ABSTRACT
Drawing upon the author research on eight industrial federations of the three unions-Metal, Chemical, Textile, Construction, Agriculture, Health, Railways and Bank-this chapter describes how each central put its ideological project into industrial practice from 1968 to 1982. For the CGT in contrast to the French Democratic Confederation of Labor (CFDT), it was the level and not the type of demand that made it anti-capitalist. A few months after signing for a better than usual guarantee in 1971, the CGT called a joint strike with the CFDT to protest the unilateral adoption of the new official index and to demand a vacation bonus, demonstrating that its demands were not limited to the terms of agreement. The CFDT traditionally stood between the CGT and Force Ouvrière (FO) on industrial action, according it equal weight with negotiations. During the 1970s as the CFDT turned toward moderation along with the Socialist Party, the CGT appropriated its role as the union of worker control.
