The NVV was led by Henri Polak, who was a prominent member of the socialist Social Democratic Workers' Party.
After the war these influences were purged and the NVV cooperated tightly with the centre left government to create a welfare state based on the principles of corporatism.
The NVV started out as a socialist union, in favour of class struggle, workers' ownership of the means of production, and the use of strikes.
After the second world war it began to moderate its tone, becoming, social-democratic and cooperating in the creation of a welfare state and a corporatist economy.
The NVV has close formal, ideological and personal links with the socialist Social Democratic Workers' Party and later with the social-democratic PvdA.