John Hodge (politician)

John Hodge (29 October 1855 – 10 August 1937) was a Coalition Labour party politician in the United Kingdom, and was the first Minister of Labour and the second Minister of Pensions.

Hodge was born in Linkeyburn, Ayrshire and attended Ironworks School and Hutchesons' Grammar School. When he was thirteen Hodge left school to become a solicitor's clerk and then worked a grocer's shop before joining the local iron works as a puddler—the same job as his father.

Hodge first became involved with trade unionism while at the local iron works. Hodge helped form the British Steel Smelters' Association in 1885, of which he would be elected secretary, because their bosses at Colville. They were informed by works in Motherwell that their wages would be twenty per cent lower than before. The BSSA was a success and by the summer of 1886 practically every smelter in Scotland had become a member and by 1888 the BSSA had members joining from England and Wales and become affiliated with the TUC. The BSSA rarely organised strikes, but Hodge was successful at negotiating increases in wages.

Hodge also helped form the Scottish Associated Society of Millmen, acting as its secretary and treasurer for a year before its members could hold an election.

Hodge was a member of the Manchester City Council from 1897 to 1901.

At the 1900 general election, Hodge unsuccessfully contested Gower. He was unsuccessful again in Preston at the by-election in May 1903.

He finally won a seat at the 1906 general election, when he as elected as a Labour Party Member of Parliament for Manchester Gorton. When the United Kingdom declared war and entered World War I in 1914, Hodge took a very patriotic stance and criticised other Labour politicians for opposing it. From 1915 to 1916 Hodge was Acting Chairman of the Labour Party. In 1916 he was part of the Mesopotamia Commission of Inquiry. He was also elected as president of the British Iron, Steel & Kindred Trades Association which he had helped to form with other iron and steel unions. He was Chairman of the 'patriotic labour' British Worker's National League

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