Maria Exall (born August 1960[1]) is the current President of the Trades Union Congress for 2022–23, being appointed for her work in the Communication Workers Union.

Education

Maria Exall has a PhD in Philosophical Theology from King’s College London.[2]

Trade unionism

Exall was a care worker, and joined the Confederation of Health Service Employees. In 1988, she moved to work for the BT Group as a communications engineer, and joined the Communication Workers' Union.[3][4] She became active with the Trades Union Congress (TUC), specialising on equality in the workplace and liaising with the affiliated Labour Party.[5] Exall supported Jeremy Corbyn in the 2015 Labour Party leadership election.[6]

Exall chairs the TUC LGBT+ Committee, and serves on the General Council of the TUC. She is also a vice president of the Campaign for Trade Union Freedom.[7] In 2022, she was elected as President of the TUC, the first out LGBT+ person to serve in the post.[4]

Other work

Exall is an honorary fellow of Catholic Social Thought and Practice in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University.[2] She was a founder member of the Cutting Edge Consortium, which argued that various exemptions for religious groups should be removed from the Equality Act 2010.[8]

Personal life

Exall is a Catholic.[2] She is also a lesbian and has been in a civil partnership with Angela Eagle since 2008.[3][9][10][11]

References

  1. ↑ "Maria Exall". Companies House. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 "Dr Maria Exall". Blackfriars Hall. Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  3. 1 2 "Minister marries her lesbian partner". The Observer. 28 September 2008. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Maria Exall has today (Thursday) been elected as the new President of the TUC at the union body's annual conference in Brighton". Trades Union Congress. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  5. ↑ Exall, Maria. "Trade unionists need a party on our side, and a government for working people". LabourList. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  6. ↑ Swerling, Gabriella (12 July 2016). "Eagle's partner spoke up for her rival". The Times.
  7. ↑ "TUC General Council members". Trades Union Congress. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  8. ↑ "Coalition opposes wide religious exemptions from the Equality Bill". Ekklesia. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "A history of Christmas scandal past". BBC News. 22 December 1998. Archived from the original on 24 February 2009. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  10. ↑ "Angela Eagle's partner backed Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader". The Independent. 2016-07-12. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  11. ↑ "Angela Eagle: My pride at being first lesbian MP to 'marry'". Liverpool Daily Post. 11 September 2008. Archived from the original on 14 September 2008.
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