Death toll rises at Donetsk mine

***UPDATE***On 5 March at 7 pm the rescue operations have been stopped after the last body out of 33 killed by the gas explosion miners was found and removed from the Zasyadko mine.

On 6 March one more miner died in hospital from his burns bringing the death toll to 34.

Rescue operations had reportedly been put on hold because of a broken ventilation system and an increased level of methane that could have lead to another explosion in the area.

As soon as the mine's ventilation system had been repaired, rescue operations resumed overnight and the search for the missing miners continues. 

A gas explosion at the depth of 1230 meters occurred in the Zasyadko mine early in the morning of 4 March. Some 230 miners were working underground at the time. According to Mikhail Volynets, President of the Independent Trade Union of Coal Miners of Ukraine – an IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, 16 miners were injured and sent to hospital, five of them with burns.

Viktor Turmanov from the Coal Mining Workers’ Union of Ukraine, revealed that "Eleven Ukrainian rescue brigades were sent to the mine from the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government, but were denied access to the mine which is located in the territory of the Donetsk province. The authorities of the province declared they were themselves capable to rescue people with their own means."

However, as Volynets explains: "The local mine rescue teams are poorly equipped and have no capacity to perform their tasks effectively and in full."

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary, says:

Our most sincere condolences go to the families of the perished and injured workers. We expect that a proper investigation will be carried out and due conclusions will be taken out of this heart-breaking tragedy. However, based on the previous bad record and terrible death toll, at this particular mine the health and safety must be given paramount importance. The employer and the authorities must take it as their own personal responsibility and provide safe and healthy conditions of work. No miner should be sent to die at the workplace.”

For years, the Zasyadko mine has been renowned for its poor safety standards. Back in 2007 the mine saw Ukraine's worst mining disaster, which left more than 100 people dead. Before that, in 1999, some 50 miners died in an explosion. In 2001, 55 mineworkers died, later in 2002 some 20 and in 2006 another 13 miners lost their lives. 

9 miners dead and 23 missing after explosion in Ukrainian coal mine

The blast happened early on the morning of 4 March. According to the Independent Trade Union of Coal Miners of Ukraine, an IndustriALL affiliate, 16 miners were injured and sent to hospital, five of them with burns. Nine miners were reported dead. 23 miners are still missing.

Viktor Turmanov, Coal Mining Workers’ Union of Ukraine, explained that 11 Ukrainian rescue brigades have been sent to the mine from the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government, but were denied access to the mine located in the territory of the Donetsk province. The authorities of the province declared they were themselves capable to rescue people with their own means. However, according to Mikhail Volynets, Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine, the local mine rescue teams are poorly equipped and have no capacity to perform their tasks effectively and in full.

Reportedly the rescue operations have been put on hold because of an increased level of methane that could lead to another explosion in the area.

15 coal mines out of 60 continue to operate in Donetsk region.

Zasyadko mine has been known for its poor safety standards for years. Back in 2007 the mine saw Ukraine's worst mining disaster, which left more than 100 people dead. Before that in 1999 some 50 miners died in an explosion. In 2001 some other 55 mineworkers died, later in 2002 some 20 and in 2006 another 13 miners lost their lives.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary says,

Our most sincere condolences go to the families of the perished and injured workers. We expect that a proper investigation will be carried out and due conclusions will be taken out of this heart-breaking tragedy. However, based on the previous bad record and terrible death toll, at this particular mine the health and safety must be given paramount importance. The employer and the authorities must take it as their own personal responsibility and provide safe and healthy conditions of work. No miner should be sent to die at the workplace!”

8 miners die at lethal Pakistani coalfield

The accident on 19 February follows the death in 2013 of another eight miners at the Nasir Coal Mine, which is also part of the deadly Duki coalfield.

Due to the lack of rescue facilities on site or locally, help had to be called in from Quetta – more than 200km away. It took 15 hours for rescue services to finally get to the scene.

Seven coalminers were killed in the methane explosion, which led to a landslide and the mine collapsing. An eighth miner died through methane inhalation and 14 more were injured when they made a valiant attempt to rescue their colleagues in the absence of emergency services.

IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Pakistan Central Mines Labour Federation (PCMLF), has revealed that mine inspectors are failing to check safety measures or to monitor dangerous methane levels in the mines:

“The inspectors visit the coalmines weekly to take bribes and do not go inside the mine for which they are assigned,” said one senior official to PCMLF on the condition of anonymity.

According to Mines and Mineral Department of Pakistan, there are around 350 legal coalmines in the Duki Coalfield in addition to dozens of illegal coalmines.

In a letter of solidarity to the PCMLF, Jyrki Raina, general secretary of IndustriALL, said:

“IndustriALL Global Union strongly condemns the unnecessary deaths of the eight coalminers and the injuries to 14 mineworkers, and calls upon the Government of Pakistan to urgently ratify ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines, and in the interim and as a matter of extreme urgency, to implement the Code of Practice on Safety and Health in Underground Coal Mines as recommended by the Meeting of Experts on Safety and Health in Coal Mines. We call upon the authorities to take the lives of mineworkers seriously and to place them above profit.”

Victory for 5,000 General Motors strikers in Brazil

Thousands of strikers from the metalworkers’ union (Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos de São José dos Campos) in southeastern Sao Paolo had downed tools in protest at GM’s plans to temporarily furlough and then fire 800 workers.

However, after several rounds of bargaining “GM agreed to cancel the layoffs, which was our main grievance, and we agreed to end our strike,” said union leader, Antonio Ferreira de Barros as the strike finished on 26 February.

Workers agreed to five-month-long paid furloughs for 650 workers beginning on 9 March, after which they would get their jobs back for at least three months, said Barros.

GM originally proposed two-month-long paid furloughs after which the workers would be permanently laid off.

The company will now encourage workers to leave voluntarily in a buyout programme.

The Sao Jose de Campos plant produces GM’s S10 and Trailblazer models. It has reduced its workforce at the plant from 7,500 in 2012 to 5,200 currently.

Germany: chemical workers determined in negotiations

New talks are scheduled on 12 and 13 March in Neuss, North Rhine-Westphalia. IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, IG BCE, which represents workers in the chemical, mining and energy sectors, is calling for an increase in wages of 4.8 per cent with a contract period of twelve months. In addition, the union wants to develop the collective bargaining agreement over "Demography and Working Life" fund.

The fund, which is built by employers’ regular contributions, is an essential part of the ongoing negotiations. It is used to finance the instruments aimed at addressing and shaping demographic change at workforce through an assessment of age structure and qualification, and providing training for employees in different age categories.

Nine attempts at negotiation at the regional level were also unsuccessful before the federal-level talks in Kassel. Although the chemical economy in Germany is stable and robust, chemical employers still see just a low level margin for wage increases and have yet to make a concrete offer.

IG BCE is now planning rallies at more than 300 sites over the coming weeks as the chemical workers dispute the employers’ position.

"Very lavish dividends for shareholders and bonuses for managers, and a few cents for the workers – it’s dream for employers,” said Peter Hausmann, Board Member and Chief Negotiator for IG BCE. “We will now increase the pressure – at the gates, on the streets and in the squares. IG BCE will fight for its members’ rights.”

“The negotiations in the German chemical industry are followed by all our affiliates across the globe as it is the largest collective bargaining agreement in the sector worldwide,” said Kemal Özkan, Assistant General Secretary at IndustriALL. “Our support is with our German colleagues and we are looking forward to great success”.

HUGO BOSS: Luxury brand, garbage employer

The Turkish Union of Textile, Knitting and Clothing Industry Workers TEKSIF, an IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, has been assisting HUGO BOSS workers in Izmir to organize for over three years. The workers, the vast majority of whom earn less than the poverty threshold with long working hours, discretionary overtime and no social benefits, are seeking a living wage and a voice at work.

Whilst HUGO BOSS publically claims to uphold internationally recognized labour standards throughout its global operations, the 3,000 workers in Izmir have had their fundamental rights at work attacked by their management.

Violations include targeting of union supporters and their family and close friends through threats, punishments, and sackings. It took long drawn-out court processes to prove 20 illegal sackings of trade union supporters between 2011 and 2014, while a further eight are still pending in court. Although the High Court of Appeals confirmed that those workers were dismissed by HUGO BOSS because of their union membership and ordered their reinstatement, management took an option open under the law to pay them an extra compensation instead.

Now, shockingly, the practice continues with management picking out three more key union supporters for illegal dismissal in February 2015.

At no stage throughout the process did Izmir management of HUGO BOSS accept offers from TEKSIF to resolve the issues through social dialogue. And there was no intervention from international management either. When IndustriALL contacted the HUGO BOSS CEO in August 2014 to request his intervention to ensure an end to the violations and the start of constructive social dialogue at the plant, the response was to threaten legal action and to deny all responsibility.

IndustriALL then sent the documented verdicts of the Local and High Courts to the company and again offered dialogue, which the company ignored. Finally following the latest February sackings, IndustriALL wrote again to the HUGO BOSS CEO, and again were ignored.

IndustriALL Assistant General Secretary Kemal Özkan stated:

Under the circumstances, it is now obvious and legally recorded that Hugo Boss has violated fundamental trade union rights enshrined in national legislation and international norms and standards. On top of this, the local management in Izmir and corporate leadership in Germany repeatedly refuse all requests from Teksif and IndustriALL to discuss and resolve the pending issues through dialogue on the basis of mutual respect and recognition. The response from the company to these violations is shocking and unacceptable for us.

The majority of clothes production industry-wide is done through supplier companies, but this factory that makes an important portion of all HUGO BOSS clothes is directly owned and run by the brand. It is the largest single clothing factory in Turkey and as such can potentially set an industry standard for labour relations in the country.

The supply chain of Hugo Boss also contains serious problems. Again in Turkey, the company’s main supplier, Edirne Giyim, dismissed union members, and as in the case of Hugo Boss, judicial processes found that those workers were dismissed because of their union membership. Furthermore, and more importantly, the HR manager of Edirne Giyim was sentenced to one-and-a-half-year in prison while six department chiefs faced six-month prison sentences. There are also clear reports by inspectors from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security that identify clear violations of trade union rights.

Further to the fundamental labour rights violations, IndustriALL’s partner organization, the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) conducted extensive research in 2013-2014 in HUGO BOSS’ production factories. The research, published in June 2014 showed damning evidence that workers making HUGO BOSS clothes are paid far less than a minimum living wage. In fact, the research shows, the vast majority of workers producing for HUGO BOSS in Turkey earn less than the poverty threshold.

Progress at ILO on precarious work

Meeting in Geneva at ILO headquarters on 16-19 February, a Committee of Experts representing employers, governments and workers debated how the ILO should respond to the threats to workers’ rights brought about by the expansion of precarious work.

The discussion was informed by a report prepared by the ILO which paints a very familiar picture. It shows how precarious work has proliferated in recent years, particularly in lower-skilled occupations, and that women and young workers are disproportionately affected.

The report highlights the problems arising when precarious work is an involuntary choice. Europe and the US both have high rates of involuntary part-time work and in the UK four fifths of all fixed-term workers are either on probation or cannot find a permanent job. In Greece, Portugal and Spain this figure rises to over 90 per cent of temporary workers. The ILO report shows that precarious work is not necessarily a stepping stone to permanent work. In fact, as temporary work increases, temporary workers are more likely to remain precariously employed and are up to ten times more likely to fall into unemployment than permanent workers.

The ILO confirmed what unions already know: that precarious workers earn less than permanent workers, have inadequate social security coverage, face penalties when it comes to training opportunities and suffer higher accident rates. Their employment status means that they face difficulties in exercising their rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining.

The full report can be read here

The Meeting of Experts recommended that the ILO continue to work to improve data collection and reporting on precarious work. It should also:

Importantly, the recommendations also called for future Meetings of Experts on temporary employment and on discrimination on the basis of employment status, opening up the possibility for future international labour standards to be developed in these two areas.

These recommendations will next be presented to the ILO Governing Body for their approval.

Mobilizing for living wages

In December 2014, one million workers took to the streets again in major cities of Indonesia, demanding higher wages. As a result, new minimum wages now reach US$ 240-260 per month in the biggest production areas. Thanks to strategic action and major mobilizations, Indonesian workers have doubled their salaries since 2011. And they will continue to demand their fair share of corporate profits.

Cambodia was campaign ground most of the year. After security forces killed five workers in demonstrations in January 2014, IndustriALL launched strategic action with our union and NGO allies and major clothing brands to build a bargaining process that would lead to living wages for 500,000 garment workers.

After two global action days, two rounds of talks with leading brands, the Cambodian government and employers, and more united action by unions, the prime minister confirmed the new monthly minimum wage of US$ 128 in November. It is still far away from a living wage, yet 70 per cent higher than in 2013.   

Wages are rising all over Asia. In January 2015, Vietnam raised its minimum wage from 128 to 146 dollars per month, and China’s main industrial production areas have reached US$ 300. Myanmar will confirm its first ever minimum wage this year.

Guaranteeing a living wage for all workers in our industries is one of key campaigns of IndustriALL Global Union. Workers have to be paid enough during regular working hours to cover the costs of housing, food, health care and education. Only this way can we manage to reduce excessive overtime which shockingly led to the death of three Cambodian garment workers last year.  

IndustriALL’s strategy is focused on three key elements:

  1. Supporting affiliates in national minimum wage campaigns
  2. Increasing unions’ bargaining capacity through workshops in Asia Pacific, Latin America, Sub-Saharan African, and Middle East and North Africa
  3. Engaging global brands to support freedom of association and collective bargaining throughout their supply chains   

IndustriALL is in discussions with key brands in our biggest sector, the textile and garment industry which employs 60 million workers in the world, to develop industry level bargaining and enable living wages through their purchasing practices. The brands have considerable leverage with their suppliers and host country governments. They need to pay more for their products.

Nothing will however change if we do not have union strength and unity on the ground. Organizing and mobilization of workers in joint action remain indispensable for success in our fight for living wages.

Jyrki Raina

General Secretary

Right to strike upheld at ILO

A joint statement from the employers’ and workers’ groups at the meeting affirms that the right to industrial action is recognized by the ILO.

The bilateral ceasefire promotes a package of proposals to end the deadlock that has led to an impasse at the ILO since 2012.

The proposals will now be put to the ILO’s governing body in March for approval.

Employers’ groups have been challenging the right to strike because it is not explicitly expressed in ILO Convention 87, even though for years it has been universally accepted by governments, workers and employers alike.

This has meant that cases of serious labour violations in many countries have been left unaddressed by the ILO as the employers’ group refused to budge on the issue.

The statement follows a global protest day in defence of the right to strike by union federations on 18 February, involving more than 100 actions in over 60 countries, and including IndustriALL Global Union affiliates. The protests were designed to put pressure on both governments and employers at the ILO.

Significantly, the Government Group, which had previously been split on the issue, strongly endorsed the right to strike at the February meeting. In a statement at the discussions it said:

“The Government Group recognizes that the right to strike is linked to freedom of association, which is a fundamental principle and right at work of the ILO. The Government Group specifically recognizes that without protecting a right to strike, Freedom of Association, in particular the right to organize activities for the purpose of promoting and protecting workers’ interests, cannot be fully realized.”

Jyrki Raina, IndustriALL’s general secretary, said:

The recognition by employers of the right to strike is a very positive step forward. Credit must go to our affiliates that have fought hard in defence of this fundamental right. However, the battle is not over. We must remain vigilant and ensure that employers don’t take the right to strike hostage again.

Severe union busting in Georgia

Over last few weeks in February, RMG, producing more than 10 per cent of Georgia’s total exports, harshly forced some 1,000 members of TUMMCIWG to terminate their union membership as a result of an increased coercion and persecution.

The union busting began immediately after TUMMCIWG reminded the management to fulfill its obligations under the collective bargaining agreement signed on 23 March 2014 after a 40-day strike.

As soon as mining operations were resumed in December 2014, following the approval of the mining operations by the Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection and the National Agency of Cultural Heritage Protection, management started a full-fledged union busting campaign against union members at RMG Gold and RMG Copper. The site is reported to be one of the oldest in the world, dating back to almost 5000 years ago.

Employer's representatives forced employees to sign pre-printed union resignation letters. These acts of applied pressure are in violation of both national and international laws on human and trade union rights.

Tamazi Dolaberidze, TUMMCIWG’s President, denounced the company in phone calls to several high-ranking company officials and warned them about criminal responsibility under the Georgian Criminal law. However the pressure still continues.

Several truck drivers who had refused to sign the resignation letters at the beginning, have been forced to do so, as management stopped transportation of the ore by leaving workers without work and pay during the forced idle time.

IndustriALL General Secretary Jyrki Raina wrote to the management of RMG urging to stop violations of law and to prevent further union busting. IndustriALL also demanded RMG to fulfill its obligations according to the agreement signed in March 2014.