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The ICEM, as part of Global Unions, supports the &ldquo;Global Call to Action Against Poverty&rdquo; (GCAP), which was launched at this year&rsquo;s World Social Forum in Porto Alegre. Backed by a wide range of organisations, the GCAP aims to pressure the world&rsquo;s governments to dedicate the necessary resources and time to the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG). These MDGs set world targets to decrease overall poverty. Examples include reducing child mortality by two thirds by 2015, ensure primary education and reduce by half the number of people without access to safe drinking water. Trade unions can play an important role in this anti-poverty campaign, as their support often makes the difference in areas such as fair trade, debt reduction or AIDS. Detailed campaigning material on GCAP, including trade union-related info on MDGs, can be downloaded from the ICFTU site: http://www.icftu.org (in English, French and Spanish). Unions can also get in contact with their national centers for more information on this campaign.

ICEM Supporting Poverty Action Call

ICEM Electric Power affiliate SRPSKA in Bosnia-Herzegovina repledged its commitment against privatisation at its annual Congress last week. Mirko Dukic stepped down as president of the union to accept a position with a newly founded regional public-sector workers&rsquo; confederation. Dusko Vrhovac was elected to replace him.

Bosnia Electric Power Affiliate Pledges Against Privatisation

After Thailand&rsquo;s energy minister rejected a proposal by EGAT-LU that would prevent the privatisation of that nation&rsquo;s electric power system, the ICEM affiliate announced it would resume mass demonstrations to mobilize the public against next year&rsquo;s planned privatisation. EGAT-LU is seeking government backing of the electricity market so private firms will not dominate. The union also called on the government to help finance Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) construction of new power plants and not to use public debt as the excuse to sell EGAT to the private sector.

Thai Government Rejects Logical Plan on Electric Privatisation

French unions again will demonstrate next week, 15 June, the day their government will take up and debate legislation to partially privatise the country&rsquo;s gas and electric industries. The ICEM&rsquo;s Executive Committee on 27 May resolved to fully support French affiliates FCE-CFDT and F&eacute;d&eacute;chimie CGT FO in their resistance to the measure. On 27 May, 80,000 French workers marched in Paris against the government&rsquo;s bill to remove Electricit&eacute; de France and Gaz de France from state control, a status the utilities have had since 1946.

French Unions Take to the Streets Over Utility Privatisation

T he nearly two-year-long labour dispute between ICEM affiliate and leading Turkish glass producer Sisecam Group ended this week. 
 
A signed agreement between the company and Turkey's dominant glass workers' union reinstates 350 union members sacked at a plant in Eskisehir, grants pay increases for both 2003 and 2004 to workers, and gives Kristal-İş full recognition rights at most Sisecam glass factories, the underlying principle in the lengthy dispute. 
 
The accord comes after both the ICEM and the European Mining, Chemical, Energy Workers' Federation (EMCEF) brought full attention to the dispute both globally and within the European community. It also came following the Turkish government twice prohibiting Kristal-İş from mounting a strike in the country's glass sector despite a Supreme Court ruling that such a strike was lawful. 
 
 
 
The main points to the settlement: 
 
&middot; Sisecam agreed to withdraw its legal obstacles to recognizing Kristal-İş in some 13 of 15 glass factories that employ 5,000 workers; 
 
&middot; The two parties agreed that social dialogue and goodwill will now become the norm for solutions to future problems; 
 
&middot; The 350 union activists who were sacked last September at a Pasabahce plant in Eskisehir following some 700 workers and contractors becoming Kristal-İş members will be reinstated; 
 
&middot; A shop steward who was also fired for his union activities will be reinstated; 
 
&middot; In line with Turkey&rsquo;s consumer price index, glass workers will receive a retroactive pay increase of 14% for the first half of 2003, 10% for the second half, and 12% for 2004. 
 
&quot;The ICEM applauds the determination and endurance of Kristal-İş members and their leaders in the most successful end result of this dispute,&quot; stated ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. &quot;We are delighted to have played a role, but the credit truly goes to Turkey's glass workers and their union for mobilizing and persevering in the face of nothing less than an orchestrated union-busting effort.&quot; 
 
In an era when more and more companies use contractors to avoid unionization, Higgs commended Kristal-İş for organising into its ranks contract workers at the Eskisehir plant. 
 
Kristal-İş President Mustafa Bagceci and Sisecam CEO Dogan Arikan released a joint communiqu&eacute; in which they promised to start a new phase of social dialogue in labour relations. &quot;This settlement means a new starting point between Kristal-İş and Sisecam,&quot; stated Bagceci. &quot;We have decided to look ahead instead of at the past.&quot; Bagceci added that international initiatives played a vital role in reaching the agreement and expressed appreciation to ICEM and EMCEF for strong support and solidarity.

Victory for Kristal-İş in Turkish Glass Dispute

&quot;People before Profit&quot; was the message over and over as union members from five labour organisations protested DSM NV reorganization at a stop-work march/rally 12 March in Limburg, NL. The unions, led by ICEM affiliate FNV Bondgenoten, are demanding a stop to DSM's decision to sack 1,000 core workers at industrial chemical worksites in Geleen, and replace them with 500 contractors.
<img height="210" alt="" src="" width="350" />
Some 2,500 workers, families and supporters attended the &quot;Stop the Breakdown of DSM Employment in Limburg&quot; march/rally, which circled the streets of Heerlen-DSM headquarters-and ended with a loud, spirited, united assembly on the plaza of the DSM headquarters building. 
 
The event marked the first such stop-work action at DSM. 
 
&quot;For us as unions, we've had enough,&quot; said Henk van Rees, a Bondgenoten officer. &quot;That's why we have called upon staff to down tools and go to Heerlen.&quot; 
 
In the 1980s, DSM operations in Geleen employed some 15,000 workers. Prior to last month's announcement from Heerlen, chemical operations in Geleen employ 5,000 workers. DSM also sacked 420 jobs at its DNP (Nutritional Products) former Roche plant in Sisseln, Switzerland, a fact not lost on those at the rally who see DSM overreaching into non-traditional business sectors.

DSM Dutch Workers Protest Outsourcing

M onday, 8 March, is International Women's Day, and the ICEM is encouraging affiliates, institutions and the general public alike to carry a workplace Human Rights message through to 1 May and beyond. That message is &quot;Respect for Workers' Rights, Respect for Women Workers.&quot; 
 
 
Artwork from Confederaci&oacute;n 
de Comisiones Obreras, Spain 
The 20-million-member ICEM, composed of over 400 affiliates in 125 countries in the oil, mining, chemical, pharmaceutical and processed industries, has joined with other global union federations and the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) to promote a season of action in which the theme is &quot;Unions for Women, Women for Unions&quot; will be used to organize workers employed in the burgeoning informal sectors of both developed and developing countries. 
 
In the heavily unionized global sectors in which many members of ICEM affiliates work, some 30% of those workers are women. &quot;Against the background of rising militarisation and continuous attacks on Women's Rights, it is now more important than ever that the world commemorate International Women's Day as a day to say 'We can do better,'&quot; stated ICEM Women's Officer Carol Bruce. 
 
The ICEM points to appalling circumstances the world over that need immediate attention and remedies. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, it is a common military tool to use rape to terrorize, humiliate and punish an enemy. In free trade zones in Central America and Central Europe, worksites exist in which women must produce their sanitary towels each month to prove they are not pregnant. 
 
Women make up over 50% of all HIV/AIDS victims, and in many cases the cause is infection from their own husbands. Because of lack of empowerment, they do not dare insist that their husbands use a condom, nor do they dare refuse sex with their husbands. 
 
Besides the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the ICEM has identified challenges in its own sectors. Women workers in Thailand in the diamond industry who work in sweatshop conditions need a living wage. In Russia, one out of two women working in the chemicals industries are exposed to hazardous conditions with high gas and dust content. Many trade unions still do not provide for women's representation by statute. In the global pharmaceuticals industry, not nearly enough women are organized in trade unions that would bring higher pay and a better level of benefits. 
 
On International Women's Day, the ICEM does herald notable achievements. In South Africa, a negotiated commitment between ICEM affiliate National Union of Mineworkers and the country's Council of Mines has been made to bring the level of women workers in mining up to 10%. Pharmaceutical companies operating in Central Europe now have record numbers of women managers. Women are putting forward their own demands in collective bargaining in Brazil as negotiators. 
 
The ICEM urges affiliates and others to make visible the message &quot;Respect for Workers' Rights, Respect for Women Workers&quot; through the 1 May holiday, and then to practice this message in everyday life.

8 March: Working Women Need Improvements at their Jobs

J ustice has finally arrived for a group of mineworkers in Australia-but more than five-and-a-half years late. 
 
Four of 16 miners at three Rio Tinto coal mines in Central Queensland who were sacked 21 July 1998 will walk back to their jobs Monday at the Blair Athol mine. The miners are members of ICEM affiliate Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) of Australia, and the union will mark their return with a Guard of Honour at the workplace entrance. 
 
The four were part of 16 staunch trade unionists sacked by Rio Tinto subsidiary Pacific Coal in 1998. The miners were discharged after the company conducted one-sided &quot;performance reviews&quot; that effectively placed them on a black list in the mining areas of Queensland. 
 
Two others will be reinstated by Rio Tinto at its nearby Hail Creek mine on 8 March. The fate of ten others is still in the hands of Rio Tinto. After some three years of legal wrangling, the Full Bench of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission ruled last year that the 16 were unfairly dismissed and must be given re-employment preference by Rio Tinto. 
 
Although the company is appealing that ruling, it has complied with reinstatement of the six. 
 
&quot;Rio Tinto should go the whole hog and get them all back on the job,&quot; said the Miners Union General President Tony Maher. &quot;These men and their families have suffered more than enough. It's time Rio did the right thing and get them all back on the job so their families can finally rebuild their lives and look to the future with the confidence they deserve.&quot; 
 
&quot;Hopefully, this puts closure to one of the sorriest chapters in mining labour relations the world over,&quot; said ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. &quot;The ICEM now calls on Rio Tinto to put this whole dispute behind and recall the remaining the ten workers.&quot;

Blair Athol Miners Return to Work in Australia

T he government of Argentina yesterday issued a second order to Bridgestone/Firestone management to reinstate some 90 employees who were sacked at a tyre factory last October, and to commence good-faith negotiations with the union. 
<img height="280" src="" width="354" alt="" />
Thousands of supporters of SUTNA rallied 
the Japanese Embassy in Buenos Aires 17 February 
The union, Sindicato Unico de Trabajadores del Neum&aacute;tico Argentina (SUTNA), has been lodged in a fierce dispute with the Japanese-based company, which has refused to negotiate a renewal agreement at its San Fernando factory near Buenos Aires with SUTNA. Thousands of demonstrators in support of SUTNA marched and rallied in front of the Japanese embassy in Buenos Aires on 17 February. 
 
The dispute centers on managers circumventing bargaining with the union last October in order to achieve rationalization with a new shift schedule. Bridgestone/Firestone unilaterally fired the 90 then even though a valid stability clause in the labour agreement prevented any workforce reduction without first negotiating with the union. 
 
The Labour Ministry for the state of Buenos Aires ordered the workers reinstated with backpay on 5 December, but Bridgestone/Firestone defied that order. 
 
After a hearing on 19 February, National Minister of Labour Carlos Tomado firmly condemned the company's actions and ordered Bridgestone/Firestone to abide by the labour agreement and to recognize the industrial relations policies of the country. 
 
&quot;The reputation of Bridgestone/Firestone worldwide would be seriously damaged if they again defy an order from the Argentine government, this time from the Minister of Labour himself,&quot; said ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. &quot;We call on all affiliates to aid SUTNA by registering protests with Bridgestone/Firestone management in their respective countries, and with the official Japanese missions near them.&quot;
&nbsp;In 2001, at the height of a currency crisis in Argentina, SUTNA signed a labour agreement conceding pay cuts of up to 25% and granting other entitlement reductions in order to keep Bridgestone's tyre operations in the South American country viable. The contract contained &quot;industrial peace&quot; language guaranteeing job security and full dialogue over issues with SUTNA. 
 
This initiative by SUTNA enabled the company to expend US$101 million in 2001-02 to expand production and shift to continuous operation. But management unilaterally voided that with last October's sackings, refusal to bargain with the union and prohibiting SUTNA representatives from even entering the tyre factory. 
 
&quot;We negotiated terms which were prejudicial to workers because we believed in the future of the company here in Argentina,&quot; stated SUTNA General Secretary Pedro Wasiejko. &quot;We trusted the company would respond when the economic situation got better. It has now improved but we're met by a company that refuses to comply with the terms of our agreement, or with the administration resolutions of the government.&quot; 
 
SUTNA is calling on Bridgestone/Firestone workers and their unions everywhere to direct letters of protest to local BF/FS managers, and to write to Japanese consulates and embassies in the countries in which they reside over the firm's intransigence in Argentina.

Bridgestone Again Stung by Ruling in Argentina

T he 20-million-member ICEM welcomed comments made last week by World Bank President James Wolfensohn that further dialogue is necessary to reach consensus over recommendations contained in the Extractive Industries Review (EIR). The EIR on 15 January issued its Bank-commissioned report entitled Striking a Better Balance intended to define the future role the World Bank should undertake in extractive industry sectors such as oil, gas and coal. 
 
&quot;Although there is much in the report that has had full input from the ICEM and which we embrace totally, we cannot endorse the EIR report's recommendation that the Bank phase out all involvement in oil and coal projects in the developing world over the next four years,&quot; stated ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. 
 
&quot;Such elimination is directly opposite the stated goals of both the Bank and EIR for sustainable development and eliminating poverty,&quot; added Higgs. &quot;The ICEM stands ready as a key stakeholder representing workers and communities to continue this dialogue with the World Bank. We're convinced labour's steadying voice within the process will help shape consensus.&quot; 
 
The World Bank president made his comments that further public consultation is necessary on the EIR at a meeting of community development and environmental groups 12 February in Melbourne, Australia. 
 
The ICEM and its global energy and mining affiliates have been key components to the two-year-long EIR process starting from a planning workshop, through region-by-region consultations, participation on the EIR's Advisory Board, and to the global stakeholder forum held in Lisbon late last year. 
 
The ICEM has embraced many of the recommendations in the EIR report including the adherence of core labour and human rights principles as a mandatory lending requirement by the Bank on all development projects, full transparency in all revenue flows, and a priority that sustainable development be a major emphasis in all World Bank programmes. 
 
The ICEM also has endorsed EIR recommendations that transition monies for community development, retraining and social safety nets be built into World Bank funding because of continual trends to privatise a nation's resources. Further, the ICEM supports an EIR recommendation that the Bank promote small-scale mining initiatives that will enhance the livelihoods of some 100 million people worldwide. 
 
In a 5 February letter to the World Bank's James Wolfensohn, Higgs said of the EIR report: &quot;We find (the recommended phase-out of oil and coal projects) inconsistent with existing intergovernmental conventions regarding global warming, and we also believe it would undermine efforts to eradicate poverty and pose a clear threat to developing economies.&quot;

ICEM Welcomes Continued Extractive Industries Dialogue

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