John Stephen Monks, Baron Monks (born 5 August 1945) is a Labour Co-operative member of the House of Lords and former trade unionist leader, who served as the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in the UK from 1993 until 2003.

He also served as the General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) from 2007 until 2011, having been made a Life peer in 2010.

Monks was born in Blackley, Manchester, and educated at Ducie Technical School in Moss Side.

He took his seat in the House of Lords on 11 October 2010, having been created a life peer on 26 July 2010 as Baron Monks, of Blackley in the County of Greater Manchester.

[2][3] In August 2014, Monks was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian opposing Scottish independence in the run-up to September's referendum on that issue.