Young workers organizing drives in Ghana show strength of solidarity

IndustriALL Global Union Sub Saharan Africa region and Building and Wood Workers International (BWI) Africa and Middle East affiliates carried out joint organizing activities at workplaces in Ahafo, Kumasi, Obuasi, and Sunyani from 28 September to 2 October.

The affiliates are the Ghana Mine Workers Union (GMWU), General Transport, Petroleum and Chemical Workers Union (GTPCWU), Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU), and Public Utilities Workers Union (PUWU) – together with the Timber Workers Union that is affiliated to BWI.

The joint organizing drives aim to increase union membership through sharing ideas, strategies, and experiences on how to build union power.

In August, the unions held workshops on developing capacity for social dialogue in the prevention and management of Covid-19 at the workplace, and on how to improve the participation of youth and women in union activities. Often women and the youth are marginalized. Yet they are the solution for rebuilding trade unions.

The joint organizing activities are supported by Industri Energi, a Norwegian trade union for workers in the industrial and energy sectors. Industri Energi has been supporting a lot more collaborative work between IndustriALL and BWI to build collective union power from sharing skills, knowledge, and ideas for improving the organizing and mobilization of workers.

The nine organizers, including six young workers, were drawn from participants who attended online training on organizing.

Agness Ayittey from GMWU, chairperson of the IndustriALL affiliates youth committee in Ghana, who is one of the organizers said:

“The emerging issues from the organizing drives include union busting by some employers who are stopping workers from joining the union, not paying living wages, and ignoring health and safety standards.”

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

“Global unions are working together on Covid-19 responses because workers are adversely affected by the coronavirus irrespective of the sectors where they work. We hope that by working together, union solidarity will be strengthened in Ghana.”

Crecentia Mofokeng, BWI regional representative for Africa and Middle East said:

“We are satisfied that BWI and IndustriALL affiliates in Ghana are jointly engaging employers and government on social dialogue for better working conditions and wages in most industrial sectors. They have developed more joint actions on training and organizing because issues and challenges are the same across the sectors.”

A youth activist school planned for November will focus on trade unions and activism in the community and will establish a youth activists’ network for the unions in Ghana.

Ugandan oil and gas fields provide potential for union organizing

On 24 September, French oil company Total signed an agreement with the government of Uganda for the construction of the over 1,440 km East African Crude Oil Pipeline from Kabaale to Tanga in Tanzania.

With 13,000 jobs expected in the construction phase and 3,000 in the operational phase, the Uganda Mines Metal Oil and Gas and Allied Workers Union (UMMOGAWU) sees opportunities for the economic development of the country and an end to poverty. UMMOGAWU wants to recruit, and organize new members in the sector.

Vincent Ojiambo, UMMOGAWU general secretary, says:

“As the construction of the pipeline begins, our organizers will visit the sites to recruit more members to the union. We want better working conditions and living wages for the workers.”

The Lake Albert Basin holds some of the biggest oil and gas reserves in Sub Saharan Africa with potential to stimulate economic development and create thousands of decent jobs on the supply chain.

The oil and gas reserves are estimated to have over six billion barrels of oil, and 500 billion cubic feet of gas, and it is projected that the production of crude oil will start in 2023. Once production begins other petroleum based and electricity generating industries as well as providers of goods and services will be off shoots from the oil and gas sector. It is expected that these industries will provide services and manufactured goods for the domestic market as well as to neighbouring countries.

Diana Junquera Curiel, IndustriALL director for the energy industry, says:

“The growth of the oil and gas sector should be beneficial to Ugandan workers, and oil companies should use global best practices to ensure that they contribute to sustainable development in the country. IndustriALL has a GFA with TOTAL that will cover workers in Uganda and ensure that their labour rights are respected.”

Civil society organizations are calling upon the governments of Uganda and Tanzania to ensure the respect of the human rights of the 12,000 people and communities displaced by the pipeline route and who may have lost their land. Consideration should also be given to the environment.

The governments of Uganda and Tanzania have also signed an agreement to facilitate the construction. Other oil companies that are part of the joint venture in the oil fields are Tullow Oil and CNOCC. The companies have invested over three billion dollars in the oil and gas sector. There are also plans to build a refinery by the Albertine Graben Refinery Consortium.

We will not be silent on state-sponsored violence in Zimbabwe, say South African metalworkers

NUMSA, which is affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, organized a picket at the Zimbabwean Embassy in Pretoria, 23 September, to protest workers and human rights’ abuses in the country. The picket is a response to the International Day of Action called by ITUC-Africa to protest labour and human rights violations in Zimbabwe.

The union was joined at the picket by civil society organizations that are protesting the violations using the online campaign #ZimbabweanLivesMatter that is highlighting the abuses and has received global support. The online campaign emerged after social media became one of the only ways to protest after the government of Zimbabwe banned demonstrations against Covid-19 procurement corruption and the deteriorating social and economic crisis in the country that were planned for 31 July.

Unemployment is high and wages for most workers are only US $30 per month, meaning that workers are living in poverty. When Zimbabwean unions campaigned for living wages to protect workers’ wages against the low wages and hyperinflation, which is over 800 per cent, they were labelled “terrorist organizations.”

According to the UN World Food Programme, over eight million people need emergency relief support to avoid starvation.

Activists, students, journalists, and the organizers of the 31 July demonstration were arrested, abducted and tortured, charged in the courts with trying to overthrow the government and accused of “inciting violence” or disregarding Covid-19 regulations. The demonstrations were stifled by a heavy police and army presence and the few who took placards out to the streets were arrested.

Booker prize nominee for 2020, Tsitsi Dangarembga, whose novel This Mournable Body has been shortlisted, was also arrested for “inciting violence” and “bigotry.”

NUMSA demands include that the African Union must investigate the human rights violations and hold the government accountable. Further, the judiciary must be independent, and freedom of association respected. Media freedoms should also be respected and charges against journalists and other political prisoners withdrawn.

Andrew Chirwa, NUMSA president said:

“Instead of addressing the crisis, the Zimbabwean government has responded with brutality and repression. The country is in the grip of state-sponsored violence against its people. We demand workers’ freedom to participate in activities of any trade unions of their choice and that their right to strike be protected.”

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

“We call upon the government of Zimbabwe to respect international labour standards. Trade unions play an important role in improving the welfare of workers and working class communities, but they can only do so when their freedoms and rights are respected.”

IndustriALL’s 10 affiliates in Zimbabwe, that organize in the chemical and plastics, energy, engineering, metal, mining, manufacturing, and textile, garment shoe and leather sectors, welcomed the support from NUMSA which they said strengthened not only international solidarity, but their resolve to continue fighting for workers’ and human rights.

Unions call for rapid and sustainable industrialization of Africa

The United Nations marks 20 November as Africa Industrialization Day, saying that “the success of Africa’s industrialization programme will require the creation of enabling environment.” Unions insist that this requires the participation of the whole of society, particularly workers and trade unions.

IndustriALL and its affiliates in the region have consistently campaigned for the rapid industrialization and sustainable development of the continent and individual countries through various events, actions and activities.

Issa Aremu, IndustriALL vice president for the region said:

“Local level engagement on industrial policies is key, and trade unions should include sustainable industrial policies in their everyday work and also fight for beneficiation of industrial raw materials such as oil and minerals.”

The think tank, held on September 9, is part of a series of activities in preparation for Africa Industrialization Week, which runs from 17-23 November, after the Virtual Youth and Industrialization Conference on July 31.

The expert report discussed in the meeting outlined that “if proper institutions are set up at national level to support the implementation of the AfCFTA; then there is potential to address obstacles that African countries face in global production and trade systems.” The report also shows that the shocks that Covid-19 brought to African economies include reduced trade with China, Africa’s biggest trading partner. But domestic industries have manufacturing capacity, as recently seen in the production of Covid-19 supplies including hand sanitizers, gloves, masks, liquid soap, and ventilators.

The participants discussed the role of intergovernmental institutions, particularly the African Union (AU), in promoting faster industrialization through programmes, including the Accelerated Industrial Development of Africa (AIDA) programme that falls under the Agenda 2063 plan that promotes regional integration.

One of the plan’s flagship projects is the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which became operational in 2019 with a secretariat in Ghana. The AfCFTA is expected to boost intra-African trade and create thousands of jobs.

The African Development Bank was also highlighted as an institution where IndustriALL and its affiliates should seek policy development and concrete implementation for industrialization.

The think tank decided to take interact directly with these institutions to raise workers’ demands for a fairer economy.

The meeting also discussed union demands on sustainable mining as proposed in the African Mining Vision (AMV). “Minerals should be linked to greater sustainable socio-economic development through fiscal and economic linkages that are at the heart of the AMV,” said IndustriALL mining director Glen Mpufane.

“Sustainable mining means the existence of public policies that promote the use of mineral resources for economic and social development, and to avert the worst impacts on the environment through strict regulations,” added Brian Kohler, director for health, safety and sustainability.

The think tank coincides with a global debate on the transformation of economies, reconfiguration of international production and reshaping of global supply chains. The participants underlined the importance of a shift to sustainable economic development policies, especially after the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan said:

“As part of the Africa Industrialization campaign, over the next two months, we will continue to take action at regional and country level in Africa. We will continue to highlight the important role that unions can and should play to influence policy engagement at national and regional levels”.

Following a series of actions, the campaign programme for 2020 will have a virtual event on November 20 for voicing unions’ demands.

Union says Covid-19 opportunism is behind wage disputes in South Africa

IndustriALL affiliate SACTWU says some employers are proposing to reduce wages by 20 per cent and to pay less towards pension funds. In addition, the employers do not want to pay annual bonuses and shift allowances.

If implemented, the employer proposals will reverse the gains of SACTWU’s living wage campaign. In March, SACTWU successfully negotiated a deal in which workers received full-pay during the early days of the country’s lockdown.

To defend the gains, SACTWU has declared a wage dispute in the textile and garment sectors. The sectors include workers employed in the manufacturing of non-woven goods such as nappies and bedding, woven goods like textile fabrics, handbags and leather products, manufactured fibre, industrial textiles, and the laundry sector that caters for hospitals and hotels. In the home textiles sector, a settlement has been reached.

The declaration of the dispute comes after three months of failed negotiations with employer associations under the National Bargaining Council for the Clothing Manufacturing Industry. The employers’ associations that were involved in the negotiations include the South African Apparel Association, Apparel and Textile Association of South Africa, Transvaal Clothing Manufacturing Association, Eastern Province Clothing Manufacturing Association, and the South African Clothing Manufacturers Association. SACTWU is also involved in plant-based bargaining where disputes have been declared.

Andre Kriel, SACTWU general secretary, says:

“While we acknowledge that the lockdown has been difficult for our industry, we will not just sit by and meekly accept these brutal employer attacks on our members’ standard of living. We are determined not to allow workers’ decades-long and hard-won conditions of employment and gains to be eradicated by employers who are hell-bent on opportunistically using the Covid-19 crisis to rob our members of what is rightfully theirs.”

Due to Covid-19, negotiations took place virtually. According to SACTWU, the disputes will now go for compulsory conciliation processes.

Christina Hajagos-Clausen, IndustriALL director for the textile and garment industry, says:

“Unions must stand firm against the push backs from employers. Jobs, wages, and benefits must be protected and not sacrificed.”

Employer sues Eswatini union for strike damages

ATUSWA, affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, says it will challenge the claims that are meant to bankrupt the union and that employers are using this strategy to waste union resources through legal fees. The union argues that employers’ reasoning is that less money for the union means poor service to members and that a weak union will then lead to members becoming disgruntled with the union.

Wander Mkhonza, ATUSWA general secretary says:

“This is a classic case of union busting. Employers in the textile and garment sector are taking the legal route not because they seek redress in the courts but simply to frustrate unions and force them to incur huge legal fees.
"The employers are not even worried about whether they will win the cases; they simply go to court because they have the money for cases that drag forever fully aware that unions will lose financially in long court battles.”

In August 2018, ATUSWA, met with its members at Zheng Yong, Nhlangano, to decide on whether to go-ahead with a proposed strike action on living wages following a dispute with the employer. The meeting attracted thousands of workers from other factories.

However, workers opted for negotiations through the collective agreement that the union had with Zheng Yong. Living wages being one of the main grievances of workers in the textile and garment sector who are paid E1800 per month (US$108). The union is campaigning for a minimum living wage of E3500 (US$210).

When the workers went back to work after the meeting, the Zheng Yong management had locked the gates incensing the workers who then picketed, with workers from FTM garments and other factories joining in the action. The police worsened the tense situation by firing teargas into workers who had gathered, sparking the demonstrations.

Christina Hajagos-Clausen, IndustriALL director for the textile and garment industry says:

“Factory owners should strive to build better industrial relations with trade unions and not plot to destroy them. Taking the union to court on false charges is an act of bad faith by FTM Garments.”

Union takes Mauritian employer to court after migrant worker dies

Norul Amin, a Bangladeshi migrant worker, who died on 27 July, had a two-year contract with Fairy Textiles as a machine operator. When he got sick, he asked for leave to go to hospital but the employer refused; instead, he was asked to report for work.

His health deteriorated further the following day while at work, and he was taken to hospital by his co-workers. Sadly, he did not receive enough attention because of the language barrier, as most Bangladeshi workers speak only Bangla. At the hospital he was given only pain killers, and later died of a heart attack.

Veer Gukhool, migrant workers specialist at CTSP says:

“For years, the union has sounded alarm bells on the unfair treatment of migrant workers. However, the government continues to amend laws to worsen their working conditions. With the increasing discrimination and limiting of workers’ rights, the union wants labour laws to be enforced, and adequate protection to be given to migrant workers in Mauritius.”

CTSP says Fairy Textiles, a textile and garment manufacturer exporting to Madagascar, South Africa, Europe, USA, and other countries, denied Amin his right to sick leave. This is contrary to Mauritian labour laws requiring the employer to not only grant sick leave but provide transport to sick workers who need to go to hospital. The union says workers are entitled to annual and sick leave.

The union hopes that the case will be heard as soon as possible after Fairy Textile initially refused to give time off to three workers who are witnesses. The workers have since given statements in support of the union court case.

Fairy Textile only released the workers after pressure from the union and the government. There are fears that the workers may be deported on the encouragement of the employer before the case is heard in court.

Christina Hajagos-Clausen, IndustriALL textile director, says:

“It is incumbent upon textile and garment companies to respect the rights of migrant workers to sick leave. It is inhuman that the Fairy Textiles management denied a sick worker his fundamental rights when he needed them most.”

To protect migrant workers’ rights in the textile and garment supply chains in Mauritius, IndustriALL and CTSP are working with Anti-Slavery International, garment brand ASOS, and Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Programme, a civil society organization that provides training to Bangladeshi migrant workers.

Unions in South Africa slam PPE procurement corruption

The tenders being investigated are worth over five billion rand (US$299 million) and were awarded for cloth masks, surgical masks, face shields, medical gowns, aprons, scrubs, overalls, gloves, sanitisers, and other products.

Had the tenders gone to reputable industries in the chemicals, plastics, and textile, garments, shoe, and leather sectors, thousands of workers would have benefitted.

Instead the tenders were given to politically connected individuals and bogus companies with no proven experience in the supply chain for PPE. These suppliers often inflated prices and imported poor quality products when better locally manufactured products could have been sourced at half the price. The tender process also flouted local content laws.

To make information available on local manufacturers for masks and other products, the Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU) and Brand SA set up a portal where factories and small industries could be contacted. Information is also available on the factories that can produce PPE, but these were ignored by government officials who were not transparent on the awarding of the tenders.

In a report to the South African parliament on 5 August, SACTWU and the Congress of South African Trade Unions said:

“It is a story of the betrayal of the safety of healthcare workers who are being placed at risk dues to the supply of sub-standard products.”
“It is a shameful story of missed opportunities to buy and produce locally many products which are normally not needed in such large quantities by the state which is not doing everything to possible to support factories and workers in a struggling economy.”

Irvin Jim, the general secretary of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa, said:

“The past three months have seen an unprecedented rise of nationwide public anger against this government because of the massive revelations of corruption involving essential Covid-19 health supplies.”

Joseph Montisetse, National Union of Mineworkers president, added:

“We must guard against corruption in all sectors of our government. It is unacceptable that others arrogantly find an opportunity to enrich themselves with millions of rands allocated to tackle the scourge of Covid-19.”

Paule France Ndessomin, the IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa said:

“It is deplorable that funds meant for the Covid-19 pandemic are stolen. These are funds meant to ease the suffering of workers, families, and communities. We agree with the unions that the government must act decisively to end this corruption.”

Lesotho union demands overtime payment from Gem Diamonds

On 21 August, Letseng mine owned by Gem Diamonds unearthed a 442-carat rough diamond worth US$18 million. But this is not the first one. In February three gems of 183, 89 and 70 carats worth millions were also dug at the mine. Letseng mine, which is 70 per cent owned by Gem Diamonds and by the Government of Lesotho has unearthed over 60 white gem quality diamonds of over 100 carats each. According to diamond experts, this makes Letseng the highest dollar per carat kimberlite mine in the world.

According to IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Independent Democratic Union of Lesotho (IDUL), Gem Diamonds can afford to pay workers overtime. Hence, the union is challenging the exemptions that were given to Gem Diamonds by the government not to pay overtime, which is normally required by law.

The mine and sub-contracted companies employ over 1,700 workers some of whom are members of IDUL.

Daniel Teko, IDUL general secretary, says:

"The union appreciates that Gem Diamonds recognises the quality of work that the mineworkers are doing at the mine. However, we want to urge the company to go beyond praises and pay living wages.
"Further, the company must address the workers grievances and pay overtime including for work done during public holidays. Most women workers at the mine are being robbed of their overtime and lowly paid wages of Maloti 1,900 (US$113).”

Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL mining director says:

“Mineworkers who dig such valuable gems should earn living wages that improve their lives and those of their families. Diamond mineworkers cannot live in poverty while bringing so much profit to multinational mining companies. Responsible mining entails improving working conditions and paying decent living wages.”

IDUL welcomes the Gem Diamonds’ announcement that some of the proceeds from the sale of the diamond will be used for community development in Letseng.

Diamond mines which are mainly in the Maloti mountain range remained open during the Covid-19 lockdown in the country. However, Firestone’s Liqhobong Diamond mine is temporarily closed citing difficult market conditions, and IDUL is fighting for the benefits of its members who lost their jobs at the mine. The union has also raised compliance issues with Lesotho’s labour laws against Liqhobong on the retrenchments with the country’s labour department.

At Storm Mountain Diamonds, IDUL is demanding that the mining company should provide adequate personal protective equipment to workers in the housekeeping department to protect them from infection with Covid-19.

Unions campaign for Covid-19 awareness in Zimbabwe

As some of the ways to reduce the rising infections, the IndustriALL Global Union affiliates the Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union (ZDAMWU) and the National Union of Mineworkers of Zimbabwe are carrying out national awareness campaigns.

The campaigns include visits to mines to monitor employer compliance with Covid-19 prevention regulations and ensuring that workers have adequate personal protective equipment and suitable sanitation facilities. The campaigns also emphasize observing and maintaining social distance to and from work, and the provision of face masks and hand sanitizers to workers.

During the campaigns, ZDAMWU gave over 5,000 masks to its members. The union raised concerns over the lack of social distancing in transporting workers to and from work, and the testing of workers and their families in mine compounds to prevent community transmission of Covid-19.

However, ZDAMWU found out that there were disparities in compliance between the mining companies. The union visited Anglo American’s Unki Mine, How Mine, Hwange Colliery and others. Whilst large scale mining companies put adequate measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 at the workplace, there were limited efforts to stop community transmissions in the mining compounds.

Some companies did not test workers as required by the Covid-19 regulations and others simply ignored the regulations. Artisanal and small-scale miners were also not following the regulations, with the workers living in appalling conditions.

Justice Chinhema, ZDAMWU general secretary says:

“As the coronavirus continues to spread in the mining industry, the union needs to make a radical approach in dealing with the pandemic to save lives and protect the safety and health of workers.”

Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa, says:

“Covid-19 continues to threaten workers health and safety in the mines, and we continue to call upon mining companies to follow Covid-19 protocols to prevent infections. We also want governments and employers to recognize Covid-19 as an occupational disease.”

The Covid-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe comes at a time when the country’s public health facilities are falling apart from years of neglect, are ill-equipped and sometimes have no medicines. There are cases of patients dying in car parks because hospitals cannot admit them, and frontline workers such as doctors and nurses have been on strike for months demanding living wages and adequate personal protective equipment. According to the Ministry of Health and Child Care, on 26 August the country had recorded 6,521 positive cases, 4,961 recoveries and 179 deaths. Like most Sub Saharan African countries there are doubts that the figures are a true reflection of the pandemic in the country because of less testing being done.