Bill Morris

William ('Bill') Morris, Baron Morris of Handsworth

Sitter in 4 portraits
Born in Jamaica, Bill Morris moved to England in 1954 and joined the Transport and General Workers Union in 1958, becoming its first black General Secretary in 1991. An influential leader, he has been active on issues including racial discrimination by employers, minimum wage, access to education, equal opportunities and development of policies and services for women and young members. Following his retirement and knighthood in 2003, he was appointed to chair an inquiry addressing employment issues in the London Metropolitan Police in 2004. He appeared in the list of 100 Great Black Britons and was created a working life peer in 2006. He has also been a director on the Cricket Board for England and Wales (2005-2015), a non-executive Director of the Bank of England (1998-2006), and Chancellor of the University of Technology, Jamaica, (2000-2010) and Staffordshire University, England (2004-2011). In 2002, he was awarded the Order of Jamaica, the country’s highest honour, for his services to international trade unionism. He is a member of the Joint Committee on Human Rights and plays an active role in the House of Lords. He has been the patron of many charities, including the Terrence Higgins Trust, the Refugee Council, Family Action, and Macmillan Cancer Care. His archive is held by the Modern Records Centre at the University of Warwick Library.