INDIA: Union leaders meeting in India as part of a project to organise 20,000 steel workers were shocked by the conditions they saw during a visit to the Bhilai steel plant in the State of Chhattisgarh.

"What I saw in the Bhilai Steel plant is similar to the working conditions in the Swedish steel industry in the 1940’s  and 50’s," said Eric Andersson, a former copper mill worker and member of Swedish trade union IF Metall.

The steel plant, the largest in the country, employs a total of 40,000 workers, 28,000 of which are members of the union affiliated to the Indian National Metalworkers’ Federation (INMF). The remaining 12,000 workers are precarious and sub-contracted workers.

"In particular, the working conditions of the precarious workers in the plant are terrible; many of these workers do not have helmets, protective clothing and safety shoes, which are absolutely required in such a dangerous work environment. My wife actually wears better shoes on the beach!" remarked Andersson.

The union leaders gathered on January 15 and 16, 2010 in New Delhi for the first National Project Committee meeting of the IMF India Steel Organizing Project.

The Project, endorsed by the IMF India Committee and supported by SASK and LO-TCO, seeks to respond to the absolute lack of protection of thousands of workers in sponge iron units and huge steel TNCs operating in India, where only a few public sector plants have unions partially representing permanent workers.

The project will support IMF affiliates’, INMF and SMEFI, joint efforts to organise 20,000  workers over a three year period. Significantly, in the context of an extremely fragmented and divided trade union movement, the unions have agreed to combine forces, build unity and not compete against each other to organize members in three selected States.

During its meeting, the Committee studied the findings of the 2009 survey of the steel industry conducted in three selected States, Orissa, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, where the project will be implemented between 2010 and 2012. The complete survey covers three additional states where it is hoped the organising project may be extended at a later stage.

The survey, to be published in 2010,  maps out the existing steel plants, sponge iron units and main production sites as well as a breakdown of the total workforce, including precarious workers and non-manual workers. The mapping further confirms the acute lack of unionization in the industry and the urgent need to address severe health and safety problems and workers’ rights at the workplace.

The Committee overseeing the project consists of the general secretaries and regional leadership of the two national federations representing the steel and mining sectors in India, INMF and SMEFI, as well as representatives of Metalli and TU (Finland), IF Metall and Unionen (Sweden), the SASK regional coordinator for South Asia, the IMF head office project officer and the IMF director for South Asia region. 

At the meeting INMF and SMEFI reinforced their political agreement to cooperate and  strengthen the national federations and the IMF looks forward to the contribution and exchange of experiences with the Swedish and Finnish affiliates supporting the project.

SWEDEN:  "Borderless" work is a reality for many of Unionen’s members. Some see the trend in work and time organization as positive but having to be available at any time can be stressful, as revealed in a recent survey of the IMF Swedish affiliate Unionen representing non-manual workers.

The new communication tools and digital media have opened the way to even more flexible time regimes in working life. It is becoming more difficult for individuals to set limits to work and mark a clear distinction between work and private life. The standardized pattern of the normal working week and regulated overtime is no longer the rule. This is particularly true for those involved in projects or occasional teamwork with different working methods and objectives and operating in different companies and countries. Occasional teamwork is becoming increasingly common in today’s labour market as a response to companies’ pressure for more flexibility and adjustment to shifting customer demand.  

Over half of the respondents to the survey reported a lack of feedback and guidance from their boss, which is felt as a disadvantage when they have to deal with critical situations. Having clear deadlines for completing an assignment is seen as an advantage and enables better time planning. A large degree of self-determination and autonomy in work organization is good as long as resources are available in the form of time, knowledge and empowerment. The lack thereof can lead to greater tension and higher stress levels. 

Although many white-collar workers are happy with their job, a growing number among them feel stressed or express dissatisfaction with their professional growth. The workplace and the working hours are likely to encroach more and more on home life in future. Time awareness is therefore taking on increased importance as is the issue of work-life balance. It is up to the individual worker to take responsibility for managing her/his own time and workload.  

For Unionen these developments mean a number of challenges:

• Employers have responsibility for providing a safe work environment, and the workload should be reasonable;
• Employers are responsible for working time and must make sure that legislation concerning working hours and collective agreements are complied with;
• Employees must have more control over and influence on their work situation and get feedback from their direct bosses. With increased self-determination and availability, other forms of leadership are required;
• Employees should have enough resources to be able to perform their tasks properly.

The study "Fria eller förvirrade", available in Swedish only, can be downloaded from Unionen’s website at:   https://www.unionen.se

 

 

MOZAMBIQUE: Increasing economic strains combined with worsening health are only a few of the challenges facing women workers in Mozambique, a gender workshop held in Maputo revealed. In December 2009, a total of 25 women workers were drawn together from various companies and plants in the surrounding area to attend the training workshop.

In spite of being legally defined as ‘equals’, the reality is quite different for women workers in Mozambique. Encounters with inequality, sexual harassment, and discrimination have been rife despite State efforts to promote the emancipation of women. Mozambique’s gender gap is coupled with their dependency on foreign assistance. With the majority of the workforce employed in subsistence agriculture, the population largely lives under the poverty line. Women have to combat harassment, abuse and rising poverty. There has been an increase in prostitution and migration and many women are exposed to trauma.

The workshop, opened by Sintime General Secretary, Comrade Domingos Tembe, aimed at assisting women workers to strengthen their union in the workplace. It also served as a platform on which union women networks could be built and strengthened. Comrade Maria Lopes of CNM-CUT/Brasil and Amélia Bibiana of OTM-CS/ Mozambique conducted the workshop through didactic presentation, group work and experience sharing. They were assisted by Kapita Tuwizana and Suzana Miller, from the IMF regional and international office respectively.

The problems that the participants revealed were multifaceted. Not only did they report violations of their rights by employers but also highlighted their own lack of skills in many areas. Health and safety issues discussed included a lack of training on how to prevent accidents and that workers do not make proper use of all safeguards and safety devices made available for protection. Other problems were also raised such as short maternity leave and a lack of knowledge on labour law issues. Unions do not have sufficient power to mobilize workers and help them to overcome these issues.

The workers union, Sintime, has many tasks to fulfill if these problems are to be addressed. Apart from training and mobilizing workers on the issues of health and safety in the workplace, the union needs to engage the national centre to influence government to extend maternity leave. Sintime needs to develop their role with regards to collective bargaining, ensuring women workers actively participate and makes their voices heard. In order to promote awareness and appreciation of gender issues, women workers need to be educated and trained so that they are able to effectively participate in negotiations and raise these gender issues.

The relationship between women workers and the current union structure also needs reform. The workshop held in Maputo revealed that women workers’ views were divided with regards to this topic. Some argued that the current union structure is still relevant to meet the political and organizational challenges facing it, while others proposed a restructuring of the union that better serves worker interests.  Women workers would very much like to see a woman elected as Sintime General Secretary in the future, and it is apparent that more has to be done to build trust relationship between union and women members.

If the problems facing women are to be addressed, workers and unions need to work together.  The workshop was able to recommend several actions to be implemented by both workers and unions. The number of women in unions should be increased through recruitment drives and more women worker committees created in workplaces so that their position can be strengthened and their needs addressed. In addition to this, there should be more training workshops to promote gender equality, health and safety, collective bargaining, and training on labour laws. Sintime needs to engage stakeholders to extend maternity leave and provide opportunities to develop exchange programs with women from other countries. The training workshop held in Maputo was successful in that it started the process of assisting women workers to strengthen their union in the workplace. Participants in general expressed that they were well satisfied with the workshop, which was supported by the CAW and CNM-CUT.

USA:  The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) and partners launched Ur Union of Unemployed – nicknamed UCubed – on January 15, 2010 to assist the more than 31 million jobless Americans.

By registering on the website, UCubed connects the unemployed by postal code and then builds "cubes" of six people to end that sense of being all alone. UCubed aims to bring people together – the unemployed and underemployed alike – to build a community of jobs activists who will create local networks, support one another and help in the campaign for jobs.

Inviting the unemployed to join, R. Thomas Buffenbarger, IAM International President explains why the Machinists have established UCubed.

"More than 35,000 members of our union have been laid off. Others are working fewer hours each week because their employers simply do not have orders to fill. And the real recovery, not the false one on Wall Street, still seems years away," said Buffenbarger.

By creating UCubed, IAM hopes to ease the burden of being unemployed and organize job activists in the political campaign for the creation of jobs in all sectors of the U.S. economy.

"Everywhere we turn we see the personal devastation this Grave Recession has caused. And we hope UCubed provides a measure of relief – an end to the sense of being all alone, a chance to build something useful and unique, and an opportunity for the unemployed to change things for the better," said Buffenbarger.

For more go to: http://www.unionofunemployed.com/

GLOBAL: As the steel sector recovers from the financial crisis the International Metalworkers’ Federation will be working with affiliates in 2010 to build a more sustainable and worker-friendly industry.

"For many workers in the steel industry last year was a bad one, as companies tried to translate a fall in demand into a fall in wages, conditions and job security," writes Rob Johnston, IMF Executive Director for Industrial and TNC Policies, in a statement on the outlook for the steel sector in 2010.

"This year will be critical for the union movement within the steel industry. We will have plenty of opportunities to reshape the industry but must not let the industry benchmark be the lowest standards rather than the highest," he writes.

The statement outlines MF’s strategy in the steel sector in 2010, which includes:

• Organising workers as jobs return to the industry
• Strengthening collective bargaining through union networks
• Tackling precarious work to stop the exploitation of workers and increased health and safety risks
• Actively seeking to address climate change issues in the industry

A copy of the IMF statement on the outlook for the steel sector in 2010 can be viewed here.

GLOBAL:  The International Metalworkers’ Federation will continue to raise the profile on climate change and offer opportunities for debate on the issue with affiliates in 2010, after a flimsy non-binding agreement was reached at Copenhagen last year.

In a statement reflecting on the outcome of the COP15 negotiations, Rob Johnston, IMF Executive Director for Industrial and TNC Policies, writes that while a weak agreement is better than none at all, it is now time to focus union efforts on achieving a binding agreement at COP16 in Mexico in 2010.

"The COP16 in Mexico will offer an interesting opportunity for unions to package a number of important issues surrounding trade union rights under the climate change umbrella," he writes.

"Many of the barriers to a binding agreement stem from the fear of the impact emissions targets would have on industry, trade, development and subsequently jobs. Building a comprehensive policy on issues that raise questions about the north-south divide are key. Natural areas for trade union involvement are issues such as the responsibilities of transnational corporations, education, training and skill development," he adds.

IMF and the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers’ Unions (ICEM) will continue to develop a joint program to address areas of mutual interest. In June 2010, ICEM and IMF will hold a joint conference in Toronto which will address three main topics: the impact of the Global Economic Crisis; sustainability and climate change; and, financial markets and global governance.

The main outcomes from the conference will be presented to the G20 shortly afterwards and taken forward to the COP16.

A copy of the statement prepared by Rob Johnston can be viewed here.

CANADA: The United Steelworkers (USW) filed a bad-faith bargaining complaint against Vale Inco, challenging the company’s refusal to engage in genuine, good-faith negotiations to end the six-month strike by 3,500 Canadian workers.

USW officials filed the complaint with the Ontario Labour Relations Board in Toronto, marking the strike’s six-month anniversary which was honoured in Sudbury on January 13 by a rally and parade.

3500 USW members in Sudbury and Port Colborne, Canada have been on strike since July 13, 2009 after the company would only accept to renew their collective agreement if workers agreed to a drastic reduction in conditions and increased job insecurity. Despite having made US$13.2 billion profit last year, Vale is insisting on creating a two-tiered pension plan, slashing the nickel bonus and seriously damaging seniority rights, while bringing in replacement workers to continue production. USW members at Voisey’s Bay joined the strike on August 1.

"The Ontario Labour Relations Act requires that employers and unions make every reasonable effort to reach a collective agreement," said USW lawyer Brian Shell. "At the minimum that means meeting with a union committed to a full exploration of all issues and together endeavoring to find an acceptable way forward."

"Vale Inco’s behavior indicates it is not interested in any meaningful negotiations," said John Fera, President of USW Local 6500 in Sudbury. "It is using its massive wealth to try to bring Canadian workers and our communities to their knees."

The strike has gained massive support worldwide in recent months, thanks in part with the help of affiliates from the International Metalworkers’ Federation and the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers’ Unions. Vale workers from Canada and Brazil have traveled around the globe sharing their experience with fellow miners and metalworkers at Vale operations and investments events as well as steel mills and smelters that purchase Vale products. Unions have been calling on Vale to return to the bargaining table and reach a Fair Deal NOW.

"We believe Vale is trying to destroy its strongest collective bargaining agreement for the purpose of setting a precedent to weaken other collective bargaining agreements throughout the world, a move the IMF and our global affiliates and partner organizations will not accept, and will fight," wrote Jyrki Raina, IMF general secretary in a solidarity message for the occasion.

"Until Vale changes its practices, the IMF will continue to oppose Vale operations and investment through mobilizing IMF affiliates around the world and we will actively encourage companies and governments to stop doing business with Vale until a resolution is reached," Raina added.

SWEDEN: Around 4,000 employees at Saab stopped work and held a protest at the plant in Trollhättan on 12 January 2010 in protest of GM’s moves to close the plant, despite potential bidders for Saab Automobile AB and the brand Saab.

"The best economical solution to save money and avoid costs is for General Motors is to sell Saab, rather than to wind-down the company," stated a leaflet produced by the four local unions taking action at Saab.

"The owner General Motors is acting irresponsibly when giving signals in two different directions – initiating liquidation of Saab at the same time as potential purchasers are bidding," said IF Metall President Stefan Löven in support of the workers’ protest.

"This is not only a question of a business transaction, but also a question of the future and quality of life for a large number of people," said Löven.

GM has been trying to sell Saab since January last year. Saab employs 3,400 people in Sweden and was founded in 1937. Saab was bought by GM in 1989.

MOROCCO: Shop stewards and trade union delegates from the production sites of the ArcelorMittal controlled SONASID in Nador and El Jadida, Morocco met in Casablanca with a delegation from IMF HQs on January 7-8, 2010.

Concerns were expressed about a serious deterioration of the industrial relations. Shop stewards indicated that, contrary to what used to happen until a couple of years ago, the local management does not seem to be interested in constructive social dialogue and even refuses to listen to unions. Since the last elections of workers’ representatives in May 2009 management has refused to enter into negotiations with a union that is legitimately entitled to collective bargaining according to the national law. The SNTIMMEE-CDT has in fact received at each of the two production sites more than 35 per cent of votes, which is the threshold set by the Moroccan labour code for that purpose.

Cases have been reported of discrimination against SNTIMMEE members who were on strike, and of non-implementation of a signed collective agreement at the El Jadida site. The shop stewards asked for IMF support against discrimination by management and to resume a dialogue and negotiations in good faith with the company’s management.

While the meeting was taking place information reached the participants of another tragic fatality that took place at an ArcelorMittal production site in Spain. The participants expressed deep concern for the dangerous working conditions and the recently increased number of fatalities at the production sites of ArcelorMittal around the world. In particular, they pointed to the risks involved in the increasing management’s practice to replace senior, more experienced workers with young ones. These in most cases are employed under precarious employment arrangements, with a lower level of protection.

This activity is part of the IMF ongoing work, particularly in Maghreb, to monitor the respect of fundamental rights by TNCs around the world, and to promote trade union coordination and networking between unions organizing the employees of a same TNC.

BELGIUM:  IMF affiliate in Belgium, Centrale Chrétienne des Métallurgistes de Belgique – CCMB and the textile union ACV-CSC TEXTURA decided to merge on December 12, 2009 into a new single strong union ACV-CSC METEA.

The new union is created in order to effectively meet future challenges and will operate in the industrial, technological and related sectors. ACV-CSC METEA is primarily designed to defend workers’ interests and deliver excellent services to members as well as develop dynamic activities at the shop floor and sector levels.

The new organization unites in its ranks 250,000 members and 12,500 shop stewards, representing the largest number of workers in its sectors in Belgium.

At the national level the new union is affiliated to the Belgian Christian confederation of trade unions ACV-CSC. At the European level the union affiliates to the European Metalworkers’ Federations. At the international level ACV-CSC METEA affiliates to two global union federations: the International Textile, Garment & Leather Workers’ Federation ITGWLF and the International Metalworkers’ Federation IMF.

Marc De Wilde was elected as President of the new organization.

Contacts details of the new organization:

ACV-CSC METEA
Avenue Pagodes 1-3
1020 BRUXELLES
Belgium

Tel.: +32 2 2449911
Fax. : +32 2 2449990
Email : [email protected]
http://www.acv-csc-metea.be/