THE RELATIONS BETWEEN A FRENCH TEACHERS U NION AND THE FRENCH-LEAGUE-FOR-EDUCATION - VIGNAUX,PAUL POLICY, 1948-1956

The teachers' union of the Christian trade union confederation, founde d in 1937, had only 600 members by 1939. However, it grew quickly betw een 1948 and 1956. This enabled the S.G.E.N. to fight against the clai ms of the League for Education to monopolize the funds gathered during the yearly fortnight in favour of secular schools and to allocate the m to its own peri- and post-educational works. The conflict was partic ularly intense in Moselle. There the primary school teachers of the S. G.E.N. had won the majority of the teachers' seats at the joint commis sion with equal representation of the sides, and they had created secu lar holiday camps. The secretary general of the S.G.E.N., Paul Vignaux , entered negotiation withe the League. A solution was found in 1952. The article surveys the conflict in two other departments: the Nord an d the Doubs. Everywhere the League defined secularization by the denia l of religious beliefs. The S.G.E.N. took the opposite stance.