The Trades Union Congress Library Collections at London Metropolitan University An Introductory Guide
Welcome to the TUC Library The TUC Library is a special collection that covers all aspects of work and the workplace, employment conditions, trade unions and the labour movement. The library was founded in 1922 as the library of the Trades Union Congress and the Labour Party. The TUC represents Britain’s trades unions and acts as a pressure group campaigning for the rights and conditions of people at work. This guide is divided into the following sections: • • • •
Where is the TUC Library? How can I access the TUC Library? What is in the TUC Library? How can I use the material in the TUC Library? • Is any material from the TUC Library online?
Where is the TUC Library? The TUC Library is in LCG-22 on the ground floor of the Learning Centre on Holloway Road, N7 6PP
The TUC Library
The reading area of the TUC Library
How can I access the TUC Library?
Our opening hours are: Monday to Friday 09:00 – 17:00 Email: tuclib@londonmet.ac.uk Tel: 020 7133 3726 Website: www.londonmet.ac.uk/tuc Download our brochure by clicking on the image above
It is advisable to make an appointment to visit the library but if you are unsure of what material we hold and how we can help you please email or give us a call, and if you are in the Learning Centre feel free to pop in and we’ll try and help.
What is in the TUC Library? The library contains a wealth of information on the following topics: Working conditions, employment law, health and safety, collective bargaining, strikes and demonstrations....
Equality, diversity and anti-discrimination issues related to race, sex, age, disability, etc...
The history and contemporary development of social policy including health, housing, education, transport, social security....
Women and gender issues – discrimination, equal pay, maternity/paternity rights, family-friendly and flexible working...
The history of the TUC, Labour Party and the trade union and labour movement from the mid-19th century to today.....
For art and design students the TUC Library also contains a large collection of posters and political artwork....
How can I use the material in the TUC Library?
• All the material in the TUC Library is reference only and must be consulted in the library. Photocopying and use of digital cameras is permitted. • See a full list of our Library Rules • Due to the special nature of the material in the library we provide a great deal of support and advice to our users. All visitors receive a personal one-to-one discussion with library staff when they first arrive in order to help them locate material.
Finding TUC Library material on the online catalogue
If any item on the catalogue has “TUC� in the location it means it is in the TUC Library.
However, not all our material has yet been added to the online catalogue. Please contact us so we can advise whether we hold any material relevant to your research subject.
Archive Collections
The Library also contains a number of special archive collections. Click on the links below to download a catalogue document for each archive: • The papers of Gertrude Tuckwell - active in women’s union organising and suffrage campaigns 1895-1921. • The papers of Marjorie Nicholson - active in the TUC’s International Department from 1955-1972. A unique collection for the study of international and Commonwealth labour issues and colonial independence movements. • The archive of the Workers Educational Association (WEA) – founded in 1903 and still in existence today, the WEA is dedicated to providing adult education and lifelong learning for people from all backgrounds. • Papers of the Labour Research Department (LRD) – originally founded in 1912 as the Fabian Society’s Committee of Inquiry into the Control of Industry, the LRD is now a research centre and think tank for the labour and trade union movement. The collection covers Fabian socialism, communism, fascist and antifascist campaigns, and information relating to notable individuals from the labour movement such as Sidney and Beatrice Webb, George Bernard Shaw, etc.
Online resources • The Union Makes Us Strong – an introduction to the history of the labour and trade union movement. Contains a Timeline and sections dedicated to the 1926 General Strike, the 1888 Matchworkers Strike, the original manuscript of the novel “The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists” and the full text of the TUC annual Congress reports 1868-1968 • The Workers War: Home Front Recalled – contains oral history interviews and digitised material that documents the contribution that working class people made to the war effort in the Second World War • Winning Equal Pay – documents the historical struggle for equal pay for women via oral history interviews and digitised material from the library • Britain at Work: Voices from the Workplace 19451995 – documents the changes to the British workplace in the post-war period