The ''Confédération générale des travailleurs africains'' ('General Confederation of African Workers', CGTA) was a
trade union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
centre in
French West Africa
French West Africa (french: Afrique-Occidentale française, ) was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now Burki ...
Confédération générale du travail
The General Confederation of Labour (french: Confédération Générale du Travail, CGT) is a national trade union center, founded in 1895 in the city of Limoges. It is the first of the five major French confederations of trade unions.
It is ...
(CGT) in West Africa, Bassirou Guèye, had begun to promote the idea that African trade unionists should make themselves independent from the French centres. At a meeting of the
Mauritania
Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...
branch of CGT, held in
Dakar
Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...
November 11-November 12, 1955, the majority of delegates voted for separation from the French CGT and the
World Federation of Trade Unions
The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) is an international federation of trade unions established in 1945. Founded in the immediate aftermath of World War Two, the organization built on the pre-war legacy of the International Federation of ...
. After the break with CGT, these unions formed CGT-Autonome. A conference was held in Saint-Louis on January 14-January 15, 1956 during which CGT-Autonome and the
Guinea
Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
n branch of CGT formed the CGTA.
Sékou Touré
Sekou, also spelled Sékou or Seku, is a given name from the Fula language. It is equivalent to the Arabic ''Sheikh''. People with this name include:
Given name
* Seku Amadu (1776–1845), also known as Sékou Amadou or Sheikh Amadu, founder of th ...
Conakry
Conakry (; ; sus, Kɔnakiri; N’ko: ߞߐߣߊߞߙߌ߫, Fula: ''Konaakiri'' 𞤑𞤮𞤲𞤢𞥄𞤳𞤭𞤪𞤭) is the capital and largest city of Guinea. A port city, it serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea. Its p ...
, November 1956. The meeting was attended by representatives from Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania,
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages The meeting decided that CGTA would remain unaffiliated to any French federation. The question on international affiliation was postponed to be decided later.Chafer, Tony. The End of Empire in French West Africa: France's Successful Decolonization? ' Oxford: Berg, 2002. p. 124
CGTA rejected the notion of
class struggle
Class conflict, also referred to as class struggle and class warfare, is the political tension and economic antagonism that exists in society because of socio-economic competition among the social classes or between rich and poor.
The forms ...
in the African context, arguing that antagostic classes were not present in African societies.
CGTA had approximately 55,000 members, slightly smaller than the CGT (which still had around 60,000 members in the region).Meynaud, Jean, and Anisse Salah Bey. Trade Unionism in Africa '. Lond: Methuen, 1967. p. 59
CGT responded to the launching of CGTA by calling for an African trade unionist unity conference. CGTA agreed in principle, but wanted to delay the holding the conference (seeking to enlarge its own ranks first, to get a better negotiating position ahead of the unity conference). There were some unions, such as the railway workers' union, that remained unaffiliated to any central. CGTA hoped that such unions would join CGTA before a unity process. The railway workers' union did however not agree to join CGTA. Instead, they called for the foundation of a single independent union federation. CGTA and CGT both agreed to the proposal, and on January 16, 1957 they (and other major union formations in French West Africa) merged to form Union générale des Travailleurs d'Afrique noire (UGTAN).