Wilhelm Michels (politician)

Wilhelm "Willi" Michels (born September 27, 1919 in Welper ; † April 7, 2003 in Herdecke ) was a German trade unionist and politician ( SPD ).

Life and work

After attending elementary school, Michels completed an apprenticeship as a forge and later passed the skilled worker examination in the steel industry. He then worked as a trainer and technical employee in occupational safety at Ruhrstahl AG . From 1940 to 1945 he took part in World War II as a soldier and was most recently taken prisoner.

After the end of the war, Michels got involved in union youth work. He was a member of the works council at Henrichshütte (Ruhrstahl AG) until 1955 , then a clerk on the executive board of IG Metall and since 1960 executive member of the union, head of the branch office in Düsseldorf responsible for the steel industry and coal and steel co-determination. From 1967 to 1972 he acted as president of the coal and steel committee of the free metal and miners' unions of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in Luxembourg .

Political party

Michels joined the SPD in 1945 and was later elected chairman of the SPD sub-district Hagen- Ennepe.

MP

Michels had been a council member of the Welper community since 1946, which was incorporated into the town of Blankenstein (today a district of Hattingen in North Rhine-Westphalia ) in 1966 . He was a member of the German Bundestag from 1961 to 1972. In parliament he represented the constituency Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis . He was also a member of the European Parliament from 1961 to 1964 .

Public offices

Michels was mayor of the municipality of Welper from 1951 to 1962.

literature

• Frank Bünte: Willi Michels - A life for a new beginning. Traces of an extraordinary commitment. Wulff GmbH, printing and publishing house, Dortmund, ISBN 978-3-88090-1100 .