Commemorative stamp presentation, 80-year anniversary of the Austrian Trade Union Federation

The fight for social rights

Eighty years ago, the Austrian Trade Union Federation (ÖGB) was founded as a non-partisan umbrella organisation of trade unions – Austrian Post celebrates the anniversary with a commemorative stamp.

In the 19th century, catastrophic working and living conditions, along with starvation wages, shaped the lives of much of the population. Around 1870, people began organising into trade union movements to fight for their labour and social rights. Even during the monarchy, they achieved early successes such as accident and health insurance laws as well as the first collective agreements governing working hours, breaks, and holiday entitlements. During the interwar period, which was heavily marked by the Great Depression, free trade unions secured further progress in social policy – until they were banned in 1934. Many union activists were arrested, and many were murdered.

In mid-April 1945, trade unionists from the SPÖ, ÖVP, and KPÖ gathered at Vienna’s Westbahnhof train station for a plenary meeting and founded the non-partisan Austrian Trade Union Federation (ÖGB). Johann Böhm (SPÖ) became president, with Lois Weinberger (ÖVP) as vice president. Among the first major achievements of the post-war trade union movement were the Works Council Act, the Collective Bargaining Act, and the General Social Insurance Act. Today, the ÖGB comprises seven unions and represents over 1.2 million members. Each year, around 450 collective agreements are negotiated.

Where? 
Post am Rochus, Rochusplatz 1, 1030 Vienna
Group pictures:
Picture of presentation: © Ö. Post AG
Picture1 (left to right): Walter Oblin, CEO, Austrian Post, Wolfgang Katzian (President, Austrian Trade Union Federation), Richard Köhler (President, Union of Postal and Telecommunication Employees) 

Special post office: 23 April 2025, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., lobby of the ÖGB catamaran, Johann-Böhm-Platz 1, 1020 Vienna