SPAIN/GLOBAL: The 4^th international meeting of the Gerdau Workers’ World Council took place in Bilbao and Reinosa in Spain from October 5 to 7, 2010. Trade unions participating in the meeting, held in the cities where the two largest plants of Gerdau are located in Spain, used the occasion to bring to the local governments’ attention misleading social responsibility practices of the company.

The Council showed the local governments how Gerdau utilizes its large resources to improve its image, replacing the functions of the state, and, later recovers its investments by paying fewer taxes. The mayors of the two cities were interested in these initiatives and, in particular, the mayor of Reinosa, José Miguel Barrio, said that, "Gerdau is the owner at this point in time" but the plant "belongs to all of us because many generations of our families have been working to make this plant successful."

The Council discussed again the health and safety policies of Gerdau, especially after the death of a worker in a workplace accident in Basauri on September 5, 2010. In particular, all the participants shared stories of how Gerdau hides accidents by getting people back to work even when they are still unable to do their jobs. Gerdau will only count as an accident an event in the workplace when workers cannot go back to the workplace, and outsourced workers are not included in Gerdau’s statistics even when victim to an accident in a Gerdau plant. Many stories were shared in which workers will be asked to go back to the workplace and sit in a room or walk around without doing any particular task.

The company’s goal is to say "there is no accident here because the worker is back in the workplace". The Council saw the trick in action during a visit to the Gerdau plant in Reinosa. At the entrance of the machining shop there is big sign saying "Two years without an accident with time lost". Clearly, the sign did not say how many accidents had occurred without lost time during those two years.

The Council sent a letter to Andre Gerdau Johanpeter, CEO of the Gerdau Group, with the following demands:

• Negotiated solutions in Yumbo and Duitama, Colombia,
• To stop anti-union activities in the Dominican Republic,
• To accept the creation of a Joint International Health and Safety Committee,
• To recognize the Gerdau Workers’ World Council, and
• To negotiate a framework agreement that regulates the relations between Gerdau and its unions.

The unions present at the meeting represent workers of Gerdau in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Chile, United States, Peru and Spain. Fernando Lopes, IMF assistant general secretary, also participated in the meeting.

At the meeting participants also discussed and approved an action plan for the next year and decided that the next meeting of the Council will be in Colombia.

ITALY:  100,000 people gathered on October 9 in the square Piazza del Popolo in Rome to express their solidarity with union demands to the Government about changes in the national fiscal policy to alleviate the consequences of the global economic crisis.

The rally was organized by two Italian national union centres, the CISL and UIL, and was aimed at giving a clear sign to the government about the necessity of reviewing the current fiscal situation where employed workers pay more taxes than their employers.

The unions believe that decisions on fiscal policy taken by the European Union and adopted by EU member states helped to prevent the risk of further weakening of the European currency and avoided the crisis of loss of confidence of international markets.

However, according to the unions the next steps should include adoption of an effective policy supporting development and employment at the European level. Therefore both CISL and UIL argue the Italian state now needs to support this perspective and work to build a "European government" that can more effectively respond to the economic and social crises.

CISL and UIL call on the Italian government to start a dialogue with all parties concerned regarding social and economic recovery and development of the country through an effective economic policy. This policy among all should include a fiscal policy that reduces taxes on employees, retirees, families and businesses that can contribute significantly to the revitalization of domestic demand and consumption, which are necessary for the return to growth of the economy.

Korea is one of the worst countries in the world for the repression of its workers, trade unions and people. The laws in Korea are used by the government and employers to routinely:

• Jail trade unionists for exercising their rights
• Stop subcontracted workers from joining a union or bargaining collectively
• Prevent many public sector workers from joining a union or bargaining collectively

The International Metalworkers’ Federation and unions around the world are calling on the Korean government to honour its international commitments and respect workers’ rights.

The email letter below will be sent to the President of Korea.

To make sure he gets the message we also recommend you copy, paste and send to your local Korean embassy. You can search for the email address of the embassy closest to you in the search function on the bottom left of this web page: http://www.mofat.go.kr/english/main/index.jsp

Once you find the webpage of the embassy closest to you, there is usually a "contact us" or list of relevant email address listed on the site.

Dear President Lee Myung-bak,

I join with the International Metalworkers’ Federation in calling for the Korean government to honour its international commitments and respect workers’ rights.

Repeatedly workers and trade unions in Korea are subject to violations of human and trade union rights. The number of arrests and severity of prison sentences as well as physical violence is increasing.

When Korea joined the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1996 it was on the proviso that your government would take the necessary measures to bring Korea’s labour law in line with international standards.

Korea has failed to adhere to or ratify ILO conventions no. 87 (right to freedom of association) and no. 98 (right to collective bargaining) and your government has repeatedly refused offers of technical assistance from the International Labour Organisation to bring your legislation into line with international standards.

The Korean Government routinely uses criminal sanctions under Article 314 of the criminal code to arrest and imprison trade unionists for exercising their legitimate right to conduct trade union activities.

The Korean law denies workers in precarious or irregular employment the right to join a trade union and bargain collectively. Employers systematically engage workers on precarious employment contracts specifically to prevent them from forming and joining trade unions.

Public sector workers are subjected to anti-union discrimination and disciplinary measures and their collective agreements are unilaterally cancelled by the Government. Whole categories of Government workers are prevented from organizing through an overly broad definition of “essential services”.

I call on the Korean government to honour your international commitments and respect workers’ rights.

Yours,

USA: ‘Building union power for secure jobs’ was the theme at the IMF’s world Aerospace Conference held on October 6-7 in Seattle, USA, home to the Boeing company. Unions representing aerospace workers in North America, Europe, Asia, South America and Australia showed their commitment to working more closely together to ensure that the benefits of this globalised industry are passed on to workers.

Over the two day period, participants discussed the importance of the aerospace industry to each of their nation’s economies. They recognized that the industry provides high skilled, high wage jobs that are critical for their future, but also that there are dangerous trends in the industry towards outsourcing and the use of temporary, precarious, and contingent workers. Participants from different regions and perspectives shared their experiences of dealing with these issues, as well as anti-union activities by companies, with the aim of developing common strategies.

Participants agreed that the first step towards better cooperation in dealing with transnational corporations is the development of trade union networks in such companies and their supply chains. It was agreed that Airbus, Boeing and Rolls Royce would be the first targets for network development. The aims of the networks will include sharing information on collective bargaining and negotiating international framework agreements.

At the end of the conference, delegates adopted a statement that announced their commitment to building an IMF global aerospace union alliance that will match the global aerospace industry and build their collective union power to negotiate better pay and working conditions for aerospace workers worldwide.

MAGHREB: Health and safety concerns, the vulnerable condition of non permanent and sub-contracted workers, and strategies to strengthen union organization were among the themes discussed by shop stewards and trade unions organizing workers at Leoni in Maghreb and with colleagues from IG Metall of Germany who represent Leoni workers at European and World level. The meeting was part of IMF efforts to develop communication between trade unions organizing workers employed by the same multinational and to establish among them networks for closer collaboration and solidarity.

Top priority in the collective bargaining strategy of SNTIMMEE-CDT in Morocco and FGME-UGTT in Tunisia at Leoni is job security, especially at a time of crisis, through the reduction of temporary and subcontracted jobs and their transformation into permanent ones. Particular concern was expressed for the high numbers of young workers employed under special arrangements without ensuring their inclusion in the regular labour market. Women are the majority of workers in this and other forms of precarious employment.

A joint work plan was agreed for improved communication and the systematic exchange of information on collective bargaining experiences, and for stronger national and international trade union coordination.

One day of the meeting was devoted to dialogue with a representative of the international management of the Leoni group in charge of Human Resources. The local unions expressed the workers’ expectations for improved and more constructive relationship with the local management, and their concerns on issues related to health and safety and to the full respect of the Leoni Social Charter. It was agreed that dialogue should continue and hopefully develop into systematic consultation and that the concerns of the Leoni employees in Morocco and Tunisia would be brought to the attention of management.  

GERMANY/INDONESIA: At last count 388 actions in 92 countries took place for the World Day for Decent Work. IMF affiliates IG Metall and Federasi Serikat Pekerja Metal Indonesia (FSPMI) held a special bi-lateral week of workshops supported by the Friedrich-Ebert-Foundation in Jakarta on the issue of agency work from October 3 to 9, 2010 in the Jakarta area, East.Java and the Export Processing Zone in Batam.

Fighting against precarious work, IG Metall has been campaigning for the protection of agency workers under the motto "Equal work – equal pay" and in a campaign on "Together for a good life" focusing among other topics on young workers.

In Indonesia, FSPMI has also been very active on combating the rise of precarious employment and is now preparing itself for the revision of laws on agency workers. Having gathered a lot of experience on dealing with agency work, Manfred Menningen, an IG Metall expert on the subject, went to Indonesia to support the FSPMI campaign and exchange information.

During the week of meetings and workshops the IG Metall outlined the current situation in Germany regarding agency and contract work and the related labour laws. IG Metall also reported on its strategies at:

• plant level – works agreements about agency work between company and employer
• union level – collective bargaining agreements that tackle agency work such as the recent steel industry agreement
• political level – including political campaigns and actions such as the Equal work – equal pay campaign

The situation in both countries was compared during a strategy workshop aimed at identifying steps for FSPMI to tackle the issue pending the revision of agency worker laws in Indonesia. IG Metall pledged its support to the union and will continue to stay in touch and plan further joint activities in 2011.

Prior to the workshop, a study was done on the issue of agency work in Indonesia, published on the IMF website here. The study found that:

• There exist different interpretations of the legal texts. But there are also direct violations of the laws and the regulations regarding agency and contract work.
• The effect on the situation of the employees is negative and there is fragmentation, discrimination and exploitation among these workers.
• One thing that makes all this possible is the lacking control of the implementation of the current law by the authorities which is, among other things, a result of the decentralization process in Indonesia.
• The current practice of agency and contract work also implies a violation of ILO conventions 87, 98 and 111.

For a full round up of union action on and around October 7 in 2010 against the rise of precarious work and for good jobs and social protection that lay the foundations for sustainable growth go to the World Day for Decent Work website at: http://www.wddw.org/

USA: In its press-release issued on October 5, 2010 the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced its lawsuit against the U.S. Steel Corporation for violation of U.S. federal law. The press-release states that U.S. Steel applied a nation-wide policy of random alcohol tests and dismissed several employees based on the results of the tests.

Abigail DeSimone, employed at U.S. Steel site in Clairton, Pennsylvania, was obliged to pass through a breath alcohol test during her probation period at her workplace without any reasonable basis.

After a false positive test result DeSimone was convicted of violation of internal company’s drug and alcohol policy and her contract was terminated. The explanations regarding particular health situation which may have resulted in positive alcohol test results of the employee as well as her suggestion to carry out additional tests were denied. The company also ignored the results of the alternative blood alcohol test made the same day at the request of DeSimone by her physician and revealing no alcohol presence in her blood.

In its press-release the EEOC declares that "U.S. Steel terminated DeSimone as a result of its unlawful medical examination in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)".

 "Since at least 2006, the EEOC asserts, U.S. Steel has had a policy in its basic labor agreement in effect at its Clairton facility and other facilities nationwide which provides for the random alcohol testing of probationary employees and does not require the company to have a reasonable basis for subjecting the employee to the random test, in violation of the ADA," states the EEOC press-release.

Full text of the press-release is available on the EEOC website.

U.S. Steel Corporation with headquarters in Pittsburgh employs over 42,000 workers worldwide.

BRAZIL: The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) report a tragic death of Augusto Lima da Cruz, 48, a former Philips employee and leader of the IMF affiliated CNM-CUT’s Metalworkers’ Union of Manaus, Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos, who was shot dead on October 1 by a security guard from the security firm Visam in front of the Sony company.

According to witness testimonies the security guard Hernani Puga Neto, subcontracted by the Sony company in Distrito Industrial, fired two shots at Augusto Lima, who was distributing union materials to the company employees and then, under the cover of other guards, ran away on a motorcycle.

IMF strongly condemns the killing of Augusto Lima da Cruz and joins the ITUC urging President Lula in their letter "to take every action necessary to ensure that the murder of Augusto Lima da Cruz is fully investigated, and that those responsible at every level be identified and brought to justice."

Following the killing the company work was stopped. A special homicide and kidnapping unit DEHS is carriying out preliminary investigations. Given the unprofessional behaviour of the guards during the incident, Sony has demanded from the factory leadership an explanation on the reasons for using of outsourced guards at the factory in Manaus.

GLOBAL: The International Trade Union Confederation and trade unions around the world are taking part in the 3rd World Day for Decent Work (WDDW) on October 7.

Today’s conditions of economic crisis makes the occasion even more important than ever. Last year 472 actions in 111 countries were taken on October 7 and organizers are aiming for more this year. At this moment, there are notifications for 219 actions in 69 countries.

This year trade unionists across the globe will stand up for their right to a secure job and a decent life. About 34 million jobs have been lost as a result of the crisis since it broke in 2008 and 64 million people have been pushed into extreme poverty.

There are three core messages for the WDDW 2010:

• Growth and decent jobs, not austerity, are essential to beating the crisis and ending poverty;
• Quality public services are essential for a decent life and must not be slashed in the name of fiscal consolidation; and,
• The financial sector must pay for the damage it has caused and be made to serve the real economy and real human needs.

You can follow this year’s action at http://www.wddw.org/-events-

On the eve of this global action, the Global Labour University has published an interesting article entitled "Precarious work makes for a precarious recovery" written by the economic adviser Ronald Janssen. To read the article, click here.

Meanwhile, the International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin is promoting a course on Protection for Precarious Workers from November 22 to 26, 2010. Applications to participate should be sent to [email protected] by October 26. The flyer and information form are available here on the IMF website. Further information will be available soon at: http://www.itcilo.org/

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