IndustriALL affiliates ready to tackle minimum wage in Uganda

During an IndustriALL Global Union workshop in Kampala on 25 and 26 August, supported by the FES, 25 workers, including 9 women, from affiliate unions in the mining and metal, textile, chemical and engineering sectors came together to determine how to engage the government on the revision of the minimum wage. Participants also looked at ways trade unions can contribute to establishing a minimum wage that is decent and will improve workers’ lives in Uganda.

Yoweri Museveni, who has been President of Uganda for the past thirty years, has recently softened his position on the minimum wage, so together unions at the workshop decided to be proactive and take a common approach in setting an agenda for discussions around the minimum wage, as well as other potent labour issues.

Workers were taken through the pros and cons of a minimum wage versus industry bargaining where workers are set to benefit more. The latter would however necessitate strong national unions in the various sectors, which is currently not the case. Uganda has seen a fragmentation of unions over the years in all sectors, weakening union’s bargaining power.

Affiliated unions at the workshop agreed to:

Italian metalworkers dedicate one-hour's work to solidarity with earthquake victims

In an exemplary show of solidarity by IndustriALL Global Union affiliates, FIM, FIOM and UILM, have resolved to collect funds in support of people and communities affected by the recent tragic disaster affecting central Italy.
 
In their joint press release on 25 August the unions declared, “FIM, FIOM and UILM promote fundraising in support of communities affected by the recent devastating earthquake, which will consist of the donation of one hour of work in solidarity, and ensure that these resources are allocated in a traceable and transparent way to the reconstruction.”
 
The devastating tragedy with its epicentre near the village of Amatrice happened early in the morning on 24 August at 3:36 am. This is the worst disaster since the 2009 L’Aquila earthquake, when 308 people were killed. The earthquake has claimed the lives of at least 267 people and left 365 injured, some hospitalized in a serious condition. Half of the buildings have been destroyed leaving thousands of people homeless.
 
Together with their national confederations, CGIL, CISL and UIL, the Italian metalworkers have set up a special current account as a concrete measure in support of the earthquake victims. The details of the account and operating modalities would be communicated later.

Los Mineros fight against layoffs at PKC and Teksid Mexico

Both PKC and Teksid are notorious for union busting practices against workers who wish to be represented by a democratic union. The companies resort to all means including threats, suspensions and dismissals to intimidate and punish those who express their support for the union Los Mineros.
 
The Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores Mineros Metalúrgicos y Similares de la República Mexicana – better known Los Miners – is campaigning to win the next vote and become the workers’ representative in collective bargaining in both companies. Their adversary is the yellow union, the Confederation of Workers of Mexico (CTM).
 
On 12 August Los Mineros organized a peaceful demonstration near the plant and Arneses y Accesorios PKC in the city Acuna, Coahuila, and handed a letter to the Federal Board of Conciliation and Arbitration (JFCA). In the letter the union demanded that the 500 dismissed workers be reinstated and the company finally abide by the decision of the JFCA, which was in favour of workers who were made redundant back in 2012.
 
They also noted repeated threats and anti-union practices used by the transnational company in order to prevent workers from voting freely for the mining union.
 
"The government is protecting transnational corporations so that workers who struggle to improve their working conditions do not dare to raise their voice. This is why we hold our demonstration," said one of the union leaders during the demonstration.
 
Meanwhile, workers of Teksid Hierro, which is part of Fiat Chrysler Group, have been fighting since 2014 against abusive retaliation by the company to those who expressed their desire to join Los Mineros. On 15 August the company dismissed 100 workers and 100 others were suspended without a justified reason.
 
"We denounce these practices as violating human and labour rights. This attitude is wrong and with the sole intent to scare and intimidate other workers, to stop them voting for the national union Los Mineros in the upcoming election,” said Manuel Prince Duron, delegate of the National Executive Committee of Los Mineros in Monclova.

Deputy Secretary General of IndustriALL, Fernando Lopes concluded:

"IndustriALL continues our support for the workers in their campaign for their rights of association to be respected and to reinstate all unfairly dismissed workers. PKC and Teksid must respect international standards including the ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association."

Women trade union leaders in South East Asia develop gender equality and advocacy skills

Forty-one women leaders from IndustriALL Global Union affiliates in Indonesia underwent training on gender equality in occupational safety and health (OSH) in Jakarta on 8-9 August 2016. The training aimed to provide women with the skills and knowledge to integrate women’s reproductive and maternal health into workplaces safety and health policies.

Representatives from the ministry of manpower and health were invited to share current OSH legislation that covers women’s safety and health, including maternity benefits. They indicated that they welcome social dialogue with workers, specifically on issues and concerns of women and maternal health.

Group learning exercises such as the identification of women’s and men’s reproductive health hazards at the workplace increased awareness of OSH. Through illustrations and drawings of their own workplaces, they were able to identify actual experiences of OSH hazards. They were also asked to draw a human body where key areas of the body are affected by such hazards.

Through these exercises, women were able to draw out plans and strategies on how to respond to occupational hazards. The inclusion of women or the formation of an OSH team was one of their identified strategies to respond to issues and concerns of women’s OSH. Plans also include initiating dialogue with the health ministry to advocate for improved legislation on maternity protection and to eventually push for the ratification of ILO Convention 183 on Maternity Protection.

In the Philippines, thirty women were trained on advocacy skills. A review of current legislation and international standards related to women was part of the training. Lorna Ferrer, the IndustriALL gender-maternity protection project coordinator, presented updates on the current campaign on gender-equality and maternity protection.

Representatives from network organizations that work on legislative advocacy and ILO ratification processes where invited to share their experiences. Each shared their experiences in supporting and proposing priority legislations and the complex process of ratifying ILO conventions. They encouraged   the women not to stop putting forward their agenda and to expand their networks of advocates to increase pressure to the government.

Participants deepened their understanding on the challenges related to advocacy and campaign activities. Though advocacy work is not simple, the women vowed to work hard and put all their efforts towards the passage of propose legislation to expand maternity protection and ratification of ILO C183 in the country.

They agreed to campaign for a maximum of 120 days and a minimum of 98 days maternity leave, consistent with ILO standards. Campaign planning will be undertaken to refine and firm up plans for the maternity protection campaign.

The training will be delivered in Cambodia and Thailand in September and October. Training on promoting gender equality in trade unions will continue in Myanmar, since more women particularly in the mining sector need to be provided with awareness on gender sensitivity.

Synchronized campaign activities are also planned for the commemoration of World Day for Decent Work on 7 October, with improved maternity protection as the main campaign goal.

Uruguay: paper union seeks to negotiate the rehiring of 270 workers

The situation of the National Paper Factory (Fanapel) in Uruguay is critical. 

Recently the company, which was founded in 1898, laid off 270 workers.  The company’s justification is that they were forced to stop production due to difficulties in selling to their main partners in Argentina, Brazil and Chile.

Since August 9th, when the company’s decision was announced, the Paper and Cellulose Worker’s Union (CUOPYC), represented by the Federation of Paper and Cardboard Workers of Uruguay (FOPCU), which is in turn affiliated with IndustriALL Global Union, has been seeking through dialogue and negotiations to the get those workers rehired.

At the latest meeting between the company, the ministry of labour and social security and the union, the ministry proposed that the workers should work 20 days a month and that the remaining days should be covered by unemployment benefits.  In that way they would be on partial unemployment insurance, depending on the demand for production required by the company.

Although at first the union agreed to the proposal, the company decided that the workers should begin work on Monday the 22nd, thereby upsetting the situation.

“The federation has had this problem for the last two weeks.  We were working on partial unemployment insurance when the company then decided that they had to start working on Monday the 22nd, which left the workers without unemployment insurance since they had not completed the legal period required to become entitled to it. 

“Management has no plans to remedy the situation. In any case, the union is prepared to seek alternatives, and the ministry of labour has also given assurances”, said FOPCU president Julio Burgueño.

Burgueño explained that the situation is causing uncertainty because the company has yet to make any clear proposals. Nevertheless, they will continue to negotiate until a solution is found which benefits all the workers.

Jorge Almeida, IndustriALL regional secretary, said:

“IndustriALL has been closely following events at Fanapel, and has been supporting the workers and FOPCU, while at the same time urging the company through dialogue to find a just solution to the dispute.”

Turkish workers strike at union busting Korean company Hyosung

Hyosung, a South Korean textile company, has defied the law to deny recognition to IndustriALL Global Union affiliate DİSK/Tekstil for five years. Now the union is taking strike action at the company’s plant in Çerkezköy, Turkey.

Opened in 2008, the textile factory employs 339 workers. In 2011, the union won statutory recognition under Turkish labour law by recruiting a majority of workers, and the Turkish Ministry of Labour and Social Security confirmed that DİSK/Tekstil had achieved the required legal majority to be the legitimate social dialogue partner.

However, the company challenged the decision of the ministry in a case that dragged out over five years. The company used this period to try to break the union, by using pressure and intimidation, and forcing workers to choose between their jobs and their union membership.

Conditions at the factory are bad, and the union alleges that environmental and health and safety laws are violated. The high unemployment in the area allows the employer to act with impunity. Hyosung has even adopted some of the union’s suggestions and claimed them as company initiatives in an attempt to undermine the union.

The case eventually went to the Supreme Court, where the right of the union to a collective agreement was confirmed in September 2015. Based on the Supreme Court ruling, the ministry issued a collective bargaining certificate in January 2016.

However, the company has failed to respond to any communication, and has refused to enter into negotiations for a collective bargaining agreement or participate in arbitration.

IndustriALL wrote in protest to Hyosung headquarters in South Korea in June. This was also ignored.

DİSK/Tekstil commenced strike action on 18 August 2016 in an attempt to force the company to the negotiating table.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“Hyosung’s behaviour constitutes a blatant violation of Turkish labour law as well as fundamental international labour standards, including Convention 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining of the International Labour Organization.

“We demand that the company stop its union busting, respects the verdict of the Supreme Court and the desires of its workforce, and recognizes the union.

“We stand firm in our support of our affiliate DİSK/Tekstil until this dispute is won.”

South Korean companies have a bad reputation for labour rights in Turkey and around the world. The South Korean model is seen as one where the state protects the interests of capital. The recent serious repression of trade union rights in South Korea suggests that the country’s multinational corporations believe they can export their way of doing business with no respect for local laws.

South African petrochemical workers win three-week strike

The deal is the culmination of a three-week strike that started on 28 July and was supported by some 15,000 petroleum workers at refineries, including the biggest owned by Chevron, Shell, BP and Sasol.
 
The strike affected the fuel supply in Gauteng province, where two of the country’s most important cities are located, the capital Pretoria and the largest city Johannesburg, the industrial hub of the country.
 
Although the quantitative effect of the strike was not extremely high, the strike forced the employers to recur to contingency measures to prevent fuel disruption across the country.
 
The initial workers’ demand included a 9 per cent wage increase, to compensate for the current inflation rate of 6.3 per cent. According to the new agreement the employers will pay 7 per cent raise this year and 1.5 per cent hike next year. Workers will receive their increase starting from July.
 
According to the new agreement employers also met workers’ demand for shift allowance although at a smaller rate.
 
Workers are supposed return to their workplaces on Monday, 22 August.
 
Commenting on the reached agreement CEPPWAWU chief negotiator, Jerry Nkosi said, “The strike was generally successful and finished with workers’ victory and improved working conditions. One disturbing factor though is that some companies including  SASOL and Total at the the refinery called Natref used union bashing tactics by paying workers a bonus for no participation in a strike. The strategy backfired, as the company later stopped the payments, but that has already dampened the moral of other workers in other establishments such as Engen, Shell and BP. This made the strike also difficult for the union.”

Turkey: IndustriALL repeats its call for full democracy as crackdown on fundamental rights escalates

IndustriALL unequivocally condemns the coup of 15 July. While the Erdoğan administration has grown increasingly anti-democratic, a military coup lead by another faction of the elite is no solution to the problems the country faces. Turkey needs more democracy, not less.

The coup attempt was allegedly led by members of the congregation founded by the self-exiled cleric Fethullah Gülen, and defeated thanks to people at the grassroots rallying to the defense of democracy. Without a popular base of support, it could not succeed.

However, the Erdoğan administration has used the opportunity of the coup to suspend democracy and declare a three month state of emergency covering the whole country, approved by parliament on 21 July by 346 (AKP and MHP) votes to 115 (CHP and HDP), for the first time since the military dictatorship of 1980. The country is now run through government decrees and executive orders, subject to approval by the Parliament after they are issued.

In the month since the coup, the government has embarked on a large scale crackdown, not just against alleged conspirators, but also against democratic opposition and civil society, with the claim that they are also connected with the failed coup attempt. This appears to have turned into a witch-hunt.

So far, around 80,000 people have been suspended from work, and some 5,000 have been sacked. According to recent reports, more than 20,000 people have been detained and many remain in custody. This includes thousands of teachers and educators, journalists, civil servants, judges and even football coaches.

There are public reports and images that many of these workers are union members who have been suspended from work with no due process, with some being subject to beating and torture torture.

The European Convention on Human Rights has been suspended by the government, and more than 130 newspapers, TV and radio stations have been closed, schools, hospitals and companies have been shut, political parties and union offices have been raided, and private property has been confiscated.

This is in addition to an existing crackdown of workers’ rights, which has seen our Turkish unions struggling to defend members in extremely difficult circumstances.

IndustriALL Global Union shares the deep concerns of its sister global unions Education International and Public Services International about Turkey’s ongoing and large scale violations of core International Labour Organization standards.

IndustriALL believes that without credible evidence demonstrating illegal activity with the purpose of bringing down the Turkish government, no worker should be suspended or dismissed.

The state of emergency gives extensive rights to governors to arbitrarily intervene to stop union activities, such as banning the printing and distribution of leaflets or any other union bulletins.

IndustriALL supports the call to stop using failed coup attempt as a union busting excuse. Unions around the world have condemned the repression, and called for solidarity in defense of democracy and workers’ rights in Turkey. Along with the stance of IndustriALL affiliates worldwide, sister global organizations the ITUC and ETUC expressed great concern at the purge and the International Federation of Journalists has denounced the detention of scores of journalists.

IndustriALL is deeply concerned about the developments in Turkey, and stands in solidarity with our Turkish affiliates and the people of Turkey in their struggle for democracy.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“We demand that those responsible for the coup and for the deaths of 249 innocent people be identified, and held responsible through a transparent judicial process.

“The coup must not be used as justification to crackdown on opposition groups, civil society and trade unions.                            

“We demand the Turkish authorities respect and apply fundamental rights in line with the international and European standards to which the Government has already subscribed.

“Turkey needs democracy and peace, so all of its people can freely practice their beliefs, express their thoughts and live in dignity. We will continue to support our affiliates and the people of Turkey in their struggle for democracy.”

Breakthrough for Ansell workers in Sri Lanka

Some 281 workers at Ansell Lanka, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ansell Limited in Sri Lanka, were fired in November 2013 after they took strike action in support of 11 discharged colleagues and trade union representatives of FTZGSEU. While Ansell’s termination of the striking workers was upheld by Sri Lanka’s highest court, IndustriALL and the FTZGSEU have engaged in a long but constructive dialogue with Ansell to resolve these issues.

In a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Ansell Limited, IndustriALL and the FTZGSEU on 5 August 2016, Ansell says it anticipates rehiring many of the former employees as it opens vacancies for hundreds of new jobs at its Sri Lankan operation in the Biyagama Export Processing Zone. Ansell is also offering early retirement packages for more than 40 workers.

Although FTZGSEU lacks sufficient representation to be a recognized collective bargaining representative for the Ansell Lanka factory, Ansell has agreed not to take any actions to prevent FTZGSEU from lawful and reasonable activities to organize Ansell Lanka workers. Ansell has reaffirmed its commitment for the rights of all employees to freedom of association. The Company also agrees not to discriminate against the workers if they are rehired and will assume a positive attitude to the former workers and towards their rehiring.

FTZGSEU Joint Secretary Anton Marcus said:

We welcome this offer from Ansell and hope it marks the start of improved relations with the Company. We commend the strength and solidarity shown by workers, and expect that all those who want to and are qualified to return to Ansell Lanka will be rehired. We thank IndustriALL and unions around the world for their solidarity support which has been instrumental in helping to achieve this settlement.

The MoU concludes an OECD complaint launched by IndustriALL against Ansell in November 2013.

IndustriALL’s General Secretary Jyrki Raina said:

We are happy to have reached this agreement with Ansell and that nearly 300 workers can at last look forward to a brighter future. We see this as the start of a new chapter and constructive industrial relations between IndustriALL, Ansell and our affiliates in Sri Lanka and in other countries where Ansell operates.

There will be follow-up meetings with Ansell in the next three and six months to monitor implementation of the MoU.

Garment workers in Tamil Nadu, India, win minimum wage hike

Years of struggle for Tamil Nadu garment workers paid off when the Madras High Court’s dismissed about 550 petitions filed by garment employers opposing a government order to increase the minimum wages for tailoring industry workers.

Minimum wages for garment workers were last revised in 2004. In 2005, the employers went to the court and stopped the wage revision

In 2012, the government formed an advisory committee and in October 2014, a government order announced new minimum wages revision for tailoring industry. Accordingly, the minimum wage for a cutter, the most skilled position, is Rs 8480 (US$ 127) while the helper, at the bottom of the skill pyramid, will receive Rs 7201 (US$ 107).

Although a low wage revision, employers still petitioned the court to cancel the government order. Garment workers’ unions also approached the court to contest the employers’ petition and to implement the wage revisions.

On 15 July, the Madras High Court ruled that the government’s order be upheld and stated that:

“minimum wages as notified shall be paid to the workers by the petitioners/management on and from the date of the notification as published in the Government Gazette, i.e. from December 2014.”

The court further directed the employers to pay the minimum wages along with the arrears within two months from the date of receipt of the court order, along with a 6 per cent interest from the date of notification till date of payment.

However, even after the court verdict, implementation of the new wages remains a major concern as large number of workers are not aware of the wage revision. Further, the Tamil Nadu government created a loophole when announcing a different set of very low minimum wages for the hosiery industry in January 2016, which will help employers to avoid paying higher wages.

Apoorva Kaiwar, IndustriALL Global Union South Asia regional secretary, says that:

“Most of the government workers are precarious workers employed on piece rate and weekly wages with no regular employment contract. As employers do not regularize the employment of precarious workers, they are forced to shift from one factory to other factories frequently. Trade union presence in the garment factories in Tamil Nadu is also very low as employers strongly resist the formation of unions.

“Together these factors pose challenges for workers to get statutory minimum wages and arrears. It is imperative that we organize strong trade unions among garment workers to ensure that the new provisions are implemented”.

The Garment and Fashion Workers Union (GFWU), which played a crucial role in representing workers, welcomed the court verdict and called for the implementation of the high court order in letter and spirit.

“Irrespective of the fabric they are working, all tailoring workers should be considered on par and minimum wages should be implemented equally for all workers.“