Adolphe Graedel (26 September 1902 – 14 November 1980) was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri *Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internati ...

trade union leader and politician. Born in Sonvilier, Graedel completed an apprenticeship as a case maker, then studied at the labour movement college in Brussels. He returned to

La Chaux-de-Fonds La Chaux-de-Fonds () is a Swiss city in the canton of Neuchâtel. It is located in the Jura mountains at an altitude of 1000 m, a few kilometers south of the French border. After Geneva, Lausanne and Fribourg, it is the fourth largest city loc ...

, joining the Workers' Union, and in 1934 won election as its president. In 1938, he additionally became the editor of ''La Sentinelle'', the newspaper of the

Social Democratic Party of Switzerland The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei der Schweiz; SP; rm, Partida Socialdemocrata da la Svizra) or Swiss Socialist Party (french: Parti socialiste suisse, it, Partito Socialista Svizzero; PS), is a polit ...

. In 1943, Graedel joined the

Swiss Metalworkers' and Watchmakers' Union The Swiss Metalworkers' and Watchmakers' Union (german: Schweizerischer Metall- und Uhrenarbeiter Verband, SMUV; french: Fédération suisse des travailleurs de la métallurgie et de l'horlogerie) was a trade union representing workers in the metal ...

(SMUV), and in 1945 became its general secretary. In 1951, he was elected to the National Council. In 1954, he became general secretary of the

International Metalworkers' Federation The International Metalworkers' Federation (IMF) was a global union federation of metalworking, metalworkers' trade unions, founded in Zürich, Switzerland in August 1893. the IMF had more than 200 member organisations in 100 countries, represent ...

, from 1955 until 1961 combining it with the vice-presidency of the SMUV. He retired in 1970, and died ten years later.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graedel, Adolphe 1902 births 1980 deaths Members of the National Council (Switzerland) People from the canton of Bern Social Democratic Party of Switzerland politicians Swiss trade unionists