Roger Welch Obituary, In Loving Of Memory Roger Welch

Roger Welch Obituary, Death – It was with great sadness that the Trades Council learned of the passing of Roger Welch, who served as Secretary of the Council from 1977 to 1998. Roger served as a lecturer in law at what was then known as Chelmer Institute of Higher Education, which is now known as Anglia Ruskin University. Roger was a delegate for NATFHE, which was one of the unions that eventually evolved into UCU. If you look for his name online, you may discover at least some of the variety of activities and publications with which he was linked.

One of his former students, who was working full time at the time as an official for a trade union, referred to him as a “great lecturer.” As the Secretary of the Trades Council, he was in charge of the organization during the Miners’ strike, as well as the TGWU Chelmsford Bus and NUJ Essex Chronicle Strikes, as well as a variety of other important national concerns. In this position, he played an important role in the organization of public meetings, marches, and other events to generate money for or support workers who were engaged in a labor dispute. In addition to that, he was a member of the Management Committee of the Chelmsford Unemployed Workers Centre, better known as CUE Action.

In the days before personal desktop computers and social media, being Secretary required producing minutes using a typewriter, getting them duplicated, and packing and posting envelopes. Along with holding a full-time job, getting active in all of the activities listed above, and maintaining a home life with his wife Christine, it is certainly not an enviable endeavor. In 1998, Roger and Christine made the move back to Roger’s hometown of Portsmouth, where he began working at the local university and remained until his retirement. Being in Portsmouth allowed him to pursue another one of his great passions, which was the Portsmouth Football Club. Before he passed away at the end of May, Roger had been battling illness for quite some time. Chris, his family, and all of his friends have our deepest thoughts and sorrow in this difficult time.