Trade Unionism and Scientific Workers

Abstract

UNDER the title “British Trade Unionism”, the Association of Scientific Workers has issued a short study course for scientific workers prepared by Dr. J. Kuczynski and a study group of the Central London Branch, which was formed early in 1942, on trade union history with special reference to the development of non-manual organization and the history of the Association of Scientific Workers in particular. The booklet is in five chapters : why trade unions were formed in Great Britain and how they were developed ; how scientific workers came to found a trade union ; a short history of the Trades Union Congress ; the structure of the Trades Union Congress ; and the story of the Association of Scientific Workers. Of these the second and last show a certain lack of proportion and perspective. Within the limits imposed by pamphlet size, however, the first and the last three chapters give a concise-but biased, not to say prejudiced-account of the development of trade unionism in Great Britain and the association of professional defence organizations of scientific workers with this movement. Limitations of size, however, cannot excuse the paucity of the bibliography and the absence of bibliographic detail. The writers would do well to remember that history and propaganda are ill consorts.