The Swiss Metalworkers' and Watchmakers' Union (german: Schweizerischer Metall- und Uhrenarbeiter Verband, SMUV; french: Fédération suisse des travailleurs de la métallurgie et de l'horlogerie) 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 (s ...

representing workers in the metal and watchmaking industries in Switzerland. The union was founded in 1915, when the Swiss Metalworkers' Union merged with the Federation of Watch Industry Workers, which was in debt, following an unsuccessful strike. It affiliated to the Swiss Trade Union Federation. The union grew rapidly during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, membership peaking at 85,000 in 1919, but then falling to just 43,000 in 1925. This was a difficult period for the union, which lost its

collective agreement A collective agreement, collective labour agreement (CLA) or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a written contract negotiated through collective bargaining for employees by one or more trade unions with the management of a company (or with ...

s, renounced strikes, and expelled its communist members, but was able to expand unemployment insurance. Under the long-term leadership of Konrad Ilg, the union began growing again, rapidly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Membership reached a new peak of 145,000 in 1972, then fell again. In 1992, it absorbed the Swiss Clothing, Leather and Equipment Workers' Union, renaming itself as the Union for Industry, Trade and Services, while retaining the SMUV abbreviation. By 1998, the union had 95,315 members, of whom 91% worked in the metal industry, and the remainder across a variety of sectors. In 2004, it merged with the

Union of Commerce, Transport and Food The Union of Commerce, Transport and Food (german: Verband der Handels-, Transport- und Lebensmittelarbeiter, VHTL; french: Fédération du commerce, des transports et de l'alimentation) was a trade union representing workers in various industries, ...

and the Union of Construction and Industry, to form Unia.

Presidents

:1915: Oskar Schneeberger :1917: Konrad Ilg :1954: Arthur Steiner :1958: Ernst Wüthrich :1972: Hans Mischler :1976: Gilbert Tschumi :1980: Fritz Reimann :1988: Agostino Tarabusi :1992: Christiane Brunner :2000: Renzo Ambrosetti

References

{{Authority control Metal trade unions Trade unions established in 1915 Trade unions disestablished in 2004 Trade unions in Switzerland