George Louis Hubert Buisson (2 December 1878 – 31 January 1946) was a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

trade union leader and

Resistance Resistance may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * Either of two similarly named but otherwise unrelated comic book series, both published by Wildstorm: ** ''Resistance'' (comics), based on the video game of the same title ** ''T ...

activist.

Biography

Born in Évreux, Buisson worked in a shop there, then moved to

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

and in 1898 to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, where he worked in a haberdashery. He joined the

Federation of Employees The Federation of Employees and Managers (french: Fédération des employés et cadres, FEC) is a trade union representing white-collar workers in France. The federation was established on 13 July 1893 as the National Federation of Employees, and ...

(FEC) in 1901, and also joined the

French Socialist Party The Socialist Party (french: Parti socialiste , PS) is a French centre-left and social-democratic political party. It holds pro-European views. The PS was for decades the largest party of the "French Left" and used to be one of the two major p ...

. However, in 1905, when it merged into the

French Section of the Workers' International The French Section of the Workers' International (french: Section française de l'Internationale ouvrière, SFIO) was a political party in France that was founded in 1905 and succeeded in 1969 by the modern-day Socialist Party. The SFIO was found ...

(SFIO), he did not join, instead contesting local elections as an independent socialist. In 1908, Buisson was elected as assistant secretary of the FEC, becoming treasurer in 1910, and administrative secretary in 1914. It was affiliated to the General Confederation of Labour (CGT), and Buisson undertook much for the CGT, including co-ordinating the creation of the National Federation of Lighting Workers. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Buisson served in the infantry, then he returned to trade unionism, and in 1920 became general secretary of the FEC, which came with a seat on the administrative commission of the CGT. In 1921, he became vice president of the

International Federation of Employees, Technicians and Managers The International Federation of Commercial, Clerical, Professional and Technical Employees (FIET; french: Fédération internationale des employés, techniciens et cadres) was a global union federation bringing together workers representing cleric ...

. He remained with the CGT when the communists split away, and from 1925 served on the National Economic Council. In 1926, he married Suzanne Lévy, a prominent figure in the SFIO, and subsequently he joined the party himself. In 1929, Buisson stood down as general secretary of the FEC to work full-time for the CGT, in charge of propaganda, serving until 1939, when the CGT was banned. He was active in the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

, as was Suzanne. She was caught by the Gestapo and later killed, while George fled to London. There, he worked with

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

and became a delegate to the Government of Algiers. In August 1943, he was made a CGT delegate to the Consultative Assembly, the first person to speak at it, and its vice president. Following the liberation of France, he returned to Paris, and served again in the leadership of the CGT until his death in 1946.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buisson, Georges 1878 births 1946 deaths People from Évreux French Socialist Party (1902) politicians Republican-Socialist Party politicians French Section of the Workers' International politicians Members of the Provisional Consultative Assembly Members of the General Confederation of Labour (France) French Resistance members Recipients of the Resistance Medal