He joined the Printers' Labourers' Union, and became Father of the Chapel firstly at The Field, then at Queen, and finally at the Daily Mail.
In 1897, he became the chair of the union, and argued for it to change its name to reflect the fact that most of its members were skilled workers who would not generally be regarded as labourers.
Smith was appointed as acting general secretary, and he then beat James Keep by 924 votes to 147 in an election, to win the position on a permanent basis.
[1] The union only operated in London until 1904, but Smith then toured the country, establishing new branches in Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester and Reading.
In 1907 he moved the union's offices to Caxton House on Blackfriars Road, and he also established a superannuation scheme for members.