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&nbsp;<img height="264" alt="" src="" width="200" />
&nbsp;1. Finland &ndash; Study on Working Conditions Reveals Gaps in Male and Female Employment 
2. ITUC: Message on 8th of March 
3. Japan &ndash; Number of Part-time Workers Declines 
4. Malta &ndash; Malta has one of the Lowest Gender Pay Gaps 
5. Mexico &ndash; New Law Passed on Violence against Women 
6. Nepal &ndash; GEFONT Organises Domestic Workers 
7. Spain &ndash; CCOO and UGT Issue Joint Statement on International Women&rsquo;s Day 
8. Thailand &ndash; Thailand Women&rsquo;s Forum Held 
9. Turkey &ndash; Petrol-Iş Sponsors Women Writers 
10. United Kingdom &ndash; Single Women Do less Housework 
11. United States &ndash; 3-Day &lsquo;Sisters on the Frontline&rsquo; Seminar in NYC in late March 
12. Resources
<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
1. Finland &ndash; Study on Working Conditions Reveals Gaps in Male and Female Employment 
A recent study on employment in Europe indicates the differences in employment between women and men. Sweden and Finland are the countries with the lowest gaps. In Finland, the low gap is due to the fact that the rate of female employment is very high and the rate of male employment is low. 
Working conditions in Europe have remained relatively stable over the past few years in spite of the increases in part-time and temporary work and the greater number of women working. 
 
The following figures indicate the levels of male and female employment in 31 countries in Europe and refer to 2004:
<img height="740" alt="" src="" width="379" />
For more information, see: Fourth European Working Conditions Surveys 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
2. ITUC: Message on 8th of March 
This year, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) is launching a campaign on maternity protection for 8 March. The aim is to promote governments ratifying ILO Convention 183. The ITUC has resources and tools available for this purpose, including a new video on the informal economy. To find out more, see: <a href="http://www.ituc-csi.org/">www.ituc-csi.org</a>. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
3. Japan &ndash; Number of Part-time Workers Declines 
In the midst of an economic recovery in Japan, employers are hiring more full-time workers, after the number of part-timers reached a record high in 2005. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare presented figures to the government, which indicate that the level has reached a five-year low. 
Part-timers are defined as those who work less than 35 hours a week. They make up 22.5% of total employment, which is a 1.5% decline. Over 8.6 million women work part-time, as opposed to 3.4 million men. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
4. Malta &ndash; Malta has one of the Lowest Gender Pay Gaps
A new report from the European Commission details the gender-related differences in pay earned by women and men. These 2007 conclusions are very similar to those presented over the past few years. The biggest differences in pay, between 20 to 25%, are in Cyprus, Slovakia, Estonia, Germany, and the UK, while the lowest differences, under 5%, can be found in Malta and Portugal. 
 
Some countries have been forcing companies to provide detailed arguments for their pay discrepancies, and this pressure has contributed to some improvement. Public sector pay gaps are generally less striking than in the private sector, where the typical pay gap is 25%. 
 
The EU Commission argues for more and better childcare facilities to enable women to pursue careers, because women often have no choice but to work part-time in order to continue looking after their families. All over Europe, 32.9% of women work part-time as opposed to 7.7% of men. The highest number of part-timers is in the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, UK, and Germany. However, very few women work part-time in the new member states. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
5. Mexico &ndash; New Law Passed on Violence against Women
A new law was passed in February in Mexico to provide tools for fighting violence against women. The law ensures involvement by the police at all levels, the courts, media and schools. 
 
By law, the Ministry of the Interior can call an emergency due to an outbreak of gender violence to enable the response to be coordinated by the federal and local police and the courts. Measures to protect women must be taken, such as removing the aggressor from home. 
 
A national education campaign is now running, and a national data base is being created to document cases of violence against women. Studies are being done to diagnose the extent of the violence, and more women&rsquo;s shelters are being promoted. 
 
The law orders gender training for police, prosecutors and other relevant officials. The government has been sponsoring ads on radio and television to warn perpetrators of violence that they will be punished. 
 
It is hoped that the law will improve the situation in a country where the murder rate of women due to violence is high. Seventy-five percent of these women are murdered by their husbands. Impunity has perpetuated these crimes, and means that the many murders in Ciudad Juarez, on the border with the US, have gone unpunished up to now. But now the law will hopefully provide some justice. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
6. Nepal &ndash; GEFONT Organises Domestic Workers 
GEFONT organised a meeting of domestic workers on 2 February which culminated in the formation of the Nepal Independent Domestic Workers&rsquo; Union with a 13-member coordinating committee. The union will be registered as a national federation. This year, a national convention will be held. More than 200 domestic workers from the Katmandu Valley participated in the event. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
7. Spain &ndash; CCOO and UGT Issue Joint Statement on International Women&rsquo;s Day 
The 8 March Manifesto, issued by the two Spanish confederations, CCOO and UGT, passes in review the highs and lows of the past year. One of the highs was the new Spanish equal opportunities law, which provides for the negotiation of equality plans in companies with more than 250 employees, 13 days of paternity leave, and more flexible requirements for maternity pay and subsidies. 
 
Not all has been rosy, however, especially outside of Spain &ndash; where hundreds of women are murdered in Mexico and Guatemala, connivance by the police in rapes in Nigeria, and women stoned to death in Iran. CCOO and UGT have been involved in the fight to achieve the millennium development goals. 
 
Spanish women still lag behind other women in Europe. While the average rate of women&rsquo;s employment in the rest of Europe is 57.4%, in Spain it is only 54.1%. Women&rsquo;s rate of unemployment in countries outside of Spain is 9%, whereas in Spain it is 12.2%. However, agreements have been reached in the framework of social dialogue which will hopefully improve this situation. 
 
Collective bargaining has also contributed to positive developments, with 52% of collective agreements containing clauses on non-discrimination or gender equality. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
From our readers: 
Carol Fraser of the Communications, Energy, and Paperworkers (CEP) union of Canada sends greetings on International Women&rsquo;s Day, as well as links to two sites in Canada to celebrate the day: <a href="http://www.cfc-swc.gc.ca/dates/iwd/index_e.html">www.cfc-swc.gc.ca/dates/iwd/index_e.html</a>&nbsp;where it is a question of taking real action against violence against women and <a href="http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/womensday/index.asp">www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/womensday/index.asp</a> which indicates activities that can be done in schools.
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
8. Thailand &ndash; Thailand Women&rsquo;s Forum Held
The Thailand Women&rsquo;s Forum was held in Bangkok on 3 and 4 March to celebrate Women&rsquo;s Day. The forum was intended to provide space for exchange and sharing between women, men, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, people living with HIV and civil organisations who work for democracy, protest unfair trade, protect their communities and fight for women&rsquo;s rights. 
 
Discussions focused on neo-liberalism and free trade agreements, health, gender roles, sexual relationships, oppression from customs and religion and building alternatives. The forum was organised by Thai Labour Campaign, among other sponsors. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
9. Turkey &ndash; Petrol-Iş Sponsors Women Writers 
In this month of March 2007, Petrol-Iş has launched a contest for women to write stories. All women home workers, factory workers, public workers, temporary workers, non-unionised, sub-contracted workers, women at home or outside the home are possible themes for the contest. 
 
The stories must not have been published before. Professional or non-professional writers are eligible to participate. Anyone can send in stories of between 3 and 10 pages, and the deadline is 25 March. A women&rsquo;s jury will be judging the entries, and First, Second, and Third Place given. 
 
Petrol-Iş will publish all stories. The results will be declared on 2 May and prizes awarded at Petrol-Iş headquarters. 
Please see also ICEM&rsquo;s InBrief of 26 February, or the ICEM Circular on the ICEM&rsquo;s home page for information on the Petrol-Iş strike against Fresenius. A remarkable group of women are on strike at this medical facility in Turkey, and they deserve whatever support we can generate. 
 
All are invited to take action on 8 March through <a href="/">www.icem.org</a>, where a model letter of support is available in different languages. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
10. United Kingdom &ndash; Single Women Do less Housework 
Single women do an average of ten hours of housework a week, while it increases to 15 hours when they live as a couple. Men, on the other hand, spend seven hours on housework when they are single, with it reduces to five when they live in a couple. 
 
The conclusion is that gender inequalities at home have a major influence on gender inequalities at work, and vice versa. 
 
What is needed is for women to gain equal employment opportunities and to start doing the same jobs as men and achieve pay parity. Nevertheless it will still take time for people to change cultures. 
 
The Print, Paper, Publishing and Media Section of ICEM affiliate Amicus has published a very interesting newsletter for Women&rsquo;s International Day. This timely and informative <a href="http://www.amicustheunion.org/pdf/AmicusWomen_final_lowres2.pdf">newsletter</a> promises to assure all women in this sector that they will be made aware of opportunities within UK&rsquo;s largest union to participate and be involved in the wider union and its democratic structures. 
 
The Equalities Department of Amicus also has an International Women&rsquo;s Day page, which encourages trade unionists to send messages of support to women across the world through the union&rsquo;s global trade union links. Throughout March, the Amicus page will be updated with information throughout the world. The page can be found at <a href="http://www.amicustheunion.org/Default.aspx?page=5797">http://www.amicustheunion.org/Default.aspx?page=5797</a>. 
 
In London on 8 March, a unique panel discussion and viewing of the short film &ldquo;In the Name of Honor&rdquo; by Reza Moradi, an Iranian free-speech advocate. The seminar, entitled &ldquo;Women&rsquo;s Rights, the Veil and Islamic and Religious Laws, is sponsored by the International Campaign in Defense of Women&rsquo;s Rights in Iran, the UK and National Secular Society, and the Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association. 
 
It will take place from 6 PM until 10 PM on 8 March, in Room 3D of the University of London Union, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HY. (The nearest Underground stops are Russell Street or Goodge Street.) 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
11. United States &ndash; 3-Day &lsquo;Sisters on the Frontline&rsquo; Seminar in NYC in late March 
Cornell University&rsquo;s Institute for Women and Work, the university&rsquo;s Labor Program, the New York State AFL-CIO, and City University of New York&rsquo;s (CUNY) Murphy Center for Labor, Community and Policy Studies will conduct a series of workshops on 30-31 March, and 1 April. 
 
Called &ldquo;Sisters on the Frontline: Organising Women and Building Power,&rdquo; the sponsors are billing it as the first women organisers&rsquo; conference in the US that will bring together women organisers, scholars, officials, and leaders of labour organisations. 
 
The conference&rsquo;s aims are to generate ideas and methodology to overcome the challenges for women in labour unions and community-based organisations; and to identify the challenges to recruit and retain women in such organisations. One session in the three-day set of workshops and panel discussions is called &ldquo;How to Rock the Boat without Getting Thrown Off.&rdquo; 
 
The conference will take place at CUNY&rsquo;s Murphy Center, 25 W. 43rd Street in Manhattan, and the conference&rsquo;s programme and agenda is at 
<a href="http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/iww/events/sistersFrontline.html">http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/iww/events/ 
sistersFrontline.html</a>. 
 
Registration fee is US$50.00, and scholarships are available. Contact Francine Moccio of Cornell at fam5@cornell.edu for further information. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
12. Resources 
<a href="http://www.cimacnoticias.com/site">http://www.cimacnoticias.com/site</a> is a Mexican site with news from a gender perspective (in Spanish). 
 
<a href="http://www.unfpa.org/publications/detail.cfm?ID=322">http://www.unfpa.org/publications/detail.cfm?ID=322</a> 
includes a publication called Programming to Address Violence Against Women: Ten Case Studies.

ICEM WOMEN’S BULLETIN 20

8 March 2007 
 
Brother Mustafa Oztaskin 
President 
Petrol-Is Union 
Altunizade Mah. 
Kusbakisi Sok. No. 25 
81180 Altunizade Uskadar 
Turkey 
 
Via e-mail <a href="mailto:merkez@petrol-is.org.tr">merkez@petrol-is.org.tr</a> 
or Fax Number +90 216 4749870 
 
Dear Brother Oztaskin, 
We understand through our mutual affiliation with the ICEM that workers in the Antalya Free Trade Zone at Novamed GmbH, a subsidiary of Fresenius Medical Care, have been on strike since late September 2006. 
 
We also know from the ICEM that of 84 workers on strike, 82% of them are women. They are rightfully seeking dignity on the job, and their full trade union rights to collective bargaining. We applaud them in their very heroic efforts to defend these rights and their very basic fight for dignity. 
 
On this day, 8 March, International Women&rsquo;s Day, our Union commends Petrol-Is for standing strong with these women workers. We also ask you to pass our Solidarity and Unity to them in this most important fight against Fresenius Medical Care. Please convey to them that our Union stands firmly with them. 
 
Fraternally,&nbsp;

Model letter for International Women’s Day on Turkey

Due to the Iraqi military surrounding striking Basra oil pipeline workers, the 20-million-member ICEM today called on the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to conclude peaceful negotiations with the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions (IFOU) in order to resolve their legitimate trade union demands. 
<img height="100" src="" width="100" alt="" />
In a letter to the Prime Minister from ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda, the global union federation of oil, gas, and energy unions throughout the world, stated, &ldquo;On Tuesday evening, we learnt from the union that the Iraqi army had surrounded the strikers yesterday (5 June). The situation was, we understand, extremely tense. Urgent negotiations with your representatives have led to a temporary return to work to allow further negotiations, but the army remains in position and the situation remains very tense.&rdquo; 
Pipeline workers of the 26,000-member IFOU, first struck pipe number 42 in the early hours of Monday, 4 June, following a company communication that a normal payment made to workers would not be forthcoming. Prior to the strike there had been weeks of negotiation, over a range of demands including terms and conditions of work, health and safety, and the future of the oil industry in Iraq. 
The following morning, 5 June, the strike strengthened when oil workers cut off the flow of oil from another pipeline. That was followed by Iraqi military troops surrounding the strikers. 
<img height="115" src="" width="250" alt="" />
&ldquo;I assure you that military intervention in the dispute is not the way to resolve matters,&rdquo; stated the ICEM letter to Prime Minister al-Maliki. &ldquo;In particular, we urge you to ensure that there are no arrests or detentions of any strikers or strike leaders, and no one involved is physically harmed. Genuine negotiations over the workers&rsquo; legitimate grievances must take place.&rdquo; 
 
The ICEM is calling on all its 384 affiliated trade unions in 124 countries to send messages of support to IFOU. The ICEM is coordinating efforts to assist the IFOU together with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the US Solidarity Center, and the UK&rsquo;s Trades Union Congress. 
 
For background on this week&rsquo;s strike, visit <a href="/en/77-All-ICEM-News-Releases/2284-ICEM-Supports-IFOU-in-Today’s-Oil-Industry-Strike-in-Basra">/en/77-All-ICEM-News-Releases/2284-ICEM-Supports-IFOU-in-Today&rsquo;s-Oil-Industry-Strike-in-Basra</a>. 
 
For further information, contact Jim Catterson, Intl. Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine &amp; General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM) Energy Officer: +32 2 626 2045 - <a href="mailto:Jim.catterson@icem.org">Jim.catterson@icem.org</a>

ICEM Protests Iraqi Military’s Involvement in Basra Oil Strike

At 6:30 AM this morning, 4 June 2007, oil workers struck the pipeline company in Basra, Iraq, bringing an immediate stop to the free flow of oil products, including kerosene and gas through pipe number 42. 
 
The pipe transfers oil and gas to Baghdad and the governorates of the central region of the country. The workers are members of the Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions (IFOU). 
 
The IFOU, previously known as the GUOE-Basra, and led by President Hassan Jumaa Awad Alasady, has over 26,000 members throughout the ten state oil companies operating in the south of Iraq. The union has a past history of strike action in defense of its members, and the oil industry as a whole of southern Iraq. 
<img height="100" alt="" src="" width="100" />
The ICEM, the global union federation of national energy unions throughout the world, supports the IFOU in their strike action today. 
 
Earlier strike calls in May were postponed after the union gained a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki. That meeting, on 16 May, resulted in the creation of a committee tasked with working on finding solutions acceptable to both sides. The ICEM understands that although several of the union demands have been fully agreed to by Iraqi authorities, the IFOU is still far from having all their demands fulfilled. This is what led to today&rsquo;s strike. 
 
The union is currently focussing on two core demands in its strike at the pipeline company:
&bull; They demand that the Oil Ministry take action to force the general manager of the pipeline company to resign; and 
&bull; They demand that the company be financially and administratively independent from the Baghdad-based central ministry, and that the pipeline company be managed locally.
ICEM is informed that the reason for the first demand, and the catalyst for today&rsquo;s action, is that the general manger of the pipeline company, Adel Aziz, who is based in Baghdad rather than in Basra, blocked the orders of Prime Minister Nouri Al-Mailiki to release delayed benefits due workers. Moreover, he stopped a Iraqi Dinar (IQD)50,000&nbsp;allowance which the workers are regularly entitled to. 
 
The background is available at: 
<a href="/en/77-All-ICEM-News-Releases/2260-Threatened-Oil-Industry-Strike-in-Iraq">/en/77-All-ICEM-News-Releases/2260-Threatened-Oil-Industry-Strike-in-Iraq</a> 
 
A second phase of the strike has been threatened to begin tomorrow morning, again at 6.30 AM, in the event the IFOU does not receive signs signalling compliance with their demands. The second phase would expand the strike by closing pipeline number 48, which feeds the southern governorates with oil products. 
 
ICEM, together with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), US Solidarity Center, and the UK&rsquo;s Trades Union Congress (TUC) of the UK is following developments closely, and will keep trade union affiliates and the public fully informed on developments in this key dispute. 
 
For further information, contact Jim Catterson, Intl. Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine &amp; General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM) Energy Officer: +32 2 626 2045 - <a href="mailto:Jim.catterson@icem.org">Jim.catterson@icem.org</a>

ICEM Supports IFOU in Today’s Oil Industry Strike in Basra

<img height="48" src="" width="120" alt="" />
With labour agreements now complete at two major tyre producing plants in Argentina, ICEM affiliate Sindicato Unico Trabajores del Neum&aacute;tico Argentina (SUTNA) is focused on obtaining a renewal two-year contract with the third &ndash; FATE S.A.I.C.I., an Argentine based producer and the country&rsquo;s largest tyre-maker, employing some 1,200 workers. 
 
Workers at FATE had rejected the company&rsquo;s prior offer, a proposal that fell short of wage gains and bonus payments made at Pirelli S.p.A. and Bridgestone-Firestone Argentina. Negotiations will resume at the Ministry of Work on 6 June. Rubber workers have protested FATE&rsquo;s inferior demands, but have taken no industrial action.
<img height="93" src="" width="140" alt="" />
Earlier this spring, agreement was reached with both Pirelli and Bridgestone-Firestone, which employ a combined 1,400 SUTNA union members at Buenos Aires factories. At both worksites, workers won pay increases totaling nearly 25%, which included ratification and other bonuses. 
 
At the Firestone plant, workers received a 10% increase effective April 2007; they will receive a 6.5% increase in October 2007; 3.5% in March 2008; and 2.5% in May 2008. At Pirelli, SUTNA also negotiated a 10% increase effective in April 2007. Three percent is due in January 2008; 2% for April 2008; and 1.23% for June 2008. 
 
SUTNA General Secretary Pedro Wasiejko pledged early this spring that, in this round of national rubber bargaining, no worker would earn less than 2,741 pesos (&euro; 600) per month.

Argentina’s Tyre Union Focuses Now on Pact with Single Company

<img height="48" alt="" src="" width="120" />
After a difficult year of negotiations, which included industrial actions this spring and a subsequent string of three-day lockouts by the company, 500 tyre workers at Bridgestone&rsquo;s Salisbury factory near Adelaide, South Australia, accepted the Japanese company&rsquo;s terms. 
 
Workers of three unions passed by the thinnest of margins &ndash; 240 to 225 &ndash; a new three-year agreement. The contract, some ten months after a prior one expired, grants workers 6% wage increases from May 2007 to May 2010, with possible bonuses interspersed.
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="220" />&nbsp;&nbsp; 
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img height="90" alt="" src="" width="90" /> 
 
Production workers, numbering about 450, are represented by ICEM affiliate Liquor, Hospitality, and Miscellaneous Union (LHMU), while most maintenance workers are represented by Australian Manufacturing Workers&rsquo; Union (AMWU), also an ICEM affiliate. Electricians at Salisbury are represented by ICEM affiliate Communications, Electrical, and Plumbing Union (CEPU). 
 
Bridgestone used the full weight of the 2005 WorkChoices law in Australia to leverage its inferior bargaining demands. Workers had engaged in four stop-work actions since March, as well as an overtime ban. The company punished workers for the unions&rsquo; actions by employing contract workers on maintenance and electrical work, and taking the offensive under WorkChoices by imposing three-day, non-paid lockouts. 
 
&ldquo;Clearly, the restrictions placed upon union members by the current Australian industrial relations legislation made pursuit of improvements more difficult for members,&rdquo; said LHMU lead negotiator, Jim Watson. &ldquo;The company relied on the legislation and frustrated union members into accepting the agreement.&rdquo; 
 
Bridgestone workers had last seen a pay raise in December 2005. The previous agreement had expired in June 2006.

Bridgestone Workers in Australia Come to Terms with Company

<img height="48" src="" width="120" alt="" />
On 19 May, in a testament to the growing Solidarity now coming to strikers at Novamed in Turkey, 16 energy-sector trade union leaders from Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Belorussia visited picket lines in the Antalya Free Trade Zone. 
 
Eighty-four strikers have been out since 26 September 2006, protesting the medical equipment company&rsquo;s harsh and unusual practices. Novamed, part of German-based Fresenius Medical Care, has refused to recognise ICEM Turkish affiliate Petrol-Iş.
<img height="158" src="" width="280" alt="" />
&nbsp;ROGWU President Lev Mironov Addresses Turkish Strikers 
 

Eighty-two of the strikers are women. They have been subjected to inhumane treatment, including being forced to apply for permission from company bosses before becoming pregnant. 
 
The delegation from Eastern Europe and Central Asia came to Turkey following discussion and prominence of the strikers&rsquo; plight at the ICEM&rsquo;s Executive Committee meetings earlier in May. They were greeted at the picket line by Petrol-Iş General Secretary Mustafa Cavdar and other leaders of Turkey&rsquo;s dominant oil and chemical workers&rsquo; union.
<img height="210" src="" width="280" alt="" />
&nbsp; 
In thanking the trade union leaders, Petrol-Iş President Mustafa Oztaskin stated that their presence is a solid reminder that &ldquo;this is a struggle backed by the whole trade union movement throughout the world.&rdquo; The strikers heard from Lev Mironov, president of the Russian Oil and Gas Workers&rsquo; Union (ROGWU); Melik Mirzoyev, general secretary of the ICEM&rsquo;s Interregional Oil and Gas Workers&rsquo; Federation; and Jahangir Aliyev, general secretary of the Oil and Gas Workers&rsquo; Union of Azerbaijan. 
 
Other leaders visiting the picket line on 19 May included: Yelena Mustafina, Oil and Gas Workers&rsquo; Union of Kazakhstan; Nikolay Stratila, Chemical and Energy Workers&rsquo; Union of Moldova; Yuriy Rovda, Belarus Petrol Gaz İş&ccedil;ileri Sendikasi Başkani; Ludmila Hrushetskaya, Belarus Mining and Oil Workers&rsquo; Union; and Tamara Bashuk, Ludmila Chubaryan, Natalya Navmova, Hasipat Hugayeva, Rostislav Zagorodniy, Vera Shchukine, Larisa Lukiyanova, Ludmila Brovkina, and Aleksander Vasiliyev, all of ROGWU.
<img height="225" src="" width="300" alt="" />
&nbsp;

Energy Trade Union Leaders Visit Novamed Picket Lines in Turkey

<img height="48" alt="" src="" width="120" />
Privatisation auctions by Nigeria&rsquo;s Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) of refineries owned by the state&rsquo;s Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. (NNPC) have brought further strikes and threats of strikes. The two oil workers&rsquo; unions in the country &ndash; ICEM affiliates PENGASSAN and NUPENG &ndash; are protesting the lack of transparency in the sales. 
 
Late last week, branches of both unions at the Kaduna refinery threatened a shutdown of that facility if the BPE follows though on 51% sale of Nigeria&rsquo;s second largest refinery. In mid-May, BPE threw out the lone offer for Kaduna, a US$102 million by the China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC). But shortly thereafter, the government&rsquo;s privatisation arm accepted a US$160 million bid by Bluestar Oil, which is a consortium of Nigerian industrial interests.
&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; <img height="137" alt="" src="" width="130" />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img height="145" alt="" src="" width="140" />
Bluestar had earlier won a bid on the larger Port Harcourt refinery with a US$561 million offer. The lack of transparency in that process brought a two-day strike by the unions on 24-25 May, which halted all shipments of crude oil into the refinery. 
 
The branch unions of PENGASSAN and NUPENG at Kaduna called Bluestar&rsquo;s bid &ldquo;a deal &hellip; sealed under the table, to a company that has no record of refinery operations, and for a price that can only be described as give-away.&rdquo; 
 
The statement by the unions added: &ldquo;Based on the glaring lack of transparency in the privatisation process and insincerity on the part of BPE, the sale of (Kaduna) fails to meet the minimum standard, set by the government and cannot in any sense of the word be said to have been a transparent exercise. 
 
&ldquo;First, the sole bidder (CNPC), failed to match the undisclosed reserved price of Kaduna during the first and second rounds of bidding, suddenly another company (Bluestar) that did not submit a bit, that did not conduct any due diligence on the facility, that is completely alien to the transaction, that has no track record in the refining sector, is now said to have 51% shares of Kaduna in a process the BPE describes as &ldquo;closed-in&rdquo; bidding.&rdquo; 
 
PENGASSAN and NUPENG have vowed to resist the turnover to Bluestar until all the issues raised by the union are resolved.

Privatisation of Nigerian Oil Refineries Bring Further Unrest

<img height="48" src="" width="120" alt="" />
On 29 May, ICEM&rsquo;s three Italian affiliates called a one-day strike across the country for natural gas workers of the Eni, Italy&rsquo;s largest energy concern. The protest was over the company&rsquo;s mid-May announcement that it would close 37 of 49 customer service centres. 
 
Italian trade unions Filcem-CGIL, Femca-Cisl, and Uilcem-Uil also conducted a mass mobilisation in Rome on 29 May at Piazzale Mattei, home of Eni&rsquo;s corporate headquarters. The unions fear Eni will outsource the jobs of its Conus gas and electric subsidiary. The unions also protest unfair transfers of some 250 of 850 jobs that are expected to occur in the restructuring.
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The unions contend that transfers of workers to service centres of up to 150 kilometres away from their current job locations will threaten their employment. The unions did negotiate with Eni over the restructuring, but those talks broke off when commitments were not made over which jobs would be retained, and which would be outsourced. 
 
Eni announced that its restructuring would take effect on 1 July. Besides keeping open only 12 service centres, the company would retain only two call centres, in Rome and in Turin.

Eni’s Gas Workers in Italy Protest Restructurings

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A second methane gas blast in Russia&rsquo;s Kuznetsk Basin region of southern Siberia on 24 May has killed 39 coal miners. The workers were affiliated with ICEM&rsquo;s Russian Independent Coal Miners&rsquo; Union (ROSUGLEPROF), as were 110 miners who died 19 March at the Ulyanovskaya mine, Russia&rsquo;s worst mining disaster in 60 years. 
 
Both mines are operated by Yuzhkuzbassugol, the mining subsidiary of the Evraz Group, Russia&rsquo;s second largest steel and metals company.
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The tragedy 12 days ago occurred at Yuzhkuzbassogol&rsquo;s Yubilienaya mine. An immense methane build-up had formed, and the explosion occurred due to a spark from a faulty electrical cable that apparently had been switched off. The ICEM mourns the loss of the miners and in the wake of this recent disaster, and calls on mining companies to implement all modern safeguards to protect the lives of miners in this era of high prices and high output of natural resources. 
 
Russia&rsquo;s federal environmental, engineering, and nuclear worksite regulatory agency, Rostekhnadzor, had repeatedly cited the Yubilienaya mine with safety deficiencies. The agency had attempted to halt work at the mine until all safety measures were put in place. But managers of Yuzhbuzbassugol had fought those orders in local courts and won reprieves for work to continue. 
 
In fact, the shafts inside Yubilienaya where the explosion occurred had been temporarily shut for a brief period only weeks before. 
 
ROSUGLEPROF President Ivan Mokhnachuk faulted the Russian pay system for bringing unsafe conditions in mines. Since nearly all Russian coal mines have been privatised, the flat-rate monthly wage has been set at a bare minimum, while the vast share of all mining salaries are based on production. &ldquo;While volume, productivity, and profits have risen since the coal industry has been privatised, individual workers are worse off,&rdquo; he told the New York Times.
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&nbsp;ROSUGLEPROF President Ivan Mokhnachuk
The 19 March Ulyanovskaya mine disaster in the Kemerovo region is a case in point. Evidence indicates that managers had tampered with sophisticated methane gas detection equipment in order that production would continue even with high build-up levels of the gas. 
 
The death toll of 159 from the two Yuzhkuzbassugol mine tragedies just 66 days apart more than doubles the 68 deaths that occurred in all of Russia&rsquo;s coal mines in 2006.

Another Coal Mine Blast in Russia’s Kuzbass Kills 39 Miners

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