Unions protest plan by Novartis to shed 2,550 jobs

Novartis plans to cut 2,150 out of a total Swiss workforce of 13,000 at production facilities in Basel, Stein, Locarno and Schweizerhalle, and 400 in Grimsby in England. An estimated Swiss 1,500 jobs will be cut, with a further 700 moved to Ireland, India, Malaysia, Mexico, and Czech Republic.

Marching in Basel on 24 November under the slogan of Mensch vor Marge – People before Profit – IndustriALL Global Union affiliates Unia and Syna expressed outrage that the highly profitable company would treat its loyal workforce with such lack of respect.

“It is ridiculous and absurd that over 2,000 employees should be thrown onto the street in such a financial situation,” said Unia in a statement.

Unia was not informed in advance of the job cuts, which is a violation of the the collective bargaining agreement.

The company’s income rose 15 per cent to US $7.7 billion last year. The highly profitable company aims to raise its profit margin to 35 per cent. Novartis claims that it is shifting from high volume to more specialized production, and that its factories are not running at capacity. The share price rose after the announcement.

About 800 people joined the rally. IndustriALL sent a solidarity message.

IndustriALL director for the pharmaceutical sector, Tom Grinter, said:

“Novartis was built up into the profitable and successful company it is today through the hard work and commitment of its workforce. To abandon that workforce now, just to improve profit margins, is wrong. We will stand firm in our support for Novartis workers.”

Novartis employs 124,000 workers globally, but this number is expected to decrease significantly with the latest round of job cuts and the proposed spin-off of the company’s eye care unit Alcon.

Unia met with a delegation of Greek MPs investigating bribery and corruption by Novartis. Overcharging by Novartis is estimated to have cost the Greek health service about €3 billion, at a time when the country was experiencing a severe financial and health crisis, leaving many Greeks without access to affordable medicine. During a parliamentary investigation last year, Greek justice minister Stavros Kontonis said that Novartis had likely bribed thousands of doctors.

Since the year 2000, Novartis has paid more than a billion dollars in fines in the United States, China and South Korea to settle corruption cases.

IndustriALL's Executive Committee calls for an end to protection contracts and stands up for union democracy

It was no coincidence that the Executive Committee held its meeting in Mexico City just 48 hours before president-elect, Andrés Manuel Lopes Obrador, was sworn into office.

"This new government will bring a breath of fresh air, given the growing number of oppressive neoliberal governments that violate the rights of workers around the world," said IndustriALL's general secretary, Valter Sanches, in his opening remarks to the 200 union leaders from all corners of the globe.

Both Sanches and IndustriALL's president, Jörg Hofmann, welcomed Mexico's new government and the progress made in advancing union democracy. They also congratulated the president of Los Mineros and Executive Committee member, Napoleón Gómez Urrutia, on his return to Mexico after 12 years in exile.

The delegates set up a campaign calling on Mexico’s new progressive government to work towards bringing an end to protection contracts, which stifle freedom of association in the country.

Committee members expressed their support for the workers at the Goodyear plant in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, who were dismissed for creating a free and independent union. They also agreed to run a worldwide campaign in support of Goodyear workers.

Those present also adopted a number of recommendations on women’s inclusion, calling on sectors and networks to come up with strategies to analyse the issues facing women in the workplace and in unions and to develop campaigns to address these issues.

In addition, Committee members endorsed IndustriALL's campaigns against Shell and Glencore, demanding that both multinationals respect the rights of all their workers around the world.

Information was also provided on the violations of workers' rights by other multinationals, such as Gold Fields and Stillwater in South Africa and Volkswagen (VW) in the United States.

The Global Framework Agreements were recognized as an important tool for protecting the rights and interests of workers at all stages of the manufacturing process within signatory companies. However, it was agreed that steps would be taken to monitor how the agreements are implemented within companies, given the diverse experiences reported by affiliates in different countries.

The Executive Committee also adopted an Action Plan on fair international trade and manufacturing policies to help affiliates to become more involved in talks concerning multilateral trade agreements and treaties. It also endorsed the statements made by IndustriALL Global Union and IndustriALL Europe on the need for a Just Transition in the face of climate change in order to ensure the creation of sustainable jobs.

Finally, the Executive Committee adopted a series of resolutions:

The full text of the resolutions is available in the right-hand column.

 

IndustriALL makes joint declaration demanding Just Transition at COP24

The unions want governments to commit to a Just Transition that makes industrial workers part of the solution to meet climate change emission targets through sustainable industrial policies containing creative labour force adjustment programs, founded on strong social protections.

The declaration states: 

“The industrial sectors that employ our members are facing enormous challenges linked to the goal of deep decarbonisation, yet it is those very sectors that are essential to deliver the technologies and solutions that will mitigate the impact of climate change while providing the essentials of development, sustainable jobs, and technological progress.”

The 24thmeeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which is taking place in the heart of Poland’s coal country, has been dubbed the ‘Just Transition COP’. 

Just Transition is incorporated in clear language in the preamble to the landmark Paris Agreement on climate change signed at COP21 in 2015: “Taking into account the imperatives of a just transition of the workforce and the creation of decent work and quality jobs in accordance with nationally defined development priorities”. 

This language appears in the Paris Agreement only as the result of strong trade union pressure in Paris and at previous COPs. Signatory nations must now accept that they have made a political commitment to Just Transition, demand the unions. 

“There cannot be an unjust transition to environmental protection, casting untold millions of workers aside. Neither can we ignore the urgent need to deal with climate change – there are no jobs on a dead planet,” says the declaration.

“It is our hope that COP24 will finally outline a Just Transition to an optimistic future – a future of full employment and decent work for workers, their families, and the communities that depend upon them. All stakeholders must be a part of this discussion – a Just Transition can only be done with us.”

IndustriALL Global Union and industriAll European Trade Union, along with the International Trade Union Confederation and the European Trade Union Confederation, also urgently insist that Parties endorse the Solidarity and Just Transition Silesia Declaration, submitted by Poland. 

Union signs recognition agreement with Walker Industries in Kenya

Following a recruitment and organizing drive that saw union membership increasing by 387 male and 338 female workers, IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Kenya Shoe and Leather Workers’ Union (KSLWU) signed a recognition agreement with Walker Industries on 13 November in Nairobi. The company manufactures EVA slippers, PVC sandals and gumboots. The slippers and sandals are popular because they can easily be molded into different shapes unlike those made from leather.

The recognition agreement establishes labour relations harmony at the company and commits to cooperation between the employer and the union. It also aims to create relationships that will promote better working conditions and living wages. Workers’ right to strike and collective bargaining will be respected and labour disputes will be dealt with according to the Labour Relations Act. Provisions of the ILO Convention 135 on the protection of workers’ representatives against dismissals and other forms of victimization that arise from their being representatives of a union will be respected.

The recruitment and organizing drive is part of the IndustriALL East African union building project, supported by the Danish trade union federations’ LO/FTF Council, which promotes social dialogue and labour rights in developing countries. The project aims to build strong unions in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. 

Says Catherine Aneno, IndustriALL coordinator for the project:

“We welcome the signing of the agreement with Walker Industries. Recognition agreements are one of the crucial instruments that are used to promote better working conditions and social dialogue in the factories. Further, it is important to commend the vigour that is being put by the KSLWU into gaining more members. It is this energy that will make unions grow in Kenya.”

The government’s policies including the Kenya Vision 2030 identifies manufacturing, including in the textile and garment sector, as a key driver for the country’s industrialization. The country also exports to the USA under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act whilst international garment brands source from the country.

IndustriALL COP24 Blog – Katowice, Poland

15 December 2018

The 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, generally referred to as COP24, has concluded: with organizers declaring a success and critics branding the results as a failure.

What really happened?

This COP was supposed to create a clear rulebook for the implementation of the Paris Agreement of 2015; which up until now has been largely political and aspirational. For it to come into effect in reality, a number of rules had to be agreed on. The rules needed to cover a range of issues from accounting and verification of national contributions to the reduction of greenhouse gases, to finance, to technology transfer, to adaptation measures and disaster responses, and a host of other issues.

What’s good about the Katowice Rulebook?

The best part is, that it exists. There was a real possibility that it would not. There has been a decline in the global willingness to address climate change, since the 2015 Paris Agreement was reached.

The issue of providing a Just Transition for affected workers, their families, and the communities that depend on them has also been mainstreamed at last. Many nations have signed up to the “Silesia Declaration on Solidarity and Just Transition”, crafted by the trade union movement and pushed forward by the Polish COP Presidency. The concept is now firmly a part of the common vocabulary of climate talks. That is a huge step forward.

What’s not so good about the Katowice Rulebook?

The worst part is, it simply is not ambitious enough. With the world’s leading climate scientists warning that we must take drastic measures within a window of about 12 years, the best that COP24 was able to muster was that it welcomed the publication of the latest scientific report. Note the wording: the conference did not welcome the contents of the report or its conclusions. Such differences in wording may seem trivial but have real political consequences.

Unresolved problems also remain in terms of accounting for emissions reduction, and other areas.

However, it can be hoped that with an agreed upon rulebook, there is at least a basis for action that can be strengthened later.

What is our task?

We must network with each other and with decision-makers at the local, regional, national, and global levels. We must stand in solidarity with like-minded groups – particularly those focused on human rights for marginalized peoples.

We must understand that the reluctance of many people to accept the urgency of climate change results from fear, not ignorance. The global economic order has not only jeopardized the planet environmentally, it has jeopardized it socially while delivering wealth to an ever-narrower slice of humanity. The so-called free market cannot deliver a sustainable future. Only public policies in the public interest can do that. Climate change will not be solved without addressing inequality, and will not be solved without sustainable industrial policies and Just Transition programmes.

Technologies will play a part in controlling and adapting to climate change, but we must be sceptical of technologies that promise a cheap quick “fix” while seeming to violate known rules of physics and chemistry. The technologies that will save us are those that exist, now. Even if a new technology with near-magical power was invented today, the window of time to implement it is almost certainly too narrow.

In short, our task going forward is simple: we must behave like trade unionists. Even with the Silesia Declaration, no government will grant us a Just Transition unless we demand it. The social dimension of sustainability is ours to defend. We must organize ourselves, and others, and fight for a future that we can believe in.

8 December 2018

Today I attended the Trade Union Strategy Day, which met off-site. It should be no surprise that the discussion focused on Just Transition: what it means to trade unions, and how to achieve it in practice. Trade unionists in attendance had a very good and very realistic understanding of Just Transition. This was not always the case in past years when I was still trying to get the idea mainstreamed within the labour movement.

Nevertheless, there are problems with the way Just Transition is framed. Too often, trade unionists only say the words Just Transition apologetically, or defensively. We need to talk about Just Transition positively. A transition to a sustainable future is a positive message, that encompasses everything we believe in as trade unionists and challenges the usual narrative of the global casino-capitalist economy.

We must define a positive future for today’s and tomorrow’s workers. No-one is going to fight for a bleak, or dismal future! A Just Transition has to sound good to our members; and if it does not sound good, then it isn’t truly Just.

There is even a more existential reason to fight for a Just Transition.

Right now, we are facing the world-wide growth of a neo-fascist political ideology, powered by a loud right-wing narrative that gets repeated over and over in the compliant media. This is being driven by a rarefied billionaire class that have figured out new tools to manipulate people. But I think part of the problem is that we have lacked a compelling narrative of our own, to counter theirs.

What if a socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable future is that narrative? What if a Just Transition is the bridge that can get us there? Why should the benefits of new technologies go to a handful of billionaires and not to us? Why should the costs of these transformations go only to us?

Sisters, brothers, comrades, and colleagues: On this day I would like to take the opportunity to ask you; do we still believe in bringing about a better world? Is a sustainable future, in which we all share the benefits, what the labour movement believes in? 

What if we still believed we could change the world?

N.B. This is the last blog post until the conference closes on 14 December, when a summary will be made.

7 December 2018

There continues to be some resistance, or reluctance at least, on the part of some countries to accept the message of climate science and to understand how urgent the situation has become. The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment is clear. Key points were reviewed again, today, that limiting global average warming to no more than 1.5 Celsius degrees above pre-industrial levels has clear benefits, is technically and economically achievable – but will require a massive effort both physically and technically, and above all, politically.

Many parallel discussions took place in meeting rooms and in the corridors. To give a sampling of some of them, they included: the claims of advocates for biomass, or nuclear power, as a solution; finance; technology transfer; and the rules for accounting for emissions including time-frames and transparency.

Not yet seeming to be taken fully seriously in the opinions of many are the issues of human rights: women, indigenous peoples, and the potential for increasing numbers of climate refugees.

Talks continue: resolution of many of the outstanding issues still lies ahead. It is not unusual for the end of the first week of a COP to be filled with contradictory messages.

6 December 2018

This morning, I chaired the daily trade union caucus. Particular discussion was around the need to make clear that equity issues are a necessary component of a successful Just Transition programme; as are strong social protection programmes. There will be different challenges in building a Just Transition in different countries, depending on their national circumstances.

In the afternoon I spoke at a side event on carbon capture. These are the technologies that would allow carbon dioxide to be captured at the point of emission and stored, sequestered, or used for other purposes. The usual acronym is CCS for Carbon Capture and Storage although sequestration or re-use are understood to be part of the picture, not only storage.

CCS is a group of technologies that IndustriALL and its predecessors have placed considerable hope in, and lobbied for – as it would provide the smoothest possible transition for coal miners and energy workers by “greening” their existing work. Therefore, questions of skills gaps and regional displacement would be very minor and easy to deal with. Unfortunately, despite our pleas, insufficient investment has been made in actualizing these technologies. It is true that some pilot plants now operate, but to make a difference there would need to be an enormous global effort to build CCS-enabled power plants and industries – and we have only something like twelve years to do so.

Nevertheless, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – the world’s climate scientists – include CCS in their scenarios for controlling global warming to safe levels. Their models rely on the successful implementation of CCS. We all need these technologies to work – and quickly, and that was the message I delivered on behalf of workers.

As for the progress of the COP in general, negotiations continued without significant new breakthroughs to report.

5 December 2018

More science was presented at the Subsidiary Body on Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA). The evidence is both compelling, and terrifying. Allowing global average temperatures to rise more than 1.5 Celsius degrees above pre-industrial levels will have truly catastrophic effects.

The most credible scientific models now estimate that the world has approximately 12 years left to make the necessary changes to prevent this.

However, the Stocktaking on pre-2020 Implementation and Ambition showed that present commitments by governments are inadequate to maintain global warming at less that 2 Celsius degrees, never mind 1.5.

The good news is that science tells us that the 1.5 degree target is both technically and economically possible. The question is whether it is politically possible, given the descent of several national governments into inward-looking nationalism and denial.

COP24 has resumed some of the debates that are typical of all COPs. For example: discussions on the rules for accounting and reporting of national emissions; finance; and technology transfer. For a Katowice Rule Book to emerge, there must be agreements on all of these. A general mood of cautious optimism seems to persist, so far.

The emerging open commitment to Just Transition is the big news, however. While most trade unionists have welcomed and celebrated this, there remains justifiable scepticism among a few, born of broken promises historically made by some governments to their national unions as economic changes ravaged particular sectors or regions. The failure to win a Just Transition in some regions in the past is not, however, an argument to give up. The demand for a Just Transition must instead become a cause to believe in, and fight for – an absolute prerequisite for change that we will not surrender. A transition is coming. Will it be just, or unjust? If a sufficient number of governments sign up to the Silesia Declaration, a commitment to Just Transition emerging from the Katowice COP will be an historic step forward, but even then, only the determination of trade unions and their allies will deliver and enforce it.

4 December 2018

Silesia Declaration Edition

At the very opening of COP24, the COP President introduced the “Solidarity and Just Transition Silesia Declaration”. This was indeed an historic moment – the culmination of many years of effort to get the international community to recognize that the transformation to a climate-safe future must not be done on the backs of workers, their families, and the communities that depend upon them.

As of late today, the list of Parties endorsing the Declaration included: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Eswatini, European Commission, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Germany, Greece, Holy See, Honduras, Iceland, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madagascar, Montenegro, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Palestine, Peru, Poland, San Marino. Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Togo, United Kingdom, and Uruguay.

Our task for the next few days is clear: to get as many nations that have not already endorsed the Declaration, to do so.

The Just Transition COP, indeed!

3 December 2018

COP24 has already become the “Just Transition COP”

At the formal opening of the COP today the outgoing COP President, Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama of Fiji told the assembly that the choice before us is stark: act, or become the generation that betrayed humanity – and called for the Conference to support the Polish theme of a Just Transition for all.

Andrzej Duda, President of Poland, called for the creation of a Katowice Rule Book for the implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement. To that end, Poland would present the “Silesia Declaration” on Solidarity and Just Transition.

United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said, “We are in big trouble, climate change is outrunning us and we must catch up.” He then called for a fair transition for workers and communities, through a transformation that will have opportunities and not just costs. To underline his points, he promised to convene a Climate Summit in September of 2019 in New York (outside of the UNFCCC process).

Kristalina Georgieva, CEO of the World Bank, signaled that under her leadership, she would ensure that funding for climate change mitigation, resilience, and adaptation would be doubled and that she would help mobilize additional funding from the private sector. Every World Bank decision would be examined using a “climate lens”, and a “shadow carbon price” would be used in its calculations.

Finally, the President of the Conference of the Parties, Michał Kurtyka, called repeatedly for “a deep and Just Transition”. He asked that the Conference show the world vision, and hope. He presented the “Solidarity and Just Transition Silesia Declaration” and called on all governments to adopt the declaration. 

By adopting the Silesia declaration, countries are committing to take seriously the impact of climate change and climate policies on workers, their families and the communities that depend on them when they prepare and implement their climate commitments, adaptation plans, and industrial strategies. It also places workers and their unions at the decision-making table when these plans are made. Already, a number of governments have pledged their support.

This is nothing short of historic. In 2015, unions successfully had Just Transition recognized in the Paris Agreement – but the Silesia Declaration makes Just Transition the centrepiece of its implementation rulebook.

The objective of the Declaration is not just to have a Declaration, but to inspire action at the international, national, regional and local levels. This translates into demanding public policy in the public interest via sustainable industrial policies and strong social protections. 

Just Transition funds and programmes exist or are being created in countries from Spain to South Africa, from Canada to Australia. And the 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP24) will now be known as the "Just Transition COP".

It is extremely gratifying to see it become mainstream global policy. Let us hope that it was not too late in coming.

2 December 2018

The first plenary meetings of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change took place on 2 December, 2018, in Katowice, Poland.

With the election of Mr. Michał Kurtyka, the Polish State Secretary, Ministry of Energy, as President COP 24, the annual discussions of how the world responds to the global climate change challenge, commenced. The choice of Katowice – a steel, coal, and industrial centre – as venue is a welcome signal by the Polish Presidency that the impacts of climate change measures on workers and communities must not be forgotten.

The opening plenary was business-like and covered the necessary administrative decisions for the COP and its subsidiary bodies to commence their work. Missing from the opening plenary were any visionary statements of ambition or intent. Perhaps we will hear more of these in the formal opening ceremonies, on Monday.

COP24 is tasked with mapping out the implementation of the Paris Agreement; and the matter of Just Transition is expected to play an important part in the COP24 discussions.

This conference opens under the urgent warnings of recent scientific revelations that the trajectory of climate change is worse than previously estimated. The best science we have now estimates that we have only about 12 years left if the world intends to limit global average warming to less than 1.5 celsius degrees above pre-industrial levels. This, it should be noted, is a level of global warming that will still have many serious consequences, but it is a level that is considered to be manageable.

The need to act is clear, and urgent. The good news is that making the necessary changes is both technologically and economically possible, if the nations of the world make it a priority. It is also socially possible: if and only if workers affected by these transformations are fully protected. IndustriALL and other global labour organizations cannot allow the social dimension of these changes to be ignored. With such an urgent timeline, the world needs all of its citizens to be on-board – and that can only happen if affected workers, their families, and the communities that depend on them are kept whole. That is the meaning of a Just Transition. We will be making that point strongly, and repeatedly, throughout this COP.

South African plastics strike enters sixth week

IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) called for the indefinite strike on 15 October with support from another affiliate, the Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers Union, and other unions.

The unions are demanding that the employer organizations, the National Employers Association of South Africa and the Plastics Converters Association of South Africa (PCASA), improve wages and benefits instead of removing them. For example, the unions are condemning the reduction of wages, in some grades, by 50 per cent and are calling upon employers to restore bonuses and leave benefits.

NUMSA is demanding that workers in the plastics sector be paid same wages as other workers in the Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council (MEIBC), which the plastics sector falls under. The MEIBC has a 2017 to 2020 agreement, which gives workers a better deal, and was signed by NUMSA and other unions. But the employers are refusing.

The strike is affecting over 450 companies along the plastics value chain and NUMSA has been picketing at plastics factories in Johannesburg and KwaZulu-Natal.

However, management response has been to intimidate workers to sign “inferior individual agreements”, lockouts and violence including hiring private security companies to shoot at workers as what happened at Mpact in Pinetown.

NUMSA has rejected accusations of strike violence by plastics companies and blames infiltration by “criminal elements and agent provocateurs.” NUMSA says the companies are using the courts to break the strike. For instance, the recent temporary order, if finalized, will fine NUMSA R1 million (US$73,000), general secretary Irvin Jim and sector coordinator Vusi Mabho R100,000 (US$7,300) each for strike violence. The union is challenging the court order.

Says Andrew Chirwa, NUMSA president:

“Instead of engaging us, employers keep rushing to court to make frivolous court applications to undermine the strike. It is in everyone’s interest to resolve the strike. We repeat the call for employers to come to the table and negotiate meaningfully and in good faith!”

Jim explains why the strike is on:

“We are fighting for workers in the plastics sector to retain wages and benefits which they fought so hard for. It is unfair and immoral that they should unilaterally be denied these benefits. They are the creators of wealth and deserve a living wage and better life.”

Unions worldwide express support for Goodyear workers in Mexico

Two of the 58 workers that were dismissed by Goodyear Mexico held a meeting with an international delegation of union workers in Mexico City on 28 November. 

They explained that Goodyear had violated an agreement not to take retaliatory measures after it fired workers who went on strike in April. The workers had taken industrial action to demand better health and safety conditions, and protest against the employer protection contract imposed by Goodyear through the Confederation of Mexican Workers (CTM), headed by Tereso Medina. 

"Goodyear violated their commitment when they fired us on 9 July,” said Pablo, one of the dismissed workers. “We want them to explain their decision. Many people were told that they lost their jobs because of a reorganization, but they told me and other union leaders that it was because they wanted to get rid of the democratic and independent union movement that was forming at Goodyear."

The political advisor to the dismissed workers, Francisco Retama, said that the workers still want to form a democratic and independent union at Goodyear Mexico. For this, they are looking to get exclusive rights to negotiate a union contract at the company.

"It’s not easy to bring in a genuine collective agreement in Mexico. We're hoping that the workers will be able to file their request to get exclusive rights to negotiate a collective agreement with Goodyear in the first half of next year. The new government will take up office on 1 December, so the conditions are ripe for this legal process to be a success. Millions of workers across the country have their hopes pinned on the soon-to-be president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and his government. Goodyear could be a landmark case for Mexico, and that's why this campaign is so important."

IndustriALL's industry director, Tom Grinter, added:

"At IndustriALL, we have followed the union campaign and the events at the Potosi plant closely. Goodyear violated its commitment not to dismiss workers when it fired the employees who went on strike. We sent them a letter but they ignored us. All of us here need to show our support for and solidarity with the Goodyear Mexico workers, as their labour rights are clearly under attack."

Leo Gerard, president USW, summed up the discussions:

"It's not just an attack against the Goodyear workers in Mexico but against Goodyear workers worldwide. They have to work in dire conditions, and what Goodyear pays them is disgraceful. We stand ready to support these workers by bringing in experts who can provide training and by campaigning for better health and safety conditions and for fair wages. We call on IndustriALL to help us take this campaign worldwide."

Finally, the workers reiterated their commitment to help the Goodyear workers and signed a banner as a symbol of their solidarity.

Yves Rocher workers stand strong after 200 days of resistance

Earlier this year, 132 workers were fired for joining the Petrol-İş union. The fired workers come to work every morning, and stay on the picket line until the end of the second shift.

Politicians, journalists, trade unionists, community members and artists have been visiting them on the picket line, and their determination to resist is strong. The workers have collected book donations for a resistance library, and they are passing the time reading.

There has been a global campaign, including a visit to company headquarters in Paris.

The struggle has had prominent coverage on television and radio, and in October a delegation of workers made a statement in the Turkish parliament at the invitation of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

On 23 October a large solidarity event was held, with hundreds of people coming to show their support.

Winter is coming. It is cold on the picket line, and the workers need heat and shelter. They made a fire in a brazier and erected a tent to provide shelter from the rain, cold and snow, which is expected in the near future. But on 19 November, the district governor banned the fire, tent and use of megaphones. The picket area has been controlled by riot police for the past few months.

IndustriALL Global Union assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“The spirit and resistance of these workers is an inspiration to all of us. They will not give up, and we will continue to stand with them.

“Yves Rocher, you have seen their strength and determination. They will not be defeated. It is time for you to give them their jobs back, and recognize the union.”

A series of actions in support of the Turkish workers is being organized by IndustriALL’s French affiliate the FCE-CFDT.

Flormar is a Turkish cosmetics brand, majority owned by Yves Rocher, that has its primary market in the Middle East and Asia.

Inclusion of women the priority for IndustriALL women’s committee

The committee emphasized the importance of making more progress towards achieving the 40 per cent target for women’s participation included in IndustriALL’s statutes. Speakers stressed that participation is not just about being present in meetings, it means that women have a genuine voice and take part in decision-making.

Women’s participation in IndustriALL’s sectoral work is still too low and not improving significantly. The women’s committee discussed and endorsed a set of recommendations for new strategies to address the gender imbalance in industries with the lowest representation of women.

The recommendations came from a meeting held in Cape Town, South Africa in October that brought together men and women who play leading roles in IndustriALL’s sectors.

The recommendations include:

“Each sector and network must set their own strategies for how to increase active participation of women,” said Monica Veloso, co-chair of the women’s committee.

2018 has seen remarkable progress of women participating in IndustriALL projects, with many projects reaching IndustriALL’s goal of 40 per cent representation of women. The union building project in Sub Saharan Africa has reached a rate of 49.3 per cent women participation and in South East Asian project work it is at nearly 44 per cent. In youth activities globally, women’s participation is 40 -50 per cent.

The Latin American region reported to the committee on a meeting in August this year that brought together 25 delegates from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, México, Peru, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago and Uruguay to build a network of women trade union leaders.

Unions in the Mena region face challenges to increase women participation as there is not enough space within existing structures. Women’s committee members heard that there is a continued need to organize more and to fight for the right to organize.

The IndustriALL Philippines women committee has been at the forefront of a successful campaign on increased maternity leave in the country, winning women 105 days of paid leave.

IndustriALL’s campaign calling on affiliated unions to take the Pledge to end violence against women at work was launched one year ago, and to date around 100 unions have adopted the Pledge. Promotion of the pledge continues with plans to develop training modules for unions.

The women’s committee decided to:

“We will continue the work on increasing women’s participation and representation in IndustriALL and our affiliates,” said Jenny Holdcroft, assistant general secretary. “But we must all recognize that this is not an issue for women alone: it is a core trade union issue.”

Women in the textile and garment sector in Ethiopia trained in labour law

A five-day workshop in Addis Ababa, 26-30 November, which drew 19 participants from women's committees in the textile, garment and shoe factories, recognized the pivotal role of the law in employment contracts and discussed that it is always better for the contracts to be in writing. Collective bargaining agreements also protect the rights of workers and improve working conditions as well as wage determinations.

The topics discussed in detail included what the law says on basic rights and the obligations of the workers and employers, freedom of association, labour proclamation provisions, grievance handling, and resolving conflict at the workplaces. It was also highlighted that Ethiopia had ratified ILO Conventions on the freedom of association, protection of the right to organize, and collective bargaining.

Examples given were drawn from Ethiopian case law, and dealt with dismissals, sick and maternity leave, and occupational health and safety. On health and safety, the law says the employer must give clear instructions to workers, appoint a health and safety officer, provide protective equipment and report accidents among other provisions.

Organized by the Industrial Federation of Textile, Leather, and Garment Workers Union (IFTLGWU) with support from the IndustriALL Global Union regional office for Sub Saharan Africa and FNV Mondiaal, the workshop highlighted some sections of the law especially on unfair dismissals that the unions would like to be changed. Further, the unions wanted minimum wages to be included in the amended labour laws, and for rights of workers to be recognised in the industrial parks.

Unions said they will continue fighting outsourcing which in most instances replaces permanent jobs with precarious ones.

The workshop was facilitated by Alem Abraha, a legal expert from Mekelle University.

Says Sisay Tulu, IndustriALL coordinator for Ethiopia:

“Understanding the labour laws is important to counter situations where employers take advantage of the workers not having a full understanding of the law, and this often leads to their exploitation in the factories. This often changes when workers understand the laws better and are able to stand up for their rights.”