Jack Tanner

Jack Tanner may refer to:

See also

Jack Tanner (trade unionist)

John Shirley Frederick Tanner (28 April 1889 – 3 March 1965), known as Jack Tanner, was a British trade unionist.

Born in Whitstable, Tanner grew up in London and became a fitter and turner at the age of 14. He joined the Social Democratic Federation and the Amalgamated Society of Engineers, soon becoming a prominent activist, and helping found the National Federation of Women Workers. During the 1910s, he was a leading syndicalist, active in the Industrial Syndicalist Education League, and chaired the First International Syndicalist Congress.

During World War I, Tanner worked as an engineer in France and was active in the then-syndicalist Confédération Générale du Travail. He returned to London in 1917 and became active in the shop stewards' movement, and in 1920 attended the Second Congress of the Communist International. He did join the Communist Party of Great Britain but left after only eight months, though he remained close to colleagues who stayed in the party.