''Zentralgewerkschaftskommission des Deutschen Gewerkschaftsbundes in der Tschechoslowakischen Republik'' ('Central Commission of German Trade Unions in the Czechoslovak Republic') was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Social Democratic Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

centre in

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. From 1927 onwards, it was an autonomous structure inside the Czechoslovak labour centre OSČ. The organization was dissolved as Czechoslovakia fell under German occupation.

Early period

The organization was founded in July 1919. In 1920 the name ''Gewerkschaftsbund'' was adopted, and a headquarters was set up in

Liberec Liberec (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 108,000 inhabitants, making it the fifth largest city in the country. It lies on the Lusatian Neisse River, in a basin surrounded by mountains. The city centre is well preserved and is pr ...

. ''Gewerkschaftsbund'' emerged as a prominent force in the amongst labour movements in Czechoslovakia, having around 75% of unionized German workers as its members in 1921 (at the time Czechoslovakia had a general unionizing rate of 50%, one of the higher in Europe). Major unions affiliated to ''Gewerkschaftsbund'' were Textile Workers (90,878 members in 1921), Metalworkers (39,209 members in 1921) and Miners (37,582 members in 1921).McDermott, Kevin. ''The Czech Red Unions, 1918-1929: A Study of Their Relations with the Communist Party and the Moscow Internationals. East European monographs, no. 239''.

Boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...

: East European Monographs, 1988. p. 38 In 1922, Czechoslovak communists had formed a separate trade union centre, '' Mezinárodní všeodborový svaz'' (MVS). However, not all communist trade unionists joined MVS. As of 1926, there were around 15 000 communists inside the ''Gewerkschaftsbund'' affiliates.

Merger into OSČ

In 1927 ''Gewerkschaftsbund'' merged into the main Czechoslovak trade union centre, the Social Democratic ''

Odborové sdružení československé Czechoslovak Trade Union Association (), abbreviated to OSČ, was a national trade union center, founded in 1897 in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire. With the break-up of the empire, the OSČ emerged as the major trade union force in Czech ...

'' (OSČ). The organization continued to function as an autonomous body inside OSČ until the unions were banned following the German occupation.

Leadership

Franz Macoun was the general secretary of the organization from 1920 to 1938. Macoun was a Member of Parliament for the German Social Democratic Workers Party between 1929 and 1938.

Publications

The organization issued the publication ''Gewerkschafts-Jugend'' ('Trade Union Youth') between 1934-1937.

Membership

Membership of ''Gewerkschaftsbund'' affiliates in 1937

References

{{Reflist National trade union centers of Czechoslovakia International Federation of Trade Unions 1919 establishments in Czechoslovakia 1939 disestablishments in Czechoslovakia Trade unions established in 1919 Trade unions disestablished in 1939