The Swiss Trade Union Federation (, SGB; ; , USS) is the largest
national trade union center
A national trade union center (or national center or central) is a federation or confederation of trade unions in a country. Nearly every country in the world has a national trade union center, and many have more than one. In some regions, such a ...
in
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
.
History
The federation was founded in 1880 and represents 361,000 members in its affiliated unions (2015).
The SGB has close ties with 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 ...
(SPS).
Ruth Dreifuss
Ruth Dreifuss (born 9 January 1940 in St. Gallen) is a Swiss politician affiliated with the Social Democratic Party. She was a member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1993 to 2002, representing the Canton of Geneva.
She was elected to the Swis ...
, the former
President of the Confederation
The president of the Swiss Confederation, also known as the president of the Confederation or colloquially as the president of Switzerland, is the head of Switzerland's seven-member Federal Council, the country's executive branch. Elected by ...
, and former member of the
Swiss Federal Council
The Federal Council (german: Bundesrat; french: Conseil fédéral; it, Consiglio federale; rm, Cussegl federal) is the executive body of the federal government of the Swiss Confederation and serves as the collective head of state and governme ...
, was previously an SGB official.
Affiliates
Current affiliates
The following unions are affiliated to the SGB:
Former affiliates
Presidents
Since 1884, the SGB has had the following 27 presidents, one of which was a woman:
[
:1884: Ludwig Witt
:1886: Johann Kappes
:1886: Ludwig Witt
:1888: Albert Spiess
:1888: Georg Preiss
:1890: Rudolf Morf
:1891: Conrad Conzett
:1893: Eduard Hungerbühler
:1894: Eduard Keel
:1896: Lienhard Boksberger
:1898: Alois Kessler
:1900: Heinrich Schnetzler
:1902: Niklaus Bill
:1903: Karl Zingg
:1909: Emile Ryser
:1912: Oskar Schneeberger
:1934: Robert Bratschi
:1954: Arthur Steiner
:1958: ]Hermann Leuenberger Hermann Leuenberger (15 July 1901 – 30 December 1975) was a Swiss trade union leader and politician.
Born in Basel, Leuenberger started an apprenticeship as a painter, but became active in the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (SP) and t ...
:1969: Ernst Wüthrich
:1973: Ezio Canonica
:1978: Richard Müller
:1982: Fritz Reimann
:1990: Walter Renschler
:1994: Christiane Brunner
Christiane Brunner (b. Geneva, 23 March 1947) is a Swiss politician and lawyer.
Career
Brunner has occupied the following positions:
*Deputy of the Great Council of the Canton of Geneva, 1981–1990
*Member of the National Council, 1991&nd ...
and Vasco Pedrina
:1998: Paul Rechsteiner
:2019: Pierre-Yves Maillard
References
*
External links
*
{{Authority control
Trade unions in Switzerland
International Trade Union Confederation
European Trade Union Confederation
Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD
1880 establishments in Switzerland
Organisations based in Bern
Trade unions established in 1880
Swiss Climate Alliance