Free trade requires labour norms and democratic control

Free trade is not an easy issue for trade unionists. We have different opinions in our global family. Unions in countries that depend on exports, such as the Nordic countries and Japan, are in favour of free trade, albeit with conditions. Others like the North Americans say they have lost one million jobs because of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

In December 2014, IndustriALL Global Union’s Executive Committee agreed on a set of principles for the negotiations on trade agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada:

Unfortunately the TPP reached in October 2015 by 12 Pacific Rim countries after years of secretive negotiations, fell short of our demands. After a call by IndustriALL’s Executive Committee in December, a number of affiliates launched new action to stop the ratification of the trade agreement by the parliaments of the signatory countries.

One of the most controversial provisions in the TPP is the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism. It gives multinational corporations the possibility to seek billion-dollar damages from member states in private legal panels if they feel that laws or policies affect their profitability.

Such provisions have been used to attack public health measures, environmental and financial regulations, and employment and health and safety laws. Canada remains the most-sued country by foreign investors. At the moment US companies are seeking for a total of US$6 billion in damages from the Canadian government.

We cannot accept undermining democratic control and national sovereignty in keeping up high labour, social and environmental standards.

After considerable pressure from unions and civil society organizations, the European Commission made the TTIP negotiation procedure more transparent, launched consultations, and published a proposal on an investment court instead of the ISDS. However, European and US union leaders agree that such a court is unnecessary. Instead, TTIP needs to contain broad and enforceable protections for labour rights, public services, and the environment.

Free trade should be fair and create a level playing field for investment and development, in mutually equal and reasonable conditions for fair competition. Therefore fundamental labour rights such as freedom of association need to be an essential part of any trade agreement.  

Jyrki Raina

General Secretary

Sintracarbón celebrates bargaining victory at Cerrejón mine

The two-year deal, sealed on 15 March, includes a wage increase as well as improvements in health, education, and other benefits. Cerrejón, one of the largest coalmines in the world, is a joint venture between Anglo American, BHP Billiton and Glencore.

Early in the negotiations Cerrejón used the excuse of falling commodity prices to make a ‘final offer’ that demanded significant concessions from workers in terms of union rights, health and other benefits

At the beginning of March, 98.3 per cent of union members voted in favour of strike action unless an agreement was reached at the bargaining table. The union grew even stronger and more united as the conflict wore on, signing 300 new members during this period.

Union President Jairo Quiroz says that the union’s mobilizing strength, the legitimacy of its demands as well as the unwavering support of its members and of the wider community all contributed to the victory.  Sintracarbón has thanked IndustriALL Global Union and its mining affiliates for the international solidarity shown during the bargaining conflict.

Meanwhile, the struggle to ensure a fair deal for workers and communities continues. Just two days after signing the agreement, Sintracarbón and its members took to the streets as part of a broad-based nation-wide day of protest supported by unions, indigenous groups, students and others. “How is it possible that in resource-rich region of La Guajira, home to Cerrejón, children are dying of malnutrition?” says SIntracarbón. “We demand that La Guajira be seen through a different lens and that these issues be addressed urgently."

Crown evicts workers from Moroccan plant

Police began forcibly evicting workers from the company site in Agadir on 15 March, according to the Union Marocaine du Travail (UMT). Workers have been on strike at both Crown Packaging Maroc factories in Casablanca and Agadir since 2 March.

The strike was launched after a series of announcements made by the management in absence of negotiations and consultations with workers’ representatives.

Workers are particularly concerned about the lack of meaningful dialogue with the management, removals of equipment from the factories without prior negotiations, and non-application of a previous agreement signed in November 2014.

Other concerns include 60 dismissals announced without prior consultation with the union, pressure against workers forcing them to work more than 10 hours a day, and a limitation of workers’ access to social benefits.

In the letter to the Crown Holding Inc. leadership in Philadelphia, USA, Jyrki Raina, IndustriALL general secretary aligns with workers’ demands and says:

“It is imperative that Crown Packaging Maroc address the legitimate demands of the Moroccan Labour Union. Crown must engage meaningfully in social dialogue with the union, and respect the fundamental rights of workers to freedom of association and collective bargaining.”

Ukrainian coal miners demand industry support

The picket of the Verkhovna Rada building was organized by the Coal Mining Workers’ Union of Ukraine, IndustriALL Global Union affiliate.

During the picket, the local union chairmen spoke about the industry problems in their regions. Wage arrears, delays of the payments to the social insurance fund and pension fund, cut social guarantees, lack of funding for enterprise modernization, and non-shipment of coal are just some of the issues.

Two draft laws important for the coal mining industry were on the parliament session draft agenda for 17 March. The first draft law, proposed by the Coal Mining Workers’ Union of Ukraine, proposes to amend the state budget 2016 and to allocate state funding for state coal mining enterprises to the amount of 250 million hryvnia, an equivalent of US$9.3 million. The draft law also proposes allocating 100 million hryvnia (US$3.7 million) for the construction of the Novovolynskata Mine №10. 

The second draft law proposes amending the mining law of Ukraine regarding social guarantees of the coal miners and to provide a 50 per cent discount for the gas, electricity and heating payments, limited by the average consumption rate, for those coal mining industry workers who are entitled to get the domestic coal free of charge. 

Although, the parliament did not consider both draft laws that day, the union members met with the parliamentarians and the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman. Another meeting between the Coal Mining Workers’ Union of Ukraine, the Energy and Coal Industry Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn and the Finance Minister Natalia Yaresko is scheduled for 22 March and hopefully will lead to a compromise solution.

Women trade unionists in Morocco unite to influence equality legislation

Thirty women from the petroleum, energy, chemical, gas, textile, auto and pharmaceutical sectors met on 6 March in Casablanca for the workshop to mark International Women’s Day entitled “For an authority which reinforces equality between men and women, and fights against all forms of discrimination at work.”
 
Article 19 in Morocco’s new constitution affirms that men and women enjoy equal rights and liberties in all aspects of society including civil, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental spheres.
 
The constitution stipulates that a body must be created in order to achieve equality between men and women. The Moroccan parliament is now debating a draft law to set up the Authority for Parity and the Fight against all forms of Discrimination (APALD). The bill has come under heavy criticism from trade unions and women’s organizations alike.
 
Latifa Benwakrim from SNIPGN-CDT, IndustriALL’s Moroccan affiliate in the petrol and gas industry, said:
 
“Not only have trade unions been excluded from the discussions over the APALD, but the draft bill is limited to public life and does not apply to women at work. Women in the workplace face discrimination for their trade union activities, their family responsibilities, being pregnant and for taking maternity leave, which all create a hostile working environment. Women also face discrimination in the form of bullying and cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment in their place of work."
 
The goal of the workshop is to produce a list of recommendations so that the draft law will increase the remit of the APALD to protect all forms of discrimination against women in the workplace as well as in civic life.
 
“This new body to achieve gender equality cannot be controlled by the government. It has to be independent and it must be applied to women in the workplace. The new authority must also respect the constitution and the international standards and treaties to which  Morocco is a signatory.”
 
“There is a huge amount of discrimination against women, particularly in industrial sectors,” adds Benwakrim. “It is a very masculine environment. We want better working conditions for women and equal rights.”
 
Women at the workshop shared their opinions on APALD and discussed the different forms of discrimination suffered by women working in the industrial sector. They are now working on a list of recommendations to stop discrimination of women at work.

Mining unions come out fighting

Common threads running through the regional, sectoral and company network meetings included the need for a strong and coordinated union response to the commodities crisis, the need to build union power through organizing and effective collective bargaining, and ensure that union networks in the sector are strong, responsive and representative.

The regional meetings brought together participants from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Uruguay, who were joined for the global Anglo American meeting by delegates from Australia, Botswana and South Africa.

Says IndustriALL mining director Glen Mpufane:

We have to fight to defend decent jobs which are under threat as a result of the current commodity crisis, but we also have to be prepared for when the industry bounces back. Unions were caught on the back foot when the commodities industry collapsed, now we have to make sure the same thing doesn’t happen when it rises again from the ashes.

Based on the experiences of participants, a multi-pronged strategy to deal with the impact of the commodity crisis began to emerge. It includes using the crisis as an organizing issue; mobilizing to defend jobs; researching and articulating the counter-arguments for why the commodity crisis is not a blanket excuse to roll back worker rights; drawing on best practices from other countries as well as on the provisions contained in international standards; negotiating with employers and government to find alternatives to closures or layoffs; and as a last resort – if redundancies become inevitable – negotiating the terms and conditions of the layoffs in order to minimize the impact on workers.

Organizing and strengthening bargaining collectively was another major focus of the meeting.  Participants identified organizing strategies to bring precarious workers into their ranks as well as specific contract clauses to prevent the spread of precarious work and to ensure that precarious workers enjoy the same rights as their permanent counterparts. An in-depth analysis of collective bargaining agreements in Glencore and Anglo American is currently underway with a view to identifying common strategies.

In addition, regional network participants held a minute of silence for the many mining workers who have died in 2016 and planned for a day of action on 28 April to demand the ratification and full implementation of ILO Convention 176 on health and safety in mining.

Delegates also discussed strengthening their networks through improved coordination and representation, including the greater participation of women. The Anglo American global network agreed to incorporate women’s issues as a standing item on the agenda, as well as to distribute a sexual harassment policy and invite women speakers to address future meetings.

The regional network also held a press conference to express its solidarity with Sintracarbón, the Colombian coal workers’ union whose members at Cerrejón had voted overwhelming in support of strike action if the mining company, which is jointly owned by Anglo American, BHP Billiton, continued to demand concessions in contract negotiations. Sintracarbón has since successfully concluded the collective agreement.

The next meeting will be held in Bolivia as an indication of IndustriALL’s commitment to supporting mineworkers in the Andean country.

IndustriALL is grateful to SASK and Union-to-Union and its Swedish and Finnish affiliates for their support of the regional mining project and to FES for its support of the Anglo American network.

Workers killed at Glencore’s Katanga mine in Congo

Katanga is 75 per cent owned by the Swiss mining giant Glencore.

The mine suffered what Glencore calls a “geotechnical failure” – a landslide – on the wall of the open pit mine on the morning of 8 March 2016.  

Seven workers who were known to be in the area were unaccounted for. Three bodies were recovered two days after the incident. The other four bodies remain missing. Glencore reports that recovery teams are still searching for them. Meanwhile, the company has given financial assistance to the victims’ families for funeral costs and a mourning period.

The Katanga mine is near the city of Kolwezi, in the copper and cobalt belt in the south of the country. It is a brownfield site that is being redeveloped. Katanga boasts on its website of having “one of the lowest unit production costs in the world” at the site.

Cobalt is a vital component of mobile phone batteries. Attempts by mining multinationals like Glencore to push unit costs as low as possible contribute to a poor health and safety culture, and may have been a factor in this accident.

Glencore is one of the largest and most diversified mining and commodity companies in the world. The company is hostile to unions, and in many of its global operations is attempting to replace experienced permanent staff with precarious workers. Despite claiming to be an industry leader in health and safety, the company has a poor record and has run hazardous operations with untrained scab labour.

Glencore prioritizes resource extraction and low unit cost over safety and good working conditions. The company has long been the target of sustained union and community campaigns. IndustriALL operates a global network of union activists fighting for justice at Glencore.

Glen Mpufane, director of mining at IndustriALL, said:

We are deeply saddened by yet more loss of life at a Glencore mine and send our sincere condolences to the families of the victims. Glencore says it is a leader in health and safety in the mining industry but this latest tragedy makes a mockery of their claims. No amount of compensation from Glencore can make up for the loss of a loved one.

Mine safety crisis in Pakistan: 10 more people killed

Ten workers were killed in a mining accident on 12 March 2016 at the Al-Hussaini coal mine in the Doli area of Orakzai region, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Accumulated methane gas reportedly caused a blast inside the mine, while heavy rainfall added to difficulties in rescuing 27 workers who were trapped inside.

While comprehensive data on mine fatalities is not available, a survey of news reports shows that since 2010, at least 228 mineworkers have been killed in 38 separate incidents. This may be a low estimate, but nonetheless reflects the magnitude of the problem. The unabated loss of life proves that Pakistani mines continue to be operated with poor safety standards and bad ventilation.

Whether publicly or privately owned, workers face hazardous occupational safety standards and poor working conditions. Most workers are employed through labour contractors, are poorly paid and have no written contract. Many are paid in advance, and have their debt deducted from their wages, keeping them in debt bondage.

In many cases, mine management is not able to respond adequately to accidents. Professional rescue work often starts late. With a lack of professional medical support available close to mines, victims are often transported to distant hospitals, wasting precious life-saving time.

Neither injured workers, nor the families of those killed, receive adequate medical care or compensation. Despite the fact that methane gas explosions are a major cause of mining accidents, the government has failed to take the necessary corrective steps.

Poor labour inspection is major cause of non-compliance with safety laws in mining operations. The total number of labour inspectors in Pakistan increased from 293 to only 337 from 2001 to 2012, with just one labour inspector for every 250,000 workers in the formal non-agriculture sector of the economy.

In a letter to IndustriALL Pakistan Council, Jyrki Raina, general secretary of IndustriALL, said:

We repeat our demand that the Pakistan government urgently ratify ILO Convention 176 on Health and Safety in Mines and that, as matter of extreme urgency, it implement the ILO Code of Practice on Safety and Health in Underground Coal Mines.

Jyrki Raina visits Chile to support affiliates

During the Chile visit from 14-15 March, Raina visited IndustriALL affiliates, a mining company, and held meetings with the labour and interior ministers. The main objective of the trip was to give support to workers’ demands for labour reform, discuss the country’s industrial policy and encourage the government to sign ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines.

“I am here to confirm our support for our Chilean affiliates and the CUT, which are fighting for a fair labour reform that protects workers' rights. There are positive aspects to the work done by the Senate, but we think that it is also important to allow national inter-company negotiations. This would be an important and useful way of promoting labour relations that benefit everybody,” said Raina at the press conference.

Barbara Figueroa, president of the CUT, was also present at the press conference, said:

“Chile has not reformed labour relations for 30 years. We must conduct the current process with great care. It would be irresponsible to reject it completely because it does not meet all our expectations. We must remember we can continue this process of reform in the future. It has been a difficult period and a lot will depend on how trade unions make the most of these minimum provisions."

CONSTRAMET, CONSFETEMA and the FTC, all IndustriALL affiliates, gave critical support to the proposed reform and are still trying to improve it. They participated in a strike on 22 March in support of: “more democracy, reform now, a new constitution and a better Chile”.

Raina, together with Jorge Almeida, IndustriALL Regional Secretary and Marino Vani, Assistant Regional Secretary, also held meetings with the labour minister, Ximena Rincón, and mining minister, Aurora Williams, to discuss the government’s position on other issues of importance for workers, such as ratification of ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines.

The labour minister told them that Chilean mines in practice meet Convention 187 standards and that, on 28 April, the government plans to launch a new health and safety policy. In any case, she agreed to review the convention before that date. The mining minster provided figures showing an improvement in the health and safety situation.

Rio Tinto undermining right to strike

Rio Tinto’s drive to increase the use of precarious labour and inflexibility in prolonged negotiations provoked workers that load the aluminium onto ships for export to begin an indefinite strike on 24 February. The company has replaced the strikers with local management and management from France.

Rio Tinto has sunk to a new low by demanding both increased lower paid contractors and a denial of their right to strike,” stated IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan. “Backing that demand by importing strike breakers from overseas shows just how far this company will go in its reckless pursuit of a more precarious workforce.”

Rio Tinto imported two more strike breakers from France this week. Both have a long history as Rio Tinto human resource managers and a reputation as being inflexible in labour negotiations. Neither are known to have experience as dockworkers and one of them turns 60 this year, raising serious questions about their ability to do the job safely and about Rio Tinto’s claim that safety is its top priority.

IndustriALL is coordinating a response by the Rio Tinto Global Union Network to the company’s anti-labour practices against workers in Iceland. Unions in a dozen countries where Rio Tinto has operations have sent letters of solidarity and offers of further support.

IndustriALL has worked with its sister global union, the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), to track shipments from Rio Tinto’s Iceland smelter to different countries. Unions at customers of the smelter in Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK have expressed their support urging the customers to demand Rio Tinto negotiate a fair resolution of the strike. IndustriALL has also communicated with major Rio Tinto shareholders about the company’s attack on workers’ rights in Iceland.

Allowing Rio Tinto to import strike breakers and deny a category of workers the right to strike could expose the Government of Iceland to criticism at the ILO International Labour Conference which opens in May. It could also subject Iceland to a complaint with the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association.

Rio Tinto has recently faced two strikes in France. Workers at Carbone Savoie, which Rio Tinto is in the process of selling and where serious questions have been raised about health and safety, have struck in response to Rio Tinto’s failure to consult with unions on the sale and refusal to guarantee investment that would make the operation sustainable. Workers at the Dunkerque aluminium smelter have struck for a fair share of company profits.

“Rio Tinto has recently caused strikes in various countries through its approach to labour relations,” stated Kemal Özkan. “Rather than attempting to deny workers their fundamental rights, it’s time for Rio Tinto to work with unions in Europe and globally to develop a mature and constructive approach to industrial relations.”