Berthold Keller

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Berthold Keller (born February 8, 1927 in Konstanz , † June 28, 2012 in Monheim am Rhein ) was a German trade unionist. From 1978 to 1990 he was chairman of the Textile Clothing Union .

After elementary school, Keller did an apprenticeship as a men's and women's tailor. He then joined the clothing factory in Constance as a tailor. Keller had been doing military service since 1944 and was taken prisoner by the French in March 1945, from which he was only released in 1949.

Keller has been a union member since 1952, from 1955 a full-time functionary of the textile and clothing union and, as secretary of the board, personal assistant to chairman Karl Buschmann for about ten years . In 1972, Keller was elected to the organization's main executive board.

In 1978, Keller was elected chairman to succeed Buschmann. His tenure was marked by pragmatism. He did not seek conflict with employers, but neither did he avoid it. Keller was significantly involved in the creation of the World Textile Agreement and took an active part in its further development.

However, as a result of competition on the world market, this could not prevent the massive loss of jobs in the German textile industry. Between 1970 and 1990 alone, the number of employees fell by around 500,000.

Keller tried to reduce the consequences by enforcing an early retirement regulation , but met with considerable criticism within the DGB , because at the same time IG Metall and other unions were pursuing the path of weekly working hours. In the 1980s, Keller participated in the so-called rationalization protection contract as a further measure against job cuts.

In 1990, Keller did not stand for re-election for reasons of age. Willi Arens was his successor .

After retiring from active trade union work, Kurt Biedenkopf brought Keller to Saxony as an unpaid representative for the textile industry . Keller tried there to contribute to the continued existence of a viable core of the regional textile industry. In 1992, Keller signed a framework agreement with the trust company ( Atlas , selected trust companies registered by the state for redevelopment). Associated with this were state subsidies and guarantees.

Keller was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class , in 1981 and the Grand Cross of Merit in 1985.

literature

  • Berthold Keller , Internationales Biographisches Archiv 50/1996 of December 2, 1996, in the Munzinger archive ( beginning of article freely available)
  • Minutes of the trade union days of the textile-clothing trade union 1972, 1978, 1990, all published in Düsseldorf

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Metallzeitung from August 2012, page 7
  2. ^ Annual report 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994 of the main board of the textile-clothing union, p. 103 ff.
personal data
SURNAME Keller, Berthold
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German trade unionist, chairwoman of the textile clothing union (1978–1990)
DATE OF BIRTH February 8, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Constance , German Empire
DATE OF DEATH June 28, 2012
Place of death Monheim am Rhein , Germany