Force Ouvrière

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The General Confederation of Labor - Workers' Force (French: Confédération Générale du Travail - Force Ouvrière, or simply Force Ouvrière) is one of the five major union federations in France. In terms of following, it is the third behind the CGT and the CFDT.

Force Ouvrière was founded in 1948 by former members of the General Confederation of Labor (CGT) who denounced the dominance of the French Communist Party over that federation. In the 1980s, Libération, a left-wing newspaper, alleged that this split was instigated by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and that FO had received funds from the CIA through the AFL.

FO is a member of the European Trade Union Confederation. Its leader is Jean-Claude Mailly.

History

After World War II, members of the French Communist Party attained considerable influence within the CGT, controlling 21 of its 30 federations. Senior figures such as Robert Bothereau and the former secretary general, Léon Jouhaux, opposed this development. These opponents denounced Communist influence as a threat to the independent position of trade unions, a principle enshrined in the 1906 Charte d'Amiens. They founded a paper, Force ouvrière.

In 1947, a general strike, fought against the backdrop of the developing Cold War, divided the CGT. The Communist ministers were excluded from the government led by Paul Ramadier, a Socialist. In this context, the internal CGT opposition created a new trade-union confederation, called FO. The majority of its founders were from the socialist ranks.

In the 1960s, when André Bergeron became leader of the Confederation, the links between FO and the Socialist Party SFIO became distended. Indeed, if Bergeron was an SFIO member, he was also the "main partner" of the employers and the right-wing governments. In this, FO presided the social security offices. Besides, it welcomed Conservatives and Far-Left, notably members of the Trotskyist Internationalist Communist Organization. The hostility to the CGT and to the French Communist Party is the cement of the confederation.

In the 1970s, FO leaders were sceptical about the Socialist strategy of alliance with the Communist Party. Then, they criticized the nomination of Communist ministers in 1981. After François Mitterrand's election, FO presented like the only independent trade-union confederation.

In 1989, Marc Blondel was elected leader of FO, against the will of Bergeron. He wanted to preserve the independence of the confederation. Supported by the Trotskyist minority, he adopted a more combative attitude. In this, he participated in the 1995 social conflict against Alain Juppé's plans for welfare reform, and improved relations with the CGT. In consequence, FO lost the precedence of social security offices for the benefit of the CFDT.

In 2003, Blondel called for a general strike against the plan of pensions reforms. Then, he let his function to Jean-Claude Mailly. FO participated in the 2006 campaign against the Contrat première embauche.

Famous members

2002 professional elections

FO obtained 18.3% of votes and was third behind the CGT (32.1%) and the CFDT (25.2%)

References

(2005). Trade Unions of the World. 6th, London, UK: John Harper Publishing. ISBN 0-9543811-5-7.
www.vie-publique.fr

External links

Official site of FO