World Bank reviews labour rights safeguard

Last year the World Bank started consultations for the long overdue review of it’s social and environmental safeguard policies. The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the Global Union Federations (GUFs) proposed that the World Bank use the policy review to introduce a comprehensive labour standards safeguard in order to ensure that all Bank-financed activities are required to comply with the International Labour Organization’s (ILO's) core labour standards and other basic labour conditions.

For many years the World Bank has relied on its system of safeguards to identify and control social and environmental risks and to improve development outcomes. While almost all Bank projects affect workers in some way, the safeguards do not currently address labour and working conditions.

The ITUC and GUFs recommend that the World Bank’s approach to the safeguards revision should identify the area of labour standards and working conditions as one that the policy must address. The safeguards policy that the Bank submits for Board review and for public consultation should include a robust labour standards policy consistent with the progress made in other divisions of the World Bank Group, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC). (See ITUC and GUFs Summary note)

IndustriALL Global Union affiliates are encouraged to take part in the World Bank safeguard review consultations to advocate for the adoption of a comprehensive labour standards safeguard. See World Bank web page for further information about the consultations and for registering to attend.

Families of Bangladesh fire victims get compensation

Families of the deceased female workers Nasima (28), Josna (19), Laiju (18), Fatema (17) and Nasima (17) gathered in the Prime Minister Office in Dhaka where disbursement ceremony took place. According to the agreement, each family receives 1,049,000 BDT (13,300 USD), and one family with two minor children gets an additional 10 per cent to meet educational costs for minor children. The injured workers as well as those who lost their employment will also receive a compensation. The workers earned an average monthly wage of 4,000 BDT (50 USD).

The payment is shared by Inditex and New Look. In addition employers’ associations Bangladesh Garment Manufactures & Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) each pay 100,000 BDT (1,270 USD) to every family. The Bangladeshi government committed itself to announcing its package very soon.

IndustriALL General Secretary Jyrki Raina explained at the ceremony that the agreement was reached and compensation was paid in less than a month after the tragedy at Smart Fashion. He pledged to pursue a similar compensation package with the brands and buyers that sourced from Tazreen Fashion, where another fire killed 112 workers on 26 November 2012.

Raina added that IndustriALL Global Union and IndustriALL Bangladesh Council of trade unions would continue working on labour rights, minimum wage and fire safety in Bangladesh.

Jyrki Raina said, “IndustriALL supports Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government in the vision to expand the garment industry and create millions of new decent jobs. This vision is however threatened by major media attention in Europe and North America about problems related to fire safety, labour rights and very low wages. The good news is that the government is already working on these problem areas where urgent action is needed to improve the image of the industry:

·         The revision of the Labour Act 2006 to facilitate the registration of new local trade union organizations is in its final stage.

·         Minimum wages of 3,000 BDT (38 USD) per month need to be raised considerably, followed by annual revisions, as a number of neighbouring countries such as Indonesia (200 USD), China (200 USD) and Thailand (300 USD) have done in January.

·         Following a tripartite fire safety agreement signed by the Bangladeshi government, BGMEA and BKMEA and IBC on 15 January, a National Action Plan is planned to be finalized by 28 February. IndustriALL has convened major brands and buyers to its global head office in Geneva in March to discuss their input to the Plan. IndustriALL is promoting a safety initiative which includes input from all stakeholders in the form of inspections, training and investment to upgrade hazardous installations.”

Earlier the same week, IndustriALL hosted a multi-stakeholder meeting in Dhaka which need for urgent progress on workers’ rights, minimum wages and fire safety in order to secure a sustainable future for the Bangadeshi garment industry and the creation of millions of new decent jobs.

IG Metall adds its weight to the Mexico days of action

IndustriALL Global Union's largest affiliated union IG Metall joined the global days of action by writing to Mexico's president Peña Nieto on 20 February.

Indian contract workers join mining unions

“Union strength is dependent on membership. We have to organize contract workers, unionize them, fight for them and increase our strength,” Mr. B.K. Das, General Secretary of INMF.

The number of permanent workers in Indian coal mines has fallen rapidly from 700,000 in 2000 to 300,000 today and is expected to reach 100,000 by 2016. However, the workforce has not decreased. Contract workers have progressively replaced permanent workers, making organizing contract workers a priority for the INMF. The federation started to systematically organize precarious workers in many companies including Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL), Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL), Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), Western Coalfields (WCL), and South Eastern Coalfields Limited.

Having agreed an action plan, INMF organized a series of awareness raising workshops involving trade union leaderships in the different coal fields, then embarked on a systematic mapping of the workplaces, collecting information on precarious workers and identifying potential organizers among contract workers. Supported by IndustriALL’s precarious work project, a training program was developed to train permanent and contract worker organizers, while education workshops for precarious workers encouraged them to struggle for equal or at least better treatment. All sectors of mine operations were covered: women workers were trained to organize contract women cleaning workers in the mining companies. 

The INMF has been able to build a successful organizing campaign in the face of hostility from the mining companies. One of the strengths of the campaign has been to make visible what the unions have achieved for precarious workers in the different coalmines. Sharing information on the achievements of the unions has helped make contract workers realize that their struggles are winnable and encouraged them to mobilize. 

Throughout the campaign, the INMF has followed the principle of organizing contract workers into the same unions rather than dividing the workforce through the creation of separate unions. However in some cases, delays occurred due to the process to amend union statutes and a number of separate unions for contract workers were created, including the Asansole Coalfields Contract Workers’ Union (9,600 members) and the Mahanadi Coal Fields Contractual Transport Workers Union (10,375 members), closely monitored and supported by existing unions.

Building stronger unions has enabled precarious workers to achieve improvements to their working conditions. Through collective bargaining, the Mahanadi Coal Fields Contractual Transport Workers' Union has secured regular payment of wages through the bank, deduction of provident fund contributions, access to medical facilities in the company hospitals and annual bonuses. At national level, their increased strength has helped Indian unions to successfully mobilise to secure an agreement in 2012, which grants a substantial increase in wages and other allowances for precarious workers in the public sector coal industry.

The INMF has shown that organizing precarious workers is not only possible, but that it increases the power of all workers to negotiate better pay and working conditions.

Global institutions need to support job creation

Trade unions have greater access than ever before to the institutions of global governance. We are using it to vigorously advocate a union agenda for change.

Labour’s demands focus on five key areas:

Unions are recognised as key social actors at the G20 through the L20 labour summit, comprising union leaders from the G20 countries and the global unions. Trade unions now engage in bilateral meetings with G20 leaders at all G20 meetings encompassing the world’s biggest industrialized and developing countries.

There is evidence of the impact being made by trade unions in the G20 Los Cabos Summit Declaration of June 2012, which included support for ‘creation of decent work and quality jobs’, meaning ‘jobs with labour rights, social security coverage and decent income’.

Since 2002, the international trade union movement has been participating in regular and structured dialogue with the IMF and the World Bank, engaging constructively while critically analysing their policies.

Unions have been particularly critical of the IMF’s one-size-fits-all prescription of labour market deregulation. At the latest consultations with the IMF in February 2013, unions delivered a stinging critique of its policy recommendations for European countries. The IMF has consistently been advising countries to dismantle job security protection as well as national and sectoral collective bargaining, one of the key measures countries should be using to overcome the crisis. The advice has been applied indiscriminately to countries with current account deficits as well as those with surpluses, pointing to an agenda based on ideology rather than evidence.

Another perennial bone of contention is the use of the Employing Workers Indicator in the World Bank’s Doing Business report to justify and encourage further labour market deregulation. In response to pressure from the union movement, the World Bank has withdrawn the indicator, though there is evidence that it still influences Bank policy.

On the plus side, the focus of the Bank’s World Development Report 2013 on jobs should encourage it to put sustainable decent work at the centre of its development strategies. It is also making progress towards finally adopting a safeguard on labour standards for all World Bank projects.

IndustriALL, together with other global unions, will continue to use all avenues of political influence to keep up the pressure on the G20, the IMF and the World Bank. These global institutions need to promote policies that guarantee social justice for all citizens.

IndustriALL promotes rights of garment workers in Bangladesh

The meeting on 22 February 2013 was attended by representatives of all main players related to the Bangladeshi ready-made garment industry, including the Minister of Industry and the Secretary of Labour, representatives of major brands and buyers such as H&M, PVH and Tchibo, trade unions representing garment workers, employers’ association the Bangladesh Garment Manufactures & Exporters Association BGMEA, International Labour Organization (ILO) as well as national and international non-governmental organizations and partner unions.

After horrific fires at Tazreen Fashion and Smart Fashion factories in Dhaka area resulted in death of at least 120 garment workers and many more injured, IndustriALL addressed the Government of Bangladesh, national employers and international buyers in an urgent discussion on a concrete plan of action. According to IndustriALL, such plan of action had to include strict health and safety regulations, efficient inspection and union participation in workplace cooperation, ensuring freedom of association in line with internationally recognized ILO labour standards, and a program to raise minimum wages to at least living wage levels in the country.

Participants to the multi-stakeholder meeting expressed their concerns and opinions and came to a common understanding and set of conclusions as follow:

Jyrki Raina, General Secretary of IndustriALL commented after the closure, “This meeting with all the stakeholders was a step forward. There is now a common understanding that joint efforts by the government, employers, unions and brands are required. IndustriALL continues its efforts to strengthen and unify the trade unions in the garment industry to bring about a real improvement for millions of garment workers”. 

Different languages, same message: Union Rights in Mexico NOW!

The days of action are encompassing the struggles of a range of different groups of workers in Mexico. Their stories are all inspiring for trade unionists throughout the world. This stirring video message sent by IndustriALL Executive Committee member Michele O’Neil, TCFUA National Secretary, to the locked-out shoe workers at Bata Sandak well reflects the sentiment of the global campaign.

The grand, historic Mexican union Los Mineros has been attacked in vicious persecution by Mexican authorities and employers over a period of six years. Their fight is always central to the international campaign for trade union rights in Mexico. The global days of action are held in the week of 19 February to mark the industrial homicide of 65 mineworkers at the Pasta de Conchos mine six years ago, and justice at Pasta de Conchos is a central demand of the campaign.

The Mexican days of action started solemnly in Mexico City on 18 February with a silent march from the Monumento da la Revolucion to the Angel de la Independencia mourning those 65 miners. Mineros carried 65 symbolic coffins and placed them at the monument where mineworkers from all sections and locals held an overnight vigil. SME, UNTTYP, Continental Tires Workers, FAT, CAW, USW, UE and IndustriALL Global Union participated in solidarity with Los Mineros.

Other gross injustices facing Los Mineros include the conflicts in Ciudad Acuña, Cananea, Taxco and Zacatecas, and of course the false criminal charges keeping General Secretary Napoleón Gomez Urrutia in exile in Canada. Napoleon will be participating in a demonstration at the Mexican Consulate in Vancouver today, 21 February.

Other main struggles include those of the SME, SUTEIVP, and Bata. The Bata Sandak workers received several hundred solidarity messages through IndustriALL’s online petition, as well as video messages from overseas trade unions representing shoe workers. PKC workers in Ciudad Acuña have been supported by 9,000 messages to the Finnish-based management through Labourstart.

Click here to see in more detail the actions taken in various countries marking the global days. Extra-notable pages are Mexico, South Africa, Switzerland, and United States.

Affiliates of UNI Global Union will take actions marking the global days on 22 February at Mexican Embassies in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and USA.

General strike brings India to a standstill

The trade unions’ 10 point demands include measures to contain price rise, employment generation, strict enforcement of labour laws and universal social security cover for organized and unorganized workers.

The  demands were jointly made by eleven Central Trade Unions namely BMS, INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, AICCTU, UTUC, TUCC, SEWA, LPF and Independent Federations of Workers and Employees as decided in the National Convention of Workers in 4 September 2012.

Claiming that the general strike is total in all sectors by all workers, in a press release issued on 20 February, 2013, unions stated that, “the unprecedented response to the call of strike throughout the country much beyond our expectations reflects truly the anger of the people against the persistent increase in the prices of diesel, gas, coal, electricity and other essential goods for the bare need of the common people.”

With vigor and determination and undaunted by police repression and government and employers’ threats, the General Strike continued on the second day, 21 February 2013.  Workers from all the major and strategic sectors participated, such as banks, insurance and other financial sectors, oil & petroleum, road transport (both public and private sectors) in many states, defence (civilian), postal, telecom, govt. employees in several states, several departments of Central govt., port & dock, coal & non-coal mines, power and plantation sectors. There was also a large presence of unorganized workers in the protest demonstrations.  

The two days of general strike is a continuation of joint efforts by Indian trade unions that started in 2009. Since then to express resentment over anti-labour policies and government’s inaction to protect workers’ interests, cutting across political ideologies, major central trade unions have come together in a single platform and taken a number of actions.

However, further indifference of the government of India forced unions to intensify their efforts and call for general strike for two consecutive days on 20-21 February 2013 to pressure the Government of India to address some of the basic human and trade union rights issues faced by workers across the country.

At the final moment on 13 February labour minister convened a meeting and appealed to withdraw the strike call. On 17 February, the Prime Minister of India appealed to withdraw the strike and on the evening of 18 February senior ministers held meetings with the trade union leaders. However, as the panel of ministers failed to provide any concrete proposal on even a single demand, trade unions went ahead with the two days general strike.

Ten points union demands are:

  1. Measures to contain price rise,
  2. Measures for employment generation,
  3. Strict enforcement of labour laws,
  4. Universal social security cover for organized and unorganized workers and creation of National Social Security Fund,
  5. Stoppage of disinvestment in Central and State Public Sector Undertakings,
  6. No Contractorisation of work of perennial nature and equal payment of wages and benefits,
  7. Amendment of Minimum Wages Act to ensure universal coverage irrespective of the schedules and fixation of statutory minimum wage at not less than Rs 10,000/- linked with cost price index,
  8. Remove all ceilings on payment and eligibility of Bonus, Provident Fund; Increase the quantum of gratuity,
  9. Assured Pension for all, and
  10. Compulsory registration of trade unions within a period of 45 days and immediate ratification of the ILO Conventions Nos. 87 and 98.

Gerdau workers demand safe work

Ivanes Dos Santos, a Gerdau worker at the plant, lost a leg at work during the night of 16 February 2013. Ivanes is 43 years old and has 16 years of seniority.

The workers representative in the Joint H&S committee at the plant had told Gerdau in previous meetings that this accident was waiting to happen. The speed of production is too high due to reduction of personal and measures to decrease costs.

Valmir Lodi, coordinator of the Gerdau network in Brazil, said that this is the third serious accident in Brazil in the last year.  

Workers demonstrated outside and inside the plant because the employer called the police and closed the gates. After the demonstration the union met with the employer and, among other claims, demanded a single master agreement for Gerdau for all Brazil. The employer agreed to continue the conversation in Sao Paulo.

The unions also demanded the reinstatement of the labour leader who was suspended in January from the Gerdau plant in Pindamonhangaba, Brazil. Marcos Alves Corrêa, coordinator of the stewards at the plant, was suspended after a verbal fight with a Health and Safety supervisor that did not want to allow Marcos to be part of a safety visit.

The Gerdau Workers’ World Council, one of the most active worker networks of IndustriALL affiliates, defends the right to have a decent life and decent work in all countries where it represents workers. This week the network actively participated in the Mexico Global Days of Action at Gerdau plants in 8 countries. http://www.industriall-union.org/unions-at-gerdau-take-action-on-mexico

Sintracarbón continues on strike but open to negotiations

Talks to end the strike at Carbones del Cerrejón, which started at the beginning of February, are at a standstill. Sintracarbón said that negotiations took place on Friday 15, Saturday 16 and the morning of Sunday 17 February, but then stalled because union representatives were not willing to override legal provisions and refer the dispute to arbitration, which annoyed representatives of Carbones del Cerrejón Limited.

The union expected talks with the company would resume on Sunday afternoon, but around 4.30pm, union representatives received a press release stating that talks had been suspended. On Monday 18 February, union representatives waited three hours until they received a telephone call from the Deputy Minister of Labour, José Noé Ríos, who told them that company representatives would not be attending.

In response, Sintracarbón issued a communiqué saying "we believe in our company, we believe in Carbones del Cerrejón Limited and we have always acted responsibly: this should be more than enough to encourage us to resolve our differences and reach agreement on a collective agreement negotiated by the people who really know the company”.

Pay is not the top priority. The workers want an agreement that recognises their position on occupational health issues. They say the company must accept that "the 700 workers suffering from silicosis, lead poisoning and severe musculoskeletal injuries acquired these conditions at work and that workers need appropriate protection from the work hazards encountered when working with substances like coal”.

They are also demanding permanent contracts for the outsourced workers who work alongside them and starting pay of at least two minimum wages, adjusted in accordance with the conditions and demands of their work for workers who continue to be employed on an informal basis.

The workers, who have set up temporary accommodation in tents outside the plant, were visited by representatives of the Columbia IndustriALL National Council (Sintraelecol, Uso, Sintravidricol, Utrammicol, Fetramecol, Sintragasquimed, Fenaltec, Sintracadena, Sintracarcol and Sintracarbon) who expressed their national and international solidarity.

Sintracarbón reaffirmed that it “continues open to talks and remains at the negotiating table for the good of Colombia, Guajira, the company's workers and the company itself”.