The material from Metal i ABA is so extensive that it is divided here according to the unions and organizations that have been part of Dansk Metal over the years and the nature of the material: minutes and reports, anniversary publications, trade journals and archive material.

By Freddie Nielsen

The division of the material

1. Minutes and reports cover two types of publications from the individual unions. Firstly, annual or company reports published by the main management, and secondly, minutes and reports from the unions’ congresses, which often cover multi-year periods.

2. Anniversary publications are a large collection of very different publications that both unions and local branches have published on the occasion of anniversaries. Some unions have published many anniversary publications, others only for the big anniversaries. Others have published thick books, others small leaflets and still others special issues of their union magazine. But here we have tried to include all anniversary publications.

3. Trade journals include everything the ABA has been able to find in the way of regular publications for members from the individual union or local branches. This can be anything from weekly magazines to biannual publications. Some of the trade journals have been published for many years, while others may have gone in after one or a few issues.

4. Archive material covers the union, affiliated unions, branches and clubs found in the ABA. Dansk Metal’s archive is obviously the most extensive. The registered material consists of 1347 archive boxes and 613 loose volumes, covering everything from congress material, minutes and appendices from meetings of the central management to correspondence, circulars, union cases and collective agreement material to international relations, apprenticeship and training and membership lists. In other words, the collection makes it possible to document the historical importance of the union.

Dansk Metal

Founded in 1888 under the name Dansk Smede- og Maskinarbejderforbund (DSMF), changed name to Dansk Metalarbejderforbund (1972).

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
o until 1949
o 1950-1979
o 1980-1994
o 1995-2005
Trade journals
Union and unemployment fund archives
Department archives
Club archives

View the archive here and see Dansk Metal’s publications in the library here.

Specialized Workers’ Union (established 1918, joined Dansk Metal in 1957)

Minutes and reports

See the archive here.

Danish Metal Printers’ Union (established 1911, joined Dansk Metal in 1967)

Anniversary publications
The archives of the union and its branches

See a leaflet about the union here

Gørtler- og Metalarbejdernes Forbund (established 1903, joined Dansk Metal in 1968)

Trade journals
The archives of the union and its branches

See the archive here and what the library offers for reading here.

Kobbersmedenes Forbund (established 1902, joined Dansk Metal in 1969)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
Department and club archives

See a leaflet about the union here:

Dansk Formerforbund (established 1889, joined Dansk Metal in 1970)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
The archives of the union and its branches

View the archive here and see what the library has on Dansk Formerforbund here.

Dansk Kedel- og Maskinpasser Forbund (established 1897, joined Dansk Metal 1972)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
The archives of the union and its branches

See the archive here and see what the library has about the Danish Boiler and Machine Operators Union here.

Danish Coachbuilders’ and Bodybuilders’ Union (established 1895, joined Dansk Metal 1976)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
The union’s archive

View the archive here and see reports and trade journals in the library here.

Danish Shipwrights’, Riggers’ and Sailmakers’ Union

Danish Shipwrights’ Union established 1892, Sailmakers’ Union established 1898, Riggers’ and Sailmakers’ Union in Denmark established 1919, merged with the shipwrights to form the Danish Shipwrights’, Riggers’ and Sailmakers’ Union in 1971, joined Dansk Metal 1976.

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Union and department archives
Club archives

See the archive here and what the library has for reading here.

Dansk Maskinbesætningsforbund (established 1897 as Søfyrbødernes Forbund, joined Dansk Metal 1981)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
Union archive

View the archive here and see what the library has published here.

Dansk Jern- og Metalsliberforbund (established 1903, joined Dansk Metal 1983)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
Union, branch and club archives

See the archive here and anniversary publications etc. in the library here.

Guld- og Sølvarbejdernes Forbund i Danmark (established in 1891, joined Dansk Metal 1984)

Minutes and reports
Anniversary publications
Trade journals
Union archive

See the archive here and what the library offers here.

Telecommunications Union in Denmark (established in 1994, joined Dansk Metal 2003)

Minutes and reports
Trade journals