General Workers' Union (Belize)
Encyclopedia
British Honduras Workers and Tradesmen's Union, the first central trade union
organization in Belize
. Founded in 1939 by Antonio Soberanis Gómez
. Registered as a legal trade union in 1943. Shortly thereafter it changed its name to General Workers Union.
GWU played an important role in the anticolonial movement. It reached its peak in 1955. Thereafter it declined rapidly.
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...
organization in Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
. Founded in 1939 by Antonio Soberanis Gómez
Antonio Soberanis Gómez
Antonio Soberanis Gómez was a Belizean labour activist, regarded as the father of the Belizean labour movement. He founded the Labourers and Unemployed Association in 1934 to demand poverty relief work and a minimum wage...
. Registered as a legal trade union in 1943. Shortly thereafter it changed its name to General Workers Union.
GWU played an important role in the anticolonial movement. It reached its peak in 1955. Thereafter it declined rapidly.