Florence Hancock
Dame Florence May Hancock (25 February 1893 – 14 April 1974) was a British trade unionist.
Born in Chippenham to a large family, Hancock cared for her younger siblings in her youth, as she was orphaned before turning eighteen. She started work at the age of twelve, then, two years later, took a job for Nestlé in a factory making condensed milk. In 1913, she was a founding member of a branch of the Workers' Union at the factory, and when the sacking of two other founders led to a strike, she took a prominent role.[1]
Hancock joined the Independent Labour Party in 1915, and was also very active in the Labour Party, supporting Charles Duncan's campaigns in Clay Cross. She became a full-time district organiser for the Workers' Union in 1917, and continued as an organiser as the Workers' Union became the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU). She also became involved in the campaign for the Trades Union Congress (TUC) to create a women's section. When it did so, she served on the committee, and then from 1935 on the General Council of the TUC. The TUC appointed her as their delegate to the International Labour Organisation, and she served as the Chief Women's Officer of the TUC from 1942. In 1947/8, she served as President of the TUC, and she served on several government committees.[1]
In 1942, Hancock was awarded the OBE, followed in 1947 by the CBE, and in 1951 a KBE. In later life, she served as a Governor of the BBC, a director of the Daily Herald and Remploy, and as governor of Hillcroft College.[1]
Hancock married John Donovan in 1964, a colleague from the TGWU.[1]