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National Association of Co-operative Officials

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NACO
National Association of Co-operative Officials
Merged intoUnion of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers
Founded1917
Dissolved1 May 2018
Headquarters6a Clarendon Place, Hyde, Greater Manchester, England
Location
Members
2,500
Key people
Bob Lister, Interim General Secretary
PublicationThe Co-operative Official
AffiliationsTUC, STUC

The National Association of Co-operative Officials (NACO) was a trade union for staff in the co-operative sector in the United Kingdom, principally the Co-operative Group and other retail societies, Co-operatives UK and the Co-operative Party.

History

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The union was founded in 1917, as the National Union of Co-operative Officials. In 1970, it merged with the National Co-operative Managers Association, and with the Co-operative Secretaries Association, adopting its current name.[1]

NACO historically represented professionals and management in the sector, with general unions, principally the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW), recruiting among shop-floor and administrative workers. In the 2010s, NACO began, with the support of Co-operatives UK, to widen its base and end the division between 'officials' and 'administrators'. By 2017, it represented managers at the Co-operative Group, Central England Co-operative, Channel Islands Co-operative, Chelmsford Star Co-operative, East of England Co-operative, Heart of England Co-operative, Lincolnshire Co-operative, Midcounties Co-operative, Scotmid and Southern Co-operative.[2]

By 2017, membership of the union had fallen, leaving it concerned about its ability to continue as an independent organisation. As a result, it entered into discussions with USDAW about merging into that union's Supervisory, Administrative and Technical Association.[2] In February 2018, 82% of NACO members voted for the merger, which was completed in May.[3]

General Secretaries

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1917: E. Emery
1920s: Robert Simpson
1942: Robert Calderwood
1952: Arthur Potts
1977: Lindsay Ewing
2006: Neil Buist
2015: Bob Lister (interim)

References

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  1. ^ Arthur Ivor Marsh and Victoria Ryan, Historical Directory of Trade Unions, p.128
  2. ^ a b Harvey, Rebecca (6 July 2017). "Co-operative trade union starts talks to merge with retail union". Co-op News. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Co-operative trade union NACO has agreed to transfer into Usdaw". Usdaw. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
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