Founded 1866 Members 1,065 (1980) | Date dissolved 2002 | |
Full name Amalgamated Association of Beamers, Twisters and Drawers (Hand and Machine) Members transferred Manufacturing, Science and Finance Affiliation General Federation of Trade Unions, Trade Union Congress | ||
The Amalgamated Association of Beamers, Twisters and Drawers (Hand and Machine) (AABTD) was a British trade union representing workers in the cotton industry.
The union was founded in 1866 as the Amalgamated Association of Beamers, Twisters and Drawers by the loose amalgamation of several district unions. It was reconstituted in 1889, and officially registered the following year. In 1915, it added "Hand and Machine" to its name. By this time, it had also affiliated to the United Textile Factory Workers' Association.
From 1890 until 1932, the union was led by William Cornforth Robinson, a member of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party, who served two terms as a Member of Parliament. In the 1940s and 1950s, it was led by Harry Earnshaw, also a member of the National Executive Committee.
By 1980, the union had only 1,065 members, and by 1989 this had declined to just 470, although its members were determined not to merge into a larger union. Given the precipitous decline in membership, it disaffiliated from the Trades Union Congress in 1992, and eventually its remaining members transferred to Manufacturing, Science and Finance in 1998, with the union being formally dissolved in 2002.