The Workers' Union was a general union based in the United Kingdom, but with some branches in other countries. During the 1910s, it was the largest general union in the UK, but it entered a rapid decline in the 1920s, and eventually became part of the Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU). History The idea for a general union arose following an 1897 strike of London-based engineers. The action was defeated by the new Engineering Employers' Federation, and many trade unionists feared that this example would be followed by other employers. Discussions in the Weekly Times and Echo led to the International Federation of Ship, Dock and River Workers issuing an appeal for the formation of a new general union. The federation's president, Tom Mann, gave the appeal strong support, chairing a conference in February 1898 which proposed a "labour league" or "workers' union", which would organise workers in all trades and industries, and support independent labour candidates at elections. The first branches of the union were formed in April 1898 in Bradford, Halifax, Leeds, London, Manchester, Middlesbrough and Oldham, with the union officially launched on May Day. Charles Duncan was employed as president and general organiser, while Tom Chambers as general secretary and Mann as vice president came from the international federation, and worked only part-time for the union Initially, the union was unsuccessful, membership peaking at 4,172 at the end of 1898. For example, recruitment at both the Army & Navy Stores and Lipton's Tea led to industrial action, and short booms in membership followed by defeats and then a collapse in membership. William Banham and J. Wade were employed as full-time local organisers in London, while other early organisers included John Mahoney in Middlesbrough, and George Newcombe in Coventry, but all had left by the end of 1901. From late 1900, Chambers and Mann were forced to devote their time to the international federation, Chambers being replaced by Duncan, who in turn was succeeded as president by Robert Morley, while Mann retained his office as an honorary position. Duncan successfully brought the union's finances under control, and began offering optional benefits to out-of-work members. For the next few years, membership continued to fall, bottoming out at only 1,000 in 1903, but it then began growing, reaching 5,000 in 1910. New organisers were employed, including George Titt in Manchester, Joseph Harris in Ireland, and Matt Giles in South