Ray Gietzelt
|
Ray Gietzelt AO |
|
|---|---|
| General Secretary of the Federated Miscellaneous Workers' Union | |
|
In office 1955–1984 |
|
| Preceded by | Stan Bevan |
| Succeeded by | Martin Ferguson |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
29 September 1922 Sydney |
| Died | 12 October 2012 (aged 90) |
| Nationality | Australian |
Ray Gietzelt AO (29 September 1922 – 12 October 2012) was a major figure in the Australian union movement in the latter part of the 20th century. He led the Federated Miscellaneous Workers' Union of Australia (FMWU; later known as United Voice) from 1955 to 1984. He exerted major influence in the careers of Bob Hawke, Neville Wran and Lionel Murphy, and he was made a Life Member of the Australian Labor Party.
Ray Gietzelt was born in Sydney in 1922. His father owned a tyre business in Newtown that collapsed during the Great Depression as his clients found themselves unable to pay their bills. As a consequence, the family had to move a number of times in search of cheaper rents.
In 1940 he went to work for a chemical company known as Incorporated Laboratories. At that time he joined the Federated Miscellaneous Workers' Union of Australia (FMWU). He also studied chemistry at Ultimo Technical College at nights.
In 1941 he joined the Australian Army and served in Papua New Guinea with the 9th Field Company of the Royal Australian Engineers, until discharge in 1945. He married later that year. He then joined a small chemical company, Getz Products, run by his father. He resumed his membership of the FMWU despite working in a junior management position.
He became active in the campaign by a left-wing group known as the Protest Committee to wrest control of the FMWU from an entrenched right-wing faction that was seen as not accountable to the members. The matter proceeded to the Conciliation and Arbitration Court, where the Protest Committee was represented by Lionel Murphy, and the union leadership by John Kerr. The court ruled in favour of the Protest Committee. Gietzelt became General Secretary of the Union in 1955, at the time being Australia's youngest federal secretary of a union. He remained in that post until his retirement in 1984.
...
Wikipedia