Crossword Genius

Associate in company left union (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

colleague

'associate' is the definition.
(colleague is a kind of associate)

'company left union' is the wordplay.
'company' becomes 'co' (abbreviation).
'left' becomes 'l' (common abbreviation).
'union' becomes 'league' (league is a kind of union).
'co'+'l'+'league'='COLLEAGUE'

'in' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for colleague that I've seen before include "Person with whom one works" , "Workmate" , "Partner" , "Fellow worker" , "Partner's" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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