UGT and CCOO strike at Iberdrola again over ‘Just Transition’ that leaves workers behind

It is the second general strike at Iberdrola in just over a year. The first took place on 6 June 2025, when over 9,000 workers walked out in the company’s first ever strike.

Sixteen months, no progress

Negotiations on a new collective agreement began in January 2025. Sixteen months on, UGT and CCOO say talks are exactly where they started, with the company unwilling to move on wage increases, restoring purchasing power, or working conditions.

Since 2021, the unions say, Iberdrola staff in Spain have lost 19 per cent of their purchasing power as wages rose only 2.8 per cent against far higher inflation. The unions describe the company’s pay offer as “a disgrace” for a company that calls itself a global energy leader. ELA and CIG are calling for a strike in the regions where they have presence, supporting the national strike.

Record profits, frozen wages

Iberdrola reported net profit of €6.285 billion in 2025. Since the current collective agreement took effect in 2021, net profit has risen 12 per cent, accumulating €24.924 billion in total profit over that period. The company’s market capitalization has reached close to €135 billion. Iberdrola, which describes itself as Europe’s leading electricity company by market value, is set to distribute more than €4.5 billion to shareholders for 2025.

Over the same period, the company’s executive chairman, Ignacio Sánchez Galán, increased his own remuneration by 6.45 per cent, to €14.11 million.

The unions say Spain accounts for 23 per cent of Iberdrola’s global workforce but contributed 46 per cent of its net profit in 2025, while the company’s own publicity about average pay of more than €88,000 per worker bears little resemblance to what staff actually take home.

A pattern of disputes

The unions point to repeated rulings against Iberdrola at Spain’s National High Court (Audiencia Nacional) in the past two years, including over an illegal two-tier pay scale, unlawful use of electronic voting in union elections, and a failure to uprate pension risk benefits in line with inflation.

UGT and CCOO representatives also maintained a five-day, round-the-clock protest outside Iberdrola’s Bilbao headquarters ahead of the company’s general shareholders’ meeting earlier this year.

The strike falls during the week Iberdrola is marking its 125th anniversary, tracing its origins to the founding of Hidroeléctrica Ibérica in Bilbao in 1901.

Just Transition, but not for workers

Iberdrola has positioned itself globally as a leader in delivering what it calls a Just Transition to clean energy, pointing to its coal plant closures and renewables investment as evidence of putting workers at the centre of the shift. UGT and CCOO argue that commitment looks different from the inside, accusing the company of doing exactly what unions have warned against for years: record profits and dividends at the top, frozen purchasing power on the shop floor.

“We stand with our Spanish affiliates as they take strike action for the second time in a year. Sixteen months of stalling is not negotiation, it is a refusal to engage. A company breaking its own profit records every year can afford to protect its workers’ purchasing power. A transition, whether that is closing a coal plant or restructuring an industry, is only “just” if it protects the jobs, pay and conditions of the workers it affects,”

said Atle Høie, IndustriALL general secretary.

IndustriALL Executive Committee meets in Geneva amid global turmoil

A world under pressure

IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie said the world is going through one of its most dangerous periods since the second world war. He pointed to growing pressure, with the wars in Ukraine, Gaza and Iran cited as part of a broader erosion of respect for international law and human rights.

In Ukraine, the government continues to push labour law reforms that would weaken protections, even as the country seeks EU membership, a contradiction that the EU needs to address.

The ILO itself is in crisis, as the United States has not paid its contributions, worth 21 per cent of the ILO budget, since 2023, with reports that the US delegation at this year’s International Labour Conference was instructed to exclude references to gender and Just Transition.

In Argentina, affiliate Unión Obrera Metalúrgica (UOM) re-elected its leadership in March with 85 per cent of the vote, only for the courts to overturn the result and suspend it for six months.

IndustriALL is also in dispute with Mercedes-Benz over its role in defeating a 2024 organizing vote at its Alabama plant and has announced it is withdrawing from its global framework agreement with the company while an NLRB hearing is under way.

A win amid the turmoil: the right to strike

Against this backdrop, participants welcomed the ICJ’s Advisory Opinion of 21 May 2026, confirming that the right to strike is protected under ILO Convention 87 on freedom of association. The ruling follows years of disputes at the ILO, where employer representatives have challenged that link and was referred to the ICJ after the workers’ group decided the question could no longer be left unresolved.

Trade, Cambodia and holding multinationals accountable

A discussion on trade, introduced by IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan, examined the impact of US tariffs on global manufacturing and the rise of protectionism. Speakers agreed that while unilateral tariffs are unlikely to bring back lost manufacturing jobs in the long run, trade has become more unfair, with European industries such as steel and automotive under pressure from Chinese competition.

IndustriALL president Christiane Benner argued for “local content” requirements as a legitimate, temporary response to unfair competition, while Atle Høie said the tariffs are also creating chaos for global clothing brands trying to adapt their sourcing strategies, with no sign that textile, garment, shoe and leather jobs are returning to the US.

Closing the session, Kemal Özkan said IndustriALL would continue to coordinate its work on trade at global, regional and sectoral level.

In Cambodia, eight years of work are bearing fruit: nine collective bargaining agreements have now been signed under the Cambodia template agreement, improving conditions for 15,000 workers.

This year the Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD) Competence Centre, led by executive director Kelly Fay Rodriguez was launched. The centre helps unions use HRDD laws to build worker power, supporting organizing, collective bargaining and binding outcomes for workers in global supply chains. [LINK to HRDD article]

Africa at an industrial crossroads

IndustriALL vice president Rose Omamo, also general secretary of the Amalgamated Union of Kenya Metal Workers, said Africa stands at an industrial crossroads. US tariffs and uncertainty over the African Growth and Opportunity Act have already cost jobs, with nearly 40,000 garment jobs lost in Lesotho alone, mostly affecting women workers.

Rose Omamo said:

“Industrialization without rights is exploitation. Industrialization without strong unions is unsustainable. Industrialization without decent work cannot withstand economic shocks.”

She highlighted the African Continental Free Trade Area as an opportunity for regional production and Africa’s role in supplying minerals for the green transition. Including cobalt from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, lithium from Zimbabwe and copper from Zambia, with examples of progress already under way in South African auto manufacturing, Kenyan electric buses and Rwandan electric motorcycles.

Advancing the gender transformative agenda

The Women’s Committee met on 10 June 2026 and elected new co-chairs from Sub-Saharan Africa and North America. IndustriALL assistant general secretary Christina Olivier told said that gender-related conclusions at this year’s International Labour Conference were hard won. With global unions helping secure language on human rights due diligence despite resistance from some governments.

Presenting the committee’s road map, the Sub-Saharan Africa co-chair, Regina Nambahu, said the gender transformative agenda goes further than a gender-responsive approach:

“Feminism is for everybody. It seeks equality for all and it is not anti-men.”

The road map covers care, pay equity, health, gender-based violence, human rights due diligence and Just Transition, with regional road maps due at upcoming regional executive committee meetings.

Welcoming the new Global Youth Committee

IndustriALL welcomed the first meeting of the global youth committee, established on 28 May 2026, which elected two co-chairs along with deputy co-chairs and a secretariat. Its priorities include strengthening youth representation across IndustriALL’s structures, building solidarity among young workers and monitoring the implementation of youth-related resolutions.

Closing the session, IndustriALL president Christiane Benner reflected on the significance of the moment:

“I remember the discussion we had in Sydney in the youth conference, when we said the future is now, another future is here. We wish you all the best, because you are influencing the future of the unions tremendously.”

Bangladesh: workers push labour reforms

The 2026 ITUC Global Rights Index marks real progress, but also records continued suppression of workers’ rights on the ground. In the context of global labour discussions, Bangladesh labour rights remain a key focus for advocates and observers.

New labour laws mark real progress for workers

The gains are real. Bangladesh ratified key ILO conventions: C155 on Occupational Safety and Health. C187 on its promotional framework and C190 on Violence and Harassment. These steps are significant improvements concerning labour rights in Bangladesh.

Reforms lowered the barrier to union formation. Labour regulations now cover the shipbreaking industry. Workers receive 120 days of maternity leave. Social security has been widened.

New laws empower workers to refuse hazardous tasks. An Employment Injury Scheme Fund has been established. Violence and harassment, gender-based violence and sexual harassment now have formal legal definitions. This is a serious move to confront workplace abuse. For sectors like textile and garment, millions of women have long faced harassment on the factory floor. These developments are critically positive for them in terms of Bangladesh labour rights progress.

These reforms answer years of worker pressure. Yet, Bangladesh still sits in rank five with no guarantee of rights. Freedom of association remains restricted through convoluted regulations and weak employer compliance, highlighting ongoing challenges for labour rights in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Accord anchors safety as gaps persist

Enforcement gaps persist. IndustriALL recently reported shipbreaking deaths that expose these failures. During recent IndustriALL webinars, union representatives noted that safety committees too often exist only on paper. Their campaigns now centre on winning workers the right to elect their own members to these committees. Alongside real inspections and genuine social dialogue on the new laws, advocates for Bangladesh labour rights are closely monitoring these developments.

The Bangladesh Accord emerged from the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster. It now acts as a strong lever for workers. The legally binding agreement ties 240-plus brands to UNI and IndustriALL and gives workers a mechanism to raise safety and health issues. It is now working on expanding the scope to cover all workplace complaints, rooted in the ILO Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. With the current Accord valid until the end of 2026, a strong renewal will carry these gains forward and further secure labour rights in Bangladesh.

IndustriALL general secretary, Atle Høie, says:

“These reforms are hard-won and worth celebrating, but laws only protect workers when they are enforced. IndustriALL will continue to support its affiliates in Bangladesh to ensure progress is not undone by weak implementation or new barriers to union organizing.”

Workers’ rights advance at 2026 International Labour Conference

The Decent Work in the Platform Economy Convention, C193, establishes global protections for the more than 150 million workers who earn their living through digital labour platforms. The adoption marks the culmination of negotiations launched at last year’s ILC and represents a major win for trade unions globally.

The Convention sets a precedent for the wider debate on artificial intelligence and the future of work. Platform work has been one of the clearest examples of algorithmic management being used to allocate tasks, monitor performance, determine income and deactivate workers. Too often this has happened without transparency, human review or effective remedies. It’s clear that technological change cannot be used to make workers invisible or place them outside labour protections.

The Convention covers algorithmic management, fair pay, social security and occupational safety and health. And it applies irrespective of a worker’s employment status. One of the Convention’s biggest achievements is its requirement that platform workers be correctly classified, guided by the primacy of facts. This strikes directly at the false autonomy and misclassification that has allowed platforms to deny workers their rights.

The ILC adopted strong conclusions on social dialogue and tripartism. The Workers’ Group secured key gains, including recognition of collective bargaining and freedom of association as fundamental pillars and a commitment to convene a meeting of experts on artificial intelligence and social dialogue. Conclusions also included language on sectoral and cross-border social dialogue.

Conclusions on a transformative agenda for gender equality at work were adopted despite sustained resistance from employers. The US delegation sought to reopen and redefine core gender concepts, complicating the process throughout. Workers’ Group delegates succeeded in defending critical language on psychosocial risks, intersectionality and gender bias in algorithmic and AI systems. Employers had argued that the question of AI gender bias belonged solely in the platform economy discussion.

Demanding accountability on Myanmar

IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie addressed the ILC’s special sitting on Myanmar. The ILO convened the session under the Article 33 procedure invoked against the military junta last year. Atle Høie highlighted the situation of approximately 450,000 garment workers earning less than US$100 per month. They work in factories operating under martial law, face military checkpoints, forced overtime and the risk of conscription. IndustriALL called for an end to preferential trade access for Myanmar, including under the EU’s Generalised System of Preferences and Everything but Arms scheme. IndustriALL reiterated its call for garment brands to commit to a responsible exit from the country.

Belarus: the fight continues

Trade union delegates gathered outside the UN’s Palace of Nations in Geneva on 4 June in solidarity with jailed Belarusian trade unionists. This coincided with Belarus facing a special sitting before the ILC’s Committee on the Application of Standards. Among those present was Aliaksandr Yarashuk, BKDP president, released after three and a half years in prison in Belarus. Dozens of union leaders remain imprisoned on fabricated charges. In the ILO credentials committee, questions were about the legitimacy of the official Belarusian delegation.

Said IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie:

“The ILC delivered real, concrete wins for workers. The platform economy Convention is a breakthrough; the international community has agreed that digital labour platforms must respect workers’ rights. Combined with strong conclusions on social dialogue, collective bargaining and gender equality, this conference demonstrated that tripartism can deliver meaningful outcomes even when powerful actors resist. The attempts by the United States to weaken language on gender equality and social dialogue did not prevail. IndustriALL will continue to hold governments and employers to account on every commitment made here.”

IndustriALL Anti-Corruption policy

PREFACE

IndustriALL is against all forms of corruption. At IndustriALL, we aspire not only to be compliant with regulations on finance, but also to act in a socially responsible manner.

The IndustriALL’s anti-corruption regulations are a guideline for all employees and others who act on behalf of IndustriALL, including the IndustriALL staff outside the Geneva Headquarters in the various parts of the world.

This guideline lists different types of corruption that IndustriALL might come into contact with in connection with, among other, international projects and development cooperation. It also describes the basic provisions and anti-corruption standards that should be met.

The main purpose of the guidelines is to prevent corruption. It is nonetheless important to point out that breaches of IndustriALL’s anti-corruption regulations or relevant provisions can entail disciplinary reactions, including termination of contract, dismissal of employees, freezing of financial support, and/or notification to relevant authorities. However, none of these punitive measures will be taken against staff members without consultation with the staff reps.

1. Introduction

1.1. Corruption

The objective of the anti-corruption regulation is to boost awareness and provide guidance for IndustriALL’s employees and others who act on behalf of IndustriALL, as well as IndustriALL’s partners, about what corruption is. The standards in IndustriALL’s anti-corruption regulations are comparable to those laid down in national and international anti-corruption legislation.

Corruption can be defined as giving / offering (active corruption) or requesting / receiving / accepting (passive corruption) an undue advantage in connection with a position, office or assignment.

In determining whether corruption exists, one must first consider whether there is an “advantage” and then whether it is “undue”. An advantage will usually have financial value, for example money, artefacts or services. An advantage can also exist without clear financial value.

An advantage is “undue” when it is obtained through a clearly blameworthy act. What is considered undue depends on a concrete evaluation in each individual case. Relevant elements in such an evaluation include the financial value and type of advantage, the purpose of the advantage, what position the parties involved have and whether there is a breach of internal regulations, contract, etc.

The undue advantage must be related to the recipient’s performance of his/her position, office or assignment.

Other types of irregularities can also occur, without corruption being involved. All in all, it can be difficult to decide whether a situation constitutes corruption (intentional breach of the anti-corruption regulations) or a lack of competency (unintentional breach).

1.2. Risk-based approach

IndustriALL is an employees’ organisation that cooperates and works with other organisations through processes that involve both the political authorities and business and industry. In this political landscape, particular challenges can arise with a view to transparency and the documentation of decision-making processes. Effective prevention of corruption requires that priority be assigned to areas, situations and issues relative to the risk they represent.

1.3. To whom do the anti-corruption regulations apply?

The anti-corruption regulations are there for all employees, elected officers and others acting on behalf of IndustriALL. This includes elected officers, all employees, contracted staff and others assigned to represent IndustriALL in delegations, on trips and at meetings. It is the responsibility of all employees to comply with the anti-corruption guidelines.

2. Typical cases and special risk of corruption

2.1. Corruption, typical cases

Corruption can be committed by IndustriALL’s own employees or by third parties acting on behalf of IndustriALL (so-called middle man corruption).

a. Bribes are the most common form of corruption, entailing attempts to influence someone to achieve something to which one is not entitled by granting or offering an undue advantage in connection with the person in question’s performance of his or her duties.

b. One type of bribe is that a supplier gives a buyer a reward (usually referred to as a “kickback”) for choosing to buy from the supplier, rather than from a competitor, or, perhaps, choosing a different quantity or quality than what is required by the employer.

c. Favouring friends and family can be corruption when someone, in return for an undue advantage, obtains an advantage (a job or something else) on subjective grounds.

d. Facilitation payments are payments to promote or ensure the implementation of services to which one is already entitled. Typical examples are requests from public servants for relatively small amounts of money to allow a traveller into or out of a country, to get inventory through customs or for permission to initiate an activity, such as training, for example.

e. Trading in influence occurs when a person gives someone (typically an intermediary) an undue advantage to influence a third party’s (the decision-maker’s) performance of his/her position. Illegal trading in influence can exist even when the decision maker is not aware of either the advantage or the lobbying assignment, and even if attempts to influence are not successful. Hidden lobbying can amount to illegal trading in influence.

2.2. Gross corruption

In addition to dealings with public servants as mentioned above, other elements are also of importance for determining whether corruption is gross or “simple”: it is of significance whether the act has or could have entailed a substantial financial advantage or whether there is a risk of substantial damage, and whether the situation also implies incorrect accounting information.

2.3. Situations that increase the risk of corruption

a. Gifts, entertainment and coverage of (private) expenses increase the risk of corruption since it is not appropriate to create or further develop a relationship between parties where the wish to cooperate is not necessarily based on professional factors or needs.

b. Political donations and other sponsorships can increase the risk of corruption because they can entail bribery, where undue advantages are given without any immediate quid pro quo, but where the expectation from the donor is typically that the quid pro quo will arrive at a later date.

c. Hiring processes can increase the risk of corruption, especially in countries with a great deal of corruption.

d. Dealing with cash and inadequate documentation for covering costs engenders an informal, undocumented economy that parallels the official project economy.

e. Procurements shall take place in accordance with a framework agreement or at the best possible market price.

2.4. About conflicts of interest

Employees / elected officers shall avoid conflicts between their own interests and the interests of the organisation. This means that employees and elected officers in IndustriALL should not try to obtain advantages that are inappropriate or by other means can be envisaged to harm IndustriALL’s interests.

If a conflict of interest has arisen or is suspected, any employee / elected official needs to report it to her or his immediate superior without undue delay. Where that is not possible or appropriate, and when a concern originates in an IndustriALL region where there is an IndustriALL regional office, reports should be made to the IndustriALL Regional Secretary, with a copy to the IndustriALL Assistant General Secretary responsible for the region. In a region without an IndustriALL regional office, reports should go to the global leadership of IndustriALL. If reporting through these channels is not possible due to a conflict of interest, the matter can be escalated to the President of IndustriALL.

In connection with especially important decisions, it is to be documented that potential conflicts of interest have been considered.

3. Exposure and follow up

3.1. Raising concerns

If an employee / elected official suspects corruption, she or he needs to raise the concern through the appropriate channels, so that the situation can be followed up. If the employee is in doubt about the right way to raise concerns, the IndustriALL chief financial officer can be contacted to help, as well as the IndustriALL Regional Secretaries and/or the IndustriALL General Secretary. If contact through these channels is not possible due to a conflict of interest, the matter can be escalated to the President of IndustriALL.

IndustriALL will do all it can to protect the whistle blower(s) from any potential negative impact. IndustriALL has a zero tolerance for any form of retaliation against whistleblowers who raise an anti-corruption issue. Any complaint shall be treated in confidence, guaranteeing anonymity where needed.

3.2. Responsibility for the anti-corruption regulations

All employees are responsible for compliance with the anti-corruption guideline, and every leader is responsible for ensuring compliance under his/her sphere of responsibility.

Responsibility for anti-corruption work at IndustriALL rests with the chief financial officer. Questions of interpretation and requests for guidance can also be directed to the chief financial officer, who will delegate the questions, if need be.

3.3. Follow up, monitoring

3.3.1. Anti-corruption procedures in general

IndustriALL will follow up on expressions of concern and matters that appear to be unwanted incidents. These routines require that cases be followed up with a view to surveying facts, looking after legitimate considerations for involved individuals, looking after relevant considerations for IndustriALL and other stakeholders, ensuring reasonable progress and a reasonable assessment and decision regarding how the case will be followed up once the facts are presented.

In addition to urging people to raise concerns, IndustriALL performs auditing of all its projects. Suspicions may be raised about possible corruption as a result of such monitoring or audits. In such cases, the case will be followed up in the same way as if it had come to light through a notification or official channels.

3.3.2. Violation of the anti-corruption regulations

Breaches of the anti-corruption guideline can entail disciplinary reactions for IndustriALL’s employees. Possible reactions can include warnings, loss of responsibility and position, dismissal or discharge, depending on the severity of the breach.

For those who represent, or in one way or another act on behalf of IndustriALL on an assignment, project or business trip, etc., breach of the guidelines could lead to other types of reactions, such as claims for financial compensation and consequences for further cooperation (included termination and reimbursement), as well as the “freezing” of funding.

In case of a serious violation or repeated violations, sanctions can also be adopted against a concerned affiliate, provided that the organisation knowingly failed to uphold the principles and provisions of this policy in a manner that could undermine IndustriALL and potentially affect the integrity of the organisation.

Where there is a suspicion of an unintentional breach of the regulations, it may also be relevant to undergo more in-depth training.

4. Review

This policy shall be subject to regular review, as and when deemed necessary by the IndustriALL institutional bodies.

Feminism: not only a women’s issue

There is a particular kind of energy that fills a room when people know they are part of something historic. That energy was alive in Geneva. The new committee gathered for the first time since Sydney, ready to build, not just talk.

Six months ago, IndustriALL said the word out loud: feminism. Not as a footnote. Not as a secondary objective. As the central political framework of the entire organization. Geneva was where the promise of Sydney met the road map for delivery.

“What we have adopted in Sydney does not remain on paper,”

said Christine Olivier, IndustriALL assistant general secretary.

“It must be seen and felt in our unions, in our workplaces and in the lives of our women. We have a mandate, a strong resolution, a clear road map and now we must deliver.”

The committee elected two new co-chairs.

Regina Nambahu, from the Mine Workers Union of Namibia, has been a union member since 21 years old with 17 years in the mining industry.

“When women lead, unions grow stronger. As co-chair, I will unite women’s leadership behind a feminist agenda, so every woman worker is heard, respected and empowered. Together, we make change.”

Nicole Fears, human rights director from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers in North America and a 32-year union member, added:

“I start with people. To build stronger workplaces and unions, we must understand what pulls us apart and what brings us together. My work builds relationships across differences and creates cultures of belonging where everyone has dignity, voice and value.”

Their election was more than procedural. It was a declaration.

A gender-transformative agenda that belongs to everyone

Women will not carry this transformation alone. The feminist resolution is not optional, it belongs to every affiliate, every structure and every leader, in every region of the world.

To ensure women’s structures do not carry implementation alone, the committee proposed regional road maps endorsed by regional Executive Committees. Both the secretariat and affiliates must take clear action.

The road map places pay equity at its core, recognizing the gender pay gap not as a statistic but as a reflection of deep-rooted structural inequality.

It puts care work firmly on the trade union agenda, demanding its recognition as a universal human right.

It also addresses occupational health and safety, human rights due diligence and just transition. Without tackling discriminatory norms and unequal power relations, the transformations reshaping work will exclude women. Underlying all of this is the urgent fight against a rising tide of masculinism.

What a gender-transformative approach means

The movement faces one of its most urgent battles: leaving no women behind. Joint research by IndustriALL Global and industriAll European Trade Union paints a stark picture. Across green and digital transitions, the figures project women will gain 23 million fewer jobs than men.

In Bangladesh’s garment sector, women’s share of the workforce has dropped from 80 to 56 per cent in three decades, partly driven by new technology. Across Asia, discriminatory stereotypes push women out of automation-created roles.

Lack of confidence and cultural norms that label technical work as male hold many women workers back from upskilling.

Gender-transformative human rights due diligence is key to closing gender gaps in supply chains. Mine operators in Botswana do not design protective clothing for pregnant bodies. Women’s voices remain absent from bargaining tables. IndustriALL is developing guidelines to embed gender equality into its work with multinational corporations.

While the women’s committee advances its agenda, ILO negotiations in Geneva have been long and tough with the US and Argentina rejecting even the terms gender and every gender related issue. The case for trade union leadership has never been clearer.

Young women teach the room

If there was a single moment that captured the soul of the day, it came when young women took the floor. Mentees from IndustriALL’s mentoring projects in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia stood up and did something quietly groundbreaking. They taught and led. These mentees issued demands to a room of experienced trade union leaders and the room listened.

They named it without hesitation: being invited into spaces for the photograph but excluded from decisions; being held back by imposter syndrome; watching unions carry gender commitments in policy documents and nowhere else.

“Decisions are made by those who sit at the table,” one mentee said. “When women are not present in leadership structures, our priorities are overlooked. This is not a women’s issue. It is a collective bargaining issue. If we want stronger unions, we need stronger women’s participation.”

Bringing men in

The day closed with one of its most important conversations. IndustriALL general secretary, Atle Høie, spoke with an honesty the room will not forget.

“Ten years ago, I had no clue what a gender-transformative agenda was,”

he said.

“Eventually it gets quite logical. If you don’t attack the root causes, you will never solve the problem.”

Change needs more than passion. It needs direction, accountability and the courage to demand that everyone, not just women, carries the weight of change. The road map exists. The mandate is clear. Now every affiliate, every structure and every leader must decide whether they will carry it.

Union gears up organizing Namibia’s auto workers

MANWU, an IndustriALL affiliate, wants to boost its membership in the sector.

Namibia’s automotive sector is growing. The government has backed original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), most notably Peugeot, as anchors for a domestic industry. But the Peugeot project has stalled. The carmaker has struggled to sustain sales in the local market and has not broken into exports. Fewer jobs have been created as a result.

New entrants, among them Chinese manufacturers, are expected to make in-roads into Namibia’s still-modest market. Meanwhile, the government is laying groundwork for an electric vehicle (EV) industry. This is in line with a Just Transition policy that seeks to ensure the shift to clean transport does not happen at workers’ expense.

Learning the basics

The workshop, supported by IndustriALL Sub-Saharan Africa regional office, covered occupational health and safety (OHS), workplace case handling, organizing strategies and the Just Transition.

OHS committees were described as a centrepiece of the training. Workers learnt how to establish and run such committees. When they function properly, the committees are among the most effective mechanisms available. They reduce injuries, enforce legal protections and give workers a formal voice over working conditions. In a sector where safety risks are common and enforcement uneven, health and safety are key.

“We came to learn how to handle cases at the workplace, to know our rights and what the union can do for us,”

said Stephanie Kapuka who works at Gobabis Toyota.

Case handling including navigating disciplinary procedures, grievances and disputes were discussed. For workers without specialist legal training, workplace conflicts can feel unwinnable. The workshop aimed to change that, building confidence alongside competence.

Participants were honest about the organizing challenge. Collective bargaining improves only when membership grows. Workers must trust that the union can deliver. And the union must have the numbers to sit at the negotiating table.

Just Transition

In Namibia, where mining and manufacturing are central to livelihoods and under pressure from decarbonization, the meaning of the Just Transition is contested. For MANWU’s members, just transition means the automotive sector will be transformed. The global push for EVs is reshaping the industry, even if uptake in Namibia remains low. If workers are not at the table, the costs will fall on the most vulnerable. That was the clear message from the shop stewards. MANWU is participating in national Just Transition discussions and wants to ensure that shop stewards can translate the policy language back to the shop floor.

“I want to understand what Just Transition means for our jobs, not just to hear the phrase but know what it actually means for workers like us,”

said Andreas Hochobes from Drydock and Ship Repair.

“With the transition going through the automotive industries as a result of e-mobility, unions should continue their recruitment drives and engage in collective bargaining. Social dialogue with key partners remains essential in order to protect workers’ working conditions,”

said Paule-France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub-Saharan Africa.

IndustriALL child protection policy

1. Introduction and purpose of this policy

IndustriALL applies a human rights-based approach to all its work and programmes and is committed to promote respect and human dignity, as well as providing an environment free from any form of discrimination, violence and harassment, in line with article 32 of its statutes.

This approach is also grounded in, amongst others, the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions, including Convention No. 138 on Minimum Age and Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour.

These instruments affirm children’s fundamental rights to safety, health, education, protection, play, dignity, and full development.

Preventing child labour has long been an integral part of IndustriALL’s work. The organisation remains strongly committed to actively promoting the prevention of child labour and the protection of children’s rights at national, regional, and international levels. Furthermore, IndustriALL does not tolerate any form of abuse, exploitation, or harm of children, regardless of the situation or context in which it occurs.

The purpose of this policy is to ensure that, through all IndustriALL activities, programmes, partnerships, and collaborations, children are not subject to harm, abuse, or exploitation, and that their rights are respected and protected. This policy applies to all persons engaged in IndustriALL’s work, including employees, affiliates, representatives and consultants.

2. Definitions

Child labour

Child labour is defined, in accordance with the ILO, as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential, and their dignity, and which is harmful to their physical and mental development. It refers to work that:

Is mentally, physically, socially, or morally dangerous or harmful to children, and/or
Interferes with their schooling by depriving them of the opportunity to attend school, obliging them to leave school prematurely, or requiring them to combine school attendance with excessively long or heavy work.
The working age limit shall be in line with the ILO Conventions No. 138 and No. 182.

In line with ILO Convention No. 138, child labour must be assessed with reference to the minimum age for admission to employment, including distinctions between general minimum age, permissible light work, and hazardous work, which shall not be undertaken by anyone under the age of 18.

In accordance with ILO Convention No. 182, the worst forms of child labour are strictly prohibited and include, inter alia, slavery or practices similar to slavery (including trafficking of children, debt bondage, and forced labour), the use of children in armed conflict, the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, pornography or illicit activities, and any work which is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children.

Child labour constitutes a violation of fundamental labour rights and requires immediate and effective measures for its elimination.

Child abuse, ill-treatment and exploitation

Child abuse, ill-treatment and exploitation include, but is not limited to, committing or coercing another person to commit acts of abuse against a child that are detrimental to a child’s survival, safety, health, wellbeing, dignity, or development, including:

Physical abuse: the use of physical force that results in harm, including hitting, slapping, shaking, kicking, burning, strangling, poisoning, or similar acts.
Emotional abuse: inappropriate verbal or symbolic acts, patterns of neglect, humiliation, intimidation, or failure to provide adequate emotional support that damage a child’s self-esteem or development.
Sexual abuse: any use of a child for sexual gratification, including inappropriate touching, sexual acts, exploitation, exposure to pornography, or grooming, whether offline or online.
Ill-treatment: unreasonable or degrading discipline, excessive demands, hostile use of force, or a pattern of degrading or hostile behaviour towards a child.
Possessing, producing, distributing, obtaining, or transmitting child exploitation material.
Exploiting children below the applicable minimum age for employment or exposing any person under 18 to hazardous work as defined under international labour standards.

3. Preventative measures

IndustriALL affirms a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of abuse, exploitation, or harm of children.

In accordance with this policy, and in addition to what is mentioned in the introduction on article 32 of the IndustriALL Statutes, IndustriALL will not collaborate with organisations, suppliers, or partners that are known for disrespecting the international standards on child protection mentioned in the introduction.

For any IndustriALL events that include children, IndustriALL shall, where needed, take all necessary and appropriate measures to ensure that all personnel engaged in the events do not pose any unacceptable risk to children.

4. Reporting obligations

All IndustriALL staff, consultants and partners engaged in IndustriALL’s work are required to immediately report:

Any observed or suspected case of child abuse, exploitation, harm, or child labour.
Any possession of child exploitation material.

In addition, any report of child exploitation or abuse, or suspicion, should be immediately reported to the relevant donor when the concern is related to an externally project-funded event.

It is the responsibility of personnel to report concerns, not to investigate them.

When a concern originates in an IndustriALL region where there is an IndustriALL regional office, reports should be made to the IndustriALL Regional Secretary, with a copy to the IndustriALL Assistant General Secretary responsible for the region. In a region without an IndustriALL regional office, reports should go to the global leadership of IndustriALL. If reporting through these channels is not possible due to a conflict of interest, the matter can be escalated to the President of IndustriALL.

All reports made will be handled confidentially, professionally, and efficiently. No person or organisation reporting will be subject to reprisals.

5. Responsibility

IndustriALL will treat all concerns seriously and apply a survivor-centred approach, prioritising the safety, rights, needs, and wishes of affected children. Survivors will be treated with dignity and respect and, where appropriate, supported to participate in decisions affecting them.

All reports will be promptly and thoroughly assessed, and appropriate measures will be taken in close collaboration with the concerned partners and, where applicable, the donor(s).

In case of violation of this policy, the IndustriALL statute article 32 would apply. According to the statutes all affiliates and individuals participating in IndustriALL work and activities shall respect IndustriALL’s commitment to promote respect and human dignity in the course of its work and activities. In case of a violation of these principles, individuals may be sanctioned. In case of a serious violation or repeated violations, sanctions can be adopted against the concerned affiliate, provided that the organisation knowingly failed to uphold the principles and provisions of the policy in a manner that could undermine the respect and human dignity of participants in IndustriALL activities and potentially affect the integrity of the organisation.

Where IndustriALL staff are involved, action to be taken will be in line with IndustriALL’s disciplinary code.

6. Review

This policy shall be subject to review as and when its deemed necessary.

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IndustriALL raises workers’ rights concerns at Glencore AGM

Affiliates from Colombia’s Sintracarbon and Australia’s Mining & Energy Union (MEU) joined IndustriALL’s director of mining, Emmanuel Adjei-Danso, at the meeting. The delegation presented coordinated challenges to Glencore’s board covering mine closure planning, use of contract workers, as well as injured worker protections. A prolonged bargaining dispute at Ulan Underground in New South Wales was also raised.

Sintracarbon called on Glencore to publish a detailed closure framework for the Cerrejón mine, confirmed for closure in 2034. The union also called for a halt to replacing direct employees with contractor labour in the lead-up to the closure.

The MEU raised concerns about Glencore’s enterprise agreement strategy at Australian mine sites, arguing it is designed to undermine Same Job Same Pay legislation. The delegation also challenged the NSW Minerals Council’s push to reduce accident pay protections for injured coal workers.

IndustriALL made clear that regional cases must be addressed within a broader framework. This means tackling coal price volatility and developing a genuinely worker-driven just transition approach.

In response, Glencore indicated the company would engage IndustriALL through regional dialogues, with South Africa, Colombia and Australia identified as immediate priorities.

Following the AGM, IndustriALL held constructive conversations with the CEO and head of HR, from which a structured approach to resolving outstanding issues was agreed. That process will map each issue against the relevant resolution pathway, desired outcome and timeline.

Said IndustriALL mining director Emmanuel Adjei-Danso:

“The commitments made in Zug will be tested not by words at an AGM but by whether genuine dialogue is established at regional and site level. And of course whether workers’ concerns are met with concrete action.”

Iraqi oil and gas unions plan for Just Transition

A high number of female and young trade unionists accounted for more than half of the participants. A growing participation of women and young people in workshops and trade union structures is a new trend for the union. IGFOGPU aims to increase female and youth representation in activities and structures to at least 40 per cent.

Participants highlighted key challenges for the coming period, especially with regards to the energy transition. Anticipated implications for the fossil fuel sector relate not to a halt in production but to the adoption of new extraction technologies. This, together with a shift towards renewable energy, particularly solar power, is expected to render thousands of workers in the energy sector redundant.

The union representatives called for a strategy to retrain affected workers and support their reintegration into the labour market.

The trade unions expect to present their position on the energy transition to the government in the coming weeks. As the largest employer in the energy sector, the government is a key interlocutor. Participants anticipate that formal dialogue will begin once the government has been fully formed.

Participants emphasized their commitment to balancing the shift towards alternative energy sources with the protection of workers’ rights. The workshop recommended expanding the training programme to include trade unionists from various energy sectors. This should include meetings and grassroots training sessions planned to carry the discussions forward across affiliated unions.

“It is essential for unions to have a position so that they can convince the government of their demands for a just energy transition. This makes workshops on Just Transition of the utmost importance,”

said Hassan Jumaa, IGFOGPU president.