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Pieter de Vries

1897 – 1975

Dutch trade union leader

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About Pieter de Vries

Lived 1897 – 1975 (aged 77–78).

Pieter de Vries (1897 – November 1975) was a Dutch trade union leader.

De Vries became a sailor when he was 18, and joined a trade union two years later. From 1927 to 1931, he worked for the Amsterdam Chamber of Trade in the Dutch East Indies. He then returned to the Netherlands, and in 1932, he became the assistant secretary of the Master Mariners' and Mates' Union. He held the post until 1942, when the Nazis dissolved all the Dutch trade unions.

In 1947, de Vries was elected as president of the Netherlands Seafarers' and Fishermen's Union. The following year, he was additionally elected as president of the International Mercantile Marine Officers' Association, although this organisation was largely inactive, so the role involved little work. He also became prominent in the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), becoming the chair of its Fishermen's Section.

De Vries retired from his position in the Dutch union in 1958. He relocated to London to become the ITF's Director of Regional Affairs. The ITF's general secretary, Omer Becu, left to take a new role in 1960, and with his backing, de Vries was narrowly elected as his successor. He was re-elected by fewer than 500 votes in 1962, and retired in 1965.

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Important facts

Born
1897
Birth century
Died
1975

People in Pieter de Vries's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Pieter de Vries's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Pieter de Vries?

Dutch trade union leader

When was Pieter de Vries born?

Pieter de Vries was born in 1897.

When did Pieter de Vries die?

Pieter de Vries died in 1975.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Pieter de Vries

· Wikidata: Q88624567

· DBpedia: Pieter de Vries

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Pieter de Vries. https://biography.guide/pieter-de-vries/

MLA: "Pieter de Vries." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/pieter-de-vries/.

Chicago: "Pieter de Vries." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/pieter-de-vries/.

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