National Union of Public Employees


The National Union of Public Employees was a British trade union which existed between 1908 and 1993. It represented public sector workers in local government, the Health Service, universities, and water authorities.

History

The union was founded in 1908 as the National Union of Corporation Workers, which split from the Municipal Employees Association, following Albin Taylor's dismissal as General Secretary. The union became NUPE in 1928.
NUPE grew rapidly during the post WWII expansion of the public sector, and especially during the 1960s and early 1970s. It grew from a membership of 250,100 in 1966 to 693,100 members in 1977, making it the fifth largest union in Britain. It was particularly successful in recruiting amongst sections of the workforce previously seen as a lower priority by rival trade unions, such as part-time women workers, and it was these members who made NUPE the largest manual workers' union in local government by the 1970s.
NUPE had Regional and Area offices across the whole of Britain and was active in the mobilisation of employees in those parts of the public sector where it had substantial membership against the attacks on trade union organisation and workers' rights by the Thatcher government from 1979.
In 1993, NUPE merged with NALGO and COHSE to form UNISON.
A similarly named trade union exists in New Zealand as of 2012.

General Secretaries