John Rigg

The Hon. John Rigg MLC CMG (1 November 1858 – 20 October 1943) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party.

Biography Rigg was born in St Kilda, Colony of Victoria in 1858 and was a typographer and union secretary. His family came to New Zealand in 1863 or 1864 and initially settled in Dunedin, before moving to Wellington where Rigg received his education. He was the first President of the Independent Political Labour League in 1905. Following his father's job loss, Rigg had to leave school aged twelve years to support the family financially.

John Rigg experienced poverty and unemployment and this caused 'his private revolution'. He describes this and refers to his Scottish noble heritage: 'found in me the makings of a snob and left me a Socialist.'.

John Rigg became active in leading apprentice printers rights and women's rights and later expressed this through his 1892 roles of president of the Wellington Tailoresses' Union, Trades and Labour Council, and Typographical Society. He was Acting Speaker from 5 January to 7 July 1904. Because he refused to condemn the 1913 waterfront strike in Wellington, the Reform Government did not reappoint him to the Legislative Council in 1914. He was survived by his second wife Louise Rigg, who died in 1955.