Albert Gazier (; 16 May 1908 – 2 March 1997) was a French trade union leader and politician. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(1939–45) he helped reorganize the unions during the German occupation of France. He escaped arrest by the Gestapo, made his way to England, and represented the trade union movement in General de Gaulle's Free French government. After the war he was a deputy in the legislature from 1945 to 1958. He was

Minister of Information An information minister (also called minister of information) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with information matters; it is often linked with censorship and propaganda. Sometimes the position is given t ...

from 1950 to 1951 and again for two weeks in 1958. He was Minister of Social Affairs from 1956 to 1957. As a minister he tried but failed to contain health costs, and contributed to the fiasco of the

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, also known as the Second Arab–Israeli War, the Tripartite Aggression in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel, was a British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Israel invaded on 29 October, having done so w ...

Early years (1908–28)

Albert Gazier was born in

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

, Nord, on 16 May 1908. His family adhered to

Jansenism Jansenism was a 17th- and 18th-century Christian theology, theological movement within Roman Catholicism, primarily active in Kingdom of France, France, which arose as an attempt to reconcile the theological concepts of Free will in theology, f ...

, and has been traced to a peasant family in 1814 in

Taverny Taverny () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Tabernaciens''. History In 1806 the commune of Taverny merged with the neighboring commune of Saint-Leu, r ...

, to the north of Paris. His grandfather, Augustin Gazier (1844–1922) was a professor of literature at the Sorbonne who headed the Association of Friends of

Port-Royal-des-Champs Port-Royal-des-Champs () was an abbey of Cistercian nuns in Magny-les-Hameaux, in the Vallée de Chevreuse southwest of Paris that launched a number of culturally important institutions. History The abbey was established in 1204, but became ...

. His parents were Félix Gazier (1878–1916) and Victorine Louise Gonet (1885–1965). His father taught literature at the Lycée de Valenciennes, and was co-editor of a major edition of the works of Pascal. He had one sister, born a year later. On the eve of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

(1914–18) the family was transferred to

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and Bouchavesnes, in the Somme, when Albert Glazier was 8 years old. On 24 February 1920 Gazier became a Pupil of the Nation. His family moved to Paris, where Albert was admitted to the

Lycée Condorcet The Lycée Condorcet () is a secondary school in Paris, France, located at 8, rue du Havre, in the city's 9th arrondissement. Founded in 1803, it is one of the four oldest high schools in Paris and also one of the most prestigious. Since its inc ...

. He obtained a ''

baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

'' in philosophy and mathematics in 1925. After leaving school he contracted

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

, and was bedridden for two years. Due to his illness his military service in the class of 1928 was waived, and the next year he was exempted from service.

Sales clerk and union leader (1928–39)

At the age of 20 Gazier obtained a job on 31 May 1928 with the bookstore of the

Presses Universitaires de France Presses universitaires de France (PUF; ), founded in 1921 by Paul Angoulvent (1899–1976), is a French publishing house. Recent company history The financial and legal structure of the Presses Universitaires de France was completely restruc ...

in the Latin Quarter of Paris. He enrolled in the Faculty of Law of Paris, and studied in the evenings. He obtained his license as a lawyer in 1932. Gazier joined the General Confederation of Labour (Confédération générale du travail, CGT) in 1930. He created a section for book salespeople within the Union of Employees of the Paris Region (Chambre syndicale des Employés de la région parisienne), a union affiliated with the Federation of Employees (Fédération des Employés) headed by Oreste Capocci. Gazier joined the

French Socialist Party The Socialist Party ( , PS) is a Centre-left politics, centre-left to Left-wing politics, left-wing List of political parties in France, political party in France. It holds Social democracy, social democratic and Pro-Europeanism, pro-European v ...

(Section Française de l'Internationale Ouvrière, SFIO) in 1932 as an activist in the

Bois-Colombes Bois-Colombes () is a commune in the Hauts-de-Seine department, in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. International companies such as Colgate-Palmolive, IBM and Aviva have their French headquart ...

section. He was a socialist candidate in the Bois-Colombes municipal elections of 5–12 May 1935. He did not win, but did obtain the most votes of the Left, ahead of the communist candidate. In September 1935, Gazier was elected secretary-general of the Union of Employees of the Paris Region, while continuing to work as a bookseller. The union included employees of banks, credit unions, department stores, small shops and so on. Gazier officially left the book shop on 30 April 1936, and became a full-time union employee. He ran unsuccessfully in the legislative elections of April 1936. In June 1936, when the department store employees went on strike, the number of members of Gazier's Union of Employees of the Paris Region shot up from 5,000 to 90,000. Gazier's influence in the CGT grew correspondingly. From 1936 he helped with the CGT Higher Institute for Workers' Education, and wrote some pamphlets for this institute. He was associated with

Léon Jouhaux Léon Jouhaux (1 July 1879 – 28 April 1954) was a French trade union leader who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1951. Biography Jouhaux was born in Pantin, Seine-Saint-Denis, France. Jouhaux's father worked in a match factory in Aubervillie ...

's group in the CGT and condemned the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, officially the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and also known as the Hitler–Stalin Pact and the Nazi–Soviet Pact, was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Ge ...

between the Soviet Union and Germany in August 1939.

World War II (1939–45)

At the outbreak of

in September 1939 Gazier enlisted voluntarily, despite having been exempted from military service in 1928. He served for ten months, then was demobilized in July 1940 after the German victory. Gazier was reconfirmed as secretary general of the Union of Paris Region Employees on 6 October 1940. He opposed the policies of the

Vichy government Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the defeat against ...

and of René Belin, the former secretary of the CGT who had become a minister. On 9 November 1940 the government dissolved the unions. Gazier was one of twelve union leaders who signed the manifesto of opposition to the occupation in the autumn on 1940. This became the basis for resistance by the unions. Gazier's union continued to try to support workers, prevent layoffs and obtain wage increases. However, it was not allowed to distribute leaflets or publish newspapers, and the collaborationist press gave it little attention. In September 1942 Gazier refused to sit on the high council of the industrial economy. He was one of the founders of the

Libération-Nord ("Liberation-North") was one of the principal resistance movements in the northern occupied zone of France during the Second World War. It was one of the eight great networks making up the National Council of the Resistance. History Initial ...

movement of the

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

. Gazier's union became one of the main sources of false identity cards in Paris. Gazier was named one of the seven secretaries of the clandestine CGT. This was confirmed after the trade union reunification in April 1943. In 1942 Gazier escaped arrest by the Gestapo, and in 1943 went into hiding. He was appointed CGT delegate to

Free France Free France () was a resistance government claiming to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third French Republic, Third Republic during World War II. Led by General , Free France was established as a gover ...

, and on 19 October 1943 flew to London. For this secret journey he went via

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

Lons-le-Saunier Lons-le-Saunier () is a commune and capital of the Jura Department, eastern France. Geography The town is in the heart of the Revermont region, at the foot of the first plateau of the Jura massif. The Jura escarpment extends to the east a ...

in the Jura, getting off one station before his destination. He waited in a cow shelter near the village of Villevieux until the British airplane landed in a small field guarded by Resistance members, then flew to England with twelve other passengers. Gazier went on from London to Algiers, where he represented the CGT in the

Provisional Consultative Assembly The Provisional Consultative Assembly (, ) was a governmental organ of Free France that operated under the aegis of the French Committee of National Liberation (CFLN) and that represented the resistance movements, political parties, and ter ...

convened by General

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

. The CGT and Christian democratic union delegates helped defuse tensions between resisters and politicians in the Assembly. Glazier observed that, "For the first time in the history of the labor movement trade unionists took part in their own right in a political assembly." After the liberation Gazier returned to France on 4 September 1944 and was confirmed as a secretary of the CGT. He was part of the team that published the journal ''Résistance Ouvrière'' from 24 November 1944. In January 1945 Gazier was with the CGT delegation that went to Moscow with Benoît Frachon. He accompanied Frachon to the

World Trade Union Conference The World Trade Union Conference was a conference that was held between 6–17 February 1945. The conference was participated by countries from all around the world, at the County Hall, London. Regarded as a significant moment within the internat ...

in London, and was appointed to the executive committee of the

World Federation of Trade Unions The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) is an international federation of trade union, trade unions established on October 3, 1945. Founded in the immediate aftermath of World War Two, the organization built on the pre-war legacy of the Int ...

. At the London conference in February 1945 he argued unsuccessfully for separation of political and union offices on the basis that they were incompatible. At the confederal congress of the CGT from 27–30 March 1945 he was named a secretary of the CGT.

Deputy (1945–58)

Gazier was elected to the first National Constituent Assembly from 21 October 1945 to 10 June 1946 as deputy for the Seine department. After his election he ceased his union activities. On 3 November 1945 he married Marie-Louise Elter, a 35-year-old widow and teacher whom he had met in Algiers. Gazier was opposed to both the communists and the

Gaullist Gaullism ( ) is a French political stance based on the thought and action of World War II French Resistance leader Charles de Gaulle, who would become the founding President of the Fifth French Republic. De Gaulle withdrew French forces from t ...

s. He was under-secretary of state for the national economy and finance from 26 January 1946 to 24 June 1946 in the cabinet of

Félix Gouin Félix Gouin (; 5 October 1884 – 25 October 1977) was a French Socialist politician who was a member of the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO). Personal life Félix Gouin was born in Peypin, Bouches-du-Rhône, the son of ...

. He was reelected to the second National Constituent Assembly from 2 June 1946 to 27 November 1946. He was under-secretary of state for public works and transport from 24 June 1946 to 16 December 1946 in the cabinet of

Georges Bidault Georges-Augustin Bidault (; 5 October 189927 January 1983) was a French politician. During World War II, he was active in the French Resistance. After the war, he served as foreign minister and premier on several occasions. He apparently joined ...

. He was elected to the legislature on 10 November 1946. He was secretary of state for the presidency of the provisional government of

Léon Blum André Léon Blum (; 9 April 1872 – 30 March 1950) was a French socialist politician and three-time Prime Minister of France. As a Jew, he was heavily influenced by the Dreyfus affair of the late 19th century. He was a disciple of socialist l ...

from 16 December 1946 to 22 January 1947. Gazier was a member of the executive committee of the SFIO from 1947 to 1969. He was

from 12 July 1950 to 11 August 1951 in the cabinets of

René Pleven René Jean Pleven (; 15 April 190113 January 1993) was a notable political figure of the French Resistance and Fourth Republic. An early associate of Jean Monnet then member of the Free French led by Charles de Gaulle, he took a leading role i ...

and

Henri Queuille Henri Queuille (; 31 March 1884 – 15 June 1970) was a French Radical politician prominent in the Third and Fourth Republics. After World War II, he served three times as Prime Minister. Governments First ministry (11 September 1948 – 28 O ...

. As Minister of Information he helped improve the equipment of

Radiodiffusion française Radiodiffusion Française (; RDF) was a French public institution responsible for public service broadcasting. Created in 1944 as a state monopoly (replacing Radiodiffusion Nationale), RDF worked to rebuild its extensive network, destroyed duri ...

, and introduced advertising programs. He was reelected to the legislature on 17 June 1951. He argued for participation of the SFIO in the government of

Pierre Mendès France Pierre Isaac Isidore Mendès France (; 11 January 190718 October 1982) was a French politician who served as prime minister of France for eight months from 1954 to 1955. As a member of the Radical Party, he headed a government supported by a c ...

in 1954, a minority position. During the Moroccan crisis of October 1955 Glazer spoke of the trend for colonies to move towards independence around the world. He did not think it was practical to give autonomy to Morocco and Tunisia while treating Algeria as an integral part of France. He felt the government had to work out how to give sovereignty to Algeria while being careful to protect the French population. He was again elected to the legislature on 2 January 1956. Gazier was Minister of Social Affairs from 1 February 1956 to 6 November 1957 in the cabinet of

Guy Mollet Guy Alcide Mollet (; 31 December 1905 – 3 October 1975) was a French politician. He led the socialist French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) from 1946 to 1969 and was the French Prime Minister from 1956 to 1957. As Prime Ministe ...

and the subsequent cabinet of

Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury (19 August 1914 – 10 February 1993) was a French statesman and a member of the Companions of the Liberation. He served as President of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) under the Fourth French Republic. ...

. He drew up a proposal to limit increases in doctors' fees to the rate of inflation. The ministry would define the fees, which would be indexed to the cost of living and the minimum wage. A maximum of 15% of doctors would be allowed to charge more, under legally-defined conditions. Patients of the doctors who charged above the maximum could not apply for reimbursement by social security. When the number of doctors charging excess fees had risen to 15%, social security funds would be allowed to establish their own health centers, or to make arrangements with doctors to provide services. The proposal caused a public outcry and attacks against Gazier. Rural doctors accepted the Gazier proposal, but the richer urban doctors opposed it. The proposal was adopted by the cabinet on 30 January 1957. The medical association escalated its campaign against the proposal in the press and in parliament. The proposal was dropped after the Mollet cabinet fell in May 1957. During the

, in October 1956 Gazier was in charge of the Quai d'Orsay while

Christian Pineau Christian Pineau (; 14 October 1904 – 5 April 1995) was a noted French Resistance fighter, who later served an important term as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1956 through 1958. Life and career Pineau was born in 1904 in Chaumont-en-Bass ...

, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, was in New York. He was concerned that the

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

is would respond to the presence of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

i troops in

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

by occupying the

West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

. On 14 October 1936 he flew to London with General

Maurice Challe Maurice Challe (5 September 1905 – 18 January 1979) was a French general during the Algerian War, one of four generals who took part in the Algiers putsch. A native of Le Pontet, Vaucluse, Challe served in the Second World War. After the arm ...

to meet Prime Minister

Anthony Eden Robert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon (12 June 1897 – 14 January 1977) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1955 until his resignation in 1957. Achi ...

. He pointed out that while Britain was obliged by treaty to support Jordan, France would have to support Israel, putting them on opposite sides. Eden told Gazier and Challe he would ask the Iraqis to hold back from moving troops to Jordan. Gazier pressed Eden on how he would react to an Israeli attack on Egypt, and Eden said he would not support the Egyptian President

Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...

if that happened. They discussed the possibility of encouraging the Israelis to attack Egypt and quickly occupy the

Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai ( ; ; ; ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a land bridge between Asia and Afri ...

, at which point France and Britain would send in a police force "to separate the combatants" which would occupy the whole length of the canal. Eden's acceptance of this plan led to the fall of his government and the end of British authority in the Middle East. Gazier was

from 17 May 1958 to 1 June 1958 in the short-lived government of

Pierre Pflimlin Pierre Eugène Jean Pflimlin (; 5 February 1907 – 27 June 2000) was a French Christian Democrat politician who served as the Prime Minister of the Fourth Republic for a few weeks in 1958, before being replaced by Charles de Gaulle during the ...

. Although close to Guy Mollet, Gazier would not join him in supporting de Gaulle. In the National Assembly in June 1958 and in the constitutional referendum in September 1958 he voted against de Gaulle's new constitution. He had broken completely with the leadership of the SFIO. He lost his seat in the October 1958 elections. His mandate as deputy ended on 8 December 1958 at the end of the

French Fourth Republic The French Fourth Republic () was the republican government of France from 27 October 1946 to 4 October 1958, governed by the fourth republican constitution of 13 October 1946. Essentially a reestablishment and continuation of the French Third R ...

Later career (1959–97)

After leaving the chamber Gazier joined a socialist advisory group as head of its department of Third World cooperation. In 1962 the National Center of Socialist Studies (Centre national d'études socialistes) published a study by Gazier on cooperation and aid to under-developed countries. The analysis covered the reasons for under-development, the different problems that these countries experienced, and finally the different solutions that he considered feasible. At that time there were 3 billion inhabitants of the planet, of whom 2 billion lived in misery. He noted that in the French African colonies many goods were sold at much higher prices than were charged in metropolitan France, typically at 50% more. In these countries the life expectancy was 30 to 35 years, compared to 67 years in France. The birth rate was extremely high, and the consequences were

Malthusian Malthusianism is a theory that population growth is potentially exponential, according to the Malthusian growth model, while the growth of the food supply or other resources is linear, which eventually reduces living standards to the point of trig ...

. He criticized the encouragement of monoculture farming and lack of investment in industrial development. He said it was certain that the prophecies of

Karl Marx Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...

would come true if socialist and unionist actions did not put an end to the absolute poverty of the workers. In the 1960s Gazier,

and Gerard Jacquet formed a minority in the SFIO hostile to the new powers. He supported the appointment of

François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...

to the leadership of the

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

in June 1971. He sat on the steering committee and the executive board until 1972, then led the "group of experts". In 1981 Gazier accepted a position as an adviser to

Pierre Mauroy Pierre Mauroy (; 5 July 1928 – 7 June 2013) was a French Socialist politician who was Prime Minister of France from 1981 to 1984 under President François Mitterrand. Mauroy also served as Mayor of Lille from 1973 to 2001. At the time of his de ...

. In 1983

appointed him to the High Council of the Judiciary (Conseil supérieur de la magistrature). Albert Gazier died on 2 March 1997 in

Vanves Vanves () is a Communes of France, commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe and the tenth in France. History On ...

, Hauts-de-Seine.

Publications

* * * * * * * * * * *

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gazier, Albert 1908 births 1997 deaths People from Valenciennes French Section of the Workers' International politicians Ministers of information of France Ministers of labour and social affairs of France Members of the Provisional Consultative Assembly Members of the Constituent Assembly of France (1945) Members of the Constituent Assembly of France (1946) Deputies of the 1st National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Deputies of the 2nd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Deputies of the 3rd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Members of Parliament for Seine Members of the General Confederation of Labour (France) French Resistance members