Workers confront sexual exploitation at Ugandan cardboard manufacturing factory

One such testimony was narrated by Mukyala Nambi* on 15 June. She works at Riley Packaging factory in Mukono – about 22 km from Kampala. The factory makes corrugated cardboard boxes for packaging. Nambi has worked at the factory for nine years. Riley Packaging employs over 600 workers, 120 of whom are women, and exports its products to Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan.

Nambi recalls:

“It is knock-off time after our long working day which starts at 7 am and ends at 7 pm. I am preparing to go home when the production manager summons me to his office. The manager does not explain why he wants to meet me alone in his office after the factory had closed for the day. I am suspicious of his motives and refuse to meet him. The manager is furious. The next day he began sexually harassing me.
“The manager intimidated and verbally abused me. He yelled at me on the factory floor threatening me with dismissal unless I agreed to his advances.”

Without fear, Nambi, a shop steward at the factory, stood firm against the harassment and told the manager that workers had rights protected by the labour laws and Uganda’s constitution. Further, she started to conduct investigations on the manager’s behaviour and found out some cases of sexual abuse of young women workers especially those employed on short contracts who were promised permanent jobs.

The wages at the factory are low. Nambi earns 300,000 Uganda shillings (US$80) per month while contract workers are paid 200,000 shillings (US$53).

“Once I had gathered enough evidence, I immediately reported him to the director and the human resources department. The manager was dismissed after disciplinary action,”

said Nambi. Further, the manager was reported to the immigration department resulting in his deportation from Uganda back to India for violating the conditions of his work permit and forgery.

Nambi attributes her courage in confronting the perpetrator to the gender-based violence and harassment training that Ugandan workers from IndustriALL affiliated unions received from a project supported by the Danish Trade Union Development Agency (DTDA) and the IndustriALL Sub Saharan Africa regional office. She says the training empowered her to stand against sexual harassment at her workplace. The training covered topics on the implementation of International Labour Organization Convention 190 to end violence and harassment in the world of work that Uganda ratified in 2023. Other topics were on the inclusion of clauses to curb gender-based violence and harassment in collective bargaining agreements.

“We applaud Nambi for her bravery in confronting the perpetrator. One of the core issues in our GBVH training is an emphasis on strengthening reporting mechanisms and the development of the workplace policies that commit to ending sexual harassment. To achieve this, the affiliates in Uganda are working with the factory owners to have gender policies in place and we commend these efforts,”

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

IndustriALL affiliates that benefited from the training included the Uganda Printers, Paper, Polyfibre and Allied Workers Union, Uganda Textile, Garment, Leather and Allied Workers Union and Uganda Hotels, Food, Tourism, Supermarket and Allied workers Union.

*Please note that the name has been changed to protect the person's privacy.

Lesotho: enhancing safety and inclusiveness at work

The project was launched by the International Labour Organization (ILO) on 20 June in Maseru and is supported by the governments of Lesotho, the United States of America, the ILO, and trade unions. Unions, including IndustriALL’s affiliate, the Independent Democratic Union of Lesotho (IDUL), labour support organizations, non-governmental organizations, the ministry of labour, the Solidarity Centre, and the United States’ embassy officials participated at the launch.

The project will support the implementation of the ILO Convention 190 to end GBVH in the world of work which Lesotho ratified in 2023. At industry level, the project will enhance the Lesotho agreement to curb gender-based violence and sexual exploitation in the textile and garment sector, which was reached by unions, non-governmental organizations, and Nien Hsing Textile Company in 2019. IDUL is a signatory and sits on the oversight committee on the implementation of the agreement.

“We hope the ILO project will build on the successes of the Lesotho Agreement which has served workers interests by reducing incidents of gender-based violence and sexual harassment at Nien Hsing factories. But we want the agreement to be extended to other factories and sectors as well,”

said May Rathakane, IDUL general secretary.

The multilateral partnership for organizing, worker empowerment and rights (M-POWER), which is co-chaired by the US government and the ITUC supports the project. The M-POWER steering committee includes the governments of Argentina, Canada, and Spain, the International Domestic Workers Federation, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), and the AFL-CIO. Other partners include the South African government, the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, Solidarity Centre, and the Workers’ Rights Consortium.

Rob Wayss, M-POWER executive director said:

“The launch of the ILO project provides a good follow up to the M-POWER summit held in July 2023 in Maseru. M-POWER was able to discuss with unions the impact and effectiveness of the Lesotho Agreement and how it has led to remedy several cases of violations and to improve the working environment at the covered factories. This led to progress in addressing GBVH violations in the factories.”

“GBVH continues to be prevalent in garment factories in Sub-Saharan Africa. We welcome this project because GBVH is also a safety issue for women workers who dominate the garment industry in Lesotho, and must be stopped,”

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

Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park must comply with labour laws

During the meeting, the ministry of labour agreed to conduct an inspection on workers’ rights violations through questionnaires which the employers are required to respond to in 30 days. The employers also made a commitment to immediately provide personal protective equipment to workers. On their part, unions will develop recognition agreements and begin their engagement in social dialogue with employers in the Sino-Uganda Industrial Park.

Sino-Uganda Mbale which has more than 50 factories, employs thousands of workers in manufacturing sectors that include textiles, electronics, glass, and soap making. The unions recommended that the Uganda Investment Authority should make compliance with labour laws a condition for investing in the country.

The meeting, which included factory visits, took place between unions, ministers, government officials, members of parliament for workers, employers, and local authorities, and came after unions had petitioned the government over workers’ rights violations and decent work deficits. The violations highlighted in the petition in May included unfair dismissals, long working hours, and unpaid overtime. The unions wrote that most of the companies at Sino-Uganda Mbale promoted precarious working conditions, “with heavy casualization of labour which included piece rates, short contracts, low pay, and no appointment letters.”

On health and safety, the unions said the companies failed to provide personal protective equipment and adequate accident prevention measures. Gender-based violence and sexual harassment were common with women workers being denied maternity protection.

Sino-Uganda Mbale, located in East Uganda, is a joint China-Uganda project whose construction was done by the Tian Tang Group and is part of China’s “One Belt One Road” initiative.

Participating in the meeting were ministers of state financing and economic development, labour, industrial and productivity, and trade, industry, and cooperatives. Workers MPs, who are elected by trade unions as per Uganda’s Constitution also participated at the meeting.

Last month, IndustriALL Global Union affiliates, Uganda Textile, Garment, Leather and Allied Workers Union (UTGLAWU), Uganda Printers, Paper, Polyfibre and Allied Workers Union (UPPPAWU), Uganda Chemicals, Petroleum, and Allied Workers Union (UCPAWU), Uganda Hotels, Food, Tourism, Supermarkets, and Allied Workers Union (UHFTAWU) petitioned the government expressing concerns on violations of freedom of association and collective bargaining especially the workers’ right to form and join trade unions. The affiliates are also members of the federation, the National Union of Trade Unions (NOTU) which participated at the meeting. The union rights’ campaigns are supported by the Danish Trade Union Development Agency (DTDA), and the Norwegian Society of Graduate Technical and Scientific Professionals (TEKNA).

“Most of the employers are refusing to recognise unions, which is a constitutional right, thus denying workers the right to collective bargaining and decent work. This violates International Labour Conventions 87 (Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize) and 98 (Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining),”

said Hajj Twaha Sempebwa, chairperson of the IndustriALL national council for Uganda. He further added that this contradicts Uganda’s national action plan on business and human rights which states that employers must respect workers’ rights and promote decent work.

“Industrial parks should not be enclaves of workers exploitation that offend national and international labour standards. We are in solidarity with Ugandan trade unions on their calls for social dialogue to ensure compliance with labour standards to improve industrial relations,”

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

The fight for ratification of C190 must continue

Upon the Convention’s adoption, IndustriALL recognized the urgent need to campaign for its ratification due to the pervasive violence and harassment in the world of work. ILO C190 is the first international standard aimed at eradicating these issues, asserting everyone’s right to a work environment free from violence and harassment, including gender-based violence and harassment (GBVH). The Convention also addresses existing gaps in national legislation.

Global unions launched a toolkit to support the implementation of the ILO C190. This “train the trainer” toolkit equips thousands of unions worldwide with essential tools to promote collective bargaining as a key strategy to eliminate violence and harassment in the world of work.

In complement of this joint toolkit, IndustriALL developed a ready to use training module that the organization used to train about 300 trade union leaders, staff and officers in Asia, MENA, Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa on how to prevent and address GBVH in the world of work and in their unions, through the implementation of the ILO C190.

Part of IndustriALL’s ILO C190 campaign involves collaborating with companies to address gender-based violence and harassment. In 2022, IndustriALL worked with H&M Group and the Swedish union IF Metall to develop robust methods for preventing, detecting, and handling GBVH in the supply chain. Efforts included raising awareness and equipping workers and management with the necessary tools, creating a platform to address and resolve issues through joint training sessions with local H&M Group production offices and trade unions. This initiative impacts approximately 1.5 million garment workers across over 1,500 H&M Group supplier factories. Recently, stakeholders reinforced their commitment by sharing experiences from the pilot implementation of GBVH guidelines in six supplier factories in Türkiye.

In November 2023, the IndustriALL executive committee endorsed a new policy on GBVH, misogyny, and sexism. This policy aims to foster a culture of dignity and respect within IndustriALL and its affiliates, emphasizing the eradication of GBVH, misogyny, and sexism. It includes educating members about these issues and aligning with the provisions of ILO C190. Clear procedures for addressing related complaints are also established, with leadership and staff set to receive training on policy implementation in the coming months.

IndustriALL affiliates have been diligently fighting for ILO C190 ratification over the past five years.

In Nigeria, sustained campaigns and social dialogue involving trade unions, civil society organizations, and labour support groups led to ratification in 2022. Despite widespread underreporting due to stigma and weak law enforcement, unions continue C190 awareness campaigns, particularly in male-dominated workplaces, to eliminate practices that perpetuate GBVH.

In the Philippines, after four years of campaigning, the Senate ratified C190, making it the 37th country to do so. The campaign involved extensive lobbying, including writing letters and meeting with government officials. Educational materials and position papers on C190 were developed, and the campaign was highlighted during significant labour events.

Argentina also achieved ratification through union efforts. Deputy Vanesa Siley, a spokesperson for the General Confederation of Labour (CGT’s) federal group of women trade unionists, highlighted the significant role of the inter-union network, comprising over 100 unions, in advocating for workplace violence elimination.

After being trained on C190 by IndustriALL, Indonesian women committee developed a zero tolerance policy. Indonesian unions held social dialogue meetings with employers, leading more than 80 companies to sign this zero-tolerance. These policies, covering all workers, include forming teams to handle complaints, ensuring victims’ rights to lodge complaints, and providing safety, privacy, and psychological support.

As a result of all these effrots unions have incorporated ILO C190 principles into bargaining agreements. For example, the Indonesian ministery of women empowerment and child protection inaugurated a safe house at PT Evoluzione Tyre (Pirelli group) in West Java in March 2024. The company and the IndustriALL-affiliated Chemical, Energy, and Mines Workers Union (CEMWU) signed a zero-tolerance policy on violence and harassment in 2021, a significant step towards C190 implementation despite its non-ratification.

“Since its adoption, 44 countries have ratified C190, demonstrating a growing global commitment to eliminating violence and harassment in the workplace. Our affiliates have done really good work in obtaining ratification. They have also taken actions to implement the ILO C190 in their workplaces, even without the ratification of the ILO instrument. The campaigns must continue to ensure safe and respectful work environments worldwide,”

says Armelle Seby IndustriALL gender director.

Header photo: ILO, © Crozet / Pouteau

Breaking down barriers for women miners in Africa

This was one of the key threads running through discussions of the women in mining conference in Accra Ghana on 7 June. The conference theme was: Women in mining, changing perspectives and changing lives.

The panel discussions were on sustainable mining that considered environmental, labour, and community issues, and supporting women in leadership roles. Some of the key issues discussed included reversing the male domination of the mining industry through pushing for the women’s agenda on skills and capacity development. Further, mining policies should be inclusive of women to eliminate gender bias and improve access to training. Building knowledge, skills, expertise, and visibility for women miners were identified as pivotal by the delegates.

The conference emphasized that women miners should enjoy maternity protection as per national laws and International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 138 on maternity protection. Daycare centres for children should also be introduced by mining companies at the mines.

Breaking down barriers that impeded women’s advancement in the mining industries was identified as crucial by the participants. These barriers include gender inequality, gender-based violence and harassment, the gender pay gap, gender biases, and the absence of work-life balance. These barriers have been well illustrated in the Intergovernmental Forum (IGF) report on women and the mine of the future that identifies, in 12 countries including Ghana, Zambia and South Africa, the main data gaps and challenges that need to be addressed to enable evidence-based policy-making and open opportunities for women to participate in the future of mining.

IndustriALL Global Union was represented by affiliates from Ghana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The conference was organized by Women in Mining Ghana (WiM Ghana) with support from various corporations. WiM Ghana, aims to improve and retain the employment of women in the mining industry and its supply chains including in artisanal and small-scale mining, has stakeholders that include trade unions, civil society organizations, and large and small-scale enterprises. WiM Ghana also supports the inclusion of women miners in the attainment of sustainable development goals to end poverty and promote gender equality as well as workers’ rights and decent working conditions.

Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL Sub-Saharan Africa regional secretary, who also participated at the conference said:

“The mining sector is technical and highly skilled, but that does not mean that women cannot thrive as mineworkers. Women must be allowed into the artificial intelligence space and be provided with equal opportunities. This can only happen when the labour market becomes gender sensitive through the removal of discrimination and harmful cultural and religious practices and stereotypes.”

NUMSA considers legal action to stop violence against strikers

Over 10 workers were hospitialized after they were injured when a heavily armed guard opened fire on striking workers.

“NUMSA condemns MAHLE Bher for this unnecessary loss of life of comrade Njabulo Mpulo, the heavy handedness of its security, and the decision by the company to use heavily armed and aggressive security during a protected strike. Workers have the right to strike. We will be considering legal action because we have lost one of our members,”

said Mzamo Khoza, the union’s regional secretary for KwaZulu-Natal Province.

In another incident at SA Steel Mills, which trades as Alfeco Holdings, four workers were shot with rubber bullets at close range and hospitalized. The workers were protesting the dismissals of 162 workers who lost their jobs after going on a protected strike. The union is demanding protection of striking workers as per the law. The SA Steel Mills workers have been on strike since 22 May and will picket on 7 June at the offices of the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to demand recognition of shop stewards so as to enable them to defend workers' rights and interests at the workplace. Further, the union wants compliance with health and safety laws to curb serious regular accidents at the company in which some workers have been killed.

NUMSA has been reminding employers that workers have a right to strike according to the South African constitution and that the Labour Relations Act (LRA) also protects this right. The laws also protect the rights to form and join a trade union and to participate in union activities and programmes.

Additionally, the Occupational Health and Safety Act states that the employer must ensure that the work environment is safe and without health risks to workers. However, during strike action employers have used excessive force to break strikes often injuring workers as in these two cases that NUMSA raised.

Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL mining director, who is also responsible for health and safety, said:

“The use of excessive force by security companies contracted by employers is unlawful. It is unacceptable that workers continue to lose their lives for exercising their right to strike. This violence against striking workers negates the social dialogue and collective bargaining approaches that unions are always using to resolve labour disputes.”

Glencore must go beyond words

“Glencore’s extensive workers’ and human rights violations dominated the meeting yet again. We are concerned with the different treatment of workers at different plants, we are worried about lack of worker consultation when mines close and the exclusion of workers in the company’s future,”

says Kemal Özkan, IndustriALL assistant general secretary.

The board and shareholders were reminded about the irresponsible closure at Prodeco mine in Colombia which did not involve any social dialogue and transparency.

“Glencore and Prodeco dismiss staff and then rehire them as a sub-workforce with no support. This often leads to conflicts. There is no social dialogue between employers and workers. This is no way to run a company sustainably. I want to know what measures Glencore will take to avoid these situations, because what you say in public is not what is happening on the ground,”

says Claudia Blanco, from IndustriALL Colombian affiliate SINTRACARBON.

Jaime Lopez, national secretary of SINTRACARBON, was concerned about the contract between Cerrejon and the government which will end in 2034 which means that the mine will close.

“Employees need to know that there is a plan in place for closure and that they can access it. Does this plan consider labour, community, and environmental aspects?”

Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL’s mining director, highlighted that the recent strike at Mumi mine in DRC was a result of different treatment of workers employed by the same company, Glencore.

IndustriALL stressed that Glencore needs to address the arsenic air pollution at the Rouyn-Noranda’s smelter in Quebec, which emits the carcinogenic 30 times more than the allowed provincial limit. IndustriALL and its affiliate Fédération De L’industrie Manufacturiere (FIM) intend to urgently push for fast tracking the AERIS initiative.

The Glencore CEO and chairman tried to address the issues raised but much like last year workers were told to speak to regional management.

“We are cautiously optimistic; the CEO and the chairman came across as engaging. They indicated that they are willing to engage further, and we intend to hold them accountable to that. They can’t portray one image publicly and behave differently on the ground, they must take responsibility for all their actions,”

says Glen Mpufane.

Nigerian unions suspend strike to allow for negotiations with government

The unions announced they are entering into dialogue "to achieve favorable outcomes and safeguard the rights and welfare of all Nigerian citizens and workers."

The unions, who proposed 494 000 Naira ($332) as a national minimum wage, rejected the government’s minimum wage proposal of 60 000 Naira ($40) which they say is inadequate for workers to meet the ever-increasing cost of living. According to official reports, the Tripartite Committee on the national minimum wage is meeting to consider the union proposals.

Workers strated the strike on 3 June with most economic activities brought to a halt. Other union demands are on the reduction of the electricity tariff which they say worsens the workers’ financial difficulties.

“The indefinite nationwide strike action is therefore relaxed for one week from today to allow for a concrete and acceptable minimum wage,”

said Joe Ajaero, NLC president and general secretary of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), in a joint statement with the TUC.

Afolabi Olawale, general secretary of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) added:

“We urge the Federal Government to utilise this grace period of one week to do all the needful for meaningful engagement and address the concerns of Nigerian workers to avoid further escalation of the crisis.”

both NUEE and NUPENG are affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union.

“The calls for a national minimum living wage by the union federations are important for Nigerian workers to meet their living expenses and be able to provide for their families. It is unacceptable to promote conditions that create the working poor – where wages fail to lift workers out of poverty,”

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

In February, unions protested the removal of petrol subsidies through demonstrations and pickets. They argued that the subsidy removal triggered food and transport costs increases and hiked inflation currently over 33 per cent according to the Central Bank of Nigeria. This is the highest level that inflation has reached since 1996, adversly affecting workers' wages. Additionally, the unions expressed concerns that the government’s austerity economic policies were anti-worker and exposing the poor and marginalised communities to poverty.

National action plans in Africa must be inclusive and participatory

Over 20 trade union delegates from 10 African countries participated in a workshop on developing national action plans (NAPs) on business and human rights in Africa in Accra, Ghana, 27-28 May. The unions participated alongside other stakeholders from civil society organizations, national human rights institutions, and governments departments.

The workshop, held with support from FES AU and UNDP (Regional Service Centre for Africa) RSCA, promoted learning, sharing and making effective strategies among the NAP stakeholders. There was also emphasis on the importance of inclusive engagement and participatory strategies in the making of the NAPs.

Issues discussed included using NAPS as tools to engage mining companies on community concerns over loss of land to mining operations, and for measures to stop pollution of water sources. NAPs could also be used to stop gender-based violence and harassment and gender discrimination. On union demands, NAPs were key in promoting responsible business practices and human rights due diligence to end workers’ rights violations by some businesses including multinational corporations. Further NAPs were also important to enforce compliance with national and international labour standards.

Facilitators included those from the AU and the UNDP RSCA. Notably, the workshop took place at a time when the African Union’s draft policy on business and human rights is in the final consultative stages. So far only three countries – Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda, have developed NAPs while others including Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania, have begun the consultations to establish the plans. In sharing experiences about the NAP processes, some countries said they were at various stages of consultations.

Delegates from IndustriALL affiliates, the United Workers Union of Liberia (UWUL), and the Tanzania Union of Industrial & Commercial Workers (TUICO) also participated in the workshop.

Beatrice Francis Ouko, from TUICO said:

“We learnt a lot from experience sharing on the Ghana NAP processes and were also able to meet with Tanzania’s Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance, who are leading the NAP process in Tanzania. This will enrich union engagement.”

Amanuel Desalegne, FES AU programme manager said:

“Africa's abundant natural resources demand that laws be harmonised, and synergies increasingly built to ensure that human rights are protected and respected and that remedies are accessible to victims of abuses including workers and communities.”

“This workshop is an important engagement strategy by trade unions with the African Union and other NAP stakeholders. The development of a business and human rights policy by the AU is a positive development in our campaign for the inclusion of labour clauses in AU policies including the African Continental Free Trade Area,”

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

Ivorian union campaigns for gender equality in the mines

These issues make up the agenda of on-going workshops which began in April and will end in July. The workshops are part of the IndustriALL Sub Saharan Africa regional activities on women in mining.

The series of workshops began with the mining prospects for Côte d’Ivoire workshop which took place at Agbaou gold mine, 25-26 April in which workers from Bonikro Mine also participated. The mines are owned by Allied Gold Corporation, a Canadian gold mining multinational listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, which also has operations in Ethiopia and Mali. Côte d’Ivoire also has some of the critical minerals that are needed for the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. These included bauxite, lithium, and manganese.

The Allied Gold mines, which employ women as administrators, engineers, dump truck drivers, and occupational health and safety officers, have a combined workforce of over 700 workers. The workforce comprises 11 and 15 per cent women at Agbaou and Bonikro, respectively.

Over 100 women from the Federation Ivorienne des Syndicates des Mines, Metaux, Carrieres et Connexes (FISMECA), which is affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, participated at the workshop. The issues discussed included equal-pay-for-work-of-equal-value, the collective bargaining agreement with the mines, how the union is engaging the mines on the gender pay gap, and the beginning of social dialogue with the ministry of mines to discuss decent working conditions. Ministry officials present at the workshops said the government welcomed engagement with trade unions organizing in the country’s growing mining sector.

Participants applauded the current collective bargaining agreement which gave women miners one year maternity leave. However, some participants raised concerns that mining companies could use the long maternity leave to further widen the gender gap to marginalize women through loss of benefits and opportunities.

Zogba Karidja Traore, chairperson of the FISMECA women’s committee, said the union is campaigning for gender equality.

“Often women are excluded from training and not promoted especially when they return from maternity leave. This affects their wages which will remain lower that their co-workers.”

She added that FISMECA is supporting women candidates in the coming union elections so that they are represented in the leadership.

“The gender pay gap must be closed as women miners are equally qualified as their male co-workers. One of the ways to end this discrimination is to have gender responsive workplace policies as per International Labour Organization Convention 190 to end violence and harassment in the world of work,”

said Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa, who participated at the workshops together with the project team.