The organization upon which Syndicalism de- pended was the Confederation Generale du Travail, commonly known as the C.G.T., which was founded in 1895, but only achieved its final form in 1902.It has never been numerically very powerful, but has derived its influence from the fact that in moments of crisis many who were not members were willing to follow its guidance.Its membership in the year before the war is estimated by Mr.Cole at somewhat more than half a million.Trade Unions (Syndicats) were legalized by Waldeck-Rousseau in 1884, and the C.G.T., on its inauguration in 1895, was formed by the Federation of 700 Syndicats.Alongside of this organization there existed another, the Federation des Bourses du Travail, formed in 1893.A Bourse du Travail is a local organization, not of any one trade, but of local labor in general, intended to serve as a Labor Exchange and to perform such functions for labor as Chambers of Commerce perform for the employer.[24] A Syndicat is in general a local organization of a single industry, and is thus a smaller unit than the Bourse du Travail.[25] Under the able leadership of Pelloutier, the Federation des Bourses prospered more than the C.G.T., and at last, in 1902, coalesced with it.The result was an organization in which the local Syndicat was fed- erated twice over, once with the otherSyndicat in its locality, forming together the local Bourse du Travail, and again with the Syndicats in the same industry in other places.``It was the purpose of the new organization to secure twice over the membership of every syndicat, to get it to join both its local Bourse du Travail and the Federation of its industry.The Statutes of the C.G.T.(I.3) put this point plainly: `No Syndicat will be able to form a part of the C.G.T.if it is not federated nationally and an adherent of a Bourse du Travail or a local or departmental Union of Syndicats grouping different associations.' Thus, M.Lagardelle explains, the two sections will correct each other's point of view: national federation of industries will prevent parochialism (localisme), and local organization will check the corporate or `Trade Union' spirit.The workers will learn at once the solidarity of all workers in a locality and that of all workers in a trade, and, in learning this, they will learn at the same time the complete solidarity of the whole working- class.''[26]
[24] Cole, ib., p.65.
[25] ``Syndicat in France still means a local union--there are at the present day only four national syndicats'' (ib., p.66).
[26] Cole, ib.p.69.
This organization was largely the work of Pellouties, who was Secretary of the Federation des Bourses from 1894 until his death in 1901.He was an Anarchist Communist and impressed his ideas upon the Federation and thence posthumously on the C.G.T.after its combination with the Federation des Bourses.He even carried his principles into the government of the Federation; the Committee had no chairman and votes very rarely took place.He stated that ``the task of the revolution is to free mankind, not only from all authority, but also from every institution which has not for its essential purpose the development of production.''
The C.G.T.allows much autonomy to each unit in the organization.Each Syndicat counts for one, whether it be large or small.There are not the friendly society activities which form so large a part of the work of English Unions.It gives no orders, but is purely advisory.It does not allow politics to be introduced into the Unions.This decision was originally based upon the fact that the divisions among Socialists disrupted theUnions, but it is now reinforced in the minds of an important section by the general Anarchist dislike of politics.The C.G.T.is essentially a fighting organization; in strikes, it is the nucleus to which the other workers rally.
There is a Reformist section in the C.G.T., but it is practically always in a minority, and the C.G.T.is, to all intents and purposes, the organ of revolutionary Syndicalism, which is simply the creed of its leaders.
The essential doctrine of Syndicalism is the class- war, to be conducted by industrial rather than politi- cal methods.The chief industrial methods advocated are the strike, the boycott, the label and sabotage.
The boycott, in various forms, and the label, showing that the work has been done under trade- union conditions, have played a considerable part in American labor struggles.
