Unions demand LafargeHolcim keeps its word and respects workers’ lives

IndustriALL Global Union, the Building and Wood Workers’ International, the European Federation of Building and Wood Workers and Swiss affiliate Unia were joined by representatives of LafargeHolcim workers from Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Uganda and the USA.

In 2017, LafargeHolcim agreed to sign a global framework agreement guaranteeing workers’ rights, with occupational health and safety as an integral part of the agreement. However, in January 2018 the company broke its word and returned to the practice of putting profit first and workers’ rights and lives second.

Since the merger in 2015, LafargeHolcim has shed 35,000 jobs and hundreds of workers have lost their lives. In 2016, 86 workers were killed, with another 65 killed in 2017. As the workforce has shrunk, the fatality rate per 100 million hours worked has increased. There have been further deaths in 2018.

Matthias Hartwich, IndustriALL director for the materials industries, said:

“Several workers have already lost their lives in 2018, among them at least two in India and one in Belgium. How many more need to die before LafargeHolcim engages in genuine social dialogue?

“Shareholders’ high annual dividend of CHF 2 is paid with workers’ blood, sweat and tears.”

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“The company signed a memorandum of understanding over a global framework agreement with us in July 2017. Now it is high time that they keep their word and create functioning structures to save workers’ lives and improve social dialogue.”

Lena Yuliana, a LafargeHolcim worker from Indonesia, sector co-chair and member of the Federation of Indonesian Cement Workers’ Union FSP ISI, was able to enter the meeting and address shareholders. She told them:

"Safety becomes an issue that scares workers. Instead of helping them, if an accident happens, the management blames the area manager or the workers, giving a warning letter without any proper investigation or involving the trade union. Safety and health is not only behaviour related; it must be developed jointly between management, trade union and workers. A top-down approach will not do.

"We, the workers in most of LafargeHolcim’s operations are united in trade unions. We were happy when management announced last year that there would be a global framework agreement between the global unions and LafargeHolcim as new company.

"But then we learned in early January 2018 that management had changed their opinion unilaterally to renege on its commitment to sign the global framework agreement. This was a shock."

Unions are demanding that LafargeHolcim:

Young workers forum launched in South Africa

Conditions for the South African youth are dire. According to Statistics South Africa’s 4th Quarterly Labour Force Survey for 2017, 2.3 million youths aged 25-34 years are unemployed while a further 2.4 million are “not economically active”.  Some have become discouraged work seekers who can’t find jobs or are unable to find work requiring their skills. Not surprising that some have “lost hope in finding any kind of work.” This means most of the youth live in poverty in one of the most unequal countries in the world. However, of the 4, 9 million employed there is a huge responsibility which includes providing for siblings and family members. In some instances, they do so while raising their own families.

COSATU reasons that for the youth’s ideas to be effective, they need their own forum which is linked to the federation. This would deal with issues including how to integrate the youth into the union through worker education, involvement in collective bargaining, and health and safety training among other aspects of union life.

Says the young workers forum:

Young people constitute a large section of the poor, the unemployed, the underemployed and those confronted by precarious work. They are exposed to informal and insecure work arrangements with limited possibilities for career development. They are the ones who are trapped in part-time and seasonal employment, and the most exposed to unsafe workplaces with limited rights under international labour standards.

Explains Sarah Flores IndustriALL global youth projects officer:

Recognizing the critical role played by the youth in the future of unions is important. Whilst previous generations of union leadership laid the foundations for strong unions, young workers must now take the responsibility of shaping the union into the future.

With support from the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, IndustriALL will conduct workshops to further develop the capacity young unionists in South Africa, and a Southern African regional conference will take place later this year.

Pakistan’s deadly mines – 23 workers killed in one day

According to reports, 16 workers were killed in a mine in the Marwar area when the mine collapsed at the exit point following a methane gas explosion. A private company called Pir Ismael was operating the coal mine, and 25 to 30 workers were believed to at work at the time of the accident.

In an another accident on the same day, seven workers in a state-owned mine run by the Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation (PMDC) in the Sur-range area were killed by a mudslide.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, says:

This massacre could have been avoided. During a mission to Pakistan in March, IndustriALL met with the government and urged them to ratify ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines.

At the same time, we launched a campaign for health and safety in Pakistani mines. The government must take immediate action to improve mine safety and stop fatal accidents.

Condemning the deaths and protesting against the negligence and apathy of the mine owners and the government, Pakistani trade unions, including IndustriALL affiliate PCMLF, organized protest actions in Quetta the following day.

Trade unions called for immediate action to hold those responsible to account and for appropriate compensation for the victims. The unions also called for strict implementation of mines safety laws and immediate ratification of ILO C176. 

South Africa: Four dead as mine claims more lives

Sibanye-Stillwater has an appalling safety record. Two workers died at Kloof mine in March, and earlier 1,000 workers were trapped underground when there was a power failure. Those workers were later brought safely to the ground when the power was restored.

Twenty-six mineworkers have died from mine accidents since the beginning of this year. In 2017, 30 per cent of the accidents were caused by seismic activities in gold mines which have become dangerous workplaces. After having seen a drop in mining accidents in South Africa, this all changed last year.

Laws and regulations seem unable to stop the rising death tolls from mining accidents. The Mining Health and Safety Act, which set up an inspectorate to monitor safety standards and stop violations, appear to have improved safety over the years before the reverse started happening.

IndustriALL Global Union affiliate the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is “concerned at the rate at which mining incidents are happening at Sibanye Stillwater”.

Says Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL director for mining:

“South African mines are increasingly becoming dangerous death traps for mineworkers, and this situation can’t be allowed to continue. The health and safety of workers who toil daily to feed their families is very important and mining companies have a responsibility to ensure safety standards that safeguard the precious lives of mineworkers are adhered to.”

Gwede Mantashe, the minister of mineral resources, says mining companies should put “greater attention to issues of safety, particularly the protection of lives of workers as opposed to the insistence on chasing production.” He promises that the government of South Africa will put together a team of experts to investigate the seismic activities.

What is the ILC?

Who goes to the International Labour Conference (ILC)?

Every member state can send a delegation consisting of:

Each delegate has one vote in the Conference plenary. Delegations also include advisers but they do not have voting rights.

The worker delegates are invariably drawn from national trade union centres, while government delegates are often Ministers of Labour. Heads of State or Prime Ministers also visit the Conference. International organizations, such as IndustriALL Global Union, attend as observers.

Setting standards

The International Labour Conference adopts ILO Conventions and Recommendations, which are drawn up by representatives of governments, workers and employers. Conventions are legally-binding international treaties that can be ratified by member states.  Recommendations are non-binding guidelines.  A Convention needs majority support of two-thirds of voting parties at the Conference for it to be adopted. Once adopted, member states are required by the ILO Constitution to submit them to the relevant authority, usually their parliament, for consideration for ratification.

Supervisory role

All member states must issue a report to the Conference detailing how they are complying with the ILO’s core Conventions and Recommendations (ratified or not) every three to five years depending on the Convention.

The Committee of Experts was set up in 1926 to examine the growing number of these reports. The Committee is made up of eminent jurists appointed by the Governing Body for a period of three years.

The annual report of the Committee of Experts is usually adopted in December and submitted to the Conference in June, were it is examined by the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards.

What is the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards (CAS)?

The CAS is an essential part of the ILO’s supervisory system in that it checks how ILO standards are being applied by member states. The CAS is made up of representatives of government, employer and worker delegates and is a standing committee of the International Labour Conference.

Worker group representatives negotiate with employer representatives to establish a list of around 20 countries where there are serious violations of ILO Conventions they have ratified. Governments are invited to respond and provide information on the issue in question and the cases are discussed in the plenary of the Conference.

The preliminary list of 40 cases for possible discussion at the 2018 CAS (long list), as prepared by the social partners, is now available on the ILO website. Out of those cases, 24 will be selected for the CAS discussion.

The CAS makes recommendations to governments to take action to resolve issues, and can advise the ILO to carry out fact-finding missions or provide technical assistance.

The CAS publishes its conclusions every year in a report.

Global Report

The International Labour Conference examines the Global Report, which is prepared by the International Labour Office as a requirement of the Declaration of Fundamental Principles of Rights Work. Over a four-year cycle, the Global Report examines the ILO’s four fundamental rights which are:

Setting policy and a forum for discourse

Delegates to the International Labour Conference pass resolutions to provide guidelines for ILO policy and activities. Every year, the Director-General of the ILO (currently Guy Ryder) presents a report to the Conference, which is often the basis for discourse. In 2017, the theme is: Working in a changing climate: The Green Initiative.

Why is the ILC important for trade unions?

The International Labour Conference brings together workers, governments and employer representatives on an equal platform. Through the workers group, national and global trade unions can influence government and employers’ policies, for example in the drafting of Conventions, and also in the monitoring of their implementation in member states. The Conference is also important to trade unions because:

•It is a chance to hold governments to account for labour abuses in their countries.

•It gives cases of labour rights abuses an international platform.

•It can help to resolve violations by making recommendations for action to governments and through sanctioning technical assistance to member states.

For more information go to www.ilo.org 

IndustriALL Global Union signs global framework agreement with Essity

The agreement safeguards the rights of 48,000 workers across Essity’s global supply chain.

The Essity GFA was born from the corporate split in 2017 of SCA, with whom IndustriALL had a GFA since 2004. Now IndustriALL has a GFA with both SCA and Essity. At the time of the split, three IndustriALL affiliates in the home country Sweden had significant membership at Essity. Traditionally Pappers of Sweden took the lead on the SCA GFA. After the split, the largest membership at Essity was with IndustriALL affiliate Unionen, who now takes the lead. IF Metall also has significant membership at Essity.

The Essity GFA text matches the latest version of the SCA GFA which was improved at its renewal signing in 2013. The content then was adapted to meet requirements in line with the 2012 IndustriALL Guidelines for Global Framework Agreements.

The agreement commits Essity to respecting their employees’ rights to join the union of their choice, and to good faith collective bargaining. It covers the issues of working-time and compensation for overtime, as well as a principle of equality towards all employees; permanent, part-time or contract staff.

Also in the agreement are Essity commitments to training, health and safety, non-discrimination, and fair wages, among other important items.

The agreement sets up a review body that will meet every two years including IndustriALL, Essity, Unionen and the EWC.

IndustriALL affiliates with membership at Essity around the world are: IG BCE, Germany; Unionen, IF Metall, Pappers, Sweden; Unite, UK; USW, USA; NSZZ Solidarnosc, Poland; TRIWU, Russia; Pro-Ge, Austria; CFMEU, Australia; Paperiliitto, Finland.

Glencore: Unions voice concerns and demands to shareholders

Trade union representatives from Australia, Canada, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Italy, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland and Zambia demonstrated outside and later attended the meeting. They were joined by representatives of NGOs, who came together to build a blue-green alliance to fight the company.

Speaking outside the meeting, held at a casino on the shores of Lake Zug, IndustriALL Global Union assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“Glencore gambles with people’s lives and livelihoods. How appropriate that capitalists hold their meeting in a casino! We are here to say that Glencore is rotten to the core.”

“We are outraged, angry and concerned with the practices of Glencore on the ground, with violations of human and trade union rights, bad health and safety conditions, increasing outsourcing and precarious work. We are here to show the real face of the company, rather than the face that the company wants you to see.”

Union leaders gave shareholders a briefing highlighting the labour, social, governance and environmental risks of Glencore’s behaviour, with information not reported in the company’s annual report. For instance, Glencore’s lockout at the Oaky North mine in Australia cost the company $450 million, and abusive and conflictual industrial relations creates conflict which threatens company performance in a way that is not beneficial to shareholders.

The delegation asked a number of uncomfortable questions during the meeting. Pierre Tshinguz of IndustriALL affiliate TUMEC in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) raised the abysmal conditions for workers at the Mutanda and Kolwezi mines, while Claudia Blanco of Sintracarbón in Colombia spoke about poor health and safety and the persecution of trade unionists at the Prodeco mine. Claude Kabemba of Southern Africa Resource Watch raised pertinent questions about the extraction of huge amounts of mineral wealth from the region, with very little return to the local community.

In a conversation with the trade union delegation after the meeting, CEO Ivan Glasenberg pledged to organize a joint union-management mission to DRC to investigate the issues raised. IndustriALL previously sent Glencore a report on its mission to DRC, offering a joint mission to improve the situation.

Glencore union network

In the days prior to the meeting, the Glencore union network met in Zurich to coordinate the campaign. Union leaders spoke of their experiences: John Silungwe of the Mineworkers Union of Zambia said that when 4,300 miners were retrenched from the Mopani mine, production targets remained the same, forcing some categories of employees to spend excessive time, sometimes more than 24 hours, underground.

Stephen Smyth, president of Queensland branch of IndustriALL’s Australian affiliate CFMEU Mining & Energy, spoke about the bitter 238 day lockout at Oaky North, which involved company security following the wives and children of union members around town and photographing them.

Common themes emerged from the workers’ testimonies, including environmental degradation, the intimidation of trade union activists, a haphazard approach to health and safety, and Glencore’s frequent claim to not be making any money at its operations.

Speaking about the environment, Pierre Tshinguz said that after toxic chemicals were released at Mutanda, a fish species died out, and others declined dramatically. He expressed concern for local children who wash in the water.

Claudia Blanco also reported that in April, the company released waste water that killed fish. Workers are blamed for accidents, and when they become ill, they are either laid off, or sent to work in terrible conditions at a mine the workers call Guantanamo.

“We will campaign until the company commits to meaningful dialogue to address serious violations across its operations” said Kemal Özkan.

Workers unite to take action against General Electric

Timed to coincide with the General Electric (GE) annual shareholders’ meeting, workers in Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK took part in a European Action Day to demonstrate against the plant closures, as well as plans to shut down R&D centres and cut innovation investments.

"With over 125 years of activity in Europe and the high-level expertise and technical know-how GE workers have developed, GE has become a key player in equipping Europe’s energy production”, stressed Luc Triangle, industriAll Europe General Secretary. “It is highly disappointing that GE seems ready to scrap everything they and their workers have achieved for the sole purpose of generating short-term cash and shareholder value.” 

In North America, more than 150 General Electric workers and retirees represented by IndustriALL Global Union affiliates, Unifor in Canada and the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE), formed a picket outside the shareholders’s meeting which took place near Pittsburgh, USA.

General Electric has announced that it will cease operations in Peterborough, Ontario later this year, eliminating approximately 358 good manufacturing jobs.

Bill Corp, President of Unifor Local 524 in Peterborough, Ontario said:

“GE has walked away from the workers and communities that the corporation was built upon, leaving illness clusters, environmental damage and devastated local economies behind.”

Unifor and EU have united to launch the ‘General Electric Commit to our Communities’ campaign to transform the labor movement based on democratic, social unionism and international cooperation between American and Canadian workers.

Kan Matsuzaki, Director ICT Electrical&Electronics IndustriALL, said “GE management has intensified its attacks on sustainable jobs in many countries and disrespected the long-term commitments made with employees and communities where it operated. GE management must work together with trade unions representing GE workers with a view to achieve a fair and just social business model.”

GE unions around world will get together at the IndustriALL Global Union Meeting of the General Electric Trade Union Network in Toronto, Canada on 7-8 May 2018 to increase workers’ collective power and discuss strategies to engage with the company at the global level.

LafargeHolcim, keep your word, respect workers’ lives!

In the last two years, more than 150 people have been killed while working for LafargeHolcim, with many more were injured at work. And yet LafargeHolcim continues to expose workers to hazardous substances that cause debilitating and fatal illnesses in the future.

Several workers have already lost their lives in 2018, among them at least two in India and one in Belgium. Unions are asking how many more need to die before LafargeHolcim decides to engage in proper social dialogue and talks with workers and unions about health and safety.

Matthias Hartwich, IndustriALL director for materials industries sector says:

We thought the company had some decency claiming to be world leading for their workers and their rights. But we know that is not true as 35,000 have lost their job and more than 150 people have lost their lives. Shareholders’ high annual dividend of 2 CHF is paid with workers blood, sweat and tears.

Most of the protests and actions were organized on 28 April, the day of commemoration of dead and injured workers, remembering those who gave their lives while working for LafargeHolcim.

Protests took place in, among other places, Austria, Belgium, France, Greece, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Italy, Lebanon, Switzerland, Uganda, USA and Canada. Adding up all the protests around the world show the level of engagement of workers who are fighting for the fundamental human right to live.

All the while LafargeHolcim tries to quiet down workers by only allowing the activities to take place outside of working hours: In Indonesia, management forbade workers to mourn and pray for their killed co-workers around the world, saying this was not work related.

Unions are demanding that LafargeHolcim:

• Start a genuine dialogue with unions, sign a Global Framework Agreement on workers’ rights and a global agreement on occupational health and safety as an integral part of it

• Increase protection for vulnerable workers, especially subcontracted and third party workers, and bring outsourcing in the company under control

• Prioritize the prevention of occupational diseases, including respiratory diseases caused by exposure to dust

• Respect ILO health and safety standards and ensure unions have access to workplaces and the right to make inspections and recommendations.

North American unions ready to challenge cement multinationals

IndustriALL's North America cement network discussed the situation of the countries neighbouring China that has started exporting its overproduction. Today, China stands for more than 50 per cent of the global cement production and increases price pressure on other cement producing countries in Asia.

Delegates paid special attention to the coordination between trade unions on how to deal with the multinational corporations that dominate the US and Canadian cement and ready-mix concrete market. There was a substantial discussion about the major multinationals, including LafargeHolcim, HeidelbergCement and CRH.

Matthias Hartwich, IndustriALL director for materials industries, raised LafargeHolcim‘s broken word earlier this year, to improve social dialogue by concluding a global framework agreement, including a strong part on occupational health and safety.

Hartwich said that the company is on a bad trend of shrinking their business worldwide through divestments and sales. At the merger in 2015, the company had 115,000 employees; today there are 80,000. Annual net sales are down almost 25 per cent.

However, shareholders' dividends of CHF2 per share and the level of fatalities at LafargeHolcim operations remain high. Since LafargeHolcim has stopped social dialogue and workers’ involvement in health and safety discussions, working conditions are deteriorating.

In 2016 and 2017, more than 150 workers lost their lives while at work for LafargeHolcim. Trade union demands remain the same:

Feliciano Gonzalez, new Head of HR in LafargeHolcim, joined the meeting via telephone, answering questions on the misbehaviour of management in the USA and Canada. In some cases Gonzalez promised to raise the issue at the global level and get back to the local management seeking solutions. 

Participants also discussed the situation in HeidelbergCement and CRH. Although these companies have different strategies, it is still necessary that trade unions in Canada and the USA coordinate their efforts to improve their impact. A core achievement is better coordination between the network unions when it comes to collective bargaining agreements and re-negotiations.

Delegates expressed their support to LafargeHolcim workers in a solidarity action for the global day of action on 28 April.

Matthias Hartwich concluded the meeting by saying:

I am very glad that our affiliates from Canada and the USA are working together to raise workers‘ voice in the cement multinationals and beyond. It sends a strong signal that companies cannot hide, wherever they go. Together with our affiliates, we challenge any anti-worker policy in the sector.