World Federation of Trade Unions

World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU)

Full name	World Federation of Trade Unions
Founded	October 3, 1945
Members	78 million workers of 210 trade union organizations, from 105 countries across all five inhabited continents (2011)[1]
Affiliation	International
Key people	M. Shaban Assouz (president) (general secretary)
Office location	Athens, Greece
Country	International
Website	www.wftucentral.org

Part of a series on
Organized labour
The labour movement Timeline New Unionism Proletariat Social Movement Unionism Socialism Syndicalism Anarcho-syndicalism
Labour rights Child labour Eight-hour day Collective bargaining Occupational safety and health
Trade unions Trade unions by country Trade union federations International comparisons ITUC IWA WFTU
Strike action Chronological list of strikes General strike Secondary action Sitdown strike Work-to-rule
Labour parties Australian British Irish New Zealand Norwegian more
Academic disciplines Industrial relations Labour economics Labour history Labour law

The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) was established in 1945 to replace the

• World Federation of Trade Unions Web Site
• Recollections of the WFTU's activities in 1968
• Guide to World Federation of Trade Unions. Reports and Minutes, 1945-1949. 5396mf. Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Martin P. Catherwood Library, Cornell University.

External links

• Fabio BERTINI, Gilliatt e la piovra. Il sindacalismo internazionale dalle origini ad oggi (1776-2006), Roma, Aracne, 2011

Bibliography

References

• List of federations of trade unions
• List of trade unions

See also

The Trade Union International of Workers in Tourism and Hotels^[16] was founded in 2009, the Trade Union International of Banks, Insurance and Financial Unions Employees^[17] in 2011 and the Trade Union International of Trade Unions of Pensioners and Retired Persons in 2014.^[18]

In 1997 the Trade Union International of Agroalimentary, Food, Commerce, Textile & Allied Industries was formed by the merger of the Trade Union International of Agricultural, Forestry and Plantation Workers, Trade Union International of Food, Tobacco, Hotel and Allied Industries Workers, Trade Union International of Workers in Commerce, Trade Union International of Textile, Leather and Fur Workers Unions.^[15]

After the dissolution of the Eastern bloc, the Trade Unions International of Energy Workers and the Trade Union International of Metal and Engineering Workers temporarily suspended operations. In 1998 a conference was held in in Trade Unions International of Energy Workers in 2007. This left the metal workers an opportunity create a new TUI the next year, Trade Union International of Workers in the Mining, the Metallurgy and the Metal Industries.^[12][15]

Post-Cold War developments

^[14]

• Trade Union International of Workers in Commerce formed in 1959^[13]
• Standing Committee of Trade Unions in the Graphic Industry formed in 1961, allied with, but not formally affiliated to the WFTU.

Other than the initial eleven, two new TUIs were formed during the course of the Cold War:

• In 1953, the TUIs of Seamen and Dockers and Land and Air Transport Workers merged to form the Trade Unions International of Transport, Port and Fishery Workers. By 1985, this union had adopted its present name, Trade Unions International of Transport Workers.^[8]
• In 1954 the TUI of Chemical and Allied Workers expanded its sectoral base and became the Trade Unions International of Chemical, Oil and Allied Workers.^[9]
• In 1955 the International Union of Trade Unions of Postal, Telephone and Telegraph Workers expanded its scope to all public employees and became the Trade Unions International of Public and Allied Employees.^[10]
• In 1958 the TUIs of Leather, Shoe, Fur and Leather Products and of Textile and Clothing Workers merged to form the Trade Union International of Textile, Leather and Fur Workers Unions.^[11]
• In 1983 the TUI of Miners expanded its scope and became the Trade Unions International of Miners and Energy Workers. In 1986 it became the Trade Unions International of Energy Workers before ceasing activities.^[12]

Over time, some of these original eleven would expand their bases, change their names or merge:

• World Federation of Teachers Unions – known by its French acronym FISE, this is the earliest affiliated union, founded in 1946. It maintained a degree of independence from the WFTU not exercised by the other TUIs.^[4]
• In 1949, the 2nd World Congress decided to create a series of sectoral unions, after their negotiations with already existing international trade secretariats failed. At first these were known as Trade Departments or International Federations, but they adopted the appellation "Trade Union Internationals" by the mid-1950s. The original TUIs formed in 1949 and 1950 were:^[5][6][7]
  • Trade Union International of Agricultural and Forestry Workers (also known as the TUI of Agricultural, Forestry and Plantation Workers)
  • Trade Unions International of Building, Wood, Building Materials and Industries
  • International Union of Trade Unions of Postal, Telephone and Telegraph Workers (also known as the TUI of Postal, Telegraph, Telephone and Radio Workers)
  • Trade Union International of Chemical and Allied Workers
  • Trade Unions International of Miners
  • Trade Union International of Food, Tobacco, Hotel and Allied Industries Workers (also known as the TUI of Food, Tobacco and Catering Workers or the TUI of Food, Tobacco and Beverage Industries, and Hotel, Cafe and Restaurant Workers)
  • Trade Union International of Metal and Engineering Workers (also known as the TUI of Workers in the Metal Industry)
  • Trade Union International of Textile and Clothing Workers
  • Trade Union International of Leather, Shoe, Fur and Leather Products
  • Trade Unions International of Seamen and Dockers
  • Trade Unions International of Land and Air Transport Workers

During the late 1940s, the WFTU unsuccessfully tried to reach an agreement with already existing international trade secretariats. When the Union split in 1949 they were left without an organization at the level of specific industries. Therefore they created the:

The TUI system has gone through a number of transformations in its over 60 years of existence. The earliest TUI was the . The following Trade Unions Internationals are constituted within the WFTU:^[3] .

Trade Union Internationals

• All-China Federation of Trade Unions
• All-Workers Militant Front
• Zenroren
• Unione Sindicale di Base
• Bangladesh Trade Union Kendra
• Vietnam General Confederation of Labour

National affiliates of the WFTU include:

National Affiliates

Affiliates

WFTU poster urging solidarity with the Bolivian Workers' Center.

The WFTU holds consultative status with the FAO, and other UN agencies. It maintains permanent missions in New York, Geneva, and Rome.

As part of its efforts to advance its international agenda, the WFTU develops working partnerships with national and industrial trade unions worldwide as well as with a number of international and regional trade union organizations including the International Confederation of Arab Trade Unions (ICATU), the Permanent Congress of Trade Union Unity of Latin America (CPUSTAL), and the General Confederation of Trade Unions of CIS countries.

In Africa, unions of major importance such as COSATU in South Africa, are debating the issue of affiliation with the WFTU.

In recent years, the WFTU has successfully managed to recruit several trade unions of importance in Europe, amongst which the Rail Maritime Trade Union in Great Britain, the Unione Sindicale di Base in Italy. In France, the CGT federation of food processing industry has maintained its affiliation with the WFTU. The CGT federation of Chemical industries sent delegates to the last congress in Athens in 2011. In 2013, two local CGT railway workers branches have taken steps to become affiliates with the WFTU.

The WFTU has declined precipitously in the past twenty years since the fall of the Communist regimes in the Soviet Union and Third World, campaigning against imperialism, racism, poverty, environmental degradation and exploitation of workers under capitalism and in defense of full employment, social security, health protection, and trade union rights. The WFTU continues to devote much of its energy to organizing conferences, issuing statements and producing educational materials.

History

. Soviet Union, left later when their governments had ideological differences with the China and Yugoslavia A number of those unions, including those from [2]