In 1950, his successes in labour relations led the Colonial Office, then under the leadership of fellow South Welsh coalman Jim Griffiths,[2] to send him to Nigeria following riots in the Enugu mines.
He dismissed suggestions that he should have his own armed guards, and his first decision was to demand the withdrawal of police and troops so that negotiations could proceed in a new, calm and neutral environment.
This was considered an odd post to accept, because mining in South Wales was by then a tiring and ailing limb of the industry.
[1] Frustrated equally by the confrontational styles of the leadership of both sides in the miners' strike of 1984-85, Weekes strove for a peaceful outcome.
Early in 1985, as the dispute was waning, Weekes refused an order from the NCB chairman Ian MacGregor to offer redundancy to every miner in his coalfield, irrespective of whether or not they were working at a profitable pit.
Before the strike began, he privately urged local union leaders to heed the message from their members, who had voted against industrial action in pithead ballots.
He made sure that the unions provided sufficient cover to maintain pumps and safety inspections so that work could resume promptly once the strike was over.