British trade unionist and politician
Harry Dack (1877–1954) was a British trade unionist and politician.
Born in Loftus-by-Cleveland , Dack received a basic education at Skinningrove Council School but, while still a child, began working in the local ironstone mines.[ 1] [ 2]
In 1902, Dack was elected as a checkweighman , and the following year, he was elected to the executive committee of the Cleveland Miners' and Quarrymen's Association . In 1911, he became the president and full-time agent of the union. He represented the union on various bodies, including serving on the executive of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain , attending the Trades Union Congress and Labour Party conferences, and three international conferences of miners: in Brussels in 1910, Carlsbad in 1913, and Prague in 1925.[ 1]
At the 1918 United Kingdom general election , Dack stood as the Labour Party candidate for Cleveland , taking a close second place, with 35.3% of the vote. He stood again in 1922 , but dropped back to third, with 29.5% of the votes cast. He continued political activity at a more local level, serving on both North Riding County Council and the Guisborough Board of Guardians from 1924.[ 1] From 1930, he instead served on the county council as an alderman , and during the 1930s chaired the council's Agricultural Wages Committee and Public Assistance Committee .[ 2]
The miners' association became part of the National Union of General and Municipal Workers in 1932, but retained significant autonomy even after the merger, with Dack continuing as a full-time agent until his retirement in 1936.[ 3]
In 1934, Dack was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire , while in the early 1950s, the Harry Dack Infants School in Loftus was named after him.[ 4]
References
^ a b c The Labour Who's Who . London: The Labour Publishing Company. 1927. p. 49.
^ a b Who's Who in Yorkshire (North and East Ridings) . Jakeman. 1935. p. 54.
^ Rees, Gareth (1985). Political Action and Social Identity: Class, Locality and Ideology . Springer. p. 57. ISBN 1349178470 .
^ Morgan, Mike (7 April 2011). "Harry Dack's grandson hands OBE to Loftus school" . Evening Gazette . Retrieved 6 March 2018 .