The Bolton Weavers were unusual among trade unions in that a woman, Alice Foley, held a prominent position, becoming secretary in 1948.
[1][2][3] Unsworth's period as secretary included the centenary of the founding of the union, and to mark this, she and her assistants visited every mill in the town and gave each member £1.
[4] In 1970, Unsworth was elected as the president of the Amalgamated Weavers' Association (AWA), the first woman to hold the post.
[5] This enabled her to take part in numerous trade union delegations overseas, on which she would prioritise investigating equal rights, maternity care and the position of women prisoners.
[6] The AWA became part of the Amalgamated Textile Workers' Union in 1974, but Unsworth remained leader of the Bolton Weavers until her retirement in 1978.