INTERVIEW: Chile: transforming the Labour Code18 May, 2015Determined, strong and with the courage of her convictions, Barbara Figueroa is a woman who doesn’t hesitate to say what she thinks. President of the Chilean trade union centre, the Central Unitaria de Trabajadores de Chile (CUT), she sees herself as “the leading spokesperson for the most important workers’ organization” in Chile.Increasing inequalities in pay, job security and social stability have led Michelle Bachelet’s government to send a bill to Congress to reform the Labour Code introduced under Pinochet’s dictatorship which ended in 1990. The new act aims to strengthen the collective rights of workers and promote a fairer system of labour relations. Figueroa is one of the main figures driving the change.
FEATURE: Putting profits over people, Turkey’s treacherous mining industry18 May, 2015One year ago, the industrial homicide at Soma claimed the lives of 301 Turkish coal miners.The explosion and fire were only the visible, immediate causes of their deaths. What really killed them were greed, apathy, incompetence and corruption – the ingredients that trigger most mine disasters.
PROFILE: Myanmar the new union frontier18 May, 2015As of January 2015, IndustriALL counts two trade unions from Myanmar among its members. In a country where unions have only been legal since 2012, organizing and training are crucial in building worker power.
SPECIAL REPORT: Industry bargaining is an essential tool in the fight for living wages18 May, 2015Deregulation and attacks against collective bargaining have contributed to a huge rise in global inequality. Harnessing union power for achieving industry level agreements is crucial in the fight for living wages and against precarious work.
PROFILE: fighting for rights in Hungary18 May, 2015The federation of chemical, energy and General Workers of hungary, VDSZ, actively struggles on many fronts for its members. mobilizing and organizing brought gains for VDSZ workers a century ago and continues to do so at multinationals, such as hankook Tyre.
Workers protest against dismissals at Holcim Indonesia18 May, 2015Holcim announced layoffs in Indonesia on 8 May. The union is convinced the company did not act according to the agreed procedure and agreements.
Mexico - important legal victory for autoworkers14 May, 2015The Special Board 15 of the Federal Conciliation and Arbitration Board (JFCA) has ruled that Arneses y Accesorios de México must reinstate and provide back pay to four workers unfairly dismissed in December 2012. They were dismissed for denouncing the CTM collective bargaining agreement made behind the backs of the workers.
Crown campaign: “Stop a new era of union busting in Canada”14 May, 2015An on-line campaign at LaborStart was initiated by the Toronto and York Region Labour Council against long-standing lock-out at the Toronto plant of Crown Holding. The campaign delivers messages to Ontario Premier and Labour Minister asking them to take further action on the side of workers and stop a new era of union busting in Canada.
Open Letter of the Metallurgical and Mining Industry Workers Union of Ukraine calls to establish peace13 May, 2015On 28 April 2015, the Sixth Congress of the Metallurgical and Mining Industry Workers Union of Ukraine, an affiliate of IndustriALL, took place in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. The participants demanded to establish real peace in Ukraine.
Global union action against asbestos 13 May, 2015IndustriALL Global Union and its trade union affiliates from as far as Australia have been campaigning in Geneva, Switzerland this week in the fight to ban asbestos worldwide.
