Sidney Weighell
Encyclopedia
Sidney Weighell (pronounce surname as "weal") was a British footballer, trade union
ist and the General Secretary of the National Union of Railwaymen
from 1975 to 1983.
, Yorkshire
in 1922 into a "Railway Family" (his father, Tom Weighell was a Signalman, his grandfather Bill was a guard and his brother Maurice was a driver). He was educated at a Church of England
school, which he left at 15 and became an apprentice mechanic.
company. He became active in the NUR
immediately upon starting work for the Railways, believing in 'one union for all railway staff'. This brought him into conflict with the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen
(ASLEF); Weighell was a so-called 'footplate grade', traditionally represented by ASLEF, not the NUR. Weighell considered craft unions (unions catering to a particular job within an industry rather than to the industry itself) as outmoded and elitist, and apparently said so on many occasions at the Northallerton Railwaymen's club.
In January 1940 he joined the locomotive department as a fireman, becoming a qualified engine driver in 1943. He left the railways in 1945 to become a professional footballer, but returned in 1947. In 1954 he was made a full-time divisional officer for the NUR, and moved to their headquarters in London. In 1965 he was elected Assistant General Secretary of the NUR, and his maiden speech at the Labour Party conference in 1966 was heavily critical of Frank Cousins
' policies on income and pay restraint, further cementing his reputation as a "disruptive influence".
In 1969 he was named as Senior AGS, becoming Sidney Greene's deputy when the need arose, and when Greene chose to retire in 1975 Weighell won the leadership election, with more votes than all three of his opponents put together, a rare occurrence in the NUR.
Following rumors of a massive cut in rail services he threatened to stop NUR-sponsored MP's backing any kind of bill. He spoke at the 1976 Labour Party Conference, along with Johnny Johnson and Ray Buckton
, talking about the deep disappointment following the parties desertion of its election manifesto.
In the 1960s he had waged a campaign against the conversion of the railway engines to diesel fuel, arguing that the best conversion in the long-term would be to electrical power. He failed to convince either the National Executive or Harold Wilson
, but made more progress in the 1970s with his new leverage as General Secretary, attacking Anthony Crosland
's White Paper on transport integration. A stroke of luck saw Crosland moved to the foreign office in 1976 and replaced by William Rodgers
, who was more receptive to comments from the NUR. The result was the Transport Act 1978, which Weighell saw as a victory.
, becoming a member of the local trades council, and was elected to the National Executive Committee in 1953. He was initially regarded as a disruptive influence, and fired from the trades council for introducing politics into the proceedings.
. Weighell, however, secretly voted for the EETPU, a fact quickly discovered by conference officials.
Branded a cheat, Weighell was forced to offer his resignation, which a union committee convened in Birmingham
accepted 41–36. Despite the scandal he maintained he had done the right thing, saying "I'm glad to have been a casualty if it means that the party executive does not fall into the hands of militants."
and joined the British Airports' Authority board, as well as acting as a consultant to Tyne Tees Television
. In 1983 he wrote an autobiography titled On the Rails which was extremely scathing to both the successive and earlier General Secretaries.
".
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
ist and the General Secretary of the National Union of Railwaymen
National Union of Railwaymen
The National Union of Railwaymen was a trade union of railway workers in the United Kingdom. It an industrial union founded in 1913 by the merger of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants , the United Pointsmen and Signalmen's Society and the General Railway Workers' Union .The NUR...
from 1975 to 1983.
Early life
He was born at 25 Gladstone Street NorthallertonNorthallerton
Northallerton is an affluent market town and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Vale of Mowbray and at the northern end of the Vale of York. It has a population of 15,741 according to the 2001 census...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
in 1922 into a "Railway Family" (his father, Tom Weighell was a Signalman, his grandfather Bill was a guard and his brother Maurice was a driver). He was educated at a Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
school, which he left at 15 and became an apprentice mechanic.
Railway work
In 1938 he took an apprenticeship at the road motor engineering department of the London and North Eastern RailwayLondon and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
company. He became active in the NUR
National Union of Railwaymen
The National Union of Railwaymen was a trade union of railway workers in the United Kingdom. It an industrial union founded in 1913 by the merger of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants , the United Pointsmen and Signalmen's Society and the General Railway Workers' Union .The NUR...
immediately upon starting work for the Railways, believing in 'one union for all railway staff'. This brought him into conflict with the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen
Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen
The Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen is the trade union representing railway workers in Great Britain who are train drivers or in the line of promotion to train driver....
(ASLEF); Weighell was a so-called 'footplate grade', traditionally represented by ASLEF, not the NUR. Weighell considered craft unions (unions catering to a particular job within an industry rather than to the industry itself) as outmoded and elitist, and apparently said so on many occasions at the Northallerton Railwaymen's club.
In January 1940 he joined the locomotive department as a fireman, becoming a qualified engine driver in 1943. He left the railways in 1945 to become a professional footballer, but returned in 1947. In 1954 he was made a full-time divisional officer for the NUR, and moved to their headquarters in London. In 1965 he was elected Assistant General Secretary of the NUR, and his maiden speech at the Labour Party conference in 1966 was heavily critical of Frank Cousins
Frank Cousins
Frank Cousins PC was a British trade union leader and Labour politician.He was born in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire, and became a full-time official in the road transport section of the Transport and General Workers' Union in July 1938...
' policies on income and pay restraint, further cementing his reputation as a "disruptive influence".
In 1969 he was named as Senior AGS, becoming Sidney Greene's deputy when the need arose, and when Greene chose to retire in 1975 Weighell won the leadership election, with more votes than all three of his opponents put together, a rare occurrence in the NUR.
Following rumors of a massive cut in rail services he threatened to stop NUR-sponsored MP's backing any kind of bill. He spoke at the 1976 Labour Party Conference, along with Johnny Johnson and Ray Buckton
Ray Buckton
Ray Buckton was general secretary of ASLEF, the rail drivers' trade union in Great Britain.He also served on the TUC general council. He was born in Rillington, Yorkshire.-External links:* from The Independent...
, talking about the deep disappointment following the parties desertion of its election manifesto.
In the 1960s he had waged a campaign against the conversion of the railway engines to diesel fuel, arguing that the best conversion in the long-term would be to electrical power. He failed to convince either the National Executive or Harold Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
, but made more progress in the 1970s with his new leverage as General Secretary, attacking Anthony Crosland
Anthony Crosland
Charles Anthony Raven Crosland , otherwise Tony Crosland or C.A.R. Crosland, was a British Labour Party politician and author. He served as Member of Parliament for South Gloucestershire and later for Great Grimsby...
's White Paper on transport integration. A stroke of luck saw Crosland moved to the foreign office in 1976 and replaced by William Rodgers
William Rodgers, Baron Rodgers of Quarry Bank
William Thomas Rodgers, Baron Rodgers of Quarry Bank, PC , usually known as William Rodgers but also often known as Bill Rodgers, was one of the "Gang of Four" of senior British Labour Party politicians who defected to form the Social Democratic Party...
, who was more receptive to comments from the NUR. The result was the Transport Act 1978, which Weighell saw as a victory.
Politics
In 1945 he joined the Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, becoming a member of the local trades council, and was elected to the National Executive Committee in 1953. He was initially regarded as a disruptive influence, and fired from the trades council for introducing politics into the proceedings.
Downfall
At the Labour Party conference in 1982, the NUR committee decided to vote for the National Union of Mineworkers, led by Arthur ScargillArthur Scargill
Arthur Scargill is a British politician who was President of the National Union of Mineworkers from 1982 to 2002, leading the union through the 1984–85 miners' strike, a key event in British labour and political history...
. Weighell, however, secretly voted for the EETPU, a fact quickly discovered by conference officials.
Branded a cheat, Weighell was forced to offer his resignation, which a union committee convened in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
accepted 41–36. Despite the scandal he maintained he had done the right thing, saying "I'm glad to have been a casualty if it means that the party executive does not fall into the hands of militants."
Later life
After resigning in 1983 he moved back to YorkshireYorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
and joined the British Airports' Authority board, as well as acting as a consultant to Tyne Tees Television
Tyne Tees Television
Tyne Tees Television is the ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. As of 2009, it forms part of a non-franchise ITV Tyne Tees & Border region, shared with the ITV Border region...
. In 1983 he wrote an autobiography titled On the Rails which was extremely scathing to both the successive and earlier General Secretaries.
Personal life
On 1 September 1949 Weighell married Margaret Hunter, with whom he had one son and one daughter, Jennifer and Anthony. In 1956 Margaret and Jennifer were both killed when the family were involved in a car crash. Sidney himself spent several months in hospital, but returned to work after he had recovered. He married a second time on 21 November 1959 to Joan Willetts, a market research interviewer, but no children resulted.Football
Weighell was a skilled footballer, and always attributed his failure of the 11-plus exams to his preference to play football rather than study. He was offered trials for Sunderland, Newcastle United and Sheffield United, and signed for Sunderland on October 12 1945 for a fee of £10 and played for 2 seasons as an inside-left on the second team, claiming that he was the best inside-left in the north east "except for a certain gentleman by the name of Raich CarterRaich Carter
Horatio Stratton "Raich" Carter was one of the greatest English footballers of the pre-war era...
".