IndustriALL and PSI renew global agreement with EDF

The extension was also signed by representatives of 15 trade unions, representing EDF workers around the world, from France, Germany, Italy, Brazil, Belgium, and China. The agreement applies to all EDF operations worldwide, covering over 160,000 workers in 24 countries.

The GFA was first negotiated and signed in 2005 and renewed in 2009. Another round of negotiations took place in 2018. Trade union representatives chose an extension of the current GFA instead of initiating a renegotiation process. The parties reached a consensus that the current global agreement contains good language and that the focus should be on implementation at workplaces around the world rather than renegotiation, particularly during a moment when the threat of restructuring the EDF group remains present.

Some of the important clauses that are included in the GFA are:

The GFA offers an opportunity for IndustriALL and PSI affiliates to collectively take full advantage of its provisions to build power, to defend members’ rights and conditions, while promoting quality public services. Affiliates with membership in EDF operations, subsidiaries and subcontractors worldwide are invited to maintain close contact from all regions to ensure that the content of this agreement is fully implemented and respected.

Atle Hoie, IndustriALL general secretary, said:

 “Global framework agreements give us the possibility of being aware of workers’ labour conditions around the world in multinational companies. They also help us to solve conflicts and anticipate the challenges for them. With this extension we will continue focusing on key aspects like due diligence and Just Transition within EDF.”

Rosa Pavanelli, PSI general secretary, said:

“The expiry of any agreement provides an opportunity to reflect on its contents and implementation. We have good GFA with EDF. We need to focus on a full and coordinated implementation of this global agreement from the bottom up.”

The agreement is monitored by a Dialogue Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility (CDRS). CDRS secretary Roland Van Puyenbroeck said:

“All of the members of the global coordinating committee are looking forward to giving continuity to this important work.”

EDF (Électricité de France)  is a French multinational energy company, largely owned by the French state. The company is active in electricity generation and distribution, power plant design, construction and dismantling and energy trading. EDF maintains operations in nuclear power, hydropower, marine energies, wind power, solar energy, biomass, geothermal energy and fossil-fired energy.

Image of the EDF tower in Paris CC by Falcon Photography

Discussing a Just Transition in India

Discussions also covered last month’s COP26 summit, commitments made and the process of achieving the set targets. Sectors like coal, steel and energy will be in focus as the issue of global warming and climate change will mean reducing greenhouse and carbon dioxide emissions. India’s prime minister has committed to a CO2 reduction by 2030 and a net zero emission by 2070 through an increase in renewable energy sources and a reduction in thermal energy.

However, IndustriALL affiliates discussed that developments at the national level, including privatization of coal mines in India, indicate that coal mining will not end anytime soon. Energy conglomerate Adani has started coal extraction in Australia, which will be used for energy generation in India and then be sold to Bangladesh.

In his presentation, Mathias Hartwich, IndustriALL director for base metal and mechanical engineering, highlighted two mega trends workers are facing: industry 4.0 green technology in the production and services of the industry.

“Trade unions should not oppose changing technology, but demand to part of the discussions with the government and employers,”

said Matthias Hartwich.

“The skills demanded in the future will change and workers will need training. Unions need to fight for reskilling for their members and ensure that the new jobs are quality jobs with organized workers.”

S.Q. Zama from the Indian National Mineworkers Federation said:

“Coal is currently the most hated industry. Though the government has committed to reduce the use of coal in the future, it has to frame a sustainable industrial policy that covers all sectors.”

Sanjay Vadavkar, SMEFI general secretary and member of IndustriALL executive committee, said:

“The government has to start discussing its plans with unions, because the changes that are going to take place in the various industries will ultimately effect a large workforce.”

Affiliates in India decided to submit a joint representation to the government on the need to engage in dialogue with unions on Just Transition, given the commitments made by the Indian government. IndustriALL affiliates will engage with management in core sectors like steel, coal and mechanical engineering to discuss technology changes and include demands related to Just Transition in the upcoming collective bargaining negotiations.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary stressed that IndustriALL will support affiliates in the discussion on Just Transition.

“Transformation is happening and we need to prepare. We don’t want a transformation without or against us. Instead we need a clear labour market policy.”

“Working in Myanmar is like modern slavery”

On 7 December, IndustriALL hosted a webinar in solidarity for the fight for democracy in Myanmar.

Ten months after the military coup d’état and the overthrow of the democratically elected National League for Democracy government, the political and economic situation is worsening in Myanmar.

According to Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, since February, 1,305 Myanmar people have been killed and 7,823 are in detention.

Khaing Zar, president of IndustriALL affiliate Industrial Workers’ Federation of Myanmar (IWFM) and CTUM treasurer, said that many garment employers use the military dictatorship to ignore labour laws and violate collective agreements. And there are instances where workers protest for unpaid wages or cut benefits and employers have brought in soldiers against the protesting workers.

Khaing Zar added:

“Without a democratic government, there are no workers’ rights. The current working situation is comparable to modern slavery. If brands continue investing in Myanmar, they are indirectly financing the military regime and endangering people. The European Union should immediately withdraw the Everything But Arms trade privilege.”

IndustriALL has called on multinationals doing business in Myanmar to take immediate action to cease operations, divest, stop placing new orders, and halt business relations in the country, as part of a campaign of comprehensive economic sanctions against the military junta.

IndustriALL congress in September adopted an emergency resolution in support of the democratic struggle in Myanmar, calling for comprehensive economic sanctions against the military junta. The decision to call for sanctions was made by the labour movement of Myanmar and supported by trade unions and activists around the world.

In the webinar on 7 December, trade unionists from India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines expressed solidarity with Myanmar unionists in their pro-democracy struggle.

“We stand together with our Myanmar brothers and sisters, as well as with the national unity government. We must fight for a return of democracy in Myanmar where the labour movement can freely carry out its work,”

IndustriALL vice president Akira Takakura told participants.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Ozkan said:

“It is critically important that the ILO recognize the national unity government permanently. And the military regime must be isolated. We reiterate our call on multinational companies to choose the side of humanity and democracy. Our core message is that human rights violations in Myanmar make it impossible to trade ethically, as companies are not able to guarantee the safety of their workforce.”

Georgian unions prepare to negotiate a Just Transition

Participants discussed how climate change and the transition to green energy can affect industry sectors in Georgia, and what unions can do to protect workers. Unions decided to widely inform members on the concept of Just Transition, and to develop an approach to Just Transition, bring it to the government and employers in Georgia, and invite them to negotiate on climate change and ways of transition to green energy.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan spoke about the recent climate conference COP26 in Glasgow, where IndustriALL, as part of a union delegation with the motto “Nothing about us, without us”, lobbied to ensure workers’ issues were on the agenda.

“A coordinated, global response to Just Transition is important to secure workers’ rights and defend workers' interests during the transition to a climate-resilient future,”

said Kemal Özkan.

Michael Wolters from IG BCE spoke on the implementation of a Just Transition policy in Germany, where the closure of coal mines took 50 years, and laid-off miners were able to retire earlier or be retrained for the newly created jobs.

Cristina Hanson and Jesper Lund Larson from 3F in Denmark spoke about a green transition as a road to new jobs and better climate, the development of green technologies, and what 3F is doing to promote a green transition.

IndustriALL affiliates from Ukraine shared the country’s experience in shifting to green energy, which now makes up around nine per cent of the energy balance.

Chairs of three IndustriALL affiliates in Georgia described the current situation and perspectives in energy, coal, oil and gas industries. In Georgia, the government has just launched the development of ten-year program on climate and energy. Unions will demand that the government includes their representatives in the commissions developing the programme.

The workshop was the start of a two-year project run by IndustriALL and the United Federation of Danish Workers 3F, for unions in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.                                                                                                                                 

Union campaign pays off as Covid-19 vaccination rates hit 74% in South Africa’s garment sector

To promote workers vaccination, IndustriALL affiliate SACTWU entered into a strategic agreement with employers to facilitate vaccination through the union’s primary health care clinics. A report from the Covid-19 Vaccination Rollout Campaign Framework Agreement that the union signed with employers’ state:

“Out of a sample of 33 906 persons registered with the clothing industry's health care clinics, a total of 25 107 (or 74%) have now been vaccinated.”

The vaccination rate is more than double the national average of 35 per cent.

SACTWU says the report showed that out of 320 hospital admissions of garment workers, 295 (or 92 per cent) were unvaccinated, 21 (or 7 per cent) partially vaccinated and 4 (or 1 per cent) fully vaccinated.

Further, of the 56 Covid-19-related deaths recorded among the garment workers, 49 (or 88 per cent) were among the unvaccinated, 7 (or 13 per cent) partially vaccinated and none among the fully vaccinated, concludes the report.

“The union clinics are providing an essential service to workers and communities. When I went to the clinic, I got some education on why the vaccine is crucial in protecting me from Covid-19. I am now using this information to educate and encourage others to vaccinate especially the youth who must lead by example,”

says Nomandla Sizani, a SACTWU organizer, who got her jab at the Salt River health care centre in Cape Town.

Andre Kriel, SACTWU general secretary welcomes the report:

“We are pleased with this progress, which brings us within reach of the 80 per cent vaccination rate which the framework agreement sets as a target for our industry. We will continue to encourage all our members, in the sectors that we are organised, to get vaccinated.”

Atle Høie, IndustriALL general secretary says:

“We commend the union for the ongoing vaccination campaigns. All efforts to make our members take the vaccine save lives. IndustriALL and other global unions are calling on the global community to remove obstacles to universal access to Covid-19 vaccines, including a TRIPs waiver on intellectual property rights to allow for the local production of vaccines in South Africa and other developing countries. This will improve vaccine equity and access in countries of the Global South.”

IndustriALL and other global unions recently called for universal access to Covid-19 vaccines, health products and technologies | IndustriALL
 
The South African government’s national vaccination programme which aims to vaccinate 40 million people or 67 per cent to reach population immunity, is facing vaccine hesitancy. Although the country has secured enough vaccines, fewer people are turning up for inoculation. According to the department of health by 7 December, 26, 6 million vaccines had been administered. However, four million people over the age of 50 and 13 million aged 18-34 are unvaccinated.

The vaccine hesitancy, mainly caused by anti-vaccination sentiments on social media platforms, has prompted the government to consider mandatory vaccination at workplaces and as a requirement to access public services. With the detection of the highly transmissible Omicron variant by South African scientists, it has been observed at one of the country’s largest hospitals, Baragwanath in Johannesburg, that most of the recent severe Covid-19 cases that require hospitalisation are among the unvaccinated aged below 35. For the vaccinated, the symptoms are said to be mild. According to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, over 90 000 people have died from Covid-19 complications since the outbreak of the pandemic.

To increase the vaccination uptake, the minister of employment and labour Thulas Nxesi said at a meeting of the country’s social dialogue council, the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC), that a committee has been set up to explore how mandatory vaccination can be conducted. But mandatory vaccination appears not to be the only strategy being used by the government, there are also cash prizes for getting vaccinated.

Indonesian Supreme Court finds in favour of Freeport strikers

The Supreme Court has ordered Freeport to reinstate all the workers who were fired. The ruling, issued on 28 November, upholds a 2018 judgement by the Papua province department of Manpower that the strike was legal. At the time, the governor of Papua ordered the company to reinstate the workers. The company ignored the order.

Faced with company intransigence, the CEMWU union was forced to settle the dispute on poor terms in December 2017. However, the workers were advised to separately seek justice through the legal system.

The Grasberg mine in West Papua has long been contentious, with the US mining company Freeport-McMoRan accused of extracting resources from the country without beneficiation. The original dispute was triggered after the Indonesian government introduced a new Mining Act, which included plans to partly nationalize the mine. The Indonesia government required Freeport to divest 51 per cent of its shares and build a copper smelter.

The company retaliated by threatening to lay off workers, and in February 2017, about 12,000 direct employees, including prominent union activists, were placed on furlough, and 20,000 contractors were terminated. This triggered a strike, which lead to 4,200 workers having their contracts terminated. The company refused to speak to the union, and said that because it considered the strike to be illegal, the workers had “voluntarily resigned” by taking industrial action.

Workers who lost their jobs also lost access to healthcare, housing and schooling for their children. A number of workers died as a consequence. Striking workers were also subject to severe repression by the security forces, who have a history of being used by the company to suppress labour disputes. Several workers sustained gunshot injuries at a demonstration in April 2017.

Miners commemorate their dead at a protest

There is a history of labour unrest at the Grasberg mine. After 59 years of operation, Freeport workers went on strike for the first time in 2011. The strike cost Freeport a lot of money, but resulted in improved conditions for workers. The company has tried to break the union ever since.

The Indonesian government is now the majority owner of the mine, and the company built the smelter in 2021.

IndustriALL mining director Glen Mpufane said:

“This case has been deeply unjust from the start, and Freeport behaved without conscience. Workers and the people of West Papua were used as a political football in a dispute between the company and the Indonesian government.

“The Supreme Court ruling shows the justice of the workers’ case. We hope this can be the beginning of the restitution of workers’ rights, and of better industrial relations at the Grasberg mine.”

O-I Glass worker dies after furnace leaks in Brazil

The tragedy happened on 10 November when a glass furnace leaked at an O-I Glass factory in São Paulo, Brazil, resulting in injuries to four workers. One of the workers, Antônio Carlos Tola Júnior, 43, a batch and furnace coordinator, was admitted to hospital with burns to 75 per cent of his body. He died on 26 November leaving behind a wife and daughter. Immediately after the incident, the union organized a protest rally on 12 November. Another protest was staged on 1 December to commemorate the deceased worker. The lives of the three injured workers are no longer at risk.

Sindicato dos Vidreiros, a member of IndustriALL Global Union affiliate CNQ-CUT, is continuing its investigation into the incident, including negligence over the furnace handling. The union had previously received complaints from workers who operated the furnace that the equipment was old and that the warranty issued by the manufacturer expired three years ago. The furnace was almost 9 years old and had structural problems.

According to the union, the furnace has had a leakage problem since last year, but the company commissioned only minor remedial works without considering the imminent risk. After a decision by the competent body Workers’ Health Reference Centre (Cerest), in collaboration with the union Sindicato dos Vidreiros, further use of the furnace is prohibited.

The union leader of the Sindicato dos Vidreiros de São Paulo, Josemar Souto, said that the incident was imminent, as the furnace in which the leak occurred had been operating at a higher capacity than recommended since 2013. The union will conduct a careful investigation of the facts. The maximum extraction was 280 tonnes per day, but the equipment was used to process around 340 tonnes per day.

"We are not going to recover the life of our comrade, but we cannot tolerate any sign of impunity",

says Josemar Souto. 

IndustriALL materials officer Alexander Ivanou said:

“We express our deep condolences to the family, union and co-workers. We insist on a proper investigation of the incident with union participation. One death is too many, profit should never become before workers’ lives. O-I should provide healthy and safe workplaces in their operations. This is only possible if the company start dialogue with workers and their unions at local national and global level!”

The multinational glass manufacturer Owens-Illinois, which trades as O-I, employs 25,000 people in North and South America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

South Africa submits documents to ratify ILO Convention 190

Confronted by this horror, trade unions continue to fight against GBVH and the campaign for the ratification of International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 190 which seeks to eliminate violence and harassment in the world of work and the adoption of Recommendation 206, are part of sustained actions to stop GBVH and create safer workplaces.

On 29 November, the South African government submitted its documents to the ILO as part of the ratification process. The documents were submitted at a meeting in Johannesburg with the ILO, the department of employment and labour, and trade unions that are part of the National Economic Development and Labour Council – the country’s social dialogue platform. The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) represented unions.

When Convention 190 is ratified, it will complement national legislation that includes the Gender-Based Violence and Domestic Violence Amendment Bills as well as the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Bill) that have been passed by parliament and will become law once signed by President Cyril Ramaphosa. Further, the country has a national strategic plan aimed at ending GBVH.

Unions are conducting awareness campaigns against GVBH and forming strategic alliances with civil society organizations that are targeting men, who have been identified by research as the main perpetrators of GBVH and domestic violence. Unions say GBVH is worsened by gender stereotypes found in harmful social and cultural practices, poverty, inequality, high unemployment, and weak law enforcement which promotes impunity.

Lydia Nkopane, from the National Union of Mineworkers, who is also the chairperson of the IndustriALL Sub Saharan Africa women’s committee says:

“We are optimistic that the domestication of Convention 190 into South African law will help to stop the scourge of GBVH especially in the mining and other male dominated industrial sectors where the abuses are rampant. Women should enjoy freedoms to go to work, come back to their families and live without fear of sexual harassment, rape, physical beatings, and even death perpetrated by their workmates or partners.”

Christine Olivier, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, says:

“The ratification of C190 provides a valuable tool to address risk factors and prevent GBVH. The development of workplace policies will empower and protect workers by removing barriers to the implementation of existing laws. However, South African unions must remain vigilant to ensure the implementation of C190 and must conduct awareness campaigns for workers to understand the convention.”

According to reports incidences of GBVH and domestic violence increased during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown prompting the government to respond through laws and other policies. The government national command centre on gender-based violence recorded 120,000 cases in the first three weeks of the lockdown in 2020.

Indonesian government told to suspend Omnibus law

In a landmark 5-to-4 ruling on 25 November, Indonesia’s constitutional court revealed that the legal text had been changed after receiving approval of the President and parliament. The court pronounced the law-making process defective as it lacked clear, basic and standard legislative method, violating the Indonesian Constitution.

In addition, the court ordered the government to amend the Job Creation Law within two years. Failing that, the law will be deemed permanently unconstitutional and the original provisions of the Manpower Act 2003 will be restored.

The controversial Job Creation Law has triggered strong waves of union protests since 2019. Millions of workers, including members of IndustriALL’s eleven affiliates in Indonesia, have protested the abolition of sectoral minimum wage, severance pay cut and increased labour flexibility by extending contract periods.

Last year, workers’ protests managed to postpone the parliamentary debate, but in October the same year, parliament fast-tracked the process and approved the bill.

In response, KSPI, Confederation of All Indonesian Workers' Union (KSPSI), All Indonesian Trade Union Confederation (KSBSI) and Indonesian Trade Union Confederation (KSPI) filed a judicial review at the Constitutional court in November 2020, calling the law “modern slavery”.

“We welcome the constitutional court’s ruling. The government must now suspend the Job Creation Law and all existing regulations. The provisions of the revocation of sectoral minimum wage, the perpetuation of outsourced works and the easy layoffs terms must be declared invalid since the regulations deeply impacts workers' wages, collective bargaining agreements and hour of work,”

says Said Iqbal, KSPI president.

“International support has played a large part and we thank IndustriALL and ITUC for their active role.”

IndustriALL’s 3rd Congress in September adopted a solidarity resolution against the Omnibus law, urging President Joko Widodo to cancel the law.

“We congratulate the Constitutional court on its decision and our affiliates for a strong campaign. And we support the unions’ demand on the President to abide by the ruling and to suspend this detrimental law,”

says Atle Høie, IndustriALL general secretary.

One worker killed and six injured at Holcim in India

On 18 November, Amrit Singh, a contract worker employed as rigger in the construction of a waste heat recovery system was working on a temporary platform and fell from height along with a 150 tonne heavy machine. He was killed instantly and five other workers were injured. All the workers are indirect employees.

According to officials of the IndustriALL affiliate, the Indian National Cement Workers’ Federation (INCWF-INTUC), the Mr Singh leaves four dependent family members. His family will get around 1 million INR (US$13,400) in compensation. An undisclosed amount of statutory compensation will be paid to each injured worker.

The accident happened at the Marwar cement plant in Nagaur district of Rajasthan, a new greenfield clinker and cement facility opened by Ambuja in October 2021.

Just a week previously, on 11 November, a contract worker was seriously injured as a result of an accident at Ambuja Maratha cement works in Chandrapur district of Maharashtra. During the maintenance of a conveyor belt in a railway wagon loading site, the workers’ leg got stuck in the conveyor belt because the mechanical department failed to reduce the belt’s tension.

In October two fatalities occurred at two separate ACC cement plants. ACC is another Indian Holcim subsidiary. In all of these cases victims were precarious workers employed either via third parties or sub-contractors.

Deoraj Singh, the general secretary of INCWF-INTUC said,

“Ambuja and ACC must conduct their business in manner that creates safe and healthy working conditions for all the workers. These accidents show that Holcim is engaging a high number of precarious workers in their business in India and not complying with applicable legal and regulatory health and safety requirements. The ACC and Ambuja management should avoid all hazardous manual handling operations and immediately stop all unsafe work.

“We demand that Holcim resume bipartite safety committee meetings at all their operations and engage in constructive dialogue with the trade unions on health and safety issues. The companies, including ACC and Ambuja cement should strengthen the inspectorate and monitoring system and appoint adequate number of maintenance and safety inspectors.”

IndustriALL Global Union general secretary Atle Høie said,

“We express our deep condolences and sympathy with the injured workers and their families. It is an alarming situation for Holcim that signals a safety crisis at their cement operations in India that needs to be addressed urgently. The adequate assessment of risks and search for remedies with the participation of union representatives must start immediately.

“ At the same time, these incidents clearly show how dangerous bad employment conditions can be for workers. Holcim must put in place structures, with the involvement of its workers, that address the serious health and safety deficiencies in its operations worldwide.”

Photo: Marwar plant screenshot from Google Earth