Jump to content

Jaap van Achterbergh

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jacob Willem van Achterbergh (15 November 1882 – 15 September 1948) was a Dutch trade union leader.

Born in Amersfoort, Achterbergh was a founding member of the Central Union of Building Workers. In 1920, it merged into the new General Dutch Construction Union, and he became the union's vice president.[1] In 1933, he was elected as the general secretary of the International Federation of Building Workers. He organised a merger which formed the International Federation of Building and Wood Workers (IFBWW), and became its first general secretary.[2]

On the outbreak of World War II, Achterbergh travelled to Copenhagen to safeguard the federation's assets. During the war, he was arrested by the Nazi occupiers, but he survived the war and rebuilt the IFBWW afterwards.[2] He died, still in post, in 1948.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "J.W. v. Achterbergh overleden". Het Vrije Volk. 16 September 1948.
  2. ^ a b Sprenger, Jeroen (19 May 1990). "Bouw- en houtbonden in bezettingstijd" (PDF). FNV Magazine. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
Trade union offices
Preceded by
Georg Käppler
General Secretary of the International Federation of Building Workers
1933–1934
Succeeded by
Federation merged
Preceded by
New position
General Secretary of the International Federation of Building and Wood Workers
1934–1948
Succeeded by
Jan Leliveld