Coal unions in Colombia, Spain and South Africa meet to exchange ideas

Following the collapse of international markets, the situation at Cerrejón, a mining company owned by the multinational Glencore, has become very difficult. The union is now working to foster a dialogue with the company, the government and local communities about the future of the coal mine.

Sintracarbón has around 5,000 members at Cerrejón, the world's largest open-pit coal mine, and Prodeco, which is also owned by Glencore.

Sintracarbón's president, Igor Díaz, said:

"There's no one-size-fits-all solution. You have to take account of what’s happening on the ground in each country. But we can learn a lot from unions that have had similar experiences in other countries. We know that we're going to have to fight to ensure that workers' voices are heard in this process, and we want to be well prepared."

At the meeting, participants spoke about the shutdown of coal mines and thermal power plants in Spain, and the leaders of Spain's Federation of Industry, Construction and Agriculture Workers (UGT-FICA) highlighted the importance of thinking ahead. Ambrosio Arias said:

"It's not easy to get everyone around the same table to find local solutions each time a mine or thermal power plant is shut down. They're complicated processes, but thinking ahead is key. We can't stress that enough."

Martin Kaggwa, from the National Union of Mineworkers' Sam Tambani Research Institute (SATRI) in South Africa, added:

"The energy transition is inevitable. But what we can't be so sure about is whether it will be a just transition. To ensure that it is, we need a structured approach, and we need to ask the right questions. Does coal have a future in the energy mix? What other options are there? What jobs will be created and where will they be located? How do we ensure that no worker is left behind? What role does technology play in the energy transition?"

At the end of the meeting, IndustriALL's assistant secretary general, Kemal Özkan, spoke about the role that multinationals should play:

"These companies come to Colombia to exploit the country's natural resources and its workers. They need to sit down with us so that we can reach an agreement on what the fundamental principles of a just transition are."

Engineering technology for a Just Transition

The conference had over 80 participants – 69 delegates and 12 staff – from 29 countries, representing 45 trade unions

This was the message of sector director Matthias Hartwich to participants at a GreenTech in Mechanical Engineering conference held on 27 October. Opening the conference, Rainer Wimmer, president of IndustriALL Global Union’s Austrian affiliate Pro-Ge and sector co-chair, said:

“Like many sectors, we suffered during the pandemic, and our future remains uncertain. But embracing the change before us gives us the opportunity to engineer the future.

“We started this journey in Gothenburg in 2018, decided to focus on GreenTech at our world conference in Stuttgart in 2019, and last year we launched our visionary manifesto. It is now time to make this vision a concrete reality.”

The Paris Agreement on climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals make clear commitments to decarbonizing the global economy and building sustainable solutions, with obvious relevance for mechanical engineering. But a major issue identified at previous meetings is a lack of specific intelligence on how this transition will take place, and how best to influence it.

To address this, in 2021 IndustriALL commissioned research, funded by the Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung and carried out by the Syndex think tank, which provided essential detail of the likely trajectory of the transformation.

The research, which was presented at the conference, shows very powerful drivers of GreenTech, including commitments to the Paris Agreement, Covid-19 recovery plans, carbon pricing initiatives and growing public pressure on multinationals. There is significant funding available: the EU, for example, will spend €1,000 billion by 2030, and the US, after rejoining the Paris Agreement, will also spend large sums on green infrastructure. Although the global picture is uneven, all regions have made major commitments in what amounts to a global Green New Deal in all but name.

The major growth areas will be:

All these areas will show significant growth, creating millions of jobs. Many of these jobs will be created in China, because of that country’s longstanding industrial policy to develop the sector, but significant employment will be created across the world, including in the US, EU, Brazil and India.

The quality of that employment will depend on the extent to which trade unions are able to influence industrial policy through social dialogue around Just Transition. Most participants at the conference felt trade unions would have enough influence to ensure that there would be new, green jobs, and that these jobs would be union jobs.

Participants' views on the development of GreenTech

The research also stressed the return of policy as an instrument after a long period of minimal state intervention in the economy, and made clear that unions have a unique window to influence that policy.

Wolfgang Lemb of IG Metall closed the meeting by saying:

“The clear need for transformation, and the levels of funding available, provide us with a unique opportunity to reindustrialize, to transform mechanical engineering, and through this, our society.

"The key ingredient is industrial policy: if we want to make sure this transformation benefits us, we have to engage our governments and employers in social dialogue now.”

Nothing about us, without us: unions head to Glasgow for COP26

COP26 – the 26th meeting of the Conference of the Parties – will meet in Glasgow, Scotland, from 1-12 November. At this meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, governments will negotiate their commitments to the international environmental treaty to combat climate change.

At COP26, governments will present their updated climate plans – Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – to reach net zero by 2050, after committing to do so as part of the Paris Climate Agreement at COP21 in 2015. Net zero is the point at which global warming stops because greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere are balanced by those being neutralized.

Achieving net zero means a fundamental reorganization of the world economy – and if the COP talks go well, there will be funding available to achieve this. Countries also have targets to meet for the Sustainable Development Goals, many of which overlap with net zero targets. Rich countries have also committed funding to decarbonize the Global South.

Trade unions recognize that this transformation is necessary to preserve quality of life on this planet, and demand that this transition be just: working people must not pay the price.

Trade unions have been admitted as observers since COP14 in 2008. Unions campaigned for the inclusion of Just Transition in the Paris Climate Agreement, and at COP24, in Katowice, Poland, in 2018, the Silesia Declaration on Just Transition was adopted. This was an important victory for unions.

ILO principles on Just Transition specify that Just Transition plans need to integrated into NDCs with the active contribution of trade unions and other social actors. However, participants at a recent webinar, ‘On the Way to COP26 – Industry, Energy and Mine Workers Demand Just Transition’, jointly hosted by IndustriALL Global Union and IndustriAll Europe, pointed out that there is a mismatch between the rhetoric and the reality.

Many identified concrete examples of current or projected losses of millions of jobs due to mines closing, the shift from fossil fuels and changes in manufacturing. Politicians promise a bonanza of millions of green jobs to replace those that are lost, but there are no specifics: there is no clarity on where they will be, or who will get them. Governments have not developed credible plans for these new jobs, or started training people to do them.

Speaking at the conference, Kate James, who leads on Just Transition for the UK government, acknowledged the problem, and said that the key was for local trade unions to engage actively with policy development, and to use their collective power to hold governments and employers to account.

“Transformation is coming”, she said. “It is better to design your future than have it imposed on you.”

Bert de Wel, climate policy officer at the ITUC, said that the UK government is trying to lower expectations of the meeting, focusing on what is politically palatable rather than scientifically necessary. However, we need ambitious climate targets now if we are going to bend the emissions curve in the right direction. De Wel introduced the global labour movement’s key priorities for COP26: Climate ambition with Just Transition, human and labour rights, climate finance and industrial policy and investment.

The conference adopted a joint declaration, saying that the response to the Covid-19 pandemic showed that coordinated global action, with adequate funding, was possible, and calling for Just Transition to be made a reality.

IndustriALL energy director Diana Junquera Curiel said:

“The world is going through a tremendous transformation. Huge sums of money will be spent to radically transform and decarbonize our economy. Used correctly, this is an opportunity to reindustrialize with new, green infrastructure, and create millions of good union jobs. Unions need to play an active role in policy development, both at global and national level.

“We are going to Glasgow to make sure that our voice is heard.”

South African mine workers union commits to recruitment and better service to members

The conference was attended by over 400 delegates and the issues discussed included strategic organizing and improving services to members, including representation in conciliation and mediation, union engagement on mining policies, the mining charter, energy policies, cement manufacturing, gender-based violence and harassment, and updates on processes to adopt International Labour Organization Convention 190. Health and safety and Covid-19 vaccination were the other issues discussed. There were calls to include more women and young workers in the union’s activities and decision making.

On workers welfare, there were discussions on living wages through negotiating for collective bargaining agreements that maintained decent wages and working conditions that the union has organized over the years. So far, the union has signed wage agreements with 13 mining companies. There were also discussions on retirement benefits and plans to trace retired workers who have not yet claimed their pensions. The union discussed models that can be adopted to provide decent housing to the workers. Additionally, the conference debated the importance of building the capacity of the union shop steward in a changing world of work and to provide skills to counter precarious work through union organizing.

The conference heard that mining continued to contribute to the country’s GDP and that it is amongst the sectors leading in the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Most NUM members are from the mining sector including gold, platinum, coal, and other metals. The union is against the mothballing of mines, which has led to tens of thousands job losses resulting in the union losing members.

The union said it is opposed to the privatization of the public power utility, Eskom. Instead, it favours the involvement of the state-owned enterprise in the renewable energy sector currently dominated by independent power producers and the protection of jobs.

On the Just Transition, one of the most discussed topics at the conference, William Mabapa, NUM acting general secretary said:

“The debate on the abandoning of coal and moving to renewable energy without considering the interests of the coal mineworkers and power station workers is dangerous. Abruptly stopping coal mining will destroy the economy of the Mpumalanga province which is dependent on the fossil fuel. In that sense, navigating the energy transition is important for miners and communities. Further, we must secure the energy supply before moving to renewables and therefore need an energy mix policy that includes nuclear.”

Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa says:

“Trade unions, like most organization go through a life cycle. As it approaches its 40th anniversary, the NUM is maturing as a strong union and the discussions that took place at the policy conference reflect this. It is strategic that the NUM is discussing the future of work and redefining its role as a trade union in the current digital age.”

Confronting global capital in the garment industry

In his opening statement, IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie said that although the textile and garment sector is big in numbers of workers employed, it is small in terms of union membership.

“There is room to grow, and we need to come together and fight for organizing more members. And we should use the global framework agreements (GFA) we have in the sector more actively when organizing.”

IndustriALL has signed GFAs with five textile and garment manufacturers. The GFA with Japanese brand Mizuno was renewed last year.

Systemic solutions are needed to create a level playing field in the industry. This year has seen an important development of the live-saving Accord into an International Accord, extending the scope to new countries and beyond fire and building safety. Linking multinational companies’ purchasing practices to supply chain working conditions, ACT is a vehicle towards industry-wide bargaining.

The garment industry and its workers have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. In countries without, or with weak, social protection, unpaid wages have had devastating effects on workers.

In accordance with the Charter of solidarity, IndustriALL has been working with affiliates to identify brands and retailers that have failed to pay for orders or exercise due diligence in managing their supply chains, resulting in violations of human rights and core labour standards. Affiliates are demanding that brands sign binding agreements with unions in their home countries and IndustriALL to commit to transparency on:

Participants in the meeting endorsed the PAY RIGHT NOW! Brands and Suppliers pay unpaid wages during the pandemic to the world’s garment workers.
 
Khaing Zar, IWFM president, raised the fight for democracy in Myanmar and the need for comprehensive economic sanctions to freeze out the ruling military junta.

“The industrial zones where textile production takes place are under martial law and many workers risk their lives. Workers are killed and imprisoned, and we need your solidarity and support.”

IndustriALL has heeded the call from affiliates in the country and are calling on companies operating in Myanmar to stop placing new orders and to withdraw from the country.

“Although the textile and garment industry is plagued by many challenges; job losses, wage theft, health and safety hazards, together with our unions we work towards setting new standards in the global supply chain,”

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

“We need to continue to fight for union density, for decent working conditions and social protection. The exploitation in the industry can only be stopped by organizing and collective bargaining.”

Negotiations on binding treaty on business and human rights

Together with the ITUC and other global unions, IndustriALL Global Union have set out their position on the negotiations in a joint position paper. This week’s meeting is dealing with a revised document, the third version of the text.

Key priorities for the trade union movement include:

The instrument represents an important step in establishing the accountability of corporations in international law and would improve access to remedy for people affected by human rights violations.

The action plan adopted at IndustriALL’s 3rd Congress in September reads:

IndustriALL Global Union will continue to fight for binding legal instruments to protect people from human rights abuses by multinational companies, including support for a Binding UN Treaty on Business and Human Rights that is supported by effective remedy systems and campaign for human and labour rights’ compulsory due diligence be regulated at international and national levels through binding legislation.

“IndustriALL is committed to a UN binding instrument on business and human rights to end impunity for corporate human rights abuses. Ending corporate impunity must be at the heart of a sustainable recovery,”

says Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary.

Binding regulations at national level, like the German Supply Chain Act, and the discussions on corresponding regulations at European level are important steps. However, they require a global framework that could provide an important link to existing agreements between unions and companies.

To that end, IndustriALL and Geman affiliate IG Metall is hosting a side event to the negotiations on 28 October on how self-regulatory corporate approaches and a binding UN treaty on business and human rights can lead to a fairer global economy.

TK Elevator – social dialogue benefits both union and company

Improving and strengthening social dialogue in the recently created TK Elevator was the main focus for the more than 50 delegates from Europe, North and Latin America, and from South East Asia, who discussed opportunities to translate the existing and possible future structures into a global social dialogue system.

“With its more than 50,000 employees worldwide, TK Elevator needs a global social dialogue. I am happy to see a general agreement on this and the support and readiness to build this global network among IndustriALL’s affiliates,”

said Susanne Herberger, head of Group Works Council and member of the supervisory board.

“Making international solidarity a common goal and a reality is already our permanent commitment. To make a stand for the rights of all employees worldwide – that is our joint commitment in and with this network,“

said Wolfgang Krause, speaker of the International Committee at TK Elevator.

During the second day of the virtual meeting, company management, represented by Phillip Voet van Vormizeele, member of TKE Group management board and chief human resources officer, participated.

“At TK Elevator, we highly appreciate the engagement of our employees and welcome and enjoy the exchange and discussions with employee representatives and unions. I am really looking forward implementing a global dialogue,”

said Phillip Voet van Vormizeele.

TK Elevator employs more than 50,000 men and women, with major operations in over 50 countries. In late 2020, the company signed a global framework agreement (GFA) with IndustriALL Global Union.

“I think it is a good GFA that the parties signed at TK Elevator. However, with the new and additional body that we are about to create, we hope to send a signal which shows that global social dialogue is more than just talk. We hope to set new standards with this type of dialogue and make the exchange between  unions and companies fit for the future. The network has just taken off, but I think you are on good course. IndustriALL will support you on your journey,”

said IndustriALL director for mechanical engineering, Matthias Hartwich.

“It is only when we speak with one voice and join forces that the weight of TK Elevator employees come into its own,”

said Yusuf Tüfekci, chairman of the European Works Council at TK Elevator.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, said:

“It is IndustriALL’s strategy to establish and maintain global union networks to build union power and the formation of TK Elevator global union network is a perfect example. The global network will be the principal body to develop a framework for global industrial relations with TK Elevator management.

"We want a genuine social dialogue with respect and recognition of fundamental workers’ rights with grievance mechanisms at all levels and remedy and enforceable implementation of the global framework agreement. IndustriALL will continue to support this process.”

Union wins as strike action ends in three-year wage agreement

IndustriALL affiliate NUMSAsigned the agreement with the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (SEIFSA), which represents most of the employers in the sector.

The union wants the agreement to be extended to other employer organizations that include South African Engineering and Founders Association (SAEFA) and National Employment Association of South Africa (NEASA) who the union says are “anti-worker and union bashers.” NUMSA wants these employer associations to sign the agreement and not be “free riders” who implement the wage deal without being party to the agreement. The union says all workers in the industry should benefit from the wage agreement.

On 25 October, Macsteel, a large steel manufacturing company, heeded the call by NUMSA and became one of the first employers from SAEFA to sign the agreement.

The strike began when wage negotiations were deadlocked with the union demanding eight per cent and rejecting the initial employers offer of 4.4 per cent. The union argued that workers sacrificed for the survival of the industries when they agreed to no wage increases in 2020 to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 on the sector.
 
Irvin Jim, NUMSA general secretary says:

“We have taken a conscious decision that as a union we will compromise and accept the current offer from SEIFSA of six per cent on minimums for the sole purpose of settling the current strike in the best interest of our members. It is NUMSA members who have paid a heavy price during the strike, and it is in their interest that the union does everything possible to ensure that we resolve the strike as soon as possible, as each day on a strike is a sacrifice – according to the no-work-no-pay rule. The agreement further safeguards the industry rates of pay and workers will receive their backdated pay from 1 July, 2021.”

Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa says:

“We applaud NUMSA on its tough negotiating strategy which resulted in this wage deal that is crucial as it will maintain living wages in the engineering and metals sector for the next three years.”

Myanmar: Trade unions call for immediate withdrawal of EU trade preferences in light of labour and human rights abuses

Today, industriAll Europe and IndustriALL Global Union, on behalf of trade unions across the globe, have contacted the European Commission, European Parliament and European Council, asking them to immediately withdraw Myanmar’s trade preferences under the EU’s EBA scheme.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, says:

“What is happening in Myanmar after the military coup is a black stain on human history. Killing innocent people, torturing and putting them in prison are brutal actions taken against humanity. We all have a responsibility to fight this, and Europe has a special responsibility. The EU gives GSP to vulnerable developing countries to help them alleviate poverty and create jobs based on international values and principles, including labour and human rights. We call on the EU to do the necessary to stop this massacre.”

Workers in Myanmar are living under constant threat of arrest, violence and even torture under the military junta, and trade unions in Myanmar call for tough economic sanctions against the current undemocratic and abusive regime.

Since the coup d’état on 1 February 2021, the military junta in Myanmar has conducted a reign of terror, targeting workers and industrialised zones. Trade unionists and workers trying to raise their legitimate concerns via demonstrations have been hounded by the military and many trade union leaders have been forced into hiding, with several being arrested and many having their passports declared void.

It is established that around 300,000 workers have already been dismissed for joining the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). The restrictions on civil liberties are clear for all to see.

The EU’s General Scheme of Preferences (GSP), of which EBAs are one example, is promoted by the European Commission as a means in which EU trade can be used to create jobs in developing countries. Trade unions support the overarching aims of the GSP, including the goal to increase labour rights and working conditions for those in some of the world’s poorest countries.

However, trade unions insist that sanctions must also be used in light of the dreadful labour and human rights abuses in order for the GSP to have a real impact.

Both organisations support the joint call from Myanmar’s trade union movement – the CTUM and IWFM – on Multinational Enterprises to divest from Myanmar, while ensuring that they treat their workforces responsibly as orders are completed.

Judith Kirton‐Darling, industriAll Europe deputy general secretary, says:

‘’It is absolutely clear that the current military dictatorship in Myanmar is abusing its citizens and violating their basic human rights, as well as breaching a large number of ILO Conventions. The EU’s GSP system is meant to ensure that workers are working in safe conditions with their labour rights respected. Nothing can be further from the truth in Myanmar, and we demand that the EU urgently revokes Myanmar’s EBA in line with the demands of workers in Myanmar.’’

Union win in Indian steel industry

The wage agreement, concluded by the National joint committee for steel industry (NJCS) on 22 October had been pending since January 2017. Permanent employees only will receive a 13 per cent increase of the minimum guaranteed benefit, as well as a 26.5 per cent increase in fringe benefits and allowances.

Wage arrears from 1 April 2020 will be paid in one instalment for SAIL employees. For RINL employees, the date of payment will be decided by unions and management locally.

“As leading steel industry companies, SAIL and RINL have a responsibility to act together with the unions to achieve decent work. We are pleased that a mutually satisfactory settlement has been finalised under difficult economic conditions due to the pandemic,”

said Dr. G. Sanjeeva Reddy, INMF president and member of IndustriALL’s executive committee.

The agreement is expected to be approved by the ministry of steel in November, and workers to get the wage rise in November to be paid in December. The agreement is valid for ten years, as of 1 January 2017.

“The negotiations were tough, but we achieved a positive result through consistent joint work. It was only possible to reach this agreement through strong plant level support,”

said Sanjay Vadhavkar, SMEFI general secretary and member of IndustriALL’s executive committee.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, congratulated the unions on their victory:

“We look forward to seeing the steel unions investing their focus and strength to encourage other private steelmakers to respect and follow these agreements as national guidelines for India’s steel industry.”

The NJCS is made up of SAIL and RINL management and the five central trade union federations in India. NJCS decides on wages and all other social, economic and other terms and conditions.

SAIL is a public sector steel company with numerous plants and around 20 coal and iron ore mines located in India. RINL has a major steel plant in Vishakhapatnam.