Building union power through an energy, mining and base metals ‘macro sector’ in Latin America

 More than 45 trade union leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean attended the gathering, held from 12 to 14 September in Bogota, Colombia. It was the first meeting of the regional macro sector that brings together trade unions in IndustriALL's energy, mining and base metals sectors.

The meeting was also attended by professor Monica Bruckmann, a researcher with the UNESCO-UNU Chair/Network on Global Economics and Sustainable Development, who took stock of the geopolitical climate within the energy, mining and base metals macro sector in Latin America.

Drawing from her analysis, the union leaders then discussed the current situation and identified challenges and the strategies needed to address them. Each sector drew up a 2019 action plan in which they set out priorities, with the aims of coordinating their fight, delivering results and making progress towards the objectives of the IndustriALL Global Union Action Plan.

The union leaders also highlighted the importance of coordinating efforts across sectors. By responding as a macro sector, they will be able to better meet the challenges raised by Industry 4.0, sustainable development and the energy transition. The leaders also agreed to move forward with the Global Framework Agreements, to strengthen employment by building global union networks and to promote international campaigns against multinationals that seek to weaken labour relations.

The unions’ first step as a macro sector was to issue three letters in support of workers in Costa Rica, Mexico, and Trinidad and Tobago who are facing problems with their respective governments and whose rights are being undermined.

“Creating macro sectors within IndustriALL was one of the policies that came out of our most recent congress and is championed by our general secretary, Valter Sanches,” said IndustriALL's regional secretary, Marino Vani.

“Applying this approach in Latin America and the Caribbean has allowed the regional office to foster closer ties with its affiliates, and it has helped to strengthen cooperation between the three sectors and to enhance their power. Given that many unions represent more than one sector, we have also been able to get more unions involved in more meetings.”

“We all face the same problems, so it makes sense for us to coordinate our agendas, our campaigns and our efforts. And ultimately, as a macro sector, we will increase our union power and make greater progress.”

The meeting was held as part of IndustriALL Global Union's regional project, which is funded by Union to Union, with support from affiliates IF Metall, Unionen and Pappers.

More brands join ACT as progress continues

Meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on 12-14 September, IndustriALL and ACT brands welcomed the latest companies to join ACT, the agreement between global brands, retailers and unions to achieve living wages in the garment and textile industry through industry level collective bargaining.

PVH is the first company to join from the US and is the parent company of Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein and other brands. zLabels is a collection of German brands sold online as Zalando. They join Bestseller and Cotton On which joined ACT in May 2018 as the most recent members of ACT.

ACT members met with representatives of trade unions and employers in Cambodia to hear about their progress towards negotiating an industry collective agreement. There is strong commitment on both sides to reaching agreement and triggering the commitments made by ACT brands to ensure that their purchasing practices support the collective agreement.

With the new members, ACT brands now collectively source from factories employing 50 per cent of Cambodia’s garment workers.

Speaking after the meetings, H.E. Dr. Ith Samheng, Minister of Labour and Vocational Training supported the initiative, stating that the participation of buyers is important to ensure that they continue to cooperate long term with suppliers in Cambodia.

The ACT delegation then moved to Myanmar where the Ministry of Labour hosted a meeting of garment industry employers and trade unions on 17-18 September to discuss how to move the ACT process forward.

U Myo Aung, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population provided an overview of the government’s vision for industrial and social upgrading of the Myanmar garment industry before ACT trade union and brand representatives presented the potential contribution of ACT to industrial relations and sector development. Participants from factories, unions and government discussed together the opportunities that ACT can bring to Myanmar by creating stable and predictable industrial relations through collective bargaining, industrial upgrading and integrating into the global economy and meeting the skills needs.

At the end of the consultation, there was clear support for discussions to continue towards negotiations for a sectoral collective agreement for the sector that would be supported by brands through the ACT process.

Young workers in Cambodia commit to building union power

Young unionists from ten affiliates in TGSL sectors in Cambodia raised their concerns over decreasing unionization rate among young workers in the sector. Young unionists identified their union structures in terms of membership, committees and their unions’ dynamics.

They described the challenges they face at work and in society: the precarity of their daily lives, limited education at schools and lack of training at work, more overtime work and limited knowledge of trade unions among young workers.

Young unionists discussed the trade union movement in Cambodia, focusing on why young workers do not know much about unions, and how they could be convinced to become active members. They raised questions, such as: are young workers only worried about losing their jobs, or are they also concerned about facing discrimination at their workplaces after becoming active union members? How do we cope with these issues?

The young workers raised their concerns about the security of employment in Cambodia. Most of them are employed on a fixed duration contract for only two years. As negotiations on minimum wage in Cambodia go on, participants also deepened their knowledge on living wages and global framework agreements.

IndustriALL’s action plan commits to taking measures to ensure that its structures and actions encompass equitable representation of all workers, men and women, younger and older, and from the different regions. Participants engaged with IndustriALL policies and campaigns and deepened their information about the sector. Participants discussed the equal participation of women and men in decision-making at their workplaces and unions, by ensuring more active integration of young workers.

Jenny Holdcroft, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, said:

“IndustriALL Global Union recognizes the role of young workers in building strong and sustainable unions. We need more young people participating in trade unions, as well as young people working in factories recruiting other young people.

“We need new ideas, we need inspiration, we need to connect with new workers as they come into the workplace. There are many young workers that need a voice, and need trade unions to represent them for negotiations for better wages, better working conditions.”

Participants decided to build more engagement with young workers at their workplaces as well as their unions, and to create active youth and womens’ structures at their unions so that they would be able to educate young workers on trade union work.

Participants committed to organizing regular workplace meetings and training on labour law, collective bargaining agreements and gender equality, to recruit and mobilize more young workers. They committed to fighting to eliminate violence at their workplaces. Participants will take part in World Decent Work Day activities this year, and they agreed to have further leadership training. Some of the participants would join IndustriALL South East Asia Youth Exchange meetings which will take place on 22-23 October in Malaysia.

Fired Yves Rocher workers take their case to Geneva and Paris

On day 128 of their resistance, the delegation demonstrated outside a Yves Rocher store in central Geneva, where they were joined by representatives of global and local unions, NGOs and Turkish opposition political parties. After the demonstration, a meeting was held at the ILO to highlight the violation of Convention 87 on the right to freedom of association.

The next day, the delegation travelled to the company office in Paris, where they were joined for a demonstration by IndustriALL Global Union French affiliate FCE-CFDT. They brought a SumOfUs petition signed by 124,256 people.

After the demonstration, a company representative met with the delegation to hear the chronology of events and rights violations. The delegation was concerned that the Turkish subsidiary had not communicated an accurate version of events.

Speaking at the ILO, Petrol-İş general secretary Ahmet Kabaca explained that the Flormar factory has about 400 direct employees. The union started recruiting early in 2018, and by March, had the legally required majority, and applied to the ministry of labour for recognition. This was granted on 3 April, officially recognizing Petrol-İş as the negotiating partner.

The ministry informed Flormar management, and they immediately fired 18 people.

Süleyman Akyüz, Gebze branch chair, said that 132 workers have now been fired. They have also been blacklisted, and can’t get jobs anywhere in the area. However, the workers are getting a wage from the strike fund, as well as donations from local people.

“This struggle sets a precedent”, he said.

“A victory at Flormar would be a win for the working class. Failure would make future organizing more difficult.”

İlknur Arslan hands out leaflets

  One of the dismissed workers, machine operator İlknur Arslan, explained:

“I joined the union because after eight years at Flormar my salary is still only just above minimum wage. It is my constitutional right to join a union.

“When management fired the first group of union members, other workers applauded them. They were fired too. I was working the night shift. Our shift took no action, but at the end of the shift we went to the picket line to show our solidarity.

“We were fired, with no compensation, because the company said we had ‘joined an illegal demonstration’. We have been on the picket line ever since.”

Another dismissed worker, Ayşe Güley Kahveci, who makes mascara, said that any worker who shows support for the union is severely bullied. Management told her:

“We will never accept the union. You should give up on this dream.”

Production supervisor İsmail Balıkçı said.

“The plant manager offered to double my salary if I left the union. He said the owner would burn down the factory and move production to Bulgaria before accepting a union.

“The company is using scabs. Health and safety has declined dramatically, and so has the quality of production. A lot of defective product has been destroyed. They called me and asked me how to fix things. I said my condition for helping was that we all return and they recognize the union.”

IndustriALL general secretary Valter Sanches said:

“Turkey is one of the worst countries for workers’ rights violations. It is disturbing how multinationals with good union relations in their home countries behave this way in Turkey.

“We prefer to solve things peacefully. The company doesn’t want it this way, so we will fight. You have the full strength of IndustriALL behind you.”

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Asia Pacific: Unions determined to build union power in growing chemical industry

 The union leaders met in IndustriALL Global Union’s Asia Pacific chemical industry unions’ network in Singapore on 1-2 September, 2018. The meeting gave opportunity to the affiliated trade unions to share their experiences and discuss pressing issues and challenges as well as successes. It also aimed at coming up with strategies and plans to respond to the trends in the sector.

The global chemical industry is one of the largest sectors within the manufacturing ecosystem with its contribution to economic growth and employment by generating around US$ 3.9 trillion in sales annually. According to the estimation, the chemical industry is expected to reach the level of € 6.3 trillion in 2030, almost double from today, with a growth rate of 3.6 per cent. Directly employing directly around 20 million globally, the industry will grow in emerging markets in Asia Pacific region, particularly in China.

The global chemical industry is dominated by large multinational companies, such as BASF and DowDupont. With the changing economic conjuncture, the chemical companies pursue similar strategies, such as business remodelling, capacity expansion in emerging markets, innovation, Industry 4.0 and mergers & acquisitions.

The participants introduced their national and plant level difficulties and strategies as a base for regional cooperation in the chemical industry. A particular discussion was held around the impact of Industry 4.0 in the sector, with concrete plans developed towards the end of the meeting.

The issues discussed included employment in the chemical industry, with most countries sharing that union membership is declining due to increasing number of precarious workers workers which gravely affect organizing.

IndustriALL’s five strategic goals and particular strategy in the chemical industry was also analysed. The participants underlined the importance of creating a global enabling environment for the main developments in the chemical industry, particularly through ILO sectorial activities and social dialogue at various levels, including global.

Signing and implementing global framework agreements was also elaborated by the participants, particularly on the basis of successful example with the Belgian-based chemical company Solvay. Likewise, global-regional trade union networks were debated. The case of BASF was presented as an example.

The participants discussed supporting organizing and union building together with campaigns and solidarity actions. The participants gave full support to the unjustified dismissal of the president of Indonesian affiliate FARKES, Idris Idham.

Towards the end of two-day meeting, through targeted work groups, country and regional action plans were developed, discussed and adopted. 

In his final statement, Kemal Özkan, assistant general secretary of IndustriALL said:

“I commend our affiliates in the chemical industry for their effort in organizing workers in the sector.”

“I recommend that our affiliates should increase and expand their network, solidarity and joint-activities, particularly in multinational companies.”

Asia-Pacific paper unions mobilize on safety and Kimberly-Clark

Half of the 46 trade unionists were women. Delegates from ten countries spent two days together, 17-18 September, learning from each other and developing a common platform for action.

One participating union was not from the Asia-Pacific region: Pappers from Sweden co-chairs the global sector with USW, and the Swedes have an important heritage of supporting South East Asian paper unions. Four Pappers leaders joined the Jakarta meeting and ran a session sharing their experience of building union strength in the sector, at home and abroad.

Pappers vice president Mikael Lilja was asked many questions by the meeting. “Our experience is that it takes a long time to build a strong union. Be patient, you have thousands of members, and you will organize thousands more. Step by step, and with constant dialogue.”

The region is a priority for the global sector and Indonesia is a key country. Five IndustriALL affiliates from Indonesia participated in the meeting, representing over 70,000 members in the pulp and paper industry. In Indonesia there are 2.7 million union members of a total workforce of 70 million. The chair of IndustriALL’s Indonesia National Council, Iwan Kusmawan, also welcomed the network to Jakarta.

The pulp and paper industry is major part of the Indonesian economy. Indonesia is the sixth largest paper producing country and tenth largest pulp producer in the world. The two largest employers in the sector in Indonesia are APP and April. Indonesian affiliates struggle against repeated labour law violations at many companies in the sector, and growing use of precarious, contract labour.

Chair of the regional network, Alex Millar of the CFMEU, Australia steered the meeting. Alex celebrated the strong women of the network and said:

“Once again we see that wherever paper workers are we face the same challenges, precarious work, unsafe workplaces and attacks on trade union freedoms. Strong unions and solidarity are the only way in which we can confront these challenges.

CFMEU’s Denise Campbell-Burns reported to the network on the Australian union movement’s inspiring campaign to “Change the Rules” which targets a change of government.

Paper worker leaders from Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam also shared their struggles and successes, and strategized on ways to build the network.

Kimberly-Clark workers were represented from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Australia. The full network stood in solidarity with the global call on the company to treat its workers with respect and start proper dialogue on the restructuring plan.

The network discussed how to formalize its solidarity machine to support brothers and sisters in conflict. The current urgent case that the network will support is FSP2KI fighting for reinstatement of 12 strikers at contractor companies servicing the large PT. Tanjungenim Lestari Pulp and Paper operations in South Sumatra. The union’s 13-15 June strike was supported by IndustriALL and key affiliates, ending with a good agreement that included a company commitment not to punish any worker for taking part in the strike.

The meeting concluded with an action plan and commitment from all unions to strengthen the network.

IndustriALL industry director Tom Grinter said:

“This network is full of energy and determination to build power for paper workers in the region. These leaders inspire the full sector with their struggle in challenging conditions.”

eSwatini union condemns violence against striking workers

On September 19, the police arrested and beat up organizers from the Amalgamated Trade Unions of Swaziland (ATUSWA) – affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union – to stop them from protesting. Over 10,000 workers from five garment and textile factories began protesting two weeks ago after negotiations were deadlocked at the Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration Commission. They are frustrated by their employers’ refusal to honestly engage in collective bargaining to improve wages and working conditions.

The three-day protest action called by ATUSWA is taking place in Mbabane, Manzini and other places, and is happening in accordance with the country’s laws. According to the union, organizers Sbonelo Tsabedze and Nhlanhla Tsabedze were arrested at Nhlangano while mobilizing workers to assemble at the gates of Zheng Yong factory to push for their demands.

The ATUSWA leadership says the police confronted the well-organized workers who were protesting peacefully:

“The police resorted, without provocation, to disperse the workers using teargas and started going after union members and beating them up. We are receiving reports that a lot of our members are injured and running for dear lives as they are hounded by the police. Therefore, we call upon our members to remain united despite glaring attempts to disunite them. As this is a battle for workers, we call on government and the police to stop harassing and victimizing the workers for exercising their right to protest. We further make a call for the release of our organizers.”

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

“To build industrial peace, it is important for authorities in eSwatini to respect the workers’ rights to protest. These rights are protected in the labour laws and in ILO Conventions. So, we strongly condemn the use of intimidation and violence against protesting workers and support ATUSWA in its struggle for better wages and working conditions.”

Italian steelworkers validate agreement with ArcelorMittal

Over the last week assemblies with participation by all the workers of the group took place. At the assemblies, workers were informed about the contents of the agreement and voted for its ratification. To a large extent, workers voted for a deal with the company, which if accepted could open the door for acquisition and immediate operation of the plant.

In total, Fim-Cisl, Fiom-Cgil and Uilm-Uil representing some 14,000 workers of the Ilva group in Italy, organized 44 assemblies at all the sites, respectively: 32 in Taranto, 3 in Genoa, 4 in Novi Ligure, and one each in the sites of Marghera, Salerno, Padua, Milan and Racconigi.

In their joint statement the unions said,

“We express great satisfaction with the result achieved, and the workers approved the agreement. 6 years after the seizure of the hot area, 12 decrees to save Ilva and dozens of strikes, with the approval of the agreement by the workers, one of the most complex disputes of our country is closed.”

According to the agreement reached, 4.2 billion euro of investments are planned for the revival of the steel industry, including 1.25 billion euros for industrial purposes, 1.15 billion euros for the environment and 1.8 billion euro as part of the acquisition. Also, the Government will use 1.2 billion euros seized from the previous owner, Riva group for a decontamination programme and environmental improvements at the Taranto site. Due to the environmental problems and following announced seizure of the resources, the Ilva group and particularly Taranto site was in jeopardy since July 2012.

The unions promised “to monitor the progress of the environmental work and the safety of the sites, starting with Taranto, and the timing of the implementation of the plan to achieve full employment as soon as possible.”

The steel company committed to initially employ 10,700 workers. The unions explained that according to the agreement there was no job cuts foreseen. Workers who are not immediately employed, or agreed to voluntary departure or redeployment programmes, would be offered employment before 2023, when the programme of decontamination is over. The remaining few thousand of excess workers will be employed through the decontamination programme.

All problems are not however solved by this agreement. On the basis of the European anti-monopoly legislation, ArcelorMittal will divest a number of its smaller European sites located in Galati (Romania), Ostrava (Czech Republic), Skopje (Macedonia), Piombino (Italy), Dudelange (Luxemburg) and Liège (Belgium).

Valter Sanches, IndustriALL general secretary says,

“We congratulate our Italian brothers and sisters with a favourable solution of this long-lasting dispute. This is a victory for all of us. We are also glad to welcome all Ilva steelworkers joining the global union network at ArcelorMittal, which will allow them to have better consulting, information and possibilities to influence policy within their company. On the other side, we urge ArcelorMittal and the European Commission to engage with the respective unions so that the rights and interests of workers at the divested facilities are fully protected.”

OECD Steel Committee: Trade conflict, overcapacity dominate discussions

This was one conclusion from the OECD Steel Committee, which brought together over 100 government, industry and trade union representatives for a 17-18 September biannual meeting in Paris. Along with IndustriALL Global Union, participating unions included IndustriAll Europe, the Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC) of the OECD, the French CFE-CGC and British Unite.

Global steel capacity is expected to increase in 2018 for the first time since 2015. Increased capacity in coming years is expected to be concentrated in the Middle East and India.

China came under heavy criticism at the meeting by governments, industry associations and IndustriALL Global Union for its contribution to overcapacity. Chinese steel production, with state support, has increased five-fold in less than two decades, with significant production dumped abroad at below-market prices.

Chinese industry and government representatives at the meeting denied there is overcapacity in China. They noted that China has already reduced its capacity by 120 million tons and said there is now a strict rule in China that no new capacity can be added unless at least an equal amount of capacity is eliminated. China now accounts for half of global steel production.

The recent unilateral imposition of steel tariffs by the U.S. also came under heavy criticism by meeting participants. The U.S. government representative responded that these tariffs are compliant with international trade rules and were imposed in response to national security threats.

Participants agreed that multilateral initiatives such as the Committee and the Global Forum on Excess Steel Capacity must begin to deliver on their promise of reducing excess steel capacity.

Ronald Janssen of TUAC pointed out (PowerPoint) that labour market institutions which support workers’ rights, such as Swedish job security councils, can enable capacity reductions and other industry change to be more equitable, in a workshop preceding the Committee meeting.

“Suicide rates can increase when steel plants close. Has the Committee considered the mental health of displaced employees and mental health assistance required in connection with plant closures?”

asked Unite lay executive member Tony Pearson during this workshop.

The Global Forum on Excess Steel Capacity was meeting in the two days after the Committee. Global Forum was formed by the G20 in 2016 to work with OECD Steel Committee in confronting the excess capacity crisis.

Committee and the Global Forum are encouraging countries to work together to develop a common understanding of state subsidies for the steel sector, which are a key cause of global overcapacity. In the Chairman’s conclusions, the Committee reiterated the need to swiftly remove subsidies and other government support measures that are market-distorting and contributing to excess capacity, though there was no consensus on which support measures are market-distorting.

The Committee also developed draft guidelines for state support and is developing a subsidies database. Work is progressing slowly and it’s not clear that the Committee and Global Forum are well coordinated in this work. TUAC and IndustriALL made a joint submission (PDF) on these draft guidelines.

IndustriALL again protested at the Committee meeting trade unions’ exclusion from the Global Forum.

“Steelworkers are an important stakeholder in these debates, and excess capacity has a large impact on them and their communities. They should have a seat at the table,”

stated IndustriALL base metals director Adam Lee.

Flawed justice undermines hopes of working people in Brazil

On 11 September, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the metalworker leader and a founder of the Workers’ Party, who was elected to the highest office of president of the country for two terms during 2003 till 2011, had to withdraw as candidate from the elections, despite polls showing great support from the population.

Reforms carried out while Lula was in power granted massive access to university education for poor people, while the social welfare programmes Bolsa Família and Fome Zero helped to eradicate hunger and extreme poverty, bringing hope for the future to the vast majority of poor Brazilians. A real increase in the minimum wage by 73 per cent on top of inflation and a general wage increase boosted growth, generating over 20 million jobs and reducing unemployment to a historical low of 4.3 per cent. Lula became the workers’ symbol in Brazil, Latin American and the entire world.

The illegitimate government, now in power for two years, destroyed most of these achievements, attacking workers’ rights and causing economic chaos. The country has an unemployment rate of around 14 per cent today.

Upon consideration of Lula’s case, the United Nations Human Rights Committee, a panel of independent experts, in August requested the Brazilian government to allow Lula to exercise his political rights as a presidential candidate.

Now, as the election date of 7 October approaches, Lula, 72, is in jail after a corruption conviction. Even though the appeal process is not yet over, the authorities denied Lula his right to vote or be elected, in violation of the national Constitution and international norms.

According to international lawyers, the conviction was a set up to deny Lula’s candidacy and prevent him from running for re-election. Polls indicate that Lula has vast support from the population, despite the allegations and campaign of defamation against him.

Lula was incarcerated in clear violation of legal procedures. His phones and those of his defence lawyers were illegally wiretapped. The indictment was issued after 23 hearings, during which none of the 70 witnesses made any statement that could provide proof in favour of the indictment.

However, right-wing forces hiding behind the rhetoric of national sovereignty and in violation of all national and international legislation denied any justice to Lula, including participation in the elections.

With the view to continue the struggle for the workers’ cause, the Workers’ Party announced a new candidate, Fernando Haddad. Through the public support extended by Lula, Haddad, academic and former mayor of the city of São Paulo, is now leading the pre-election polls.

The international trade union movement, including IndustriALL Global Union and affiliates, has expressed its full support to Lula and the people of Brazil. IndustriALL’s most recent Executive Committee in May adopted a special resolution in support of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

The results of the elections will define the future of the country: whether it will democratically serve the interest of its vast population, or will be in the hands of right-wing forces supporting a new oligarchy whose only objective will be to enrich themselves at all cost.