Franz Jahn (politician)

Franz Jahn (born May 19, 1909 in Leipzig , † January 21, 1989 in Berlin ) was a German party official and trade unionist . From 1946 to 1953 he was chairman of IG Bau and IG Bau-Holz in the Free German Trade Union Federation (FDGB).

Life

Jahn grew up in a working class family. After attending primary school , he attended vocational school from 1923 to 1926 and trained as a carpenter . In 1923 he became a member of the Central Association of Carpenters and the Socialist Workers' Youth (SAJ). In 1925 he joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), in 1931 he was one of the founders of the Socialist Workers' Party of Germany (SAP). From 1923 to 1933 he was volunteer in union and party functions, including chairman of the Zimmerer Youth, regional chairman of the Young Socialist Association, and organizational secretary of the SAJ. From 1932 to 1934 he studied law at the University of Leipzig . However, he was unable to finish his studies for political reasons.

From 1933 to 1940 Jahn was still politically active illegally and participated in the resistance against National Socialism in his hometown of Leipzig. From 1934 to 1940 he worked as a room foreman in various construction companies. In 1940 he was drafted into the Wehrmacht , where he was last a medical sergeant. In February 1945 he deserted and was taken prisoner by the Americans .

In 1945 Jahn joined the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and the FDGB, in 1946 he became a member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). He was secretary for trade union work for the KPD city leadership in Leipzig. In 1945/46 he was head of department in the Labor Office of the State Administration of Saxony . From 1946 he was training secretary in the FDGB state board and chairman of IG Bau Sachsen. From 1946 to 1953 he was finally first chairman of the central board of IG Bau and IG Bau-Holz. From 1949 to 1953 he was also a member of the FDGB federal executive committee, and in 1952/53 he was also a member of the presidium of the FDGB federal executive committee. Between 1950 and 1953 he completed a distance learning course at the party college . In connection with June 17, 1953 , he was relieved of all trade union functions in October of the same year for “gross political errors and insufficient vigilance”. After that he was district secretary of IG Bau-Holz in Leipzig. From 1953 to 1958 he was director of the Bau-Union Neubrandenburg , later an employee in the district construction industry of Berlin. In 1972 Jahn retired.

literature

• Ursula Schoop: Jahn, Franz. In: Gabriele Baumgartner, Dieter Hebig (Hrsg.): Biographisches Handbuch der SBZ / DDR. 1945–1990 . Volume 1: Abendroth - Lyr . KG Saur, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-598-11176-2 , p. 352.
• Helmut Müller-Enbergs :  Jahn, Franz . In: Who was who in the GDR? 5th edition. Volume 1. Ch. Links, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-86153-561-4 .
• Andreas Herbst : Jahn, Franz. In: Dieter Dowe , Karlheinz Kuba, Manfred Wilke (Eds.): FDGB-Lexikon. Function, structure, cadre and development of a mass organization of the SED (1945–1990). Berlin 2009.