SWEDEN: The IF Metall Gothenburg Department has during the first half of 2011 negotiated 1.4 million euros in back wages for agency workers in Gothenburg.

Six hundred workers have now had their wages corrected. The back pay ranges from less than 100 euros to a worst case of 39.000 euros. Negotiations are ongoing. The union is reviewing the salaries paid out by 15 agency labour firms in Gothenburg.

The collective agreement for the temporary agency sector says that the wage for agency workers should be on par with the average salary for other workers. Many of those who have had irregular wages are young people who don’t know if they are paid less than others. "They are happy to have gotten a job and get maybe 11 euros per hour, while their colleagues earn 14," says Carina Cajander of IF Metall’s department in Gothenburg.

If the time of employment is long, the accumulated difference can be substantial.

Reasons for the erroneous wages are both lack of awareness about the collective agreement, and the employers’ wish to save money. "They discover that it is expensive to hire through temporary agencies – who charge a premium of 35 per cent – and try to compensate for that."

IF Metall will now send a checklist to all of its local branches in the country, says IF Metall’s collective bargaining chief Veli-Pekka Säikkälä. This will make it easier to determine the average wage for different jobs. The unions have earlier opposed the concept of agency staff and it has taken a long time to sign a contract with the agency labour companies.

"But now, there has been a change of attitude," says Säikkälä. The goal now is to increase union density among employees in temporary employment agencies.

"We are seeking out the temporary workers, and as we correct their wages, we also recruit them into the union," says Carina Cajander.

KOREA:  Representatives of seven IMF affiliates from five countries came to Seoul, South Korea to participate in the regional communicators’ forum held on June 22 and to discuss communications in South East Asia and the Pacific.

The participants from Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Korea and Singapore learnt about the existing IMF communication channels and news policy, and discussed different aspects of the communication work within the IMF as well as  how they can contribute to its further improvement.

During the forum the regional office for South Asia presented its plans for a new 16 page magazine to be published by the IMF for the Asia and Pacific region. Forum participants received an update on the content of the first issue, which features the shipbreaking industry in South Asia, notorious for its extremely hazardous and poor health and safety conditions, and a report on the impact of the recent tsunami and earthquake on metalworkers in Japan. The magazine also contains an interview with the IMF Executive Committee member Dr. Sanjeeva Reddy talking about labour movement in India.

The participants welcomed the new magazine Asia Pacific Metal, which will be launched in July both in printed and electronic versions and will be available for download on the IMF website.

During the forum participants expressed their wish to have a better involvement of the regional office in their activities and requested that IMF publish a more balanced mix of news on its website from the countries in the Asia and the Pacific region.

The participants have been reminded of the existing different IMF thematic subscription lists and agreed that every affiliate in the region will define a person for direct contacts with IMF and will help to enlarge the IMF distribution lists by providing electronic addresses of their members encouraging their better involvement in implementation of the IMF and its affiliates global agenda.

COLOMBIA: The workers of the transnational company Vale Coal Colombia, which produces coal at the El Hatillo mine in Calenturitas in the El Paso municipality in the Department of Cesar, have organized with the Sintramienergética union and immediately, on June 3 of this year, presented modest bargaining demands to this Brazilian company. The response has been outright persecution of the workers. The company says it will not negotiate because supposedly the union did not hold an assembly of all its members at the national level to approve the petition – something that the law does not require.

Several supervisors have threatened every one of the workers with dismissal if they do not renounce the union; during discussions on safety they state that they should not join the union because "unions don’t end well and joining a union hurts the workers’ families." On June 12, superintendent Jairo Tamayo locked Mario Prado in his office and accused him for being responsible for the firing of the workers at the Vale contractor Másering.

"We have also learned that most workers at El Hatillo are not directly employed by the company, but rather through the so-called "bolsas de trabajo," which appears to be a strategy for depriving workers of a wide range of rights," Jyrki Raina writes in his letter to the Vale Coal Colombia President Zenaldo Olivera.

A LabourStart campaign has been initiated.

Zimbabwe: The day started with a March in the capital Harare with comrades singing songs of solidarity to remember the 427 miners who died on 6 June 1972 at Kandamana Coal Mine Shaft No. 2, Hwange in Zimbabwe.

This day is one which all Zimbabwean workers will never forget and such commemorations will continue to revive the spirits of workers that died at work as a result of poor safety standards. Many foreign investors and even some local investors are violating occupational safety and health standards, failing to promote decent work which has resulted in high statistics on injuries, diseases and fatalities at the workplace.

Japhet Moyo, the Acting Secretary General of the ZCTU and the General Secretary of NEWU, spoke of the impact of poor safety standards at work on the lives of workers and their families. Every year, more than 2 million women and men in the world die as a result of work-related accidents and diseases. Across the globe, there are some 270 million occupational accidents and 160 million occupational diseases each year. These are not just numbers, behind each affected worker is a story of suffering that in almost all cases could be prevented.

In Zimbabwe, work accidents are on the rise. In 2009 there were 3122 injuries and 64 fatalities registered and they increased in 2010 to 4410 registered fatalities with 90 being fatal. This increase shows a lack of observance of OHS protocols and systems in line with the 2006 ILO Convention 187.  

In Zimbabwe’s metal sector, workers suffer can suffer from serious respiratory and skin ailments from exposure to fluids that are used extensively for lubricating and cooling during machining, contact with used fluids or inhalation of fine mist produced during processing.

There are not only risk and hazards in the formal sector; workers in the informal sector are also subjected to poor working environments, low safety and health standards and environmental hazards. However the National Social Security Services Authority (NSSA) has turned a blind eye to the needs of this vital sector.

The NSSA has also discriminated against the trade union fraternity on the right to compensation. The authority rejected claims from On September 13 in 2006, trade unionists injured or permanently disabled as a result of the police brutality unleashed on them at the 13 September 2006 ZCTU national protest.

Workers must make demands to ensure they are provided with adequate protective equipment. Employers also must put in place serious initiatives to create a safe working environment. Government must also play their role to ensure safety requirements are met and to move towards the direction of social security reforms as part for the decent work agenda.

The ZCTU firmly believes that work related accidents and ill health can be prevented through working together as social partners according to occupational safety and health standards.

Moyo said, "Only through effective collaboration can we achieve the aim of decent working conditions in Zimbabwe. Decent work can be only be a reality if we all commit ourselves to the promotion of occupational safety and health at work and the ratification of the ILO Convention 187".

Shinga Mushandi Shinga! Qina Sisebenzi Qina! 

Article written by Miriam Chipunza of NEWU.

SRI LANKA: Trade unions in Sri Lanka oppose a private pension fund bill introduced by the government on April 8. The bill was designed to meet one of the International Monetary Fund’s conditions for a $US2.6 billion loan to Sri Lanka. Twentysix trade unions under the banner of the Joint Trade Union Alliance oppose the new pension scheme.

On May 24 trade unions held a demonstration against the proposed law. More than 30,000 workers participated. Police dispersed the demonstrators with tear gas and assaulted them. On May 31 more than 600 policemen and special task force members gathered near the main gate of the Katunayake Export Processing Zone and prevented workers from leaving the zone. A subsequent brutal police attack on workers resulted in the death of a worker and more than 250 injured.

Under the proposed pension bill workers would have to contribute during a minimum of 10 years to qualify for a pension. If they don’t, money contributed would not be reimbursed. When workers change employer, a new account would be created, and they would lose their contribution. Presently workers contribute 10 per cent of their salary towards gratuity and 2 per cent towards pensions.

In Sri Lankan Export Processing Zones more than 80 per cent of the workers are young women and most of them migrants. They start working in EPZs at the age of about 20 and work only for about seven to eight years. Most women withdraw their social security savings at the time of their marriage. They now can withdraw pension funds and gratuity – 15 days wages per year of service. With the new pension bill this would not be possible.

The International Metalworkers’ Federation (IMF) condemns the death of a young worker and calls upon the Sri Lankan government to respect democratic principles and negotiate with trade unions to solve genuine grievances of workers.

The ITUC has launched a campaign to express solidarity with the workers in Sri Lanka. It proposes a model protest letter to the Sri Lankan authorities – with copy to Sri Lankan embassies and ITUC ([email protected]).

BRAZIL:  At a meeting at the factory gate on this Friday morning, the 4,600 workers of the Bosch plant in Curitiba, Brazil, rejected management’s new proposal for profit sharing or "PLR" as it is known in Brazil, and thereby began an indefinite strike. 

Bosch’s initial proposal was 4,600 reais for 100% of the targets, but now they have raised that to 4,800.  The Union of Metalworkers of Grande Curitiba (SMC), a member of the CNT/FS, a confederation in turn affiliated with the IMF, explained that Bosch offered to increase the proposal to 6,000 reais if the workers succeeded in surpassing 130% of the targets, but given the history of the factory, that is unattainable. 

A new meeting will only take place next Monday, June 20, at 5:30 a.m. at the factory gate.  Bosch metalworkers are demanding 9,000 reais in profit sharing, with payment of the first instalment of 5,000 reais.  They claim that there are companies smaller than that multinational which have agreed to a higher amount of profit sharing than that offered by Bosch. 

According to Sergio Butka, President of the Union of Metalworkers of Grande Curitiba (SMC), in recent years Bosch’s PLR has not been adjusted in proportion to the increase in the company’s profits.  "A company that made more than 4.5 billion reais in profits last year in Brazil is in a position to increase the PLR for its workers."

The Bosch plant, located in the Industrial City of Curitiba, is one of the three plants which that multinational has in Brazil.  At those plants it employs more than 6,000 workers.

INDIA: The Indian trade union movement, in particular the Indian National Metalworkers Federation (INMF) and the Steel Metal & Engineering Workers’ Federation India (SMEFI) are proving to be a positive force in tackling the development and climate change challenges facing India. Recent international press attention has focused on armed clashes over land rights in Orissa, but away from the publicity both Federations have been active locally to ensure fairness and sustainable development.

Orissa is one of India’s poorest states. 47 per cent of the population is living below the poverty line, despite the fact that Orissa has a fifth of India’s coal reserves, a quarter of its iron ore and a third of its bauxite. Steel companies have made up to 50 agreements in the state, but often land acquired has been home to some of India’s poorest tribal people. They have no education and little opportunity to work in the new plants, so it’s easy to see why they are passionate about land rights.

With support from the India Organizing Steel Project, sponsored by IMF/LO and TCO/SASK, local level unions have been providing a safety net for displaced families. INMF and SMEFI have worked together to ensure that tribal people (mainly poor farmers) get access to education and are provided with food, shelter and medical care. INMF has provided local schools, wich over 200 have attended. Many women and children have been able to attend school for the first time. The Federations have now also agreed with the State assemblies on the right to employment for some of the displaced workers.

Sudharshan Rao, International Metalwokers’ Federation Regional Representative explains, "We have to develop a two part strategy. We must focus on the social impact of development at the local level, but also engage at the highest levels of the Indian Government on the whole issue of climate change and a green economy."

At the national level unions have continued to build on the IMF Climate Change meeting held last year. They have also developed their relationships with the United Steelworkers (USW) and the Bluegreen Alliance. This year in November the unions will meet for the first time with the Green Task Force established by the Indian Government. They will also continue to demand a strategic approach focused on steel and wind power equipment manufactures. India could create 10.5 million new jobs if the Government’s 2008 National Action Plan on Climate Change is fully realized.

Leo Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers stated, "The union movement in India is standing up for some of the world’s poorest people and we are happy to have been able to help them develop their approach to environmental and climate issues. Both USW and the Bluegreen Alliance look forward to develop our relationship in order to benefit workers in North America and India." 

GLOBAL: "When we look around the world today, we find peace and improved equality and opportunity only in countries where strong public services provide equitable redistribution of wealth, protect democracy and deliver security, justice and decent work," Council of Global Unions chair Peter Waldorff emphasizes.

The Quality Public Services-Action Now! campaign is guided by principles outlined in the Geneva Charter on Quality Public Services. Of key importance, public funding must be supported by fair taxes based on ability to pay, an end to shifting taxes from corporations and the super-rich to ordinary people, and a crackdown on tax dodgers who hide their profits in foreign tax havens.
Leading up to the launch of the campaign on 23 June, global union members are participating in the European Trade Union Confederation Day of Action on 21 June and the Global Day of Action for a Financial Transactions Tax on 22 June.

Trade unions, political and civil society partners are invited to associate their related campaigns or to start new initiatives under the Quality Public Services-Action Now! campaign banner, and are encouraged to sign on to the Geneva Charter on Quality Public Services today. More campaign information, posters and talking points are available at http://www.qpsactionnow.org/

USA: Ten American unions participated in bargaining through the joint union Coordinating Bargaining Council (CBC).

The unions represent workers employed in different manufacturing industries producing everything from jet airplane engines to locomotive train diesels to electrical appliances to small motors to lighting systems.

The previous agreement covering 11,000 out of 15,000 workers members of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) and the International Union of Electronic Workers/ Communications Workers of America (IUE/CWA) was to expire the same day.

The bargained pension provisions will also cover the staff of NBC, the US television network owned by GE.

For more information visit http://www.icem.org/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4501-Tentative-Pact-Reached-in-US-for-15-000-General-Electric-Workers

INDIA: The project advisory committee (PAC) of the IMF/ILO-TCO/SASK India organizing steel project held its second meeting on June 15 to 18, 2011. The PAC heard how closer cooperation between the Indian National Metalworkers Federation (INMF) and the Steel Metal and Engineering Workers’ Federation of India (SMEFI) provided a foundation to recruit over 15,000 workers in the steel industry. The project has an overall target of 20,000 new members by 2012.

The project focuses on three states; Orissa, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. It has led to new levels of cooperation among the Federations, including non-competition in organizing, joint activities and joint campaigns. There have been tensions between INMF and SMEFI, but the project has enabled the unions to work together strategically at the local, regional and national level. One example is a planned protest over the failure and delays in local Government in registering newly organized workplaces. Also, the INMF and SMEFI have succeded in having the Joint National Steel Committee  demand a minimum wage for precarious workers in the industry.

Regular local meetings between the two Federations have allowed them to share organizing targets and to ensure that resources are not wasted in competition for recognition in the same workplaces. These regular exchanges have now fostered a positive dialogue beyond the project, leading to activities such as joint protest actions.

Rob Johnston, IMF Executive Director, commented at the meeting, "We hope that the benefits of a new level of cooperation will be felt across all of India. It was also important to hear how the two federations are accepting responsibility for additional activities themselves and thus build in sustainability."

Another positive development has been the ability of the Federations to organize within the private sector. Over 11,000 new private sector members are now paying union dues as a result of the project. The newly organized workers include non-manual and women workers in the steel industry.

Berivan Ongorur of IMF affiliate Unionen added, "We are happy with the results of the project so far and especially the fact that this includes the private sector and non-manual workers."

The next step is to begin training organizers in an additional three states; Andra Pradesh, Maharastra, and Punjab Mandi Govindgarh, eventually for a second phase of implementation in the project.

Sanjay Vandhakar of SMEFI added, "It is vitally important for both federations that we build on the success of the project so far by extending its values into these three additional states, all very important to our strategy. We need to maintain the momentum we have built-up."

The next PAC will be held in April 2012 where a strategy for the three additional states will be developed.