Édouard Aubert

Édouard Aubert (23 October 1908 – 6 November 1971) was a French trade union leader.

Born in Lyon, Aubert excelled in his studies, but he left school to complete an apprenticeship as a dyer, his father's trade. He then moved to the United States, to work for his older brother. However, when a strike took place, in 1927, and he supported the workers against his brother. He left his brother's company, and moved to New York, where he worked as a cabaret musician and dancer.

In 1929, Aubert returned to France, to complete his compulsory military service. He then returned to work as a dyer, to support his widowed mother, being sacked for militant activity on several occasions. Although an interest in anarchism initially led him not to join a trade union, in 1933, he joined the United General Confederation of Labour (CGTU). This led him to join the French Communist Party (PCF), and he was soon appointed as the secretary of the CGTU's textile union. He led the joint negotiations on wages in the textile industries, and once the CGTU merged into the General Confederation of Labour (CGT), he was a leading figure on the left of the union. He also organised union sporting activities.

In 1971, Aubert became ill, and was diagnosed with cancer. He died later in the year.