MAURITIUS

IndustriALL affiliate, the Chemical Manufacturing and Connected Trades Employees Union (CMCTEU) and its National confederation (CTSP) held a demonstration for a national minimum wage.  A candle light vigil also took place at the Workers Memorial.

Another IndustriALL affiliate the Government Services Employees Association (GSEA) has successfully organized a workshop on 07 October 2014 to mark the WDDW. More than 100 delegates attended the event, which took place at the municipality of Port Louis on the theme: "Decent Work = A workers’ right".

Three textile unions form women’s committee in Lesotho

The purpose of the meeting was to create an IndustriALL women’s committee in Lesotho, where about 14,000 textile workers belong to three different unions, FAWU, LECAWU and NUTEXT out of about 40,000 workers. These unions are likely to come together soon to form one union. The textile factories belong to South African or Chinese owners.

The women identified the following issues as being ones that need attention: insufficient toilet time, blocked or locked exits, fainting, excessive targets, sexual harassment, low pay which makes some women resort to prostitution, not enough sleep, insufficient maternity leave, HIV and AIDS. They worked on the basis of body mapping, workplace mapping, life mapping as well as visualization of dreams.

The women knew about one factory where the maternity leave went up from two weeks to 12 weeks. It is Springfield Manufacturing, a South African-owned company. The union negotiated and started by demanding a 15% wage increase. What they achieved was 8% plus the increase in maternity leave from 1 May this year. Everyone agreed on this demand. The union holds mass meetings regularly and asks workers what their demands are. There are about 1000 workers at that factory, with about 80% women. They have some women shop stewards. Everyone at the factory is on permanent contract. The employer pays the maternity benefit. In the meantime they are working on having social security pay the maternity benefit.

Six women were elected to coordinate the committee and keep contact with IndustriALL. To start with they will work to fight discrimination against men and women by:

The women understood that in the future unions must sign agreements that cover more than just money. That will make it more feasible for women’s concerns to be taken up such as maternity leave or sexual harassment or HIV and AIDS. As a first step members need to be educated about social benefits and rights. The women went home with a greater feeling of self-esteem and empowerment.

Ebola impact expected on West African workers

An outbreak of Ebola in the developed world would be easily overcome but West Africa has been unable to contain the disease which has been ongoing for several months now due to poor health services as well as other public service failings. It is having a devastating effect on health services in several ways. It has claimed the lives of health workers that do not have adequate protective gear to work with infected patients, putting more strain on limited human resources to respond to health needs in these countries. It has resulted in the closure of health facilities unable to deal with Ebola patients which has left thousands without care for this and other illnesses.

The longer the outbreak remains uncontained, the greater the risk of the potential negative impact on the economy. Airlines are suspending travel and borders with neighbouring countries have been closed. Multinational companies are scaling back and pulling foreign staff out of affected countries. Other countries in the region have also been affected by fear of the outbreak spreading which has affected trade and other economic activities even where there are no reported cases of Ebola.

In a letter to affiliates in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, IndustriALL Global Union’s general secretary, Jyrki Raina expressed grave concern of the impact that the outbreak is having on workers and writes; “Our affiliates have an important role to play monitoring the economic impact, in terms of slow down or stoppage in production by companies, especially in the mining sector and its implications for labour in the form of layoffs. Particular attention also is needed to the impact on migrant workers.”

Some IndustriALL affiliates in affected countries feel they should be assisting in efforts to contain Ebola, in particular educating workers about the disease and how it is spread. IndustriALL has encouraged affiliates to work with and support Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, who have provided the most comprehensive response to the disease thus far.

The Steelworkers Humanity Fund has contributed US$25,000 for Ebola support in West Africa, providing funds to both MSF and a local NGO with ties to the labour movement that will undertake a public health education campaign. The Steelworkers Humanity Fund focuses primarily on development projects and emergency aid in developing countries, but also supports Canadian communities in crisis. United Steelworkers (USW) members contribute to the fund through clauses negotiated into collective agreements and in some cases employers make matching contributions.

IndustriALL also encourages affiliates that would like to help to follow the example of the Steelworkers Humanity Fund and support the work of MSF and other credible NGOs on the frontline of the outbreak. 

IndustriALL launches new Day of Action to STOP Precarious Work

Regular, permanent and direct employment remains under constant attack from multinationals and other forces that are promoting precarious work. We strongly encourage affiliates to take action and denounce precarious employment and the insecurity, which is becoming everyday life for more and more workers around the world.

This Global Action is a cornerstone of the IndustriALL campaign to STOP Precarious Work. Mass global action helps to bring visibility to the issue and to strengthen national campaigns as well as IndustriALL’s position in challenging multinational companies, governments and the institutions of global governance. Every year, this mass mobilization sends a powerful message that workers everywhere will stand up to protect their rights.

In 2013, affiliates from 46 countries took part, and in many countries IndustriALL affiliates took action together. Actions included mass mobilisations in marches and rallies, distribution of campaign materials in workplaces, thematic workshops and conferences, demands on government, flash mobs, public hearings and protests outside company headquarters. Reports and photos of affiliates taking action can be found on the IndustriALL site at http://www.industriall-union.org/stop-precarious-work.

Some affiliates have already planned actions for 7 October 2014. In Canada, UNIFOR will organize a national Good Job Summit (3-5 October) as part of its campaign “Join the Revolution for Good Jobs”. The Summit will be a national dialogue between workers, students, government, employers and communities, aimed at finding new approaches to jobs and the economy.

The Rio Tinto Global Union Network will hold a global day of action against precarious work as part of the global campaign at Rio Tinto. The billion-dollar company is increasingly introducing precarious forms of work at its operations around the world. Other trade union networks in multinational corporations are strongly encouraged to take action this year, since MNCs and their supply chains are among the main drivers of the rampant spread of precarious work.

IndustriALL affiliates in Cambodia will target Export Process Zones (EPZs) where workers rights are largely undermined. Workers in a bus and on motorcycles, holding IndustriALL flags, will do rounds in the EPZs as part of a “caravan for decent work":

Please, send information as soon as possible about the actions that your union intends to undertake to [email protected]. This information will be posted under a special section on the campaign page STOP Precarious Work. Don’t forget to send photos after the event as well.

A new IndustriALL publication Negotiating Security: Trade union bargaining strategies against precarious work is available for download. The publication reports about creative and progressive agreements that unions are pursuing to limit precarious work and protect workers.

Madagascar: IndustriALL supports drive to organize, educate and fight back at Rio Tinto

The workshop and organizing drive form part of IndustriALL’s global campaign to build union power at Rio Tinto plants around the world. Through increased unionisation in the workplace, the campaign aims to make the mining giant recognise fundamental workers' rights, such as the right to organise and collective bargaining.

QMM, which is 80 per cent owned by Rio Tinto, employs 500 workers directly. Another 1500 workers are servicing QMM through its subcontractors. Their work largely depends on QMM renewing contracts.

IndustriALL is assisting FISEMA in organising the mining industry in Madagascar, with a particular focus on Rio Tinto. Even though working conditions at QMM are considered to be better than many other mines in the country the bar is low and there is a lot to be done; not least as many workers are afraid to join unions.

Local union leaders have committed to organizing all workers at QMM, both direct and indirect. Participants at the workshop devised strategies to strengthen FISEMA and build a network of Rio Tinto workers regionally, nationally and internationally. Plans on educating members and improving leadership training have also been devised. Furthermore, membership targets have been set and monitoring strategies put in place.

Global day of action to fight back

The establishment of Rio Tinto in Fort Dauphin has increased the cost of living in the region and despite the fact QMM workers are paid approximately four times the minimum wage, many still need a second job to be able to survive.

As the extractive industry is new to Malagasy workers, they rely solely on information provided by employers when it comes to operational health and safety.

Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL Assistant general secretary, says:

IndustriALL is committed to bringing FISEMA together with the global network of Rio Tinto workers to strengthen the fight for freedom of association and better safety and working conditions at Rio Tinto sites worldwide.

Together, IndustriALL and FISEMA are preparing for the global day of union action at Rio Tinto on 7 October, a day in which IndustriALL affiliates around the world take action as part of the IndustriALL STOP Precarious Work campaign.

Future still uncertain on AGOA

Trade and investment, specifically the extension of AGOA, topped the agenda at the US Africa Leaders Summit from 4 to 6 August 2014 in Washington DC.  AGOA is a non-reciprocal preferential trade programme under which products from eligible sub-Saharan African countries have duty-free access to US markets. It was first passed by US Congress under the Clinton administration in 2000 and is due to expire in September 2015.  The uncertainty over its extension is having an increasingly negative impact on orders placed with African based suppliers.

As a result, IndustriALL Global Union is calling for AGOA to be a permanent programme to encourage longer-term and higher capital investment, which may also lead to increased diversity in exports from the region. 

Tens of thousands of jobs in the garment sector are dependent on exports under AGOA, which make up one fifth of non-petroleum exports under the trade agreement. However, there are poor working conditions in many of these garment factories.

There are many examples; most recently Jane Ragoo and Reaaz Chotoo of Mauritian union Chemical Manufacturing and Connected Trades Employees Union reported that “Workers' interests are the least priority of AGOA and thus the US. The wages are so low and the job so precarious that a vast majority of Mauritian workers do not want to join the textile sector.  Consequently, more than 50 per cent of the workforce in the textile sector is made up of foreign workers and month after month this number is increasing. So the competitive edge of the textile sector in Mauritius is geared towards the exploitation of foreign workers.”

IndustriALL has also recommended that the special provision given to Lesser Developed Countries, which allowed fabric from a third country to be used in the production of garment exports under AGOA, be extended to all AGOA eligible countries, such as South Africa.

“South Africa’s apparel exports to the US have collapsed since the early 2000s partly due to the fact that it has been displaced by exports from mainly Asian countries and because the South African textile sector has shrunk with fewer spinning, weaving and knitting mills,” reports Etienne Vlok, researcher at the Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union. “This has meant it has been very difficult to comply with the current AGOA rule of using local yarn and fabric in order to benefit from AGOA.”

IndustriALL hopes the need for redress on exploitative conditions and other issues will result in a revision of AGOA that strengthens the protection of workers and jobs. Due consideration of the recommendations from labour, including the largest federation of unions in the United States – the AFL-CIO, as well as from other stakeholders may increase the time it takes to draft the reauthorisation. When AGOA will be addressed by Congress is anyone’s guess, with some holding little hope that the extension will happen before 2015.   

Numsa settles engineering strike

The settlement provide a 10 per cent wage increase every year for lowest paid members in the sector and 8 per cent increase for the highest paid for the next three years. Other gains were time-off for shop stewards to attend to union and industry matters; the establishment of an industry short-time fund which will be used to compensate workers when they are on short time and training opportunities for workers.

It was also agreed that workers employed by labour brokers shall be entitled to all the terms and conditions of employment as contained in the Main Agreement. The bargaining council has undertaken to employ labour broker compliance officers who will act on complaints of abuse and non-compliance. All parties to the agreement also committed to discourage and minimize the use of temporary employment services in the industry.

 “NUMSA wishes to thank all our allies and friends across the world for supporting us during this long month. The union is more united and growing,” said Numsa International Officer, Skhumbuzo Phakathi.

Journalist and human rights lawyer in Swaziland receive two-year prison sentences

Their unfair conviction and sentencing can only be seen as sanctions on human rights activities in the country and proves judicial complicity in harassment

said Fernando Lopes, Assistant General Secretary of IndustriALL Global Union.

Maseko is a prominent human rights lawyer and a senior member of Lawyers for Human Rights Swaziland and has a close working relationship with the labour movement in Swaziland. Makhubu is a columnist and Editor-in-Chief of The Nation, considered as the sole independent newspaper of the country.

Background on the sentence: Convictions confound Swazi reform hopes

Ghanaians demonstrate against high living costs

The one-day protest where frustrated workers expressed their fury through wailings, placards, songs, shouts and vuvuzelas was called by organized labour and supported by the Ghana Trade Union Congress. Protestors, at least 7,000 of them in the capital Accra, accused the government of poor fiscal policies and mismanaging the economy.

A core demand is that immediate action be taken to halt the depreciation of the Ghanaian currency, the Cedi, and the rising cost of living. “The Cedi has depreciated so much that minimum wage is now less than two US dollars a day, so we can say it is officially poverty wages,” says Solomon Kotei, General Secretary of Industrial & Commercial Workers Union (ICU) which is affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union.

“Petroleum is almost double what it was a year and a half ago. We face power outages and water shortages all the time and still we face ever increasing utility costs. All this because of the depreciation of our currency but also due to poor planning and inefficiencies,” explains Kotei. “We are the ninth worst managed economy in the world despite our wealth in so many things like cocoa and even petroleum. So this is not about global economic problems, these are home-grown problems rooted in corruption. Workers are saying this cannot be allowed to continue.”

Labour is aware that businesses and industries are facing difficulties and Kotei expressed concern that 20 companies organised by ICU may have to close which would result in over 4000 job losses.

IndustriALL’s other Ghanaian affiliate; the Ghana Mine Workers Union (GMWU) also has put its weight behind the demonstration, “We have to let our government know that we are not happy with the state of the economy,” says Prince William Ankrah, GMWU General Secretary.

Ankrah proposes a way forward, “We need to seek solutions within the industrial relations landscape, we need social dialogue where we can sit together to ensure mature and peaceful engagement on the nature of the economic situation confronting us.” 

Numsa strike enters its fourth week

“The strike continues and has not been suspended.  Our members, at the coal face of the strike will make the final decision on whether to end the strike or not,” says Castro Ngobese, national spokesperson for IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, Numsa. 

Workers are demanding double-digit wage increases of 10 to 12 per cent for three years, scrapping of labour brokers and a housing allowance.  They also want a section in the Main Agreement removed to end discriminatory practices by employers giving allowances and other benefits to higher-paid workers.

Media reports on 21 July 2014 say that the employers’ association, the Steel and Engineering Federation of South Africa (Seifsa), has conditionally accepted a wage proposal for a 10 per cent increase in each of the three years, in an arrangement facilitated by the Department of Labour (DoL).

It is unclear whether further proposals made by the government on labour brokers have been accepted by employers, including a clause saying “Employees engaged by a labour broker and placed in employment in industry on a temporary, permanent or permanent outsourced basis shall be entitled to all terms and conditions of employment as contained in the Main Agreement, including all Social Security Benefits from day one of employment.”

A special National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting has been held by Numsa in Johannesburg this week to deliberate the proposed settlement offer. After the meeting, the union will report back to members for their consideration and mandate.  It is only after this consultation that an announcement can be made on whether a deal has been reached.

The NEC appreciated the resoluteness and unwavering firmness of workers in demand of a living wage,” said Ngobese. “The NEC was humbled by the numerous messages of support and solidarity we continue to receive on daily basis from our allies here at home and abroad.”