Jens Eugen Tangen (20 July 1897 – 22 September 1980) was a Norwegian trade unionist.

Career

Tangen chaired the trade union Norwegian Union of Building Workers from 1935, having been deputy chairman from 1933 to 1934. In 1940, he was a central member of Fagopposisjonen av 1940 (Trade Opposition of 1940), for which he chaired the executive committee. The purpose of the Trade Opposition was to use the recent

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

for the better, in the then-absence of a real "bourgeois" political authority. The Trade Opposition leader

Håkon Meyer Håkon Meyer (11 March 1896 – 23 October 1989) was a Norwegian politician, trade unionist and businessperson. Meyer was born in Kristiania, the son of Ludvig Meyer and Emma Metz. In the 1920s and 1930s, he was an active and leading Labour ...

became more content with cooperating with the Nazis, including the Norwegian Fascist party, and on 28 September 1940 Tangen was ordered by the Nazis to assume the

chairmanship The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the

Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (, LO) is a national trade union center, decidedly the largest and probably the most influential umbrella organization of labour unions in Norway. The 21 national unions affiliated to the LO have almo ...

. He chose

Ludvik Buland Ludvik Buland (6 May 1893 – 5 February 1945) was a Norwegian trade unionist. He chaired the Norwegian Union of Railway Workers, but was imprisoned and died during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. Early life and career Ludvik Bulan ...

as deputy chairman. Tangen cooperated to a certain degree with the Nazis, and visited Germany in January 1941. He became unpopular with some, but never became popular with the authorities either.

Imprisonment

Following the milk strike in September 1941, the Nazis took a tighter grip on society in general, usurped the Confederation of Trade Unions completely and installed Odd Fossum as new leader on 10 September. Tangen was arrested and imprisoned in

Grini concentration camp Grini prison camp (, ) was a Nazi concentration camp in Bærum, Norway, which operated between 1941 and May 1945. Ila Detention and Security Prison is now located here. History Grini was originally built as a women's prison, near an old croft ...

from 10 September 1941 to 27 February 1942, and then at

Møllergata 19 Møllergata 19 is an address in Oslo, Norway, where the city's main police station and jail was located. The address gained notoriety during the German occupation from 1940 to 1945, when the Nazi security police kept its headquarters here. This ...

for one week. After his release, he fled to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, where he played no political role. Ludvik Buland was imprisoned and died in Germany, whereas the head of the judicial office in the Confederation,

Viggo Hansteen Harald Viggo Hansteen (13 September 1900 – 10 September 1941) was a Norway, Norwegian lawyer. He was executed during the Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. Biography Harald Viggo Hansteen was born in Oslo, Norway. As a student he was ...

, was executed.

Post-war

After the war, in 1946, Tangen was excluded by the Congress of the Confederation of Trade Unions for

collaboration Collaboration (from Latin ''com-'' "with" + ''laborare'' "to labor", "to work") is the process of two or more people, entities or organizations working together to complete a task or achieve a goal. Collaboration is similar to cooperation. The ...

. His personal secretary, Martin Brendberg, was excluded as well. However, Tangen was acquitted of treason by

Oslo City Court Oslo District Court () is a district court located in Oslo, Norway. This court is based at the Oslo Courthouse in the city of Oslo. The court serves the entire city of Oslo and the court is subordinate to the Borgarting Court of Appeal. As the la ...

in 1949, as a part of the

legal purge in Norway after World War II The legal purge in Norway after World War II (; ) took place between May 1945 and August 1948 against anyone who was found to have Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborated with the German occupation of Norway, German occupat ...

. The court found that his degree of cooperation was acceptable.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tangen, Jens 1897 births 1980 deaths Norwegian trade unionists Norwegian people of World War II Grini concentration camp survivors Norwegian expatriates in Sweden People acquitted of treason