The secretariat was founded in August 1907, as the International Federation of General Factory Workers, but became inactive during World War I.

It was re-established on 27 October 1920 at a conference in Amsterdam, and set up its headquarters at 17 Museumplein in the city.

By 1935, the federation had affiliates in Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, the UK, and Yugoslavia.

[1] The federation held regular sectional conferences for the chemical industry.

[3] At this time, the organisation was in competition with the International Federation of Petroleum and Chemical Workers, but that collapsed in 1976, with many of its affiliates joining the IFCGW, which renamed itself as the International Federation of Chemical, Energy and General Workers' Unions (ICEF).