Wolfgang Clement

Wolfgang Clement
Bundesminister a. D. Ministerpräsident a. D. MdL a. D.
Clement in 2004
Minister for Economics and Labour
In office
22 October 2002 – 22 November 2005
ChancellorGerhard Schröder
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia
In office
27 May 1998 – 22 October 2002
DeputyMichael Vesper
Preceded byJohannes Rau
Succeeded byPeer Steinbrück
Minister of Economy and medium-sized Businesses, Technology and Transportation of North Rhine-Westphalia
In office
17 July 1995 – 9 June 1998
Minister-PresidentJohannes Rau
Preceded byGünther Einert (Economy, medium-sized Businesses and Technology)
Succeeded byBodo Hombach
Minister for Special Affairs and Chief of the State Chancellery of North Rhine-Westphalia
In office
12 June 1990 – 17 July 1995
Minister-PresidentJohannes Rau
Preceded byKlaus Dieter Leister
Succeeded byRüdiger Frohn
Parliamentary constituencies
Member of the Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia
In office
1 June 1995 – 7 November 2002
Preceded byGeorg Aigner
Succeeded byKarsten Rudolph
ConstituencyBochum II
In office
1 October 1993 – 1 June 1995
Preceded byWilhelm Vollmann
Succeeded bymulti-member district
ConstituencySocial Democratic Party List
Personal details
Born(1940-07-07)7 July 1940
Bochum, Gau Westphalia-South, German Reich
(now Germany)
Died27 September 2020(2020-09-27) (aged 80)
Bonn, Germany
Cause of deathLung cancer
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations
Social Democratic Party (1970–2008)
Alma materUniversity of Marburg

Wolfgang Clement (7 July 1940 – 27 September 2020) was a German politician and a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). He was the 7th Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia from 27 May 1998 to 22 October 2002 and Federal Minister of Economics and Labour from 2002 to 2005. He was an Honorary Member of the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation.

He was known for being one of the architects of the Agenda 2010 labor market reforms under chancellor Gerhard Schröder in the early 2000s. He was also credited with the merger of the federal ministry of economics and labor and the Hartz I through IV labor market reforms. The labor and welfare reforms have been credited with reducing unemployment and contributing to Germany's growth years. However, the reforms have been a divisive topic and created a lasting rift between the leftists and the centrists at the SPD.