The Christian National Union Confederation (German: Christlichnationaler Gewerkschaftsbund der Schweiz, CNG; French: Confédération des syndicats chrétiens de Suisse) was a trade union federation bringing together Christian democratic trade unions in Switzerland.
The federation was founded in 1907, as the Christian Social Union Federation of Switzerland, with about 4,500 members. After almost collapsing, it began co-operating with the Swiss Trade Union Federation during World War I, but withdrew this in 1918 due to it opposition to the possibility of a general strike. It spread into Romandy from 1916, and Ticino from 1918. In 1921, it renamed itself as the CNG, and grew steadily, reaching 36,000 members by 1941, 84,000 in 1961, and peaking at 116,000 in 1990. While the federation was open to all Christians, the vast majority of members were Catholics, with some Protestants instead forming the Swiss Association of Protestant Workers.[1] [2]
During the 1990s, the federation's affiliates rapidly lost members, and by 1997, it was down to 93,100. In 2002, it merged with the Confederation of Swiss Employees' Associations, to form Travail.Suisse.[3]
| Union | Abbreviation | Founded | Left | Reason not affiliated | Membership (1963)[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian Agricultural Workers' Union of Switzerland | CLB | 1951 | 1988 | Dissolved | 794 | |
| Christian Chemical, Textile, Clothing, Paper and Staff Union | CTB | 1904 | 1994 | Merged into CMV | 10,315 | |
| Christian Metalworkers' Union of Switzerland | CMV | 1905 | 1998 | Merged into Syna | 28,797 | |
| Christian Transport, Commerce and Food Workers' Union | CTHL | 1908 | 1992 | Merged into CMV | 4,757 | |
| Christian Union of Transport, Military and Customs | GCV | 1919 | 2000 | Merged into Transfair | 6,150 | |
| Christian Wood and Construction Workers' Union of Switzerland | CHB | 1901 | 1998 | Merged into Syna | 29,160 | |
| Swiss Association of Protestant Workers | SVEA | 1920 | 1993 | Merged into CMV | 13,840 | |
| Swiss Graphical Union | SGG | 1965 | 1998 | Merged into Syna | N/A | |
| Swiss Printers' Union | SBG | 1908 | 1965 | Merged into SGG | 1,763 | |
| Swiss Union of Christian Bookbinders, Paper and Cardboard Workers and Graphical Assistants | SVCB | 1908 | 1965 | Merged into SGG | 512 | |
| Swiss Union of Christian Postal, Telephone and Telegraph Personnel | ChPTT | 1923 | 2000 | Merged into Transfair | 6,036 | |
| Syna | 1998 | 2002 | Transferred to Travail.Suisse | N/A | ||
| Transfair | 2000 | 2002 | Transferred to Travail.Suisse | N/A | ||
| Union of Christian Employees of Switzerland | 1934 | 2,344 | ||||
| Union of Christian Government Personnel | VCB | 1929 | 2000 | Merged into Transfair | 453 | |
| Union of Christian State and Municipal Personnel of Switzerland | VHCP | 1922 | 1999 | Merged into Syna | 2,078 | |
| Union of Hungarian Christian Workers in Switzerland | VUCAS | 1959 | 2002 | Transferred to Travail.Suisse | 238 |