International Federation of Chemical, Energy and General Workers' Unions
The International Federation of Chemical, Energy and General Workers' Unions was a global union federation of trade unions.
History
The secretariat was founded in August 1907, as the International Federation of General Factory Workers, but became inactive during World War I. It was re-established on 27 October 1920 at a conference in Amsterdam, and set up its headquarters at 17 Museumplein in the city. By 1935, the federation had affiliates in Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, the UK, and Yugoslavia.The federation held regular sectional conferences for the chemical industry. Following the collapse of the International Federation of Glass Workers, it added a glass industry section, with its first conference in 1938. Similarly, the International Federation of Pottery Workers dissolved before World War II, and in 1947, the federation held the first conference of its new pottery industry section. In 1954, it held a conference for the rubber industry.
In 1950, the federation was renamed as the International Federation of Industrial Organisations and General Workers' Unions, and then in 1964 it became the International Federation of Chemical and General Workers' Unions. At this time, the organisation was in competition with the International Federation of Petroleum and Chemical Workers, but that collapsed in 1976, with many of its affiliates joining the IFCGW, which renamed itself as the International Federation of Chemical, Energy and General Workers' Unions. Membership accordingly rose from four million to 6.3 million by 1992.
In 1995, the ICEF merged with the Miners' International Federation to form the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions.