GMB Connect Magazine December 2017 December 2017 | Page 8

GMB UNION ANNOUNCES THE SAD
PASSING OF PRESIDENT MARY TURNER
From feeding 600 young marchers during the
people’s March for Jobs in the 1980s, to fighting
the National Front and leading, recruiting and
supporting thousands of low paid workers, Mary
has led our movement. In recognition of her
incredible work, Mary was elected to GMB’s
executive where upon her election, she served
as the only woman out of 40 members.
In 1997 Mary was elected as President of GMB
a position she has been re-elected into every
year since. She has served on the Labour Party
National Executive Committee, chairing the Party
in 2004. In 2010, Mary was awarded an MBE,
which was followed by a CBE in 2017.
Click here to watch
a tribute video to
Mary turner
Paul McCarthy, GMB Regional Secretary
said, “All the usual plaudits reserved for
the titans of our movement are rolled out
for Mary, and quite rightly so, she was
a giant of the trade union movement, a
leader, an inspiration and someone who
paved the way not only for women in
the workplace but for all working people
everywhere.
GMB Union sadly announced recently that President Mary Turner has passed away after a short
illness.
Mary has been a trade union activist for over 60 years, and was a much loved and hugely respected
member of the GMB Union.
Born in Tipperary, Mary moved to the North of England as a child before finally settling in Kilburn,
London. She was a trade unionist from the day she started work. When she was 16, her father asked
her ‘have you joined a union yet? – that was the beginning of a trade union career that has spanned
over six decades.
She fought tirelessly for the values and
principles she held so dear and was
nothing short of a warrior always battling
for social justice and equality with a
passion and tenacity that set her apart
from many others around her.
First joining the Tailor and Garment Workers Union (aptly a union that would go on to join GMB), Mary
worked at Jackson’s Tailors on Oxford Street, then went on to serve as Mother of Chapel in the print
industry before taking time off to raise her children.
For 59 years, Mary was married to Denny, whom she had married within six weeks of meeting. They
shared a wonderful life together, filled with love, humour and happiness. Denny sadly passed away in
2015.
Mary was considered a formidable opponent by employers and governments alike, but she also had
the biggest and warmest heart in the trade union movement. From Prime Ministers to Caretakers and
from the school kitchen to the boardroom Mary had a smile as wide as the ocean for everyone she met
and could charm the birds from the trees. It was this charm coupled with her dogged determination and
tenacity that led to her numerous successful campaigns over the years.
As a trade unionist, Mary was a trailblazer who never took no for an answer. When she returned to
work part –time in 1970, she started work as a dinner lady in Brent and quickly set about organising
the female workers who were poorly paid, untrained and treated badly. It was also during this time
that Mary developed a lifelong passion that she would campaign on for decades to come: free school
meals. Having seen hungry kids and the stigma of those who had to queue separately for free school
meals. Mary could not let that stand and she was instrumental in ensuring free school meals for kids
became Labour party policy.
Mary was a great friend of our region and always supported our annual women’s conferences. Not only
will she leave a massive void in our union, but she will be missed by all who knew and loved her. She
was without any shadow of a doubt one of the most exceptional and outstanding trade unionists of her
generation.
Paul McCarthy hails long time president as a ‘giant of the trade union movement’
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God bless Mary and rest in peace”.
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