This electronic thesis or dissertation has been downloaded from the King’s Research Portal at https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/ The Labour M.P. George N. Barnes and the Creation of the International Labour Office in 1919 International Labour Office in 1919 Korbet, Rebecca Bronwyn Awarding institution: King's College London The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without proper acknowledgement. END USER LICENCE AGREEMENT Unless another licence is stated on the immediately following page this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ You are free to copy, distribute and transmit the work Under the following conditions: Attribution: You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work). Non Commercial: You may not use this work for commercial purposes. No Derivative Works - You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work. Any of these conditions can be waived if you receive permission from the author. Your fair dealings and other rights are in no way affected by the above. Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact [email protected] providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 26. Sep. 2021 The Labour M.P. George N. Barnes and the Creation of the International Labour Office in 1919 Rebecca Korbet King’s College, London A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Institute of Contemporary British History for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy November 2017 1 The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it, or information derived from it, may be published without the prior written consent of the author. Cover image: The Commission on International Labour Legislation, Paris, 1919, George N. Barnes (highlighted: front row, third from right) third from right, Samuel Gompers (front row, centre) and Emile Vandervelde (front row, extreme left). Source: ILO Archives, Geneva. 2 Contents Abstract Page 4 Acknowledgments Page 5 Commonly used abbreviations Page 7 Introduction Page 8 Chapter 1 - Introducing George N. Barnes, MP Page 64 Chapter 2 - Preparations ahead of the Peace Conference Page 109 Chapter 3 - The International Labour Commission Barnes and International Diplomacy Page 129 The British Scheme’s First Reading Page 139 The Fraught Second Reading Page 141 Chapter 4 - The Third Reading of the Labour Convention Page 165 Women and the Labour Convention Page 183 Chapter 5 - The Road to the Peace Conference Page 195 Chapter 6 - After the Labour Convention Page 230 Chapter 7 - Summary and conclusions Page 250 Chapter 8 - Appendices Pages 267-305 1. Excerpts from Barnes’ biographical pamphlets 267-269 2. Draft Convention Creating a Permanent Organisation for the Promotion of International Regulation of Labor Conditions, Prepared by the British Delegation, January 21, 1919 270-272 3. Chapter XIII of the Treaty of Versailles (the ‘labour chapter’) 273-284 4. An abridged evolution of the Labour Charter – the nineteen points and the Balfour redraft 285-287 5. Article 312 of the Treaty of Versailles: Social and State Insurance in Ceded Territory 288 6. The evolution of Article XXXV of the Labour Convention 289-290 7. Biographical notes 291-303 8. Thumbnails of Barnes portraits 304 9. The ‘forgotten’ portrait of George N. Barnes, by Murray Urquhardt 305 Bibliography - Pages 306-320 3 Abstract This thesis examines the role of the Labour MP George N. Barnes (1859-1940) in the establishment of the International Labour Organisation in 1919. It focusses primarily on the creation of the Labour Convention (Chapter XIII, the ‘Labour Chapter’ in the Treaty of Versailles) and its adoption by the Peace Conference. It has been recorded that Barnes considered this his proudest achievement; however Labour Party historiography has not adequately taken account of his valuable contribution to the advance of social and economic justice for the world’s workers. By examining the challenges Barnes faced in his dual role as representative of British organised labour and plenipotentiary with the British Empire Delegation, the argument is made that he was particularly well suited to successfully steer the Convention through to its adoption. An understanding will be gained of the role that Barnes played as an international diplomat and spokesman for organised labour in the Peace Conference setting, and how he channelled contemporary ideas about labour’s place in the post-war world through his approach to policy. It is further argued through examination of his background, beliefs and political ideology that Barnes was an important figure of whom historians of the early Labour Party should take more account. This project aims to provide fresh insight into George N. Barnes as a trade unionist and politician and ascertain how his work in Paris helped Britain’s ‘socialist’ Labour Party achieve an image of respectability years before forming its first Government in 1924. 4 Acknowledgements Acknowledgements I would first like to thank my supervisors, Professor Pat Thane and Dr Michael Kandiah, for all of the support they have given me during this thesis. My primary supervisor, Professor Thane, gave me great help in proofreading my chapters, and provided invaluable wisdom, supervision and guidance throughout my progression. Dr Kandiah was instrumental in providing invaluable support and reassurance in completion of what can only be described as a challenging process. Special thanks must go to Dr Virginia Preston, for her understanding, patience and encouragement. I met Dr Preston in 2010 while I was an undergraduate at University of Westminster, and through her I interned with the Institute for Contemporary British History at King’s College and its Witness Seminar programme, where I also completed my Master’s Degree. Research Fellow Dr Matthew Glencross is also owed a tremendous debt of gratitude for his support and camaraderie throughout this project. I would also like to give thanks to University of Westminster’s lecturers and teaching staff for providing such instrumental guidance and encouragement during my entry into academic life as a mature student: Professor Mark Clapson, Dr Martin Doherty, Dr Peter Speiser (and of course, Veronica Speiser), Dr Richard Barbook, Dr Bridget Cotter, and Rob McMaster. I would also like to thank the patient staff at the National Archives and the British Library for their assistance in navigating their tremendous catalogues of material, and also the staff at the Parliamentary Archives, London Metropolitan University, and the Maughan and Senate House Libraries in London. I am deeply grateful to Jacques Rodriguez and the staff at the ILO Archive in Geneva for their help and hospitality. In New York, the archivists and staff at Columbia’s Butler Library and 5 Acknowledgements the New York Public Library provided me with a quiet haven to work in as well as access to their rare materials collections. This project is the result of nearly six years’ work. During that time life gave no quarter and it sometimes appeared as though this thesis would remain a collection of half-completed chapters and thousands of pages of random notes and developing ideas. I must thank my family, Deanna Gemmill and Jonathan Strauss, for their constant encouragement during stressful times, and Milton Strauss, Ph.D, for reassuring me that self-doubt and ‘imposter syndrome’ are normal and persistent parts of academic life. Very special thanks go to my former KCL / ICBH MA colleagues and dear friends Samantha Martin, Tiffany Beebe and Sandra Keen whom have remained sources of inspiration. Finally, I could not have completed this thesis without the love and support of my friends, my extended family: Dr Mary C. Greenfield, Jack Rabid, Eric Keil, Robert Weeks, Barbara Taylor, Carolyne Worman, Ulrika Froberg, Phil Dyson, Donna Henry, Simon Billenness, Ann Corbett, Christine von Royce, Donna Argentina, Laura Zeitlin, Jesse Malin, Cid Scantlebury, and Daisy Jean Undercuffler. 6 Commonly used abbreviations Commonly used abbreviations: AEU Amalgamated Engineering Union AFL American Federation of Labor BED British Empire Delegation COL Columbia University (Rare Book and Manuscript Library) DLG David Lloyd George GNB George N. Barnes HCPs High Contracting Parties ILO International Labour Office LON League of Nations LSE British Library of Political and Economic Science, London School of Economics MOL (British) Ministry of Labour PHM People’s History Museum (Labour Party Archive) TNA The National Archives, London TPA The Parliamentary Archive TUC Trades Union Congress 7 Introduction Introduction In the spring of 1919, George N. Barnes steered the Labour Convention for the International Labour Organisation through thirty-six sittings of the international Labour Commission, securing its adoption by the plenary Peace Conference for insertion into the Peace Treaty. Labour Party histories have often considered this his proudest achievement, but no monograph exists in relation to his diplomatic work at Versailles. Although the trade unionist Barnes was instrumental in the Labour Party’s creation, relatively little is known him about and the historiography tends to focus on his stint as Labour member of the David Lloyd George Coalition,