in 1898 as the Scottish Carters' Association. Hugh Lyon was appointed as its organiser in 1901, and was elected as general secretary the following year, at which point the union was heavily indebted and had only 300 members."Obituary: Mr Hugh Lyon", ''

Glasgow Herald ''The Herald'' is a Scottish broadsheet newspaper founded in 1783. ''The Herald'' is the longest running national newspaper in the world and is the eighth oldest daily paper in the world. The title was simplified from ''The Glasgow Herald'' in ...

'', 20 June 1940, p.3 He spent his first five months supporting a strike in

Falkirk Falkirk ( ; ; ) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a resident population of 32,422 at the ...

; during this time, the central office closed down and the union nearly shut down, but the strike was so successful that the union's executive decided to retain Lyon. Lyon gained recognition for the union from

Glasgow Town Council Glasgow City Council (Scottish Gaelic: ''Comhairle Baile Ghlaschu'') is the local government authority for Glasgow City council area, Scotland. In its modern form it was created in 1996. Glasgow was formerly governed by a corporation, also know ...

in 1904, and several strikes were won early in the 1910s, giving it membership across the nation, peaking at around 12,000 in 1912. In 1908, it was renamed as the Scottish Horse and Motormen's Association, in order to assist with the recruitment of drivers of motor vans. However, Lyon incorrectly believed that motor vehicles were a passing craze, and that the union should focus on recruiting carters. This led to a decline in membership during the 1920s and 1930s, worsened by Lyon's refusal to allow the union to join the Transport Workers' Federation, which led to a large number of demarcation disputes. Finally, in 1936, the union's executive lost patience and dismissed him.

Election results

The union sponsored a Labour Party candidate in the 1970 general election:Labour Party, ''Report of the Sixty-Ninth Annual Conference of the Labour Party'', pp.289-312

General Secretaries

:1898: John Sampson :1902: Hugh Lyon :1936: Robert Taylor :1944:

John Brannigan John Brannigan (5 January 1900 – 18 July 1959) was a Scottish people, Scottish trade union leader. Brannigan was born in Cambusnethan, Lanarkshire, to Patrick Brannigan, a steel dresser and journeyman, and his wife, Helen (''née'' Lynch). ...

:1959: Alex Kitson

History

Election results

General Secretaries

References

See also