Canterbury Unemployed Workers' Movement records
Scope and Contents
Records of the Canterbury Unemployed Workers' Movement including the constitution and rules of the movement; minutes; correspondence; registers; accounts and publications.
Much of the correspondence deals with relief work, especially relating to work camps. Also included is a folder of papers of the Communist Party of New Zealand, 1932-1970.
Dates
- Creation: 1931-1944
Creator
- Canterbury Unemployed Workers’ Movement (Organization)
Biographical / Historical
Two separate unemployed workers’ organisations in the early 1930s, the Canterbury Unemployed Workers’ Association, and the Unemployed Workers’ Movement, merged in July 1935 shortly after the formation of the National Union of Unemployed. Prior to 1935, the Christchurch Unemployed Workers’ Movement and the Canterbury Unemployed Workers’ Association were local affiliates and co-operated fairly closely through such structures of the Canterbury (then North Canterbury, Provincial Council of the National Unemployed Workers’ Movement), and organisations set up to promote particular strikes or demonstrations such as the United Front (February 1934), and the Council of Action (August – September 1934).
Extent
5 Boxes (9 Volumes and 7 Folders)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
The correspondence, reports, minutes and leaflets were first passed over to the History Group of the Christchurch Secondary Teachers’ College. This group loosely sorted the material into Public Works Department unemployed camps, and then other material which was further sub-divided by year.
This broad arrangement has been retained, except the minutes, reports and records of the Canterbury Unemployed Workers’ Movement which have been separated into a chronological file.
The minutes, sports and other records of the National office and all other allied bodies to the Canterbury Unemployed Workers’ Movement - Christchurch have been chronologically arranged in a separate file.
In all cases, a strict chronological arrangement has been adhered to whenever possible.
Physical Location
Shelf TU B 1e, Tūranga, Tuakiri floor, ANZC Archives
Custodial History
The records include the letters and papers held by Charles F. Saunders, a secretary and dominion councillor of the Unemployed Workers’ Movement from its inception were presented to the Canterbury Public Library in March 1970.
The operational records of the Unemployed movement were presented to the Canterbury Public Library in 1975 by the Canterbury Trades Council by J. Cough and J. G. Locke.
- Title
- Canterbury Unemployed Workers' Movement records
- Description rules
- International Standard for Archival Description - General
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Christchurch City Libraries Archives Collection Repository
Tūranga
60 Cathedral Square
Central City
Christchurch Canterbury 8011 New Zealand
library@ccc.govt.nz?subject=Archives%20Enquiry&body=message