TUC appoints first female general secretary as Brendan Barber retires

Frances O’ Grady is set to become the first female chief secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) when current boss Brendan Barber steps down at the end of this year.

O’Grady, 52, was the only candidate nominated by the union and her appointment will receive formal approval at the annual TUC Congress in Brighton in September.

As deputy general secretary since 2003, O’Grady has worked on various policy areas including trade union recruitment and organisation, inter-union relations and services to members.

“This is a great honour. Never has a strong responsible trade union movement been so needed. With austerity policies biting hard and with no evidence that they are working, people at work need the TUC to speak up for them,” O’Grady said.

“We must be the advocates of the growth and jobs alternative. And with the policy prescriptions of the last 30 years increasingly discredited, we have the best opportunity in a generation to help build a fair, productive and green economy that works for ordinary people.

“Brendan has been a great servant of the TUC, well-respected both within and beyond our ranks, and he leaves a firm foundation on which to build.”