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Support unions in Ukraine

IndustriALL’s twelve unions and their members in Ukraine are fighting for their lives and are in urgent need of solidarity and financial support.

According to reports from Ukrainian affiliates, trade union leaders, officials and members are fighting for survival, hiding in underground shelters against attacks, while still trying desperately to support their members. It is further reported that most of the factories have stopped production and some of them are already under occupation. Workers cannot work and there is a huge concern about their livelihoods. Trade unions cannot perform their duties as they are facing an existential threat.
 
There is a need for immediate support, as well as long-term assistance in the eventual reconstruction of union structures. For direct humanitarian support, we propose that you donate to the international humanitarian organizations that operate in Ukraine, but if you want to help our affiliates directly, please make your donation, in euros to reduce transaction costs, to IndustriALL Global Union’s bank account.

We appreciate your support to our sisters and brothers in Ukraine at this most difficult time.

Bank name: Cler Bank
Bank address: 6-8 Place Longemalle, CH 1204 Geneva Switzerland

Account holder's name: IndustriALL Global Union
Account holder's address: 54bis, route des Acacias, CH 1227 Carouge

Swift code: BCLRCHBB
Iban code: CH70 0844 0145 2523 1139 0

Currency: Eur


Fighting migrant worker exploitation in Mauritius

IndustriALL Global Union, online clothing brand ASOS, Anti-slavery International, and the Confederation des Travailleurs des secteurs Publique et Prive (CTSP) teamed up to establish the resource centre to protect workers and human rights of migrant workers against modern slavery that includes bonded labour, debt bondage, and debt slavery.

Speakers at the official opening event on 8 February said the partnership strengthened the cooperation between brands and unions. Further, the centre complemented the CTSP, which is affiliated to IndustriALL, in its on-going campaigns to stop the migrant workers’ rights violations.

 

 
ASOS, which sources garments from RT Knits, Tropic Knits, CMT, Denim De L’ile and Star Knitwear factories that employ thousands of migrant and local workers, says it is committed to responsible sourcing. As well as providing ongoing support for the Migrant Resource Centre, the online fashion destination, which has a Global Framework Agreement in place with IndustriALL, has developed a mobile app that provides information and education on workers’ rights for migrant workers in Mauritius.
 
According to CTSP, most of the 50,000 strong migrant workers across Mauritius are at risk of being paid poverty wages that are below the country’s minimum wages of 10575 rupees (US$246) for non-export enterprises. This often comes as a shock to the workers and dampens their expectations. Worse still, as most of them will be paying back agency fees for the journey from their home countries often at inflated interests’ rates.
 
The journey for migrant workers who end up in the factories of the island begins in countries thousands of miles away – in Bangladesh, Nepal, India or even China – as well as nearby Madagascar. But the journey does not always deliver the promised decent jobs and wages.

Some employers violate workers and human rights that are protected by the country’s constitution and the Workers’ Rights Act among other laws. Further, the migrant workers have limited access to health care. Health and safety conditions are ignored, with some workers getting injured at work while squalid conditions in workers dormitories are common.
 
The CTSP runs the resource centre. For example, awareness raising sessions for migrant workers are held on Sundays — the only day that most migrant workers are off. The union says the awareness campaigns are also part of social events for migrant workers.
 
Reeaz Chooto, CTSP president says:

“The resource centre is making the following demands: that migrant workers should come to Mauritius without having to pay any agent fees and wants a one-stop shop to be set up for migrant workers by the government. This will facilitate fair contracts with decent wages, access to public health facilities, health and safety at workplaces, provision of decent accommodation, and the involvement of migrant workers in collective bargaining.”

Further, the centre wants repatriation to be done in a fair manner that protects the rights of migrant workers. The law should also provide for emergency repatriation. Repatriations must also be cleared by the government to avoid situations where workers are sent back to their home countries before the conclusion of labour disputes.
 
For example, the labour laws should specify the time upon which the employer should repatriate workers after the expiry of their contracts to avoid situations where workers are stranded in the country without jobs, food, and accommodation. The centre is proposing that a refugee centre be set up for workers who would have been physically assaulted or become homeless.

“We are incredibly proud to be standing with our critical friend Anti-Slavery International, the team at CTSP and migrant workers in Mauritius to officially open the Migrant Resource Centre.

"Since the Centre was established over two years ago it has helped migrant workers on the ground in Mauritius better understand and realise their fundamental human rights and has been instrumental in directly resolving grievances and holding employers to account,”

says Simon Platts, ASOS responsible sourcing director.

“We would like to congratulate ASOS and CTSP for championing the rights of migrant workers through this partnership. Hopefully, the resource centre will bring about decent working conditions,”

says Christina Hajagos-Clausen, IndustriALL textile and garment director.
 

Greek unions demonstrate against Kavala Oil layoffs

The demonstration was organized by the Pan-Hellenic Energy Federation (PEF), the Pan-Hellenic Federation of Metal Workers (POEM) and the Federation of Chemical Industry workers of Greece (OEXBE). PEF and POEM are affiliates of IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll European Trade Union.

The unions were protesting the layoff of 122 workers at Kavala Oil, layoffs at LARCO, the state-owned ferro-nickel production company, and the growing use of temporary contracts at Kavala Fertilizers.

Kavala Oil operates the only oil field in Greece, and is owned by London-listed Energean. The company received €100 million of EU Covid support – taxpayers’ money – as part of the State Aid Temporary Framework to support and maintain employment during the pandemic. PEF and its affiliate, the Kavala Oil Workers’ Union, supported the proposal to finance the company on the condition that workers’ rights be respected.

Instead, the company launched a restructuring programme in April 2021, laying off 40 workers and moving another 40 from permanent to contract positions. The company also announced €6 million cuts in salaries and allowances.

More workers have subsequently been laid off, bringing the current total to 122.

In 2021, industriAll Europe wrote to the European Commmission, and a Greek MEP from the Left group raised the issue in the European Parliament. In December, workers occupied the facility. The occupation was broken by riot police on 21 December, with 17 arrests. No charges were filed and the workers were released. On 1 January, the workers went on strike.

Workers occupying Kavala Oil

IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll Europe wrote a joint solidarity letter ahead of the demonstration.

In the morning before the demonstration, the presidents of the federations and the unions held a meeting in the Greek Parliament with representatives of the radical left (SΥRΙΖΑ), the Communist Party of Greece (ΚΚΕ), and the centre-left Movement for Change (KINAL). They raised the layoffs, the use of precarious contracts, and the increase in the prices of essentials and gas, electricity and oil.

The unions’ goal was to show that the workers are the foundation of these industries and not a burden on employers and the state, and to demand that the government provide solutions.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“Energean have shamefully abused taxpayers’ money by laying off workers after taking €100 million in Covid support. This was a solidarity fund created to sustain employment, not a money-making opportunity for greedy corporate bosses.

industriAll Europe’s general secretary Luc Triangle said :

“The company must engage in meaningful social dialogue with our affiliate PEF the Kabala Oil Workers’ Union, desist from unlawful dismissals, immediately reinstate dismissed workers, stop the precarization of labour contracts, and ensure the health and safety in the oil and gas installations.”

IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll Europe will continue to support PEF and the workers in the Kavala Oil Workers’ Union, and continue their joint actions.

Photos: Supplied by PEF, Kavala Oil Workers' Union, Petrol-Is

Bangladesh’s government must implement roadmap for workers’ rights

In 2019, several workers’ organizations in Bangladesh submitted a complaint under article 26 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Constitution. The complaint concerned the non-observance of a number of ILO Conventions, including on freedom of association and the right to bargain collectively.

As a result, the governing body of the ILO requested that the government of Bangladesh develop a roadmap of actions in response to the country’s non-observance of the Conventions.

The Bangladeshi government has submitted a progress report, providing updates on the four priority areas of the roadmap, including labour law reform, trade union registration, labour inspection and enforcement, and addressing acts of anti-union discrimination/unfair labour practices and violence against workers.

However, commitments made in the time-bound roadmap have yet to be fulfilled. And in the consultation meetings of IndustriALL affiliates in December and January, affiliates revealed that they had not been consulted or included in any of the meetings held on the roadmap.

“From the government’s report, it appears that no meaningful consultation has been held with trade unions. Since the most important sector in Bangladesh is the ready-made-garment (RMG) sector, any meaningful consultation will necessarily have to be done with IndustriALL’s affiliates, which has not been done,”

says Apoorva Kaiwar, IndustriALL South Asia regional secretary.

IndustriALL Bangladesh Council's list of demands aligns closely with the roadmap and includes:

“IndustriALL calls on the government of Bangladesh to make sincere efforts to implement the roadmap in full consultation with trade unions, particularly IndustriALL affiliates, through genuine social dialogue. The government must consider the amendment proposals made by our affiliates to the labour legislation. The concerns of RMG workers must be reflected; IndustriALL’s affiliates in the sector should be made a part of the Labour Act and Rules amendment sub-committees,”

says Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary.
 

Sri Lankan unions launch campaign for minimum wage rise

IndustriALL Global Union affiliates the Free Trade Zones & General Services Employees’ Union, Sri Lanka Nidahas Sevaka Sangamaya and Ceylon Mercantile Industrial and General Workers Union are part of the campaign.

With the high cost of living hitting Sri Lankans hard, the announcement by the government on 3 January 2022 granting an allowance of 5,000 Sri Lankan Rupees (LKR – US $25) to government employees came as a disappointment, as only public servants and pensioners benefit and private sector employees are excluded. The government refuses to extend the allowance under the pretext of economic crisis. Private sector employees get just 16,000 rupees (US $80) per month as the minimum wage.

Anticipating the situation ahead of the budget, unions – including IndustriALL affiliates – which are members of the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC), submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Finance in October 2021 to increase the minimum wage of private sector employees to 26,000 rupees (US $129), and for a 50 per cent reduction in the price of essential goods in the 2022 budget.

Following this, the cabinet instructed the Minister of Labour to make the necessary arrangements to pay the 5,000 rupees allowance for the private sector employees. The Minister of Labour called a meeting with the members of the NLAC on 7 January, followed by a meeting with the employers’ associations on 10 January.

Employers refused to pay the 5,000 rupees proposed by the unions, citing economic losses due to COVID. On the issue of minimum wages, employers claim that they already pay the minimum wage of 26,000 rupees, which unions know to be untrue. NLAC has asked unions to provide evidence, and IndustriALL affiliates are engaged in a campaign to collect pay slips from employees in order to show the truth about wages.

The unions held a joint conference on 19 January, followed by an island-wide protest on 21 January. Currently the unions are also campaigning with parliamentarians to introduce a private member’s bill on the minimum wage in Parliament.

Anton Marcus at the 21 January protest

Anton Marcus, joint secretary of the Free Trade Zones & General Services Employees’ Union, said:

“Unions have resolved to convene and establish provincial and village committees of social activists across the country to mobilise citizens to demand from the government to pay 5,000 rupees as monthly allowance to all categories of workers, to increase the minimum wage of private sector employees to 26, 000 rupees and to reduce the prices of essential food items by 50 per cent.”

Photos: Free Trade Zones & General Services Employees’ Union

Three killed in Bangladesh factory fire

According to reports, the factory, owned by Uniworld Footwear Technology Limited and located in the Ashulia industrial area in Savar, lacked both safety measures and a permit to operate.

Christina Hajagos-Clausen, director of textiles and the garment industry at IndustriALL Global Union, says:

“This tragic loss of lives once again underscores the need to have binding agreement on workers’ safety. The International Accord, which covers ready-made garments, is a proven agreement to do this, but without a global binding agreement covering all product categories, factories and brands, workers in the textile, garment, leather and shoe sector continue to put their lives at risk.”

Local officials vowed to take legal action against the owner of the illegal factory and have promised financial compensation of BDT 25,000 (US$295.57) to the victims’ families.

“Promises of paying compensation to the families each time a worker is killed in a factory fire is not enough. The administration must ensure that penal action is taken against the factory owner for illegal operations,”

says Apoorva Kaiwar, IndustriALL South Asia regional secretary, signatory to the International Safety Accord and member of the RSC.

The International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry currently covers only clothing and textile manufacturers and not footwear. Uniworld Footwear is not a member of the Ready-made Garments Sustainability Council (RSC), a tripartite group of factory owners, brands and trade unions that oversees health and safety mechanisms in the sector in Bangladesh.

Photo: A garment worker who serves as factory-level fire safety facilitator is seen during his shift in a local clothing plant in Bangladesh

Credit: Marcel Crozet / ILO

Calling on Russia to stop immediately its aggression, invasion, and occupation of Ukraine

The Russian Federation’s use of force in Ukraine is in blatant violation of Article 2 of the Charter of the United Nations, which calls on Member States to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State.

Therefore, it is imperative that the Russian Federation cease its use of force against Ukraine, and withdraw all its military forces immediately, completely, and unconditionally from the Ukraine territory.

It is also unconscionable that the Russian Federation has raised its nuclear alert levels. IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll European Trade Union demand the immediate de-escalation of the current situation, and support the call from the international community to ensure the protection of the civilian population, and the unhindered access of humanitarian assistance.

As we mentioned in our first statement last week, prior to the invasion, once again IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll European Trade Union urge the relevant policy makers from Ukraine, the Russian Federation, the USA, the EU and international organisations to redouble their efforts to focus the process towards one of dialogue and political solutions to ensure a stable peaceful outcome for a united Ukraine, and to guarantee security for Europe and Ukraine’s neighbouring countries.

We express our full solidarity with workers and the people in Ukraine, and we call on affiliates, particularly in neighbouring countries, to give support by assisting the thousands of refugees fleeing the violence in Ukraine.

Undersigned:
Jörg Hoffmann, president of IndustriALL Global Trade Union

Michael Vassiliadis, president of industriAll European Trade Union

Atle Høie, general secretary of IndustriALL Global Trade Union

Luc Triangle, general secretary of industriAll European Trade Union


Continued repression against independent unions in Belarus

On 24 February, unidentified men broke into the office of Free Metalworkers' Union (SPM) in Minsk. Without presenting any documents, they searched the premises and seized documents, office equipment, computer hard drives, as well as personal laptops and mobile phones of union leaders and staff.

SPM deputy chairman Oleksandr Yevdokimchik was brutally detained and taken to an unknown destination when daring to ask why the union office was subject to a search by people in plain clothes. He should face a court hearing on 28 February.

Communications with SPM union lawyer Ihar Komlik was disrupted in the morning on 24 February. The following day, he was sentenced to 15 days of detention. 

On 27 February, the Belarusian Independent Trade Union (BITU) local chair at Naftan, Volha Brytsikava, was detained at a polling station, where a referendum on changes to the Belarusian constitution took place. She is now awaiting trial.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan says:

“We demand the immediate release of union leaders Oleksandr Yevdokimchik, Igor Komlik and Volha Brytsikava, and an end to continuing prosecution of independent union leaders and activists in Belarus.”

A new model for the textile and garment industry

The recently negotiated International Accord further validates a new supply chain model of industrial relations with binding rules and brand accountability for their impact on workers, rather than voluntary initiatives.
 
Kalpona Akter from Bangladeshi affiliate BGIWF said that the Accord has made “a phenomenal change in the country”. With 1,600 factories safer, 2,2 million workers can now work without fear.
 

Workers bore the brunt of the breakdown of the textile and garment supply chain, brought on by the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on the sector’s unsustainable business model. Order cancellations led to wholesale closure of thousands of garment factories, with millions of workers laid off in countries with no social safety net. This has highlighted the precariousness of the sector’s business model and the urgent need to establish sustainable models of supply chain industrial relations.

“Covid brought a dire situation to Bangladesh, where we witnessed the precarious side of business model during lockdown. When workers are not paid, they starve as there are no social security and no unemployment benefits in the country,”

said Kalpona Akter.
 
IndustriALL and its affiliates have launched discussion on the change needed in the sector, including the urgent need for social protection for garment workers, which would include unemployment insurance, sick pay, social security and severance pay. The current model, where severance is the only form of social protection, led to wage theft during the pandemic.
 
Jason Judd from ILR School/Cornell University presented a research paper commissioned by IndustriALL, which looks at finding a welfare fund with legally binding mechanisms. Such a fund would need to be transnational in scope and include, among other things, the setting of compensation levels across many countries, dispute resolution processes and union access for workplace inspections to verify compliance.

“But there are obstacles to reaching a legally binding agreement for the sector,”

said Jason Judd.

“Who are the counterparties? Buyers and factory owners are not organized. Governments can require severance from a brand, but if there is no enforcement it will not be effective. And where is the leverage?”

Comparisons were drawn with the International Transport Federation (ITF), who every two years engage with maritime employers in the International Bargaining Forum, where a framework agreement is negotiated. Once the framework agreement has been negotiated, ITF affiliated unions begin local negotiations with companies in their country. These local negotiations result in national and sometimes company level IBF agreements. While the entitlements may vary slightly, all IBF agreements must be within the IBF framework agreed for the period.

“This is a unique set up and the only example of an international collective bargaining agreement. Employers pay into a fund dedicated to seafarers and an inspection scheme has been set up with the ITF inspectorate policing the agreements,”

said Ruwan Subasinghe, ITF legal director.

“And importantly, it contains significant remedies for workers faced by sudden changes in the industry.”

 Social protection affects political stability and thus core capital markets. Investors are increasingly focusing on labour rights in the supply chain and tend to value strong agreements between brands and unions.

“We envisage investors playing a key role in supply chain workers’ rights,”

said Elizabeth Umlas, IndustriALL senior advisor on capital strategies.

"Investors understand the need for robust and resilient supply chains, which are predicated in part on a healthy and stable workforce. Investors are also recognizing how human rights violations and poor working conditions in global supply chains reflect poor company practices."

Closing the discussion, IndustriALL garment and textile director Christina Hajagos-Clausen reiterated the call from IndustriALL and affiliates call on global brands and suppliers/manufacturers to put an end to wage theft and to negotiate a global agreement to strengthen the social safety net.  

Photo: A woman at work at a face mask and garment manufacturing factory, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Credit: KB Mpofu / ILO