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Affiliates in Colombia Organise First Seminar on HIV/AIDS
ICEM affiliates in Colombia organised their first seminar on HIV/AIDS and the workplace in cooperation with UNAIDS and the Ministry of Social Protection. 
 
The seminar concluded that there was a lack of consistent campaigning on the part of companies and also unions. To overcome ignorance, discrimination and stigmatisation participants recommended including clauses in collective agreements and drawing up workplace policies based on the ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work.
The seminar formulated an action plan which includes the formation of workplace committees, workshops, information material, revision of collective agreements and gender-oriented programmes. Each union is to nominate a focal point to coordinate implementation of the action plan. 
 
Company representatives were invited to the seminar but only Carbones del Cerrej&oacute;n, which&nbsp;represents the interests of BHP Billiton, Glencore and Anglo American, participated. 
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Mongolia Union Concerned about Increase in Reported HIV Infections 
In a report to the ICEM's Asia-Pacific Regional Committee, the Mongolia Mining and Energy Union expressed concern about the recent increase in HIV prevalence in the country. Despite the still very low prevalence rate, the potential for a further increase due to unsafe sex, high infection rates among migrant workers and mobile traders and lack of education among young people is high. 
 
Workplace prevention programmes are at the initial stage in the country. Only recently, trade unions organised a national seminar in collaboration with the employers&rsquo; federation and the ILO on the introduction of workplace prevention programmes. 
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A Quarter of a Century of AIDS
The world has changed in 25 years since physicians saw the earliest cases of AIDS in hospitals in the United States and in Africa. The world was slow to recognise the gravity of the new health crisis and in the years in which AIDS remained off the political agenda, the infection took a foothold that it has not yet relinquished.
Over the last quarter century nearly 65 million people were infected with HIV and an estimated 25 million have already died of AIDS.
Today it is estimated that close to 40 million live with HIV &ndash; yet the vast majority are unaware of their status. More than 4 million became newly infected with HIV and almost 3 million died in 2005. 
 
With the establishment of the WHO Global Programme on AIDS in 1987 and UNAIDS (the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS) in 1996, the United Nations moved to address the epidemic not as an isolated health problem, but as a human development issue. 
 
At the 2001 Special Session of the UN General Assembly on AIDS (UNGASS), 189 nations agreed that HIV/AIDS was a national and international development issue of the highest priority, signing the historic Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS that promised innovative responses, coordinated efforts and accountability for progress against the epidemic.
The Declaration set a comprehensive list of time-bound targets to support the Millennium Development Goal 6 of halting, and beginning to reverse the epidemic by 2015. 
 
In 2003, UNAIDS and the WHO promoted the 3 by 5 Initiative (3 million people living with HIV/AIDS on treatment by the end of 2005). Although the initiative did not meet its target, it focused attention on treatment and increased the number from 400,000 in December 2003 to 1.3 million in December 2005.
When new targets such as universal access by 2010 are set it is hoped that these are not empty promises but there is a real commitment behind them which includes the massive financial resources required. 
 
A real breakthrough in funding came with the launch of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) in December 2002. More than 20% of all international financing to fight HIV/AIDS is currently channelled through the Global Fund, which has approved close to 400 grants to government and civil society partners in 131 countries.
Funds contributed and pledged to the Global Fund by donors totalled US$8.5 billion. But even such a large amount pales when resource requirements for 2007 are estimated to be US$18 billion, while resources expected to be available from all sources are estimated at US$10 billion. Despite substantial increases in donor funding, huge gaps remain.
(Source: UNAIDS 2006 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic &ndash; see below. Read also: Newsweek, 5 June &quot;AIDS at 25&quot;) 
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UNAIDS Publishes Report on the Epidemic
As reported in the June issue of ICEM's e-bulletin, UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, launched the 2006 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic on the eve of a United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS. This special edition, marking the 10th anniversary of UNAIDS, contains the most in-depth data from countries to date, based on progress reports from 126 countries as well as independent data from more than 30 civil society organisations. 
 
The Report cites positive trends, and states that the epidemic appears to be slowing down globally but new infections are continuing to increase in certain regions and countries. The Report also shows that important progress has been made in country responses, including increases in funding and access to treatment and decreases in HIV prevalence among young people in some countries over the past five years.
It states, however, that HIV/AIDS remains an exceptional threat. The response is very diverse with some countries doing well on treatment but poorly on HIV prevention efforts and vice-versa. 
 
An estimated 38.6 million people are living with HIV worldwide. This is lower than the 40.3 million given in the UNAIDS December 2005 Epidemic Update. The lower estimate is partly due to genuine declines in HIV prevalence in several countries. However, most of the differences are due to increased availability of reliable data.
Rising mortality have also caused HIV prevalence to level off although the numbers of people living with HIV have continued to rise, due to population growth and antiretroviral treatment. 
 
The report can be accessed at <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a>. It includes profiles of the 126 countries surveyed. 
(Source: UNAIDS Press Release, 30 May 2006) 
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United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS
Unlike the 2001 UN General Assembly Session on HIV/AIDS, relatively few world leaders attended the United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS which took place in New York from 29 May to 2 June.
Civil society organisations have criticised the final declaration of this meeting. Difference over prevention strategies, such as abstinence and condom use, intellectual property rights, and the naming of vulnerable groups have resulted in a weaker declaration and in serious omissions.
In deference to Muslim and conservative Latin and Vatican opposition, the Declaration refers only to &ldquo;vulnerable groups&rdquo; at risk for infection without naming sex workers, homosexuals, or intravenous drug users as in need of particular attention. Civil society also noted an insufficient commitment to women&rsquo;s rights. 
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Global Fund Progress Report Shows Substantial Impact 
 
Performance results from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria show that as of the end of&nbsp;April, 544,000 people have begun antiretroviral treatment through Global Fund-supported programmes &ndash; up from 384,000 six months ago. 
 
Global Fund support for efforts to combat AIDS, TB and malaria account for 56% of the total US$5.4 million committed to date for programmes in 131 countries to fight the three diseases. Some&nbsp;400 grants have been approved so far. Of the US$3 billion allocated to AIDS, half is dedicated to prevention activities while the other half is allocated to treatment. 
 
In 2005, the Global Fund was responsible for an estimated 20% of all international funding in support of efforts to combat HIV/AIDS, and approximately two-thirds of global funding for programmes against TB and malaria. 
 
What is encouraging is that civil society organisations are strong implementers as compared to government agencies, with 30% of their grants over-performing and the remaining 70% showing satisfactory performance. 
There are strong indications that countries can drastically increase their national absorptive capacity by channelling more of its health spending through non-governmental and faith-based organisations and the private sector. 

(Source: Global Fund Press Release, 29 June 2006)
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Focus on the Caribbean
According to the UNAIDS Report (see above), AIDS-related illnesses are the leading cause of death for people aged 15 to 44 in the Caribbean, accounting for more than 27,000 deaths in 2005. 
 
While the Bahamas, Barbados, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti have contained the progress of HIV, Guyana has a serious epidemic underway.
The Caribbean remains the region most affected by HIV/AIDS after Africa. According to UNAIDS estimates 330,000 HIV-positive people were living in the Caribbean at the end of 2005, 51% of whom were women.
This status as second-most affected region masks substantial country differences in the extent and intensity of the epidemic. Prevalence rates range from 0.1% in Cuba to more than 2% in Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, and exceeding 3% in the Bahamas and Haiti. New infections among women are far surpassing those among men, ranging from twice the likelihood for teenage girls to be infected in Jamaica to six times in Trinidad and Tobago. 
 
In the region fewer than one in four people needing antiretroviral drugs are actually receiving them. 

(Source: UNAIDS 2006 Report as compiled by Medical News Today, 5 June 2006) 

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Global Unions Demand G8 Permanent Working Group on HIV/AIDS 
In the run-up to the G8 Summit in St. Petersburg, 15-16 July, a Global Union delegation met Russian President Putin.
Among other items, they put forward the demand for a permanent Working Group on HIV/AIDS. At last year&rsquo;s Summit in Gleneagles, there was a time-bound commitment to fighting the epidemic but since then there has not been a clear follow-up and monitoring mechanism to reach the objective of universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care by 2010.
The call for a permanent Working Group was also made at the ILO&rsquo;s International Labour Conference in Geneva in June when Global Unions delivered letters to government, workers&rsquo; and employers&rsquo; delegations and to the Health Ministers gathered at the WHO annual World Health Assembly in May.
(Source: OECD-TUAC Press Release, 5 July and Global Union Statements) 
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International AIDS Conference 
 
The ICEM abstract written for the International AIDS Conference, Toronto, Canada,&nbsp;13 to 18 August, was accepted for a poster exhibition.
The ICEM was also invited to speak on &ldquo;The importance of social dialogue and workers&rsquo; participation in public/private partnerships&rdquo; at a Satellite Meeting Session with the theme: &ldquo;From the workplace to the community &ndash; Co-investment to access prevention, treatment and care in public/private partnerships&rdquo;. 

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ICEM Resources on HIV/AIDS 
 
This is a reminder that HIV/AIDS materials are available on our website <a href="http://www.icem.org">www.icem.org</a>. You can download the ICEM Leaflet on HIV/AIDS as well as power point presentations and find links to other interesting websites and materials.
Latest addition is the HIV/AIDS Training Manual for Collective Bargaining. Written by the ICEM Africa Regional HIV/AIDS Coordinator Shirley Miller with input from the national coordinators from sub-Saharan Africa the manual is a rights-based practical guide for unionists to deal with HIV/AIDS at the workplace and bargain for clauses safeguarding against discrimination and victimisation. The manual can also be found in three different languages at:
English: <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualEN.pdf">/files/PDF/Key_issues_pdfs/ 
AIDS/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualEN.pdf</a>
French: <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualFR.pdf">/files/PDF/Key_issues_pdfs/ 
AIDS/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualFR.pdf</a>
Spanish: <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualSP.pdf">/files/PDF/Key_issues_pdfs/ 
AIDS/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualSP.pdf</a>

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No.10

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Oil and gas trade unions, including the ICEM, were represented for the first time at the annual Caspian Oil &amp; Gas Exhibition last month in Baku, Azerbaijan. The eighth running of the show included oil and gas workers&rsquo; unions from Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey, and Norway. 
 
Trade unions representing the ICEM&rsquo;s Caspian Energy Project, together with staff from the Brussels Secretariat, manned colourful booths and distributed brochures, pins, banners and histories of their respective unions. Materials on HIV/AIDS, health and safety, contract and agency labour, and general labour relations were also presented to oil and gas company trade representatives.

ICEM’s Caspian Energy Network Debuts at Oil &amp; Gas Trade Show

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Sappi paperworkers at a Belgian mill staged a 24-hour strike on 5-6 July in protest of the South African company&rsquo;s restructuring plan. The paper mill&rsquo;s 700 workers seek to persuade the company not to cut 123 jobs from the pulp and coated papers mill. 
 
Management at the Lanaken mill claims the restructuring is merely a costs-savings measure, while the unions see it as mass redundancies and forced dismissals. The unions will use social dialogue to argue that cost-cutting should not go beyond not replacing those who retire combined with a tightening on the number of fixed-term contract workers that Sappi utilises. 
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Preliminary talks between the unions and management will occur on 18 July, with social dialogue on the restructuring plan to take place in September.

Sappi Paperworkers in Belgium Strike over Proposed Job Cuts

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In Finland on 1 May, a new policy takes effect that will no longer restrict the free movement of labour from the new EU Member States. Over the past two years, since the addition of ten new countries into the EU, Finnish control mechanisms have been put in place through a subscriber liability law. The legislation now makes it harder to abuse foreign workers, and also puts meaningful stops to the grey economy. 
 
Companies are now obligated to investigate the handling of taxation, social security payments and work practices of their subcontractors. The Finnish government will also seek to tighten control over foreign agency labour through a new policy that requires foreign workers from EU states to register at an employment bureau within two weeks of arrival. Finnish trade unions have fully endorsed the policy changes. 
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In the United States on May Day, a day that bosses in the late 19th century stripped of significance so that American workers would not have the same Labour Day, immigrant workers will wage a general strike as well as a consumer strike. The strikes are further protests against restrictive measures against immigrants that have surfaced in the US Congress. 
The day will vividly illustrate not only the jobs that immigrants fill in America, but also the purchasing power they have in the marketplace. Leading up to the twin strikes, businesses and companies in several large US cities have fired thousands of migrant workers who participated in marches in March and April. 
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In Belgium on 1 May, trade unionist Paul Lootens and historians Marie-Louise De Roeck and Julie Urbain will unveil their new book, Tutti Cadaveri: The Trial of the Catastrophe at the Bois du Cazier in Marcinelle. The book depicts the aftermath of Belgium&rsquo;s worst mining tragedy in history, a fire that raged inside a coal mine near the Wallonian town of Marcinelle, killing 262 miners. 
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The tragedy occurred on 8 August 1956 and the book marks the 50th anniversary of the devastating loss of so many lives. The book&rsquo;s title, Tutti Cadaveri, comes from an Italian rescuer who, after surfacing from the mine, said, &ldquo;All corpses.&rdquo; 
The book is available from Aden Publishers for &euro;22 and can be ordered from Aden by contacting editionsaden@skynet.be, or calling +32 2534 46 61. The ICEM will bring further attention to the 50th Anniversary events as the August date draws closer. 
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On Monday, 1 May, German IGBCE President Hubertus Schmoldt will deliver a major speech in Osnabr&uuml;ck on some fundamental issues affecting Germany and its trade unions, including joblessness, health reform and an energy policy. 
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The trade union leader will warn against the notion that the German economy can be strengthened by lowering wages, or through increasing the number of hours in the work week. IGBCE also calls for minimum standards, including wage levels, to be maintained for all sectors of the economy. 
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From Argentina on May Day comes a greeting from ICEM affiliate SUTNA. The union reminds us of the origins of International Workers&rsquo; Day&mdash;the fight for an eight-hour workday in the US city of Chicago, which produced a mass general strike that was met by brutal repression and then execution of those leading the strike by the state. &ldquo;SUTNA salutes, on the occasion of this International Workers&rsquo; Day, all workers who continue the excellent work that was started by the martyrs of Chicago.&rdquo; 
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The All Pakistan Trade Union Federation, which has organised huge May Day rallies for Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Rawalpindi/Islamabad and Quetta, sends this message: &ldquo;The growing economic might of multinationals and transnational corporations, and the imposition of policies of globalisation, have led to an unprecedented large-scale offensive against the democratic and social achievements of working people, and against the trade union movement.&rdquo; 
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And from Azerbaijan, Jahangir Aliyev, chairman of the Oil and Gas Industry Workers Trade Union (OGWU), expresses &ldquo;health, happiness and great progress for the welfare of all labour people.&rdquo;

May Day Actions, Greetings from Around the World

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Leading into May Day, International Workers&rsquo; Day, news from Nepal is that King Gyanendra has met his fate, as defying protestors stood their ground on the streets during curfews and martial law. 
 
During what is now known as Popular Movement II, a general strike in Nepal, which lasted for 23 days, forced the despotic king late on 24 April to restore the country&rsquo;s Parliament, a first and necessary step toward a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. &ldquo; 
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With the sacrifice of nearly 20 people&rsquo;s lives, some 5,000 who were seriously injured, and the arrests of 2,000, continuous struggle has meant we have achieved something,&rdquo; wrote Binda Pandey, ICEM Vice President and a leader inside Nepal&rsquo;s labour federation, GEFONT. &ldquo;Let us celebrate this together as an initial victory, but there still is a long way to go to sustainable peace, prosperity and a dignified Nepal.&rdquo; 
 
April&rsquo;s general strike brought hundreds of thousands of Nepalese citizens to spontaneous demonstrations across the Kathmandu Valley. Wives, children and relatives of police and army personnel stepped to the front of barricades as a way of getting security forces to defy clear orders to beat and shoot demonstrators at will, highlighting the fact that it was a unified public action that crossed all castes, classes and ethnic origins. 
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On 22 April, some 300,000 marched to the centre of Kathmandu, to within 500 meters of Gyanendra&rsquo;s palace where they were met by soldiers with heavy weaponry. ICEM&rsquo;s four affiliated trade unions all played crucial roles in the organised movement. (The general secretary of the Nepal Independent Chemical and Iron Workers&rsquo; Union was badly beaten and hospitalised with a broken knee.) Scores of leaders and activists from the unions were either injured or arrested. 
 
The ICEM issues an alert that resources and organisational support from the global trade union movement will be needed once Nepal reaches a full people&rsquo;s democracy in order that unions and trade union rights can flourish in the Himalayan country.

Peoples Movement Defies King in Nepal

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On 25 April, ICEM French affiliate FCE-CFDT signed the wage accord for the country&rsquo;s chemical industry following consultations with the union&rsquo;s regional structures. FCE-CFDT says the agreement will mean improvements and real progress for chemical workers, as well as marking a new social dynamic in the industry&rsquo;s collective negotiations. 
<img height="53" alt="" src="" width="80" />
FCE-CFDT added that the agreement opens up the possibility for more &ldquo;forward-looking steps,&rdquo; which may help to make jobs inside France&rsquo;s chemical industry more attractive. &ldquo;With chemical companies being hit by restructurings and job losses, this agreement removes some of the social problems in the sector,&rdquo; said the FCE-CFDT&rsquo;s statement. 
 
The union is now hopeful the accord will pave a positive path for negotiations that will commence later this year. These talks will cover pay adjustments to the conventional salary scheme in the chemical sector.

French FCE-CFDT Approves Chemical Industry Agreement

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Twenty-two workplace leaders from BASF chemical plants in South America convened 21-24 April in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for ICEM&rsquo;s Latin American BASF Network. Trade union leaders from Argentina, Brazil and Chile, together with German Works Council members and IGBCE union officials, met amongst themselves from 21-23 April and then on the final day, entered into social dialogue with BASF management. 
 
Trade union priorities included giving aid and support to a Peruvian chemical workers&rsquo; union in its efforts to organise a BASF factory, and adopting ICEM&rsquo;s stand over contract and agency labour. 
 

<img height="60" src="" width="70" alt="" />
Works Council members from BASF&rsquo;s huge Ludwigshafen complex in Germany, presented the challenges facing that body there, and IGBCE&rsquo;s Michael Vasiliadis gave a report on the changing chemical industry relating to globalisation and the necessity to press global companies on their social responsibilities. 
 
On 24 April, senior BASF managers reported on which priorities from last year&rsquo;s social dialogue talks had been fulfilled. In follow-up discussions, led by ICEM Latin American/Caribbean Chair Sergio Novais of CNQ-CUT in Brazil, BASF South American managers agreed to accommodate efforts to organise the Peruvian plant. 
 
The discussions were hailed on both sides as promoting an atmosphere of trust, and it was agreed to begin planning more formal rules for the annual process.

ICEM’s BASF Network in South America Meets

Paperworkers at International Paper (IP) Co.&rsquo;s Inverurie Mill in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, voted by a three-to-one margin to accept a new two-year accord. The vote is a union victory, preventing the US-based paper giant from imposing harsh and unnecessary contract measures. 
ICEM affiliate Amicus, which successfully negotiated the agreement, credited the solid resolve of workers at the printing and writing papers mill, as well as the ICEM&rsquo;s IP Global Workers&rsquo; Network with the win. 
After a series of industrial actions, which included four 4-hour strikes from 23 March to 6 April, International Paper moved from a pay freeze to agreeing to 2% wage increases, both in 2006 and 2007. The company also backed away from a proposal, inserted late into the negotiations, to only grant the 2% pay hike after workers ratified the agreement, with the 2007 raise kicking in a year later. Amicus succeeded in getting the 2006 pay raise backdated to the standard 1 January, with another 2% awarded on 1 January 2007. 
<img height="131" alt="" src="" width="129" />
&ldquo;Our membership did a magnificent job in standing up to one of the biggest pulp and paper groups in the world,&rdquo; said Amicus Assistant General Secretary Tony Burke. &ldquo;We had instant solidarity throughout the world, not only from unions at other International Paper mills, but from paperworkers&rsquo; unions everywhere.&rdquo; Burke added that Inverurie Mill workers were &ldquo;energised&rdquo; by such support, and that the industrial actions carved &ldquo;fierce resistance&rdquo; among workers, with 40 more workers electing to join the union during the dispute. 
International Paper agreed to the non-concessionary terms on 11 April, two days before workers were set to escalate the dispute into an 8-hour strike. The vote was counted by Amicus in Aberdeenshire today. 
 
Throughout the month-long industrial dispute, Amicus was publicly calling for outside mediation to bring the two parties together but IP management refused, preferring a &ldquo;negotiations-by-ultimatum&rdquo; style. Managers finally gave up that approach in day-long talks on 11 April, with the UK&rsquo;s Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) participating. 
 
&ldquo;We appreciate the effort the ICEM put forward, as well as the efforts of all affiliated trade unions that showed such strong support,&rdquo; said Burke. &ldquo;The wage package, with it now backdated to January 1st, is a good result and it runs roughly in line with the current inflation rate in the UK.&rdquo; 
 
Upon hearing the bargaining result, ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs congratulated Amicus and its membership at the Inverurie Mill. &ldquo;The credit belongs with the workers and with their Union,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They stood strong and the ICEM is proud to have played a role in this successful outcome.&rdquo; 
 
For more background information on this dispute: 
 
<a href="/?id=112&amp;doc=1747&amp;la=EN">Eight-Hour Strike Next Week at International Paper&rsquo;s Scottish Mill</a>&nbsp;(ICEM InBrief - 6 April 2006)

UK’s Amicus Union Triumphs in International Paper Settlement

3月23日、タイ最高行政裁判所はタイ発電公社(EGAT)の部分的民営化を命じた2005年の勅令2件を無効にする判決を下した。
ICEM加盟労組EGAT-LUは、この無効化判決はタクシン首相の不透明な行為を糾弾する国家的転機となるとしている。裁判では公聴会に不備があり透明性を欠いていたことが指摘され、タイ証券取引所への上場差し止めが命じられた。仮に部分的民営化が進んでいたら不公平な競争優位を生んでいたかもしれない、との指摘もなされた。 
EGAT-LU労組のシリチャイ・マインガム議長は、今後は首都圏配電公社、首都圏水道公社、地方電力公社、および地方水道公社の民営化計画を押し戻すため消費者団体等と協力していくと述べた。EGAT-LU労組はタイ発電公社取締役の辞職を要求したほか、タクシン首相とエネルギー大臣のウィセート・ジューピバーンに対しても辞職を要求している。
本日（4月3日）、EGAT-LU労組は当該国営電力会社の最高経営幹部と会う予定。組合側は、EGAT職員が購入した株式を利息を付けて払い戻すこと、また徴収された税金を払い戻すこと、そして昨年11月の新規株式公募に備えて政府役人に支払われた巨額の顧問料に対する責任をとることを要求する。「次の政権がEGATを民営化しようとするかどうかはわかりません。」とマインガム議長は述べた。「それでも私たちは電力公益事業の国営身分を維持する闘いにおいて市民団体との協力を継続していきます。」 
 
オーストラリア・ハワード政権の労使協定改正法案、通称「ワークチョイス（WorkChoices）」発効のちょうど1週間後、オーストラリア全土の労働組合が労働者にその危険性について警告するキャンペーンを開始した。
さらに組合は、18か月後の選挙でハワード首相を追い落とす準備を始めている。この関連で一部労組がウェブサイトを新設し、労働者が使用者の地位の乱用について投稿できるようにした。 　
新法は3月27日に施行。これにより、個別契約が優先されて団体交渉を衰退させ、100人未満の従業員を雇用する雇用主は不当解雇を免れることになった。施行後最初の1週間だけで法律の乱用が多発していることをオーストラリアの労組は指摘した。例えばサウス・オーストラリア州では、あるホテルがその従業員を半分に削減し、全従業員を対象に労働時間を延長したうえで個別契約に置き換えるというリストラ計画を発表した。またニューサウスウェールズ州のある企業は、全従業員29人をすべて解雇し、その後個別契約をベースに募集人員20名として週給A$180（約15,500円）以下の職を提示した。 　
ICEM加盟労組のオーストラリア製造労組は、この「WorkChoice（ワーク・チョイス）法に対し「WhatChoice?（ワット・チョイス？）」というキャンペーンを開始。また、ナショナルセンターＡＣＴＵ（オーストラリア労働組合評議会）は一部の州と共同で同法律の破棄を目指して法的措置を起こしている。 
 
南ア加盟労組の南アフリカ鉱山労組(NUM)は、ハーモニー・ゴールド・マイニング社が組合に相談なく契約労働者300人を解雇したことに対し異議を申し立てた。
ハーモニー社は、北ケープ州のカルゴールド（Kalgold）鉱山の請負業者DBEマイニング社から新たな委託業者に乗り換えようとした。NUMはこの問題を労働裁判所に提訴し、ハーモニー社に対し「金の価格高騰期である現況をかんがみ」、解雇した300人を常勤労働者として採用することを要求した。ＮＵＭ労組は、「ハーモニー社は300人の労働者が請負業者の従業員であることを盾にしているが、現実的にはこれらの300人の労働者による作業が同社鉱山において非常に重要な部分を占めている。請負と外部委託は、大企業が従業員の安易な解雇という汚点から自らを免責するための新しい形態の搾取である。」と声明した。 
 
米国グッドイヤー社は、契約労働者300人の雇用維持を求める労組の要求に従わない場合、今週にも南アフリカでストライキに直面する可能性がある。
グッドイヤー社と南アフリカ金属労組 (NUMSA)は、明日4月4日に和解にむけて会合をもつ。なんの進展もみられない場合は、週末までに約1,700人のNUMSA組合員が当該タイヤ工場でストライキを実施することになるかもしれない。問題の発端は、過去5年間にわたり工場で勤務していた300人の契約労働者を常用雇用化することをグッドイヤー側が拒んだこと。これら300人を雇用しているのは派遣会社のKelly Service社。申し立てによると、同社は彼らに医療費や年金基金の制度を適用していない。またNUMSA労組は訓練生の乱用の問題でもグッドイヤーと争議中。訓練生が、協約に違反してシフト勤務や休日出勤をさせられているとしている。さらにこれらの訓練生には長期間にわたり低い給与等級が適用されており、この点に関しても会社は業務規定を違反している。 
 
仏ICEM加盟労組FCE-CFDTは、政府の若年者雇用促進法「初期雇用計画（ＣＰＥ）」に抗議し、明日（4月4日）フランス全土のトタル石油事業所に8時間の時限ストを呼びかけた。
組合は、全トタル従業員に明日の行動日に参加するよう要請しているほか、全組合代表者に対し準備のための参謀会議を開催するよう呼びかけた。フランスの各労働団体は、社会的パートナーとの事前対話なくして可決した法令であるCPEを撤回するよう政府及びドビルパン首相に圧力をかけるため団結した。同法令は、採用から2年間は26歳未満の労働者を雇用者は理由を示さずに解雇することを可能にする。シラク大統領は先週、2年間という期限を1年間に短縮するという譲歩案を発表した。これに対し、FCE-CFDTは他の労組と共に反対を唱えている。同労組は、8時間の時限ストをいつ開始するか正確に告げないまま、トタル社での明日のストライキを指示した。 
 
英国加盟労組Amicusの組合員は、3月30日、インターナショナル・ペーパー社のInverurie工場（スコットランド）で再び4時間の時限ストライキを実施した。
会社側が2006年度及び2007年度の賃金案を改善しない場合は、Amicus労組とその工場の231人の組合員は今週中さらに2つのストライキ（4月4日と4月6日）を実施するなど争議行動をエスカレートさせていく計画。経営側は、今年度については承諾しがたい賃金の凍結を、そして2007年については1回限りの少額ボーナスを提示している。労働者は過去2年間、毎週の賃金から会社の年金制度のギャップを埋めている。これまでの争議行動で、当該印刷・情報用紙製造工場内およびAberdeenshire地域内でのAmicus支持が上昇した。 
 
約20,000人の公益事業労働者を対象とする単一の団体協約がヴァッテンファル・ヨーロッパ社（Vattenfall Europe）とドイツの労働組合3組織との間で結ばれた。
３つのドイツ労組、すなわちICEM加盟労組 のIGBCE、IGメタルおよびVer.di（統一サービス労働組合）は賃金格差を排して2万人のドイツの労働者の労働条件を統一するため共通の労働協約を締結するため2年間にわたりこのスウェーデン系企業と交渉を続けてきた。その結果、最近になり同社の監督委員会が方針を変更し、共通の協約締結に同意した。さらに経営側は、売却される企業の労働者についても、売却先で新たに協約が結ばれるまではこの共通協約の適用を受けることに同意した。 　
3労組はこれまで共通協約締結に無関心だった企業に対しいくつかの抗議行動を合同で実施してきた。3月1日にベルリンで開催されたヴァッテンファル・ヨーロッパの株主総会で5000人を動員して行った抗議デモもそのひとつ。また同じく3月に、ドイツ労組を支援してスウェーデンのSEKO労組が自国でキャンペーンを開始した。ドイツでは、ヴァッテンファル・ヨーロッパはBewag（ベルリン電力）、HEW（ハンブルグ電力）、Laubag、Veagなど、スウェーデンの親会社が過去6年で買収した公益事業者6社で構成される。 
 
モーリタニア政府は、石油サービス請負業者における組合権をめぐり6ヶ月続いた三者間の争議を成功裏に解決した。
また、ICEMもこの問題解決において直接的な役割を果たした。争議が始まったのは2005年10月、MKT社（El Majabaat El Koubra Tour&hellip;オーストラリアに本社を置くウッドサイド・ペトロリアムの取引先である輸送・ロジスティクサービス業者)が、モーリタニアのエネルギー・石油労組 (CGTM)の16人の組合活動家を解雇したのが発端。ウッドサイドは、CGTM労組を組合代表として認知し、要件を満たしたMKT契約労働者に対し期間の定めのない雇用への転換を申し出ることが義務付けられた。一方ＭＫＴは解雇手当金として組合代表には4か月分の給料と支払うこと、また長期勤務者には3か月分、その他の従業員には2か月分を支払うことに同意した。この契約労働者の不当処遇問題に関し、ICEMはウッドサイドとモーリタニア政府の両者に対してロビー活動を行ってきた。モーリタニア国家元首のエリー・ウルド・モハメド・ヴァル大佐は、この問題に関連し、「モーリタニアの国民の正当な期待に応える道を選択したウッドサイドの姿勢を評価します。」と述べた。ウッドサイドは西アフリカの当国において陸上および海底石油探査開発権を所有する。 
 
ICEM加盟労組Petrol-Isの組合員であるトルコ国営石油企業テュプラス(Tupras)従業員は、3月28日、同社株51%の民間企業への売却差し止めの判決の延期に抗議してストライキを実施した。
2月2日、組合側はトルコの最高裁判所から予備裁定を勝ち取り、コチ・ホールディングスおよびロイヤルダッチシェル率いるコンソーシアムへの41億4000万USドルの販売を阻んだ。最終裁定は3月27日に国家委員会（最高裁判所）によって下される予定であったが、それが4月25日まで延期されることになった。労働者はこれに抗議し、イズミット、イズミル、クルックカレ、バットマンの４つのテュプラス精油所、ならびにイズミット精油所に隣接する石油化学工場の生産を停止させた。 
 
3月31日夜半の土壇場の譲歩で、ノルウェーで38,000人の労働者によるストライキが回避された。
政府任命の仲裁者が、ICEM加盟労組Fellesforbundetと約1,000社の企業を代表するNorsk Industriの賃金その他をめぐる問題を和解させた。組合側の要求は、2006年の適正な賃金引上げ、avtalefesten pensjon(AFP)と呼ばれる早期退職制度の維持、そして外国人労働者への低賃金適用の廃止。しかしながら、政府による仲裁はノルウェー全国建設産業協会とFellesforbundet労組の19,000人の組合員との調停はできず、４月２日に始まった建設労働者によるストライキを防ぐことはできなかった。 
 
韓国民主労総 (KCTU)は、非正規雇用法案をめぐる問題で4月6日から1週間のゼネストを決行すると再び国会前で決意表明した。
本日（4月3日）臨時国会が召集された。この渦中の法案、すなわち契約労働者の雇用に関し使用者にさらなる柔軟性を与えるこの法案が論議の焦点になるとみられる。KCTUは本日国会前で集会を開き、4月6日木曜日からのストライキ開始をアピールした。同法案は、派遣労働者の権利と労働条件に悪影響を及ぼす3つの法案で構成され、使用者に無制限で契約労働者を採用する権利を与え、なおかつ2年で解雇することを可能にする。 
 
4月6－7日、イスタンブール（トルコ）で2006年ICEMゴム産業部会世界会議が開催される。
ホスト組合は、トルコ労組のLastik-Is。会議には15か国から約106人の組合役員が参加する予定。同産業部会世界会議は4年ごとに開催され、今回は当該産業をめぐる現況と労働者が直面している課題について、また2006年に予定されている各国での重要な団体交渉について議論する。参加が予定されているのは、オーストリア、ベラルーシ、ベルギー、ブラジル、デンマーク、フランス、ドイツ、日本、ルーマニア、ロシア、南アフリカ、スペイン、トルコ、英国およびアメリカ。前回会議は、2002年にサンパウロ（ブラジル）で開催、その前は1998年にクアラルンプール（マレーシア）で開催された。

ICEM InBrief

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Canadian Ivanhoe Mines, one of the larger foreign investors in Burma, has been forced to temporarily close its copper mine in Burma for a few weeks last month. Problems related to the mine&rsquo;s bank and insurance broker ending its relationships with the operation, a result of the economic sanctions that the US government installed on Burma. According to Ivanhoe, the mine has been reopened in the meantime, albeit at a lower level. 
Company sources reportedly acknowledged that the US sanctions are making it increasingly difficult to work in Burma. The company also admitted having a few technical problems with the Burmese government, including on import permits. The Monywa Copper Project is operated as a joint venture between Ivanhoe Mines and the Burmese government. The Burmese government forces joint ventures on all foreign investors operating inside Burma, guaranteeing the dictatorial regime a steady flow of income.

Canadian Investor Needs to Temporarily Close its Mine in Burma

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ICEM InBrief

Canadian Investor Needs to Temporarily Close its Mine in Burma

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