Description
First published in 1986, this book assesses the politics of the West German trade unions in the context of their larger role as major actors in the polity. By focusing on the historical realities of the labour movement both before and after 1945, the study explains the extent to which organized labour solidified and challenged the dominant structures of politics and authority. It examines the metalworkers’ union, the construction workers’ union, the printers’ union and the chemical workers’ union and shows how the industrial reality of each organisation helped shape its political outlook and strategic thinking.
This book will be of particular interest to students of trade unions, industrial relations and political economy in West Germany.
Table of Contents
Foreword; Preface and Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1. The Structure of the West German Union Movement 2. The Legal Framework for Industrial Relations in the Federal Republic 3. A History of the German Trade Union Federation, Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund (DGB): From Reconstruction to the Third Basic Program 4. Vanguard of West German Labor: The Metalworkers’ Union, IG Metall 5. From Activism to Accommodation: The Deradicalization of the Chemical Workers’ Union, IG Chemie-Papier-Keramik 6. Leber’s Vanguard: The Construction Workers’ Union, IG Bau-Steine-erden (written by Thomas C. Ertman) 7. The Aristocracy of Labour: The Printers’ Union, IG Druck und Papier (written by Thomas C. Ertman); Conclusion; Appendixes; Notes; Bibliography; Glossary of German terms; Index
