Grasberg: agreement signed but dispute continues

National leadership of IndustriALL affiliate CEMWU reached the agreement on 21 December 2017 with Freeport’s Indonesian subsidiary PT Freeport. Some 4,220 workers were fired at the PT Freeport Grasberg mine in retaliation for a strike called by CEMWU in May 2017. The agreement provides the workers with limited financial benefits including a payment based on length of service, and says they can apply for employment with contractors at Grasberg.

The agreement endorses Freeport’s central claim that the workers resigned by failing to report to work and therefore the company is not obligated to reinstate them.

The agreement contradicts the position that the 4,220 workers were fired for striking and must be reinstated, which was the basis of the IndustriALL global campaign.

The IndustriALL campaign for reinstatement of the fired strikers included multiple protest letters to Freeport and the Government of Indonesia, a high-level fact finding mission to Indonesia, a program of outreach to Freeport investors, requests for intervention by the ILO and UN Special Rapporteur, a meeting with the Indonesia National Commission on Human Rights, production of a short film profiling the plight of the fired strikers, lobbying Rio Tinto to use its stake in Grasberg to support the fired strikers, and online petitions.

CEMWU national leadership reports that they entered into the agreement after concluding they could not convince the company to reinstate the strikers or convince the government to intervene on their behalf. They report that the agreement provides financial benefits for the fired strikers many of whom were desperate after eight months of striking without an income, and provides some certainty so the workers can move on with their lives rather than waiting for reinstatement.

Sixteen strikers have reportedly died as of February 2018 after being unable to access medical services because PT Freeport took away their health insurance in retaliation for striking.

The agreement gives workers the right to either accept the agreement or refuse it and thereby retain the right to take legal action individually against the company. Only 300 fired strikers had elected to accept the agreement as of early March according to CEMWU national leadership. It is not yet clear how many individual workers will take legal action against the company.

The Indonesian human rights law firm Lokataru rejects the agreement with PT Freeport and continues to advocate for the fired strikers. In a February report on the strike, Lokataru criticizes Freeport for breaking the law during the strike and criticizes the Government of Indonesia for failing to protect the fired workers’ rights.

Lokataru calls for the fired workers’ fundamental rights to be respected, their health insurance to be reinstated, and for investigations into improper practices committed by banks, the health service and the police against the workers.

Stated IndustriALL General Secretary Valter Sanches in a recent letter to the President of Indonesia:

“Freeport embodies the absolute worst of the global mining and metals industry. It provoked a strike by refusing to negotiate with CEMWU, then leading to some striking workers to die, as a result of taking away their health insurance. The Government of Indonesia must defend the fundamental rights of Indonesian workers against this type of abuse. We urge you to ensure that the fired strikers’ health insurance is immediately reinstated, that Freeport is held accountable for its illegal and immoral actions, and that you ensure the strikers no longer bear the brunt of these actions.”

Garment brands must step up to the plate in Haiti

Last May, in the wake of a hike in fuel prices that led to a dramatic rise in the cost of living, thousands of garment workers took to the streets to demand a minimum wage that would enable them to support their families.

Ten months later, in spite of repeated demands, 48 union leaders and members – including thirteen from IndustriALL affiliate GOSTTRA, have yet to be reinstated.

IndustriALL has called on Gildan Activewear, Hunt Wilson International and Edwards Garment to insist that their suppliers Sewing International SA (SISA) and Interamerican Wovens (IW), where GOSTTRA is present,  to reinstate the dismissed workers with back pay.

In his letter, IndustriALL General Secertary Valter Sanches referred to the findings of a special investigation carried out by the ILO’s Better Work programme into the circumstances surrounding the dismissals at four factories. Among other recommendations, the report calls for the reinstatement of SISA and IW workers who were fired as a direct result of the strike action.

Sanches also reminded the buyers that in line with OECD standards they have a responsibility to promote responsible employment by identifying, preventing and mitigating labour rights risks in their supply chains and by providing for or cooperating in remediation where appropriate. They must also involve workers at every stage of this process. 

Multinational brands rely on workers in their supply chains to produce their goods, and they must be accountable for how those workers are treated,

concludes Sanches.

Zambia: Dangote confronted over union busting

There are no unionized workers at the Masaiti plant – 9 kilometers outside Ndola – which employs more than 1,000 workers, due to the company frustrating union activity and dismissing workers for joining unions.
 
Dangote, which has outsourced most its core work, signed a contract with Silondwa Engineering which exposes its union busting: “The contractor shall ensure that its employees are not involved in union activities and strikes that lead to stopping of work”. Further, a worker can be given a final warning for “incitement to strike.”
 
With no wage increases in four years, workers transferred to Silondwa Engineering and who work under precarious conditions describe Dangote as one of the worst employers. “There is no job security. You can be fired at any time. Recently a worker discharged on medical grounds only got K3000 (US$312) for three years of service”.

Another worker, sexually harassed by one of the managers, has not been promoted since 2014. She is underpaid earning only K1100 (US$114) as a general worker yet qualified for other work. Technicians are poorly paid earning a basic of K2100 (US$218) and expatriate workers earn more than Zambians.
 
Although the contractor is responsible for allowances and safe working conditions, this is not always provided as personal protective clothing, transportation, accommodation, medical assistance, and housing provisions are inadequate.

Health and safety of workers is compromised as there is neither a clinic nor an ambulance at Masaiti. The dirt road leading to the plant is full of potholes, which means that even if there was an ambulance it will be of little use in emergencies. There is no silicosis examination as is the norm.

Additionally, Dangote is not liable for “injuries or sickness, disease or any death of any person employed by or engaged on behalf of the company.”
 
Efforts by Joyce Nonde-Simukoko, the Minister of Labour and Social Security, to force Dangote to recognise workers’ rights have not been successful, but unions are not giving up the fight.
 
Says Paule France Ndessomin, regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa:

It is shocking to learn that Dangote is violating workers’ rights. We call upon the company to stop the abuses.

Georgian trade unions criticize new labour safety law

Most of the provisions of the new law on occupational safety came into force on 17 March after the document was signed by President of Georgia. Provisions concerning compulsory insurance of employees against accidents will come into force from 1 January 2019.

In February, about 2,000 workers staged protest actions in different regions of Georgia, including in front of the Parliament in Tbilisi, to demand better health and safety at work.

Tamaz Dolaberidze, president of IndustriALL affiliate the Trade Union of Metallurgy, Mining and Chemical Industry Workers of Georgia, believes the law should cover all enterprises. Currently, it is written in a way that benefits businesses and only applies to highly hazardous facilities.

The law defines eleven types of hazardous and dangerous jobs with fines varying from 100 to 50,000 GEL (US$40 to US$20,000) in case of violation of safety standards. Trade unions believe the fines are low and will not encourage the employer to improve occupational safety.

Also, labour inspectors will only carry out scheduled inspections once a year. They will produce a list of audited enterprises at the beginning of each year. Thus, an enterprise with critical violations will be able to continue operating until it gets into this list.

Amiran Zenaishvili, president of the Georgian Trade Union of Energy Workers, says:

“Health and safety issues won’t be resolved if there is no possibility of free access for inspectors to visit enterprises and identify violations and problems at the workplace. Now inspectors need to undergo a procedure of coordination with employers, which prevents them from unannounced visits to the facility”. 

The Georgian parliament began consideration of the bill in June 2017 after the tragedy at the Tkibuli Elizbar Mindeli mine, which led to the death of four miners. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 359 workers died and another 947 were injured in the last 11 years in Georgia. Most recently, on 12 March at Zestafoni Ferroalloy Plant 55-year-old Davit Dzabiradze fell down from the roof height of 40 meters and died on the spot.

Kemal Ozkan, IndustriALL Assistant General Secretary, comments,

“IndustriALL Global Union supports Georgian trade unions in their demands to adopt truly effective labour inspection legislation in accordance with international labour standards. It is essential for workers that the government of Georgia ratifies ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines, as well as ILO Convention 81 on Labour Inspection”.

Workers strike at South African solar plant

According to IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, NUMSA, workers are being denied medical aid, housing allowance, provident fund and other benefits they would normally receive if they were working at the state-owned electricity provider, Eskom. Their wages, which are low, are being spent on covering all these expenses.

The strike is significant as South Africa moves to renewable energy production to lower carbon emissions as a signatory to the Paris Accord on climate change. At present most electricity is generated by coal-fired power stations employing tens of thousands of workers in the coal industry.

However, NUMSA is concerned that the transition to renewable energy does not include provisions for workers set to lose their jobs in coal, or lead to wider benefits to the community:

“The Energy Minister claimed that these (renewable energy) firms would bring ‘entrepreneurial opportunities in our rural communities’. Our members can confirm that this is hogwash. There is very little development and certainly no opportunities for entrepreneurship in the surrounding area of the firm,” said NUMSA in a statement.

On 12 March NUMSA, together with Transform SA, successfully applied for a court interdict to block Eskom from signing 27 renewable energy contracts known as Independent Power Production Projects (IPPs).

NUMSA says it is not against renewable energy but is alarmed by proposals from the government to put renewable energy production entirely in private hands through IPPs. As well as putting the South African public at the mercy of private companies in setting energy prices, the privatization of renewable energy leaves no room for a Just Transition for workers losing their jobs in the coal industry.

Brian Kohler, IndustriALL’s director for health, safety and sustainability, said:

“South Africa must not relinquish its responsibility for the energy of the future, nor turn its back on tens of thousands of workers in the coal industry. A Just Transition requires strong and comprehensive social protection; sustainable industrial policy; and creative labour adjustment programmes.”

“There is nothing inherent about greener jobs that guarantees fairness – they will all follow the logic of capitalism if the state does not impose conditions and limits on their behaviour,” added Kohler.

IndustriALL affiliates take part in the World Social Forum

The World Social Forum began with a march by hundreds of activists from all over the world through the centre of Salvador, capital of the state of Bahia. Among them, were representatives of IndustriALL trade union affiliates from Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Spain, Switzerland and the United States (among others).

Under the slogan "To resist is to create, to resist is to transform", the forum invited participants to debate and define new strategies to confront the neoliberalism, coup d’états and genocides that several countries are currently facing.

At a workshop entitled called "Transformations in the world of work and union responses" organized by CUT Brazil on 14 March, participants discussed how automization and digitalization of the economy are causing unprecedented changes in the world of work, posing a challenge to trade union organizations and society as a whole.

Speaking at the workshop, IndustriALL’s general secretary, Valter Sanches, said:

"The future of work is already happening. Half of the world’s wealth is concentrated in the hands of eight men. Almost all are owners of the biggest technology multinationals such as Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, Bloomberg.

"To face Industry 4.0 we need to have strong unions and work together, concentrating on three points: organization, union training and collective bargaining. We will work together to create sustainable industrial strategies and policies," he said.

Today, March 15, a World Assembly in Defense of Democracies will be held at 5:00 p.m. (local time) at the Pituaçu Stadium.  The event is expected to include the presence of the former presidents of Argentina, Cristina Fernández of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff, of Uruguay, José Mujica and the ex-president of Paraguay, Fernando Lugo.

On 16 March there will be a World Assembly of Women, a meeting aimed at discussing issues such as the criminalization of abortion, feminicide and violence against women.

On the same day, the forum will hold the World Assembly of Peoples, Movements and Territories in Resistance hosted by indigenous peoples.

Zambia: Building strong unions to confront hostile employers

The unions have a rich history of organizing workers which goes across decades. The National Union for Building Engineering and General Workers (NUBEGW) for instance, boasts of having leaders who later became Zambian presidents. These are Frederick Chiluba (1991-2002) and Michael Sata (2011-2014).

IndustriALL Global Union affiliates, NUBEGW, the National Union of Commercial and Industrial Workers Union (NUCIW) and the Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ), with support from trade union support organisation, Union to Union, met at a union building project meeting 13-14 March in Lusaka.

The meeting discussed how to confront bullying as some employers are becoming increasingly arrogant and even refusing to sign recognition agreements with unions. Building union capacity in collective bargaining and understanding of labour laws, strengthening health and safety at workplaces and involving women workers in union activities and leadership roles are some of the priorities identified. Recruiting and organizing are key to reversing declining union membership.

The unions also agreed to work together, build solidarity on common issues and organize joint actions to defend their rights.

Says Tendai Makanza, UB project coordinator for Sub Saharan Africa:

The union building project is an opportunity for unions to identify and solve the problems that they are facing including declining union influence that is worsened by an increasing hostile environment from businesses and the government.

Increasing copper prices might see mining companies hiring more workers and thus providing an opportunity for MUZ to recruit more workers in the sector. The big copper mining companies are Barrick Lumwana, FQM Kansanchi, Mopani and Konkola who mine 80 per cent with the remainder being mined by smaller companies. The government of Zambia has shareholding in the companies through the state company ZCCM-IH.

In cement manufacturing unions are fighting to be allowed to organize workers at the Dangote plant in Ndola. MUZ has gone to court after being denied access to workers at the company.

IndustriALL launches campaign for health and safety in Pakistan mines

The campaign aims to ensure a sustainable solution to Pakistan’s dependence on coal at the expense of the health, safety and lives of mineworkers. IndustriALL is calling on the government to ratify the ILO convention and commit to implementing the regulatory and legislative framework according to international standards.

The launch of the campaign at a press conference in Islamabad on 13 March, comes just one day after another death at a Baluchistan coal mine, highlighting the safety crisis in the country’s mines. Coal miner Afzal Khan died when earth collapsed at a mine in the Sharigh coal field.

According to credible sources, since January 2010, at least 275 miners have been killed, while there is limited data on the number injured.

Speaking at the press conference, IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan, said:

We are extremely concerned over continuing fatal accidents in Pakistani mines.

Pakistan isn’t a major mining country in terms of the volume of production and export, but it is a world champion in death and injury. We cannot accept this. We need to stand up and fight to change to protect mine workers in the country.

The government of Pakistan should immediately ratify and implement international conventions and practices on mining. Genuine tripartite initiatives should be taken with the participation of government, employers and mine workers to provide safety and health information, training and consultations and involve workers to deal with mining hazards.

Rich in many mineral resources, Pakistan, like many global south mineral-rich countries, is struggling to leverage resources for equitable development.

The unregulated nature of Pakistan’s coal mining industry with its fragmented ownership structure, illegal ownership of mines, lack of implementation of national laws and regulation on health and safety, overburdened mining inspectorate and very low density of union membership, are possible reasons to the deteriorating health and safety situation.

IndustriALL met with Pakistan’s labour minister Dr Hashim Popalzai, federal secretary of the department of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resources Development, to urge the government of Pakistan to ratify and implement the Convention.

Dr Popalzai acknowledged the health and safety problem, and committed his ministry to support ratification. Safety and labour law in Pakistan is devolved to provincial level, and the provisions of C176 would need to be incorporated into provincial law. According to Dr Popalzai, Pakistan’s problem is not a lack of adequate law, but a weakness in inspection, implementation and education.

IndustriALL also met with ILO country director Ingrid Christensen, to seek support for awareness raising and training in coal mining areas.

IndustriALL met with officials of state-owned Pakistan Minerals Development Corporation (PMDC), which controls about 20 per cent of Pakistan’s salt and coal mines. This proportion has decreased dramatically since privatization began in 1997. Local unions oppose privatization and consider PMDC as the benchmark for safety standards. However, PMDC faces competition from a fragmented private mining sector not respecting the law, and with an increasing use of contractors instead of permanent employees.

The campaign is supported by all affiliated trade unions in various sectors, recognizing the contribution that ratifying C176 will have on safety culture. Assessments on existing health and safety laws and regulations and their enforcement continue, and affiliates will develop a strategy to maximize support and minimize opposition to the ratification of C176 by lobbying government and legislative bodies. There will be actions in awareness raising, capacity building, communication and mobilization of workers.

Victory as strike ends at Rio Tinto QMM in Fort-Dauphin, Madagascar

The CBA calls for a consideration of both annual inflation-linked salary increase and a performance based increase, with the aim to make up for the loss of purchasing power. The union has argued that the company’s approach militates against workers in the lower rankings of the salary scale, and that those workers never achieve the intended purchasing power parity intended in the collective bargaining agreement. Instead, supervisors and managers benefit from management’s approach, and this violates the collective bargaining agreement. According to the union, workers at QMM receive very low wages, averaging about US$45/month. 

Members of IndustriALL affiliate, Sendika Kristanina Malagasy (Sekrima) and Syndicalisme et Vie des Sociétés (SVS), suspended the strike in the afternoon of Thursday 8 March after local management promised a labour inspectorate led mediation the following day.

“We suspended the strike on Thursday, but the company retaliated with threats of dismissals, loss of benefits, and intimidation when our members reported for work on Friday,” said a Sekrima union representative.

Negotiations between the company and the unions, Sekrima and SVS deadlocked on Friday, and the strike continued on the following Monday, 12 March. Due to threats of intimidation, only 200 workers participated in the strike.

The strike was called off the following morning, 13 March, after an agreement had been reached including :

“As the strike has ended, the next step for the union and local management is revising the current collective bargaining agreement due to start in April 2018. We hope this will continue in the spirit of respect shown during the negotiations to end the strike, like we did with the global dialogue process with Rio Tinto,” said Kemal Ozkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary.

“The conclusion of the strike and more importantly, the content of the agreement is a vindication of the fair and just demand of workers for an inflation linked general increase that maintains the purchasing power of the majority of the workers,” said Anthony Randrianandrasana, president of Sekrima, Fort Dauphin, QMM.

Steve Hunt, District 3 director of the United Steelworkers and co-chair of IndustriALL’s mining and diamond, gems, ornament and jewellery production section, who followed the negotiations closely from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, said: “We are proud of the leadership of Sekrima, who under the most challenging conditions, managed to deliver on the mandate of its members”.

The unions also demanded that the company live up to its supplier code of conduct, presented during the recent joint IndustriALL/Rio Tinto high level global mission to QMM in February, and implement its due diligence requirement for contractors. Contractor employees are afraid to join the union due to intimidation by contractor owners, who fail to respect the provisions of the supplier code of conduct, guaranteeing freedom of association and the right to join a union of choice.

Sae a Tecnotex Nicaragua illegally dismisses health and safety reps

The eight workers are members of the joint health and safety committee at Sae a Tecnotex, located in the free trade zone in Tipitapa, Managua. They were unfairly dismissed in February even though their mandate runs until May.

On 1 March, the factory union, affiliated to FESITEX, which is affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, protested outside the Ministry of Labour claiming anti-union harassment and denial of the right of freedom of association.

The union filed a labour demand seeking special legal protection for the layoffs, and other fundamental rights violation. A hearing is scheduled for 22 March.

The dismissed workers also handed a letter to the director of the Directorate General for Health and Safety, denouncing a violation of the health and safety law, and other offenses committed by the Sae a Tecnotex. The letter argues that the dismissals were unjustified as the company failed to inform the labour authorities as required by law.

The union says that since May 2016, the company has refused to meet with union representatives to discuss important issues such as production targets, and has refused to begin negotiations with a view to renewing the collective agreement.

IndustriALL regional secretary Marino Vani, says:

Sae A Tecnotex continues to violate workers’ rights and to engage in anti-union practices. We fully support our affiliate FESITEX and urge the company to engage in dialogue with the union and reinstate the fired workers.