Hermann Leuenberger (15 July 1901 – 30 December 1975) was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

trade union leader and politician. Born in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

, Leuenberger started an apprenticeship as a painter, but became active in the

Social Democratic Party of Switzerland The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei der Schweiz; SP; rm, Partida Socialdemocrata da la Svizra) or Swiss Socialist Party (french: Parti socialiste suisse, it, Partito Socialista Svizzero; PS), is a polit ...

(SP) and the trade union movement. He was particularly inspired by the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

, and spent time in 1920 and 1921 in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. He then returned to Basel, to work as a labourer, while holding membership of the Union of Commerce, Transport and Food (VHTL). In 1924 and 1925, Leuenberger undertook labour movement training in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

, then returned once more to Basel, where he worked as a

chauffeur A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine. Originally, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to speciali ...

. In 1929, he began working full-time for the VHTL, as a secretary, becoming central secretary in 1933, and then central president in 1941. From 1939 until 1948, he also served as president and acting general secretary of the International Union of Food and Allied Workers' Associations. Leuenberger also remained active in the SP, winning election as a councillor in Zurich in 1935. In 1939, he was elected to the

Swiss Federal Assembly The Federal Assembly (german: Bundesversammlung, french: Assemblée fédérale, it, Assemblea federale, rm, Assamblea federala), also known as the Swiss parliament (''Parlament'', ''Parlement'', ''Parlamento''), is Switzerland's federal leg ...

, representing the Canton of Zürich, serving until 1971. From 1954 until 1969, he was also a member of the SP's management committee. He additionally founded the Foundation for Consumer Protection, and campaigned for consumer rights and equality for women. In 1937, Leuenberger was elected to the executive of the

Swiss Trade Union Federation The Swiss Trade Union Federation (, SGB; ; , USS) is the largest national trade union center in Switzerland. History The federation was founded in 1880 and represents 361,000 members in its affiliated unions (2015). The SGB has close ties with ...

(SGB), becoming its vice president in 1943, and president in 1958, retiring in 1968. He argued in favour of all its affiliates merging to become a single union, but this did not find significant support.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leuenberger, Hermann 1901 births 1975 deaths Members of the Federal Assembly (Switzerland) Politicians from Basel-Stadt Social Democratic Party of Switzerland politicians Swiss trade unionists