Bangladesh Accord announces establishment of factory safety inspection standards

The standards cover fire, electrical, and building safety and all factories producing for Accord signatory brands will be inspected for compliance against them.

The standards are largely based on the Bangladesh National Building Code and are the product of discussions facilitated by the ILO between the Accord, the National Tripartite Plan of Action, and the Alliance of North American companies which did not join the Accord. Additional discussions took place between Accord and Alliance engineers resulting in a standard which is substantively the same.

The Accord is committed to inspect 1500 factories by September 2014 for fire, electrical, and building safety. Results of the inspections and information on necessary remediation will be published on the Accord website.

Violence and persecution of Colombian trade unionists must end!

The attacks, displacements, threats, assassinations as well as the criminalization of social protest, continues corroborating the lack of political will to guarantee the exercise of freedom of association, collective bargaining and the right to strike in Colombia.

The latest dramatic incident reported occurred on 10 January when workers of the hydroelectric Caldas – CHEC- of SINTRAELECOL-CUT, an IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, conducted a demonstration demanding the right to implement their Collective Agreement. The demonstrators also denounced the abuses committed by the Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM) against the communities in Caldas.

Demonstrators were violently attacked and beaten by the Escuadrón Móvil Antidisturbios, using explosive devices; one of these explosives seriously injured several workers and their families. Among them, the President of CUT and SINTRAELECOL-Caldas, Arturo Oscar OROZCO, who is still in hospital in a very serious condition, suffering critical injuries to his eyes. Reports say that Arturo Orozco has lost his left eye, doctors are struggling to save his right eye and to reconstruct his face.

This is fourth attack on Oscar Orozco’s life, who has suffered persecution by the security and justice agencies of the Colombian state and in particular by the Attorney General's Office. Deliberately ignoring his role as a trade union and community leader, the Attorney General’s Office has attempted to convict Oscar Orozco claiming that he has staged "self- attacks."

On January 4, 2014 Luis Marin Rolong Ever, a regional leader of SINALTRACEBA brewery workers union was murdered by unknown gunmen as he was waiting for a bus in the town of Soledad. The next day the President of SINALTRACEBA, Gamboa Rafael Maldonado, received death threats from paramilitaries while the union was holding its General Assembly.

In December 2013 IndustriALL denounced the unfair detention of four leaders of IndustriALL affiliate USO; Dario Cardenas, Hector Sanchez, Campo Elías and José Ortíz Dilio Naranjo. They are also key witnesses in an ongoing investigation against Pacific Rubiales. Edwin Brown, president of the National USO, reaffirmed that these arrests are part of a setup orchestrated by Pacific Rubiales in complicity with the Attorney General. USO leadership has called on the Vice President to urgently move the four unionists to another prison yard as they are currently sharing the yard with members of paramilitary and Bacrim groups who are threatening their safety.

On 15 January Colombian unions will be mobilizing denounce these horrific attacks. Join our campaign to demand an end to persecution, attacks and assassination of trade unionists in Colombia!

Cambodian government must investigate killings and increase minimum wage

On 10-13 January, IndustriALL and the IUC joined forces for an international trade union mission to Cambodia. Demanding the release of jailed unionists, an investigation into the killings, and an increased minimum wage, the mission expresses particular concern over the fate of union president Vorn Pao. He was severely beaten and remains in jail despite his poor physical condition.

The mission demands the establishment of a credible, independent inquiry to investigate the killings and for those responsible to be held accountable. This demand was put to Cambodia’s Labour Minister today.

The delegation also informed him that the plan announced to set up a government-controlled inquiry is seen as insufficient, given that government such committees have produced few results in the past.

Calls for urgent action to raise the minimum wage and a government pledge to fully respect ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association, which Cambodia has ratified, were also put to the Minister. A government proposal to set up a new Commission on wages, headed by the Finance Minister, was described as inadequate. No meeting of that Commission has been scheduled yet, and further delay in establishing a decent minimum wage is likely to lead to further industrial action as workers seek justice.

Threats by the garment employers body GMAC to take legal action to effectively bankrupt unions were also denounced by the delegation.

Cambodia’s garment industry, with an annual turnover of US$5.1bn, can afford to pay more than the monthly minimum wage of US$ 100 according to the statement, which points to IndustriALL research that a minimum of US$260 is needed to cover basic expenses of a family of four.

Jyrki Raina, secretary general of IndustriALL, says it is high time that to put an end to the violence:

Textile workers in Cambodia need a safe work environment, free from threats and violence. And for their work they must receive a living wage which reflects the true cost of living.

Global Labour University announces new Master programs

For application and programme details, please visit http://www.global-labour-university.org/

The Global Labour University is a collaboration between the ILO, universities and trade unions and offers postgraduate programmes on labour policies, economics, workers’ rights, globalization and development to trade unionists around the world. The GLU invites applicants to become part of a global network of scholars and activists to debate and shape the future of the global labour movement.

The final deadline for applications is 1 March 2014. At both campuses a limited number of scholarships will be awarded to qualified applicants in need of financial support.

Global union bodies demand justice for Cambodian workers

Workers had been demonstrating peacefully demanding an increase in the minimum wage. At least four workers were killed and 39 injured during a crackdown by security forces on Friday. Trade unionists and labour rights supporters have been targeted for attack as workers demanded a minimum wage above the government offer of US$100 per month, which is woefully insufficient to meet the rising cost of living. Over 23 have been arrested, their whereabouts unknown, and summonses have been issued for several union leaders.

Jyrki Raina, General Secretary of IndustriALL, said “The right to strike for a higher minimum wage is solidly protected by the international right to freedom of association, enshrined in ILO Convention 87 – which Cambodia ratified in 1999. The threats, arrests, and the killing of trade unionists for the exercise of that right is an extremely grave violation and must be condemned. Any encouragement of that violence by garment manufacturers must end.”

UNI Global Union’s General Secretary Philip Jennings said, “In Bangladesh we’ve witnessed how the race to the bottom in the garment sector has led to death and destruction. The Cambodian garment workers are also in jeopardy. This current wave of protests is the legitimate reaction of those workers who deserve a fair wage and decent conditions and must not be silenced by violence. “ Jennings added, “The global brands with connections to these Cambodian factories have a responsibility to raise standards. We’ve seen with the Bangladesh Fire and Building Safety Accord that a sea-change is possible.”

“Cambodia’s government must return to the negotiating table and agree to a fair wage for garment workers and cease the dictatorial repression of legitimate strike action by workers. It should immediately release all those detained, and ensure that those responsible for the killings and violence are brought to justice,” said ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow.

Cambodian unions are seeking a minimum monthly wage of up to US$ 160. Factory owners have responded by offering “no-strike” bonuses and wage adjustments well below the level needed for workers to make ends meet. Employers in the garment sector, a US$5bn annual export industry which increased production by over 20% last year, have been resisting attempts to improve and enforce labour laws and to publicly expose companies which breach the law. Indeed, the Garment Manufacturers’ Association of Cambodia (GMAC) has played an insidious role, threating to move production if labour unrest was not quashed and even recently praised the government for the lethal use of force against the protestors.

FirstEnergy and Penelec persist with lockout

Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) System Local 102, an affiliate of IndustriALL, released a statement on 3 January strongly criticizing the on-going lockout of nearly 150 utility workers by Pennsylvania electric utility Penelec.

According to the union the company, which announced lockout three days before Thanksgiving on 25 November last year in a bid to increase own profits at the expense of workers and public safety rejected the union’s proposal during recent negotiations on 2 January 2014.

In the statement the UWUA System Local 102 President Bob Whalen said, “It is nothing short of reckless for FirstEnergy to continue to lock out skilled first responders in the middle of a dangerous winter storm. This company has shown utter contempt for its customers by continuing this unnecessary lockout, merely to pad corporate profits at the expense of public safety.”

According to the union the company only met with the union for six minutes in the morning and another twenty-five in the afternoon! The union offer to have all union members return to work while 'negotiations' continue and the threat of inclement weather hitting the area was rejected!

The locked out union members including linemen, substation electricians, garage mechanics, layout technicians, and meter readers at company worksites in Altoona, Lewistown, and Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, receive a strong support from local communities members, some of them visited the picket line organized by the union next day after negotiations.

IndustriALL jointly with Public Service International and web-based labour resource LabourStart launched a campaign in support of the locked out workers. To sign the IndustriALL-PSI-LabourStart campaign and write your protest message to FirstEnergy CEO Tony Alexander, please visit the campaign webpage. (http://www.labourstartcampaigns.net/show_campaign.cgi?c=2070).

Leave also your messages of support and solidarity with the struggling workers on the UWUA facebook page https://www.facebook.com/uwua102.180.

Violent response to strike for increased minimum wage

Following a government decision to increase the existing minimum wage of USD 80 with USD 15, strikes erupted around Cambodia. Workers had demanded that the minimum wage should be raised to USD 160.

On the 2 and 3 January the demonstrations took a violent turn when protesters and rights activists were arrested. As Royal Police and striking workers clashed, four people were shot dead and 37 more were seriously injured.

Arrest warrants have been issued for the trade union leaders supporting the strikes, including leaders of IndustriALL Global Union affiliates.

Jyrki Raina, IndustriALL’s general secretary, strongly condemns the violence and persecution of trade union representatives:

Killing and injuring workers is wholly unacceptable and must end immediately! IndustriALL fully stands behind the Cambodian workers’ demands for a living wage of USD 160. The 15 dollar increase proposed by the government is shameful.

Apple’s labour rights monitor finds little progress at Foxconn

While the assessment points to some reforms – health and safety improvements and reduction of the working week (although not to the level of complying with Chinese law) – there has been little if any progress on key issues of wages and back pay. FLA had promised that compensation would increase sufficiently to offset any reduction in overtime hours and that workers would receive compensation for the vast amounts of unpaid overtime they had already done. In addition, a study would be done to determine the amount of compensation necessary to provide for the basic needs of workers. Yet this third and final assessment report does not mention any of these promises.

Critically, the report confirms that there has been no further progress on union elections and fails to address the fundamental problem of the majority of union leaderships in all factories being composed of managers.

Overtime hours continue to violate Chinese law, despite promises that illegal overtime would end by July 2013. Foxconn does not even comply with Apple’s own weaker standard of 60 hours per week, which is well in excess of the maximum hours allowed by Chinese law. During the period July-October 2013, it is reported that 78 to 84 percent of workers worked hours that exceeded Chinese law.

The FLA also promised to look at additional facilities that together make more than 90 percent of Apple products, yet has only presented information from the original three Foxconn factories which currently employ fewer than one fifth of the workers producing for Apple. Numerous worker rights violations continue to be reported throughout the Apple supply chain.

Despite these failings, FLA still manages to give Apple a remedial completion score of 98.9 percent.

Reacting to the report, IndustriALL General Secretary Jyrki Raina said:

"This only goes to demonstrate how ineffectual and misleading company-driven auditing models such as FLA are. Promised compliance has not been delivered and labour rights abuses in Apple’s supply chain continue."

Glencore Xstrata acts true to form in Peru

Labour relations took a turn for the worse after Xstrata acquired the company and told 450 technicians and administrative employees that they henceforth held ‘positions of trust’, an impressive term which in practice was no more than a loophole barring workers from being covered by collective bargaining.

Last month, the situation reached a new low. Wanting a voice at work, a group of employees decided to form a union. On the day after the union registration came through, however, all thirty-five founding members were dismissed. The company then offered to take them back on condition they agreed to quit the union and to sign a letter to that effect drafted by the company’s lawyers. Thirty of them agreed; the five who refused were not reinstated.

Last week the company lawyers set to work again, this time preparing a letter in the name of the former union members asking the labour authorities to deregister the union because its affiliation had dropped below the twenty members required by law.

Clearly, Glencore Xstrata does not believe in the universal right of all workers to join and form a union without interference or discrimination.

IndustriAll Global Union is supporting the Sindicato de Trabajadores Funcionarios de la Compañía Minera de Antapaccay in demanding respect for the right to organize and to bargain collectively.

Compensation fund created for Rana Plaza victims

IndustriALL Global Union is happy about the Arrangement on compensation for the victims of the tragedy at the Rana Plaza collapse. The arrangement has been reached in long talks led by the ILO and with the participation of IndustriALL, the Clean Clothes Campaign, a number of brands and retailers, the Bangladeshi government, BGMEA and BKMEA.

Talks on the details continue, but already the Arrangement is a comprehensive solution that will deliver fair compensation to the families of 1,100 workers who died in the Rana Plaza collapse on 24 April, and to 2,500 injured workers.

A number of global clothing brands and retailers have already committed to the Arrangement.

IndustriALL general secretary Jyrki Raina says:

We now call upon all companies that sourced from Rana Plaza to contribute to the compensation fund.

"I find the silence of Walmart and other brands who were clients of suppliers in the Rana Plaza shameful. They should show their respect for the workers who lost their lives or were injured while producing clothes and profits for the companies."