Workers Collection

Men at work on the Rapier track at the Rootes Group factory at Ryton, Coventry. 2nd November 1961

Blythswood Shipbuilding Co Ltd yard February 1959. Workers at the launch of the Regent Eagle Texaco oil tanker

China - Cultural Revolution Poster - Chairman Mao
The Many accomplish great things - Cultural Revolution poster from the Peoples Republic of China, featuring happy workers heading out to work, many holding aloft the Little Red Book

The Workers May-Pole, design for a socialist poster
The Workers May-Pole, a design for a socialist poster, with a central allegorical figure, and banners and ribbons labelled with abstract ideas such as Leisure, Solidarity and Humanity. Date: 1894

Soviet propaganda poster by boris parmeev (parmeyev) called under the sun of the motherland we strengthen, ussr, 1970s

Miners working at the coalface, South Wales
Two miners, stripped to the waist, working at the coalface in a coal seam in South Wales

Coal miners in shaft lift, South Wales
Several coal miners with blackened faces stand in the shaft lift at the end of their shift in a coal mine in South Wales

Miner at Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen, Cornwall
Miner at work with a drill underground (below the sea) in Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen, Cornwall, which was just about to cease operation. Date: circa 1986

North East Coast Exhibition, LNER poster, 1929
Poster produced for the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER) to promote rail services to the North East Coast Exhibition, held in Newcastle-upon-Tyne between May and October in 1929

Building Diesel Locomotives in Swindon
Engineers nearing completion on the first of 35 2, 700 hp diesel-hydraulic locomotives built at the Swindon Works for the Western Region

The Lutine Bell in the Underwriting Room at Lloyds of London, 1933, (1935). Creator: Unknown
The Lutine Bell in the Underwriting Room at Lloyds of London, 1933, (1935). The SS L Atlantique was insured by Lloyds for almost £ 1, 000, 000

PELLIZZA DA VOLPEDO, Giuseppe (1868-1901). The

Blacksmiths outside their forge
A superb photograph of six Blacksmiths and coachbuilders posing for a photograph outside their forge/workshop, each holding the tools of their trade

Millet Gleaners
Glaneurs gleaning the corn field after the crop has been stored

A China Clay Pit, Leswidden, Harold Harvey (1874-1941)
Oil on canvas, Newlyn School, 1920 or 1924. This painting shows the harsh, labour-intensive working conditions of a china clay pit

The Clay Pit, Harold Harvey (1874-1941)
Oil on canvas, Newlyn School, 1923. View of Leswidden China Clay Works near St Just. This painting shows the harsh, labour-intensive working conditions of a china clay pit

Derrick Floor of an oil rig, Iran
Derrick Floor of an oil drilling rig, Iran

The Harvesters, 1565. Creator: Pieter Bruegel the Elder
The Harvesters, 1565

Polkanuggo Quarry, Stithians, Cornwall. 1903-1904
A general view of Polkanuggo Quarry with steam traction engine BETA No 483 and workers posing for the camera. The traction engine was made around June 1885 by John Fowler of Leeds

Pednandrea stamps and mine dressing floor at Wheal Sparnon, Redruth, Cornwall. 1865
The area in the photograph is now covered by Clinton Road, Park Road and Albany Road, Redruth. According to the Ordnance Survey Six Inch map Cornwall LXIII

Death to World Imperialism, poster, 1919. Artist: Dmitriy Stakhievich Moor
Death to World Imperialism, poster, 1919. Found in the collection of the Russian State Library, Moscow

Two miners in a narrow coal seam, South Wales
Two miners, one of them quite young, working in a narrow coal seam in a mine in South Wales

Haulier and assistant, Baldwins Level, South Wales
A haulier and his assistant, with a pit pony pulling a truck, at Baldwins Clog and Legging Level, near Pontypool, South Wales

Miner riding drams, Tirpentwys Colliery, South Wales
A miner riding a journey of drams (coal trucks) at Tirpentwys Colliery near Pontypool in South Wales. Date: 1910

A Garland For May Day 1895 Dedicated To The Workers By Walter Crane 1845 1915 English Artist

Employees - Ford Motor Company, Detroit, Michigan, USA
The 36, 000 Employees of the Ford Motor Company, Detroit, Michigan, USA pose for a group photograph in front of the factory buildings

Mixing treated asbestos fibre, Heath Robinson machine
Efficient plant for the successful mixing of treated asbestos fibre with cement. A drawing done by William Heath Robinson for Turners Asbestos Cement Co

Patent double action grinder for asbestos by Heath Robinson
A patent double-action grinder for mashing asbestos fibre - a drawing done for Turners Asbestos Cement Co by William Heath Robinson, renowned for his machines and convoluted contraptions. Date: c.1925

Bryant and May Match Factory
Girls feeding a machine at the Bryant & May match factory, in Bow, East London, at the time a tax on matches was being discussed in the budget. Date: 1916

Blitz in London -- ambulance at Ladywell, Lewisham, WW2
Blitz in London -- an ambulance and rescue workers in the Ladywell area of Lewisham, SE13, where houses were demolished by a parachute bomb, 18 September 1940

England, Tyne and Wear, Angel of the North. The Angel of the North statue near the cities of Gateshead and Newcastle Upon Tyne

Coal miner filling truck, South Wales mine
A coal miner (Billy Hurland) filling a dram (coal truck) at Baldwins Level (nicknamed Clog and Legging) in a coalmine near Pontypool in South Wales

Izmir (Smyrna), Turkey - Large fig factory
The scale of the fig industry at Izmir is demonstrated in this postcard showing a huge warehouse with a multitude of baskets and workers

Female ICI employees enjoy a dance, South Yorkshire, 1957. Artist: Michael Walters
Female ICI employees enjoy a dance, South Yorkshire, 1957. A couple of girls from the ICI Detonator factory in Denaby Main (near Doncaster)

Surface Workers, Dolcoath Mine, Camborne, Cornwall. 1890s
Dolcoath Mine showing the New East shaft on the right, with bal maidens and overseer. Part of the A.K. Hamilton Jenkin collection. Photographer: Unknown

Tincroft Mine, Illogan, Cornwall. Late 1800s
Miners and bal maidens posed in front of surface buildings. Part of the A.K. Hamilton Jenkin collection. Photographer: Unknown

WW2 poster, Don t be fuel-ish
WW2 poster, The worker who left the lights on -- Don t be fuel-ish. Wasted electricity means less fuel to make the weapons we need for victory

Manufacture of cork balls at Chingford General view of the house 28 November 1922

Workers are unloading sacks of flour from a Bedford truck belonging to Pledge & Son Ltd, the milling company, on one of their deliveries in Ashford, Kent. 1939

Cyclops Works, Sheffield BL22301_010
Cammell Lairds Cyclops Ordnance Steel Tyre and Spring Works in Grimesthorpe, Sheffield. Men at work in the fettling shop, with huge components for ships

Steel production, Barnsley BL22301_002
Cammell Laird & Co, Penistone. Men at work in Cammell Lairds bessemer department, producing steel from pig iron. One of a series of photographs of Cammell Laird works. Bedford Lemere. August 1913

Patrolling the permanent way, Manningtree, Essex, May 1948
A ganger patrolling the permanent way, Manningtree, Essex, May 1948. Maintanence of the permanent way was essential for the safe running of the railway

NFS (London Region) Pimlico V1 bombing attack, WW2
The aftermath of a V1 flying bomb attack in Winchester Street, Pimlico. NFS firefighters join other rescue workers at the scene

Bass Brewery workers
Workers at the Middle Yard of the Bass Brewery, Burton-on-Trent Date: 1908

Trades union membership certificate
A trades union membership certificate for the United Operative Plumbers Association of Great Britain and Ireland, with Defence and Defiance as their motto

Coal miners relaxing after a shift. This is a coal mine in Donetsk, Ukraine. Photographed in May 1987 when Ukraine was still part of the USSR

Picking coal from waste tip during 1921 strike, South Wales
Three men picking coal from a local colliery waste tip during the 1921 strike, South Wales

Man at work, Dinorwig Slate Quarry, North Wales
A man at work, 150 feet up on the main face of Dinorwig (or Dinorwic) Slate Quarry, near Llanberis, North Wales

All Professionally Made to Order for Quick Shipping

"Workers: The Backbone of Nations, United by Labor" From the bustling streets of China during the Cultural Revolution to the coal miners in South Wales and Cornwall, they have always played a vital role in shaping societies. In Chairman Mao's China, a powerful cultural revolution poster depicted workers as heroes, inspiring unity and progress. Meanwhile, deep underground in shaft lifts and at Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen and South Wales coal mines, brave miners risked their lives daily to fuel industrial growth. The Workers May-Pole design showcased solidarity among laborers striving for socialist ideals. In 1910 Britain, even political parties recognized the importance with colorful posters appealing for support. Swindon witnessed the dedication of builders constructing diesel locomotives while LNER promoted North East Coast Exhibition through an artistic poster celebrating hardworking individuals. Artists like Harold Harvey captured scenes from clay pits in Cornwall - be it Polkanuggo Quarry or Leswidden - highlighting arduous work that sustained local economies. Soviet propaganda also exalted workers' contributions under the sun of the motherland. Boris Parmeev's iconic poster from 1970s USSR symbolized strength gained through collective effort. Across continents and eras, these glimpses into worker's lives remind us that they are not just cogs within a system but essential pillars upon which nations stand tall. Their unwavering determination fuels progress and shapes our shared future.