TRADE UNIONIST Tom Darby, one of the founders of what became the National Bus and Railworkers Union (NBRU), has died aged 82.
Mr Darby, from Kinnegad, Co Westmeath, was a bus conductor and a member of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union (ITGWU) when he and others formed the National Busmen’s Union (NBU) in 1963.
He became the first general secretary of the union which represented the majority of bus drivers and conductors in Dublin. The union quickly spread to other major towns. Mr Darby held the position until his retirement in 1992. It later became the NBRU.
He was noted for his militancy and pioneered the one-day strike when unions did not have the funds to pay workers who entered into protracted stoppages.
His son Séamus said his father was initially resented for breaking away from the ITGWU, but was later admired for standing up for his members.
Mr Darby had Parkinson’s Disease for years and died in Beaumont Hospital. He is survived by his wife Eileen, his sons Séamus, Liam and Seán, and two grandchildren Eoin and Brendan.
His removal takes place tomorrow evening from Lanigan’s Funeral Home, Beaumont Road, to the Church of the Nativity, Beaumont, arriving at 5pm, with the funeral on Saturday after 10am Mass to Dardistown Cemetery.
