Rudolf Wissell

Rudolf Wissell (8 March 1869 – 13 December 1962) was a German politician in the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).

[1] In 1888, Wissel became a member of the (still illegal) SPD and chairman of the Fachverein der Schlosser und Maschinenbauer (a union).

In 1908, he joined the Generalkommission der Gewerkschaften (the central workers' secretariat of trade unions) in Berlin, later becoming head of its social policy department.

[1] In 1916-8, Wissell worked part-time in the SPD newspaper Vorwärts, as editor for social policy issues.

[1] In March 1918, Wissel was elected to the Reichstag for the electoral district Niederbarnim/"Potsdam 6"; where he belonged to the party's right wing.

In the German Revolution, Wissell became Zweiter Vorsitzender (deputy chairman) of the Generalkommission where he opposed the formation of a government based on workers' and soldiers' councils and argued for an agreement with employers.

[1] One result of his arguments was the conclusion of the Stinnes-Legien Agreement, which meant that the employer's associations for the first time recognised the trade unions as the representatives of the workers.

In this function in the cabinets of Philipp Scheidemann and Gustav Bauer, he opposed the left-wing councils and worked towards a socially controlled economy for the benefit of the community.

After the Nazis' rise to power in early 1933, Wissell was expelled from public life, being a prominent Social Democrat.