ITALY/INDIA: Italian affiliates of the International Metalworkers’ Federation are urging FIAT for clarification about the establishment of a new production unit in India.

“According to press reports, the Fiat Group is involved in the setting up of a new Tata Motors plant at Singur in the Indian state of West Bengala for the production of a low cost car,” read a joint statement from the Italian unions.

“International and Indian labour groups have voiced concern that such an industrial establishment would have a devastating impact on the fertile agricultural area, which is home to about 22,000 inhabitants, many of whom would receive no indemnity at all for the expropriation of their land.

“The area involved has in recent months been the site of protest demonstrations and, unfortunately, repressive measures taken against the farmers including the arrests of trade union leaders.

“The Fim, Fiom and Uilm National Secretariats in Italy are requesting that clarification be given on any participation of the Fiat Group in this initiative. They are demanding that FIAT, together with Tata Motors, take initiatives so to ensure that the government of West Bengala sets aside a location other than Singur in order to make the necessary industrial development possible while safeguarding the living conditions of the agricultural community.”

AUSTRALIA:  Tristar Steering and Suspension is attempting to use the new Australian industrial relations laws to save hundreds of thousands of dollars by keeping “redundant” workers on the payroll until the terms of the union agreement expire.

The workers and the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union have been fighting a public campaign against the company, so far forcing it to payout John Bevan, who was with the company for 43 years and died of cancer in January, leaving three dependent children.

Tristar’s remaining 35 workers, continue on the payroll despite having had no work since June 2006. The collective agreement, which included four weeks of pay per year of service for forced redundancies, was terminated in February. The company was waiting for the terms of this agreement to expire so it would only be required to pay 12 weeks of wages to the redundant workers.

After months of pressure, the Office of Workplace Services, the Howard government’s workplace relations ‘watchdog’, began proceedings against Tristar in the Federal Court in February over its refusal to offer redundancies to 26 of the workers. 

NAIROBI: Addressing the relationship between quality employment and sustainable development, the International Metalworkers’ Federation will host a morning discussion from 8:30 to 11am on January 23 in room number 22 IN Lower at the World Social Forum in Nairobi, Kenya.

Participants at the IMF-hosted discussion will examine the need for trade, investment and financial policies to coherently focus on quality employment and that the creation and protection of jobs must be a key priority of multilateral policies.

The idea that women and men in all countries, developing and industrialised alike, have the same right to enjoy fundamental democratic guarantees and protections at work regardless of cultural, economic and social differences will be at the basis for the dialogue, noting that quality employment is a fundamental human right and is the only way out of poverty.

Also happening at the WSF, the campaign launch of Decent Work for a Decent Life, coordinated by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), African Regional Office of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU-AFRO) and others.

For more information about the WSF 2007, go to: www.wsf2007.org

Update: The IMF activity at the World Social Forum has been cancelled due to a double booking of the venue.

2006 is a year that will be remembered by steel workers across the globe. It has seen the evolution of the world’s first truly global steel producing company, a trend that other companies are likely to follow.



…Download the pdf-file (right hand column) to access the full story with illustrations.

CANADA: Developing a strategy for metalworkers on trade, employment and development was the subject of an IMF seminar that was held at the CAW education center in Canada on October 11 to 14, 2006.

IMF affiliates from South and North America, together with metalworkers from Africa, Europe and Asia, took part in the seminar, which examined the current situation of bi-lateral and multi-lateral negotiations on trade liberalisation.

Participants expressed concern about new trade liberalisation that, if implemented in an inflexible and generalised way, could seriously damage less developed countries and undermine their ability to build their own industrial policy.

Concern was also expressed about the proposed tariff reductions, that could result in the loss of many industrial jobs and increase the overall precarisation of employment conditions, moving workers from permanent jobs to a growing “informal” labour market with little or no labour protection.

There was full agreement among participants on the importance of incorporating mechanisms for labour protection in trade agreements. However it was felt that inclusion of core labour standards is not enough, and that the international trade union movement also needs to present a clear alternative project to neo-liberalism, such as expressed in the IMF Strategies for an Alternative Globalisation. ( http://www.imfmetal.org/main/files/IMFalternativeStrategies_english.pdf)

Texts of the conclusions and recommendations from the seminar and summaries of the presentations are published in English, Portuguese and Spanish on the IMF website.

IMF Working Party on Trade

A meeting of the IMF Working Party on Trade took place in conjunction with the seminar. The impact of FTAs on countries with differing socio-economic conditions was analysed and different trade union views and strategies were discussed.

WP members recommended that IMF activities focus on

• Monitoring and analysing the practical impact of key FTAs, e.g. CAFTA, on employment and on workers’ rights.
  
• Building dialogue with G20 governments on their trade and social agenda.
  
• Examining the role of the auto industry with regard to FTAs.
  
• Coordinating and facilitating the sharing of views and experiences between affiliates from different regions.
  
• Reviewing the effectiveness of international trade union strategies on workers rights and on global governance, also involving the ICFTU and GUFs, and social movements.
  
• Focussing IMF initiatives at the 2007 WSF in Nairobi on possible repercussions of trade liberalisation on employment and development.

The seminar in Canada followed a series of activities held by the IMF in 2006 aimed at developing common strategies and building union capacity to engage with governments, employers and other institutions around policies on trade, employment and development. Two similar seminars were held in Asunción for the South Cone region in April, and in Durban for Southern and East Africa in June.

GLOBAL: The International Metalworkers' Federation contributed to a global workshop aimed at strengthening the capacity of trade unionists on the issues of Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and finding more effective ways to interact with governments on trade issues.

The negotiations for NAMA and GATS are crucial for the employment situation and development strategies of developing countries. The NAMA proposal would affect future industrial development by reducing substantially the already limited policy space for governments and, in the case of GATS, the current commitments would severely limit the regulatory capacity of governments in many services areas.

The workshop was aimed at assisting trade unionists in understanding the significance of these negotiations and proposals, to assess what is at stake for their countries and for workers, and to develop adequate strategies on how to promote and influence a beneficial outcome from the negotiations.

The workshop brought together trade unionists from around twenty different countries (including IMF affiliates from Argentina, Bangladesh and South Africa and unions from Brazil, Barbados, Costa Rica, Colombia, Nigeria, Senegal, Philippines, India, Benin, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Ghana, Australia, Canada, France, Belgium and Italy), as well as some participants of the Global Union Federations, International Labour Organisation (ILO) staff, and non-governmental organisations based in Geneva.

A wide variety of experts from World Trade Organisation missions based in Geneva, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), ILO, WTO, Third World Network, South Centre, Oxfam and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD), shared information and experiences with the participants, both with an aim to increase knowledge on services and NAMA negotiations but also on the wider impacts of those negotiations on development, employment and decent work.

The workshop took place from September 27 to 29, 2006 in Geneva, and was jointly organised by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) Geneva Office with support of the Global Union Research Network (GURN) and Solidar.

GERMANY: Delegates to the International Framework Agreement World Conference in Frankfurt participated in a lively discussion on the future and direction of IFAs.

Delegates debated the importance of using IFAs for organizing drives and the need for improved international solidarity support, training on IFA implementation and coordination at the local, national and international level.

The aim of the conference was to analyse current IFAs and their usefulness in improving worker rights and conditions. Recommendations discussed at the conference will go to the Executive Committee for further debate.

“It is the hope of the IMF, and all of us, that IFAs be recognized and respected all over the world regardless of the national legislation of its country. We would like to see core labour standards observed in every part of the world, and I believe the IFA is one tool to make this a reality,” said Marcello Malentacchi, general secretary of the International Metalworkers’ Federation in his closing remarks.

A copy of the IFA Recommendations – as adopted by the IMF Executive Committee – is available on the IMF website.

Austria

AUSTRIAN METAL TEXTILE FOODWORKERS UNION

Vienna — members of the GMTN demonstrated in front of the Japanese embassy and handed over a petition to the Japanese ambassador. They also reported about the day of action and the Toyota Philippines campaign on their union website: http://www.gmtn.at/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=GMT/Page/GMT_Index&n=GMT_4.a&cid=1157625784746.

Australia

AUSTRAILIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS UNION (AMWU)

The AMWU added the Toyota Philippines campaign to their website and designed a leaflet to compliment their mobilization efforts at Japanese embassy.

• Sydney — 50 people, including Toyota workers demonstrated in the centre of the city in Martin Place. The demonstration was very noisy and attracted the attention of lunch time crowds. Leaflets were handed out. The local Philippino support organisation PAUL was present. The CFMEU construction union also participated. The rally was addressed by AMWU State Secretary Paul Bastian. A delegation met with the Japanese Consul and presented the petition and the consul agreed to pass on the message to their government.
  
• Melbourne — 170 people rallied outside the Japanese consulate in Melbourne as part of a national protest against car giant Toyota. Workers and union officials chanted slogans including "Shame Toyota shame" and "Who screws their workers? – Toyota". They also signed a petition, which was later handed to consulate staff, which focuses on the Japanese carmaker's operation in the Philippines.
  
  
• Brisbane — A small demonstration was held outside the consulate in Brisbane. The consulate was closed in anticipation of the demonstration and the building totally locked down. The demonstrators tried to enter the building, but were physically prevented from doing so. After some pushing and shoving, agreement was reached that the consul would meet with the demonstrators and the petition was handed over and it was agreed that the message would be passed on to Tokyo. Leaflets were handed out to the lunchtime crowds.
  
• Hobart — A demonstration was held outside a Toyota Dealership in Launceston at 12 noon. All AMWU officials, a small number of AMWU delegates, and other unions involved included NUW, HACSU, AEU and RTBU. All unions flew their various flags. A couple of the salespeople came out from the dealership to see what was happening, they were in good humour and joined in with the flag bearing. They weren't even aware that Toyota had people in the Philippines. The owner of the dealership was not on the site, so a delegation of AMWU went inside to meet with the Co-Owner to let him know what we were doing and asked him to pass on the protest letter to the President of the Toyota Motor Corporation in Japan. He agreed to do so.
  
• Adelaide — A demonstration was held outside the main Toyota dealership in Adelaide. There was a good attendance and the noisy demonstration handed out leaflets to the public.
  
• Perth — A demonstration was held outside the Japanese consulate in Perth and was addressed by State Secretary of the AMWU Jock Ferguson.

Argentina

ASOCIACIÓN OBRERA MINERA ARGENTINA (AOMA), ASOCIACIÓN DE SUPERVISORES DE LA INDUSTRIA METALMECÁNICA DE LA REPUBLICA ARGENTINA (ASIMRA), UNIÓN OBRERA METALÚRGICA (UOM)

• The affiliates sent letters of protest to the Japanese embassy in Argentina.

Bangladesh

BANGLADESH METALWORKERS' FEDERATION (BMF) and the BANGLADESH METALWORKERS' LEAGUE (BML)

• Dhaka — The BMF General Secretary Mr. Nazrul Islam Khan and BML General Secretary Md. Mojibhur Rahman Bhuiyan met the Ambassador of Japan Embassy in Dhaka and submitted a petition.

Belgium

LANDELIJKE BEDIENDEN CENTRALE – NATIONAAL VERBOND VOOR KADERPERSONEEL (LBC-NVK) and SYNDICAT DES EMPLOYÉS, TECHNICIENS ET CADRES DE BELGIQUE (SETCA-BBTK)

LBC-NVK and SETCA-BBTK launched a petition on the web and at local Toyota plants.

• Brussels — On the 12th of September 60 trade unionists demonstrated before the Embassy of Japan demanding the reintegration of the 136 Toyota-employees of the Philippines. Ms Madoka Funatsu, second secretary of the Japanese ambassador, received a delegation of 6 persons. The delegation was able to share their concerns but also to hand over the results of a petition. In two weeks time they succeeded in collecting more than 1,000 signatures. The embassy had respect for this action and promised to give the petition to their government. The case at Toyota Philippines will be examined and if necessary the Japanese government will put pressure on Toyota and the Philippine government. The embassy has promised us to give feedback within the month about the steps the Japanese government will take in this case. "Kanaal Z" TV did a short report on the action.
  
  
  After this action the demonstrators joined a demonstration of the Belgian network "Stop the killings in the Philippines". They were demonstrating before the European Commission where the Philippine president was on a visit. The protestors called on the Philippine government to urgently guarantee the security of human rights activists and also trade union activists and thoroughly investigate the political assassinations. Since 2001, 750 political assassinations have been committed in the Philippines, many of them trade unionists. Letter of the Belgian affiliates to the Japanese Embassy.

Brazil

CONFEDERAÇÃO NACIONAL DOS METALÚRGICOS (CNM/CUT)

• Sao Paulo — CNM/CUT publicised the IMF's September 12 DAY of ACTION in their international bulletin.

CONFEDERAÇÃO NACIONAL DOS TRABALHADORES METALÚRGICOS (CNTM-FS)

• The affiliate sent a letter to the Japanese embassy in Brazil.

Chile

CONFEDERACIÓN NACIONAL DE TRABAJADORES METALÚRGICOS (CONSTRAMET)

• Santiago — The affiliate sent a letter to the Japanese embassy.

Colombia

FEDERACIÓN DE TRABAJADORES DE LAS INDUSTRIAS METALÚRGICAS, ELÉCTRICAS Y MECÁNICAS DE COLOMBIA (FETRAMECOL)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy.

COLOMBIA'S NATIONAL MINEWORKERS' UNION (SINTRAMINERCOL)

• SINTRAMINERCOL sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy.

Curacao

CURACAOSCHE ALGEMENE DOK & METAALBEWERKERS UNIE (CADMU)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy.

France

FÉDÉRATION NATIONALE CFTC DES SYNDICATS DE LA MÉTALLURGIE ET PARTIES SIMILAIRES (CFTC), FÉDÉRATION DES TRAVAILLEURS DE LA MÉTALLURGIE (FTM-CGT)

• Valenciennes — The CFTC mobilized their members on September 12 in front of Toyota France and sent a protest letter to the Japanese Ambassador in Paris.
  
• Montreuil — The FTM-CGT sent a letter to the Philippine ambassador asking him to use his influence in bringing a just and fair outcome for the TMPCWA members illegally fired.

Ghana

INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERCIAL WORKERS UNION (ICU)

• ICU wrote a letter in support of TMPCWA workers and send it to the Japanese embassy in Accra.

Guatemala

FEDERACIÓN DE TRABAJADORES DE LA METAL-MECÁNICA DE GUATEMALA (FETRAMEGUA)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy.

Honduras

FEDERACIÓN DE TRABAJADORES MINEROS Y METALÚRGICOS DE HONDURAS (FETRAMIMH)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy.

India

STEEL, METAL & ENGINEERING WORKERS' FEDERATION OF INDIA (SMEFI), INDIAN NATIONAL METALWORKERS' FEDERATION (INMF), and WORKING PEOPLE TRADE UNION COUNCIL (WPTUC)

• Mumbai — The SMEFI General Secretary Mr. Sanjay S. Vadhavkar, Mr. V.V. Rane and other office bearers met as a delegation with Consulate General of Japan and submitted a petition. The Consul General has responded in a letter stating that he will forward the petition to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan.
  
• New Delhi — The INMF Secretary Mr. P.J. Raju and others submitted the petition to the Japan Embassy in New Delhi.
  
• Chennai — The INMF affiliated Tamil Nadu National Engineering Employees' Union conducted a protest demonstration under the leadership of Mr. N. Devarajan and submitted a petition to Consulate General of Japan in Chennai. The protest actions are covered by Media i.e. Local TV news channels. And, The WPTUC conducted a protest demonstration under the leadership of Mr. R. Kuchelan and submitted a petition to Consulate General of Japan in Chennai.

Indonesia

LOMENIK-SBSI

• Jakarta — Workers demonstrated in front of the Japanese embassy calling for Toyota Philippines to REINSTATE THEM NOW!

Kenya

AMALGAMATED UNION OF KENYA METALWORKERS

• Nairobi — Kenyan Metalworkers sent the following letter.

Korea (South)

KKOREAN METAL WORKERS' FEDERATION

• Seoul —The KMWF sent a letter of protest on September 12 to the Japanese ambassador in Korea.

Mexico

SINDICATO NACIONAL DE TRABAJADORES DE TELEINDUSTRIAS Y SISTEMAS DIGITALES DE LA REPUBLICA MEXICANA (SNTTSD) and SINDICATO NACIONAL DE TRABAJADORES MINEROS, METALÚRGICOS Y SIMILARES DE LA REPÚBLICA MEXICANA (SNTMMS)

• The affiliates sent protest letters to the Japanese embassy in Mexico.

Nepal

NEPAL FACTORY LABOUR CONGRESS (NFLC)

• Kathmandu — The NFLC President Mr. Dhirendra Kumar Singh along with other Office Bearers submitted a petition to Japanese Embassy at Kathmandu.

Pakistan

PAKISTAN METALWORKERS' FEDERATION (PMF)

• Karachi — The PMF Secretary General Muhammad Suhail and other Office Bearers submitted a petition to Japanese Consulate in Karachi and the Consulate assured them that they would forward the petition to the concerned authorities.

Peru

FEDERACIÓN DE TRABAJADORES DE LAS INDUSTRIAS MINERAS, METALÚRGICAS Y AFINES DEL PERÚ (FETIMAP)and CENTRAL NACIONAL DE TRABAJADORES INDUSTRIALES DEL METAL & ELECTRO MECANICA DEL PERU (CEMETAL)

• Lima — the affiliates sent protest letters to the Japanese Ambassador.

Philippines

TOYOTA MOTOR PHILIPPINES CORPORATION WORKERS' ASSOCIATION (TMPCWA), NISSAN WORKERS UNION, HONDA WORKERS UNION (part of CAR-AID alliance) and MWAP

• Manila — A picket action was launched in front of the Japanese Embassy. The action was attended by members of TMPCWA and other unions as well as families of the illegally dismissed members of TMPCWA. The Labour Attaché of the Embassy and the Economic Affairs officials met with two leaders of TMPCWA, Representatives of CAR-AID, MWAP and two representatives from the Support Group of TMPCWA from Japan for one almost one hour inside the Embassy and promised to discuss this issue with Tokyo Foreign Ministry Officials.

Romania

FEDERATIA NATIONALA SINDICALA (METAROM)

• Bucharest — METAROM members held a picket line in front of the Japanese Embassy in solidarity support of Toyota Philippine workers.

Russia

MINERS & METALLURGICAL WORKERS' UNION OF RUSSIA (MMWU)

• Moscow — A representative of the union paid a visit to the Japanese Embassy and handed in a petition to the Japanese ambassador.

SHIPBUILDING WORKERS' UNION OF RUSSIA (SWU)

• Moscow — SWU sent a protest letter to the Japanese ambassador.
  

ENGINEERING WORKERS' UNION OF RUSSIA (EWU)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the Japanese embassy in Moscow

Singapore

INTERNATIONAL METALWORKERS' FEDERATION SINGAPORE COUNCIL

• The IMF-Singapore Council delivered a letter of protest
  to the Japanese embassy on September 12.

South Africa

NATIONAL UNION OF METALWORKERS OF SOUTH AFRICA (NUMSA)

• Johannesburg — More than 400 NUMSA members protested in front of the Japanese embassy. IMF regional representative Stephen Nhlapo delivered a letter of protest calling for a resolution to the situation facing 136 unjustly fired TMPCWA workers.

Sri Lanka

JATHIKA SEWAKA SANGAMAY METALWORKERS' FEDERATION (JSSMF) and the SRI LANKA NIDAHAS SEWAKA SANGAMAYA (SLNSS)

• Colombo — The JSSMF Secretary Mr. Palitha Atukorale and SLNSS General Secretary Mr. Leslie Devendra met the Ambassador of Japan Embassy in Colombo and submitted a petition.
  

Thailand

CONFEDERATION OF THAI ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES; ELECTRONIC AUTOMOBILE & METALWORKERS (TEAM)

• Bangkok — TEAM executive and active leaders gathered in front of the Japan Embassy in Bangkok at 10:20 where reporters and police had been waiting in expectation. Bro.Chalee Loysoong handed out copies of the appeal letter to his Excellency, the Japan Ambassador, to media and requested a meeting with the office-in-charge of the day. The Labour Attaché then granted a meeting with TEAM representatives. Bro.Chalee Loysoong expressed Thai metalworkers' concern over Toyota-Philippines' management violations against its workers' trade union rights and that the company has refused to re-instate all concerned unionists back to work.

Ukraine

TRADE UNION OF MACHINE BUILDERS AND INSTRUMENT MAKERS OF UKRAINE

AUTOMOBILE AND AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY WORKERS' UNION OF UKRAINE

RADIO ELECTRONICS AND MECHANICAL ENGINEERING WORKERS' TRADE UNION

TRADE UNION OF DEFENCE INDUSTRY WORKERS
UKRAINIAN SHIPBUILDING TRADE UNION;

UKRAINIAN MACHINEBUILDING AND METALWORKING UNION "MACHMETALL"

TRADE UNION OF AIRCRAFT BUILDERS OF UKRAINE

• Kyev — A collective effort from seven Ukraine affiliates signed on to a protest letter on behalf of TMPCWA workers and sent it to the Japanese ambassador.

Uruguay

UNIÓN NACIONAL DE TRABAJADORES DEL METAL Y RAMAS AFINES (UNTMRA)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy

Venezuela

FEDERACIÓN DE TRABAJADORES METALÚRGICOS, MINEROS, MECÁNICOS Y SUS SIMILARES DE VENEZUELA (FETRAMETAL)

• The affiliate sent a protest letter to the respective Japanese embassy.

Denmark/Finland/Norway/Sweden

Nordic IN

• Nordic IN sent letters of protest to Toyota management and Philippines' Department of Labour and Employment.

South-East Europe

Serbia

GRANSKI SINDIKAT METALACA (NEZAVISNOST)

Croatia

METAL WORKERS TRADE UNION OF CROATIA

Slovenia

SINDIKAT KOVINSKE IN ELEKTROINDUSTRIJE SLOVENIJE

Macedonia

TRADE UNION OF INDUSTRY, ENERGY AND MINING, SIER

Bosnia-Herzegovina

METALWORKERS AND MINERS UNION OF REPUBLIKA SRPSKA

TRADE UNION OF METALWORKERS

Bulgaria

TRADE UNION (METALICY)

SYNDICAL FEDERATION OF MACHINEBUILDERS AND METALWORKERS

CL- PODKREPA-SFMM

FEDERATION OF METALLURGY – CL PODKREPA-FM

FEDERATION METAL ELEKTRO

Montenegro

FREE TRADE UNION OF METALWORKERS OF MONTENEGRO

Kosovo

INDEPENDENT TRADE UNION OF METALWORKERS OF KOSOVO – SPMK

Romania

F.N.S. SOLIDARITATEA METAL

FEDERATIA NATIONALA SINDICALA METAROM

METALWORKERS FEDERATRION (HENRI COANDA-FRATIA)

• IMF affiliates in South-East Europe have signed a collective petition both in English and Serbian and handed it over to the Japanese ambassador in Serbia on September 12.

PHILIPPINES: The International Metalworkers’ Federation has learned that at least 21 members of the Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA) were arrested and are currently being detained by authorities following a demonstration in front of the Department of Labour and Employment (DOLE).

What started as a peaceful action turned bloody as DOLE security attacked TMPCWA demonstrators.

Workers report that at 9:30 am, on August 16, a group of about 21 went to the DOLE to update their TMPWCA case. Armed DOLE security attempted to keep the group from entering, “…but some of TMPCWA members pushed through to the inside of the buildings. Five gunshots echoed while the securities of the buildings tried to hold us back. Some of the members suffered serious injuries from the bat of the securities namely Angelo Gavarra, Rommel Mariano, Manolito Gertes, Vergilio Colandog,” said a TMPCWA member in an emailed update on the situation.

The police have charged TMPCWA members with damage to properties, assault, and inciting to sedition. Currently, all 21 workers in question are still being held at the Western Police District Headquarters in Manila.

The IMF sent a letter to the president of the Philippines expressing its deep concern for the health and safety of TMPCWA workers and calling for the immediate and unconditional release of those arrested.

The TMPCWA action was an effort to protest the DOLE's recent decision to declare the Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Labour Organisation (TMPCLO), a company-backed union, exclusive bargaining rights at Toyota Philippines Motor Corporation.

The TMPCWA have been struggling for union recognition at Toyota Philippines and fighting for the reinstatement of 136 workers who were illegally fired following a worker demonstration.

The IMF and its affiliates have maintained an ongoing campaign on behalf of worker rights for TMPCWA members. For more information about the IMF campaign go to: www.imfmetal.org/toyotaphilippines.

Update August 18, 2006— All 21 TMPCWA members were released without charges.

GLOBAL: The International Metalworkers’ Federation has coordinated a DAY of ACTION on September 12 calling on all affiliates to urge the Japanese government to use its influence in bringing a just resolution to the troubling situation at Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation.

The IMF Executive Committee in May 2006 supported the launch of a campaign for the reinstatement of workers unjustly dismissed at Toyota Philippines. The company has repeatedly refused to reinstate 136 illegally dismissed workers or recognise the Toyota Motor Philippine Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA) as the sole bargaining agent.

Last month, IMF affiliates representing Toyota workers conducted solidarity actions at Toyota sites in South Africa, Brazil, the UK, Australia and Thailand. Other affiliates have collected funds for the TMPCWA and sent letters of protest to Toyota management.

On a broader scale, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) which represents 155 million workers in 156 countries, has released a damaging report on labour rights abuses in the Philippines. In their 2006 Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights, the report specifically refers to the Toyota Motor Philippines dispute as an example of foreign companies exploiting Philippine labour laws to break unions and trample workers’ rights.

For more information and other materials about the situation at Toyota Philippines go to the IMF website at: www.imfmetal.org/toyotaphilippines