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Paperworkers belonging to ICEM affiliates FIA-UGT and FSC-CCOO in Spain effectively shut the nation&rsquo;s paper and paperboard industry on 23 February. And they will do again on arch if the paper employers&rsquo; association (Aspapel) does not this week make major revisions to its one-sided 2010-2012 bargaining agenda. 
 
The two unions reported close to 100% strike turn-out in nearly all the selected mills and paper plants in nine regions. 
 
Due solely to Aspapel&rsquo;s year-long failure to compromise on a long-lapsed national collective agreement, Spanish paper plants last week lost 24 hours of production and face that again this week. Multiple plants of Torraspapel, SAICA, SCA, SmurfitKappa, Europac, Newark Group lost production, as did single plants of Holmen, Ibertissue, Kimberly Clark, Sonoco&rsquo;s Papertech, and Gom&agrave;-Camps. 
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Paperworkers Strike at Torraspapel&rsquo;s Almaz&aacute;-Soria Region Mill
Central staff of SAICA joined the 24-hour strike last week. At three of four of Barcelona-based Torraspapel&rsquo;s paperboard plants, strike participation was 100%. At the fourth, it was 60%. SCA tissue and paperboard mills at LaRiba, Valls, and Mediona were affected. The ICEM took hold of global solidarity, and that <a href="/en/19-Pulp-Paper/4264-Pledge-Support-to-Paperworkers’-Strike-Actions-in-Spain">Solidarity Call</a> on February 23 can be found here. 
 
Spanish paperworkers have grown angry over Aspapel&rsquo;s unwillingness to bend from sweeping flexibility changes and downward wage structure revisions. The dispute is far less on salaries &ndash; the two sides are close on that &ndash; than it is on imposing adverse salary structures that, in effect, place the burden of a slumping Spanish economy, in part, on paperworkers. In Spain&rsquo;s paper sector right now, harsh revision of the consumer price index (CPI) calculation is the same as the race to the bottom. 
 
Some 17,500 paperworkers are affected by industry intransigence in meeting a 2010 national labour agreement. 
 
On a different issue inside the Spanish paper industry, a roof collapse which spewed concrete over paper-making machinery caused shutdown of the former Papelera de Besaya mill in Torrelavega, Cantabria. Fortunately, no one was killed or injured in the 18 February mishap. The mill had been operating since November 2010, following Catabria government takeover of a bankrupt paper enterprise.

Spain’s Paperworkers Shut Industry; Will Strike Again 3 March

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The International Textile, Garment, Leather Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITGLWF) congratulated its regional Asia structure TWARO and Cambodian affiliate C.CADWU for successfully restoring the jobs of 19 trade union leaders and 142 other workers at garment sweatshops of Goldfame Enterprises. 
 
The ITGLWF reports that its Cambodian independent trade union affiliate C.CADWA signed a Memorandum of Agreement with Goldfame that resolves outstanding issues following a general strike by Cambodian garment workers in September 2010. 
 
In an agreement aimed at promoting workplace cooperation in industrial relations, Hong Kong-based Goldfame agreed to reinstate the 19 leaders and 142 other union members at a meeting hosted by the ILO, witnessed by the ITGLWF, TWARO, and C.CADWU, as well as by Goldfame buyers Inditex and H&amp;M. 
 
Efforts in Cambodia will continue, the ITGLWF states, to persuade other employers to follow Goldfame&rsquo;s lead and restore the jobs of workers who were discriminatively sacked during the wave of September 2010 mass strikes. The ITGLWF states that another 63 trade union leaders and 77 supporters in 14 factories deserve their dignified return to work.

ITGLWF Commends Goldfame Job Recalls in Cambodia

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Tomorrow, 8 March, marks the 100th anniversary of International Women&rsquo;s Day (IWD). It is also 16 days before the ICEM&rsquo;s largest Women&rsquo;s Conference ever, when 160 participants from 40 countries convene in Sevilla, Spain. 
 
(There is still time to register and attend the ICEM Women&rsquo;s Conference from 23-25 March. Please refer to the <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/En%20Draft%20Agenda_Nove2010%201.pdf">invitation</a>, <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/EN%20Women%20Attendance%20Form-March%202011.doc">registration form</a>, and <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/En%20Draft%20Agenda_Nove2010%201.pdf">tentative agenda</a>. The cover art for this article is courtesy of ICEM German affiliate IGBCE, which has as theme this year, &ldquo;Lay Tomorrow&rsquo;s Foundation Today.&rdquo;) 
 
Some ICEM affiliates have already held IWD events. In Thailand, ICEM-affiliated unions joined other civil society groups in a 6-7 March symposium at Thammasat University in Bangkok. A key point made was that hundreds of thousands of Thai women work longer than eight hours per day at low wages and without social benefits.
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ICEM Thai Project Coordinator Aranya Pakapath and GOPTU&rsquo;s Araya Kaewpradap
Araya Kaewpradap of the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation Labour Union (GOPTU) said at the symposium that the majority of Thai women are employed under short-term, fixed contracts, although in reality most have worked 20 or more years in such jobs. She said women are discriminated from entitlements, upward wage adjustments, social benefits, maternity protection, and they do not have access to the national social security scheme. 
 
The importance of Thailand ratifying ILO Convention 183 on Maternity Protection was also brought out at the symposium, which was televised throughout the country. Symposium participants and thousands of others will march tomorrow from Democracy Monument to the Government House in Bangkok to mark IWD.
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IWD Thai Symposium at Thammasat University 
In Spain, ICEM&rsquo;s two affiliated trade union federations, UGT and CC.OO, which will jointly co-host the Sevilla Women&rsquo;s Conference in two weeks time, issued a common IWD statement that is critical of Spain&rsquo;s government for labour revisions, &ldquo;which, far from creating employment, is contributing once again to the dismantling of too few labour guarantees.&rdquo; 
 
The statement also said: &ldquo;The elimination of the Ministry of Equality (now part of the Ministry of Health) means a step backwards on gender polices and a violation of the commitments of equality made at European and international levels that instruct governments to treat equality themes at high levels of responsibility.&rdquo; 
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Across the world, a great number of &ldquo;bridge walks&rdquo; will occur tomorrow and throughout the rest of the week. The bridge walks, developed last year by programme directors for Women International in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), symbolise awareness toward women facing crises in war-torn countries. 
 
That is sadly reflected now in many countries of North Africa and the Middle East. And it was also on vivid display on Saturday, 5 March, when Israeli border police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at Palestinian women, who were holding an IWD manifestation at the Qalandiya border crossing north of Jerusalem. 
 
IWD is meant to be a global day to celebrate the economic, political, and social achievements of women past, present, and future, regardless of national, ethnic, or social divisions. In 1910, Clara Zetkin of Germany&rsquo;s Social Democratic Party tabled the idea at the Second International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen, Denmark. 
 
A year later, on 19 March, IWD was officially recognised by Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. In 1913, IWD was moved to 8 March. Today, it is an official holiday in 25 countries: Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Georgia, Guinea-Bissau, Kazakhstan, Kyrgzstan, Laos, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Russia, Tajikistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Zambia. 
 
In the US, March is Women&rsquo;s History Month and it will take on special significance this month. It was in New York City, on 25 March 1911, when 146 mostly girls and young women, ages 14 to 23, perished in the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. The seamstresses were unable to escape the burning building after owners had locked stairwells and exits. US trade unions will commemorate this horrible affront to working women in several different events across the month of March. 
 
ICEM affiliates are encouraged to report their IWD actions and activities to <a href="mailto:carol.bruce@icem.org">Carol Bruce</a>, ICEM&rsquo;s Women&rsquo;s Officer.

100th Anniversary of International Women’s Day!

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On 11 February &ndash; day 18 of mass revolution by the Egyptian people &ndash; Hosni Mubarek was toppled as dictator of Egypt. Newly-minted Vice President Omar Suleiman, who the people reject as well, issued a brief statement on national television that evening saying Mubarek resigned as president, and power is transferred to the Armed Forces Supreme Council, a grouping of top Egyptian generals. 
 
Only speculation exists at this early writing on what steps the military might first take to reduce 30 years of repressive rule, human rights violations, and a lessening of social inequality. One Sunday, 13 February, a military decree restricted trade union freedoms. 
 
One thing is certain: the extraordinary events of the past fortnight must stand as a turning point for Egypt to embark on a road of participatory democracy. 
 
Mubarek&rsquo;s departure came after the biggest yet demonstration in Cairo&rsquo;s al-Tahrir Square on 11 February, and cities such as Alexandria, Aswan, Suez, Port Said, Asyut, and El Kharga saw huge protests as mass calls were heeded by Egyptians to take to the streets and reclaim their country. 
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Days 16 and 17 will become known as the days when workers shut down factories and businesses, bringing the country to an economic standstill. The workers' movment was vast and perhaps serving as prime example was the call &ldquo;People&rsquo;s Revolution for the People&rdquo; by the 4,000-strong Helwan Iron and Steel Workers at the Coking Coal and Basic Chemical Co. They issued an invitation to workers to join the 11 February mobilisation in al-Tahrir Square and called for creation of an independent trade union movement. 
 
The fledgling Iron and Steel Workers&rsquo; Union proclaimed the revolution to be the end of government corruption, and called for higher wages and permanent contracts for temporary workers. Tens of thousands of other Egyptian workers at state companies, and in textile, chemicals, transport, postal services, and other sectors stopped work in the middle of last week, leading surely to Mubarek&rsquo;s departure at week&rsquo;s end. 
 
In Helwan, 6,000 silk and textile workers at Misr Helwan Spinning and Weaving Co. stopped work, as did 400 workers at the Misr National Steel Co. in Suez. Some 2,000 workers of Sigma Pharmaceutical in Quesna protested. And thousands of workers of the Egyptian Petroleum Trading Service Co. (Petrotrade) joined the national demonstrations at six branches of the company, including at the Ministry of Petroleum in Nasr City. 
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In industrial Kafr al-Dawwar, thousands of textile workers took to the streets last week, and 6,000 staff of the Suez Canal Authority began sit-ins at workplaces in Suez, Port Said, and Ismailia on the evening of 8 February that lasted through the next day. 
 
This growing wave of working-class militancy was not unexpected; in the past six years, there have been nearly 3,000 strikes and workers&rsquo; protests affecting two million wage earners who have been cheated by the Egyptian regime&rsquo;s corrupt practices. 
 
Globally, countless demonstrations were held last week in cities and countries demanding an end to Mubarek&rsquo;s rule and justice for the Egyptian people. On 8 February, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) held a day of protest in a number of cities including Geneva. 
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Several ICEM staff joined a large delegation from the Global Union Federation (GUF) UNI and other GUFs to protest at the Egyptian mission to the UN&rsquo;s European headquarters. There, trade unionists led by the Workers&rsquo; Chair of by ILO Governing Body, Leroy Trotman of the Barbados Workers&rsquo; Union, presented a letter by the ITUC and four Geneva-area GUFs to Mission Counsellor Yasser Hassan. 
 
It read, in part: &ldquo;We express our solidarity with our Egyptian brothers and sisters in this difficult situation. We urge you to remind the Egyptian Government that it must fulfil its obligations under international law and respect trade union rights and fundamental liberties such as freedom of expression.&rdquo; 
 
As significant as Mubarek&rsquo;s resignation is, it is only the beginning of the struggle. On Sunday, 13 February, the military&rsquo;s Supreme Council issued an edict banning all union meetings, forbidding strikes, and ordering all Egyptian workers back to work. In the coming weeks and months in Egypt, the world will witness that the struggle for democracy is inseparable from the struggle for workers&rsquo; power and the struggle for workers&rsquo; rights.

Mubarek Overthrown; Egyptian People Await Freedoms

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In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we report on the HIV/AIDS workshop in India, on the new and ambitious targets of the Global Fund, and on two cases of job-related discrimination on the basis of HIV-positive status in South Africa. 
 
The ICEM Calls on its Affiliates to Contribute to this e-bulletin 
 
ICEM affiliates are engaged in a wide range of HIV/AIDS activities. To spread the information on new agreements, awareness, and prevention campaigns, and educational activities, affiliates and project coordinators are invited to send news and information to <a href="mailto:hiv.aids@icem.org">hiv.aids@icem.org</a>. Any feedback on the format and contents of the e-bulletin is also welcome. 
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HIV/AIDS Workshop in India 
 
Some 30 participants and resource persons attended a three-day HIV/AIDS workshop in Kolkata, India, in February. Participants came from the ICEM affiliate, the Indian National Mineworkers&rsquo; Federation (INMF), as well as from the chemical, cement, and diamond sectors. 
 
The workshop was sponsored by the German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) as part of the HIV/AIDS Project in India. It was organised by the project&rsquo;s coordinator, BK Das, who is also the General Secretary of INMF and a member of the ICEM Executive Committee. The workshop was facilitated by the HIV/AIDS Programme Officer of the ILO office in New Delhi, Ms. P. Joshila. Representatives from employers and government agencies and an organisation of people living with HIV were also involved in the workshop. 
<img src="" width="125" height="38" alt="" />
Emphasis in this workshop was on workplace policies. The ICEM HIV/AIDS Consultant, Hans Schwass, gave a presentation on elements of an HIV/AIDS workplace policy and introduced the ICEM Training Manual for Negotiating on HIV/AIDS. Participants also split in groups to establish work plans for their respective companies and regions to the end of 2011 when the BI sponsorship ends. 
 
Much has been achieved in the HIV/AIDS work in India of the ICEM with its affiliates and sponsorship from BI. More than 50 master trainers are available to continue the work with peer educators of whom more than 600 have been trained. 
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Global Fund: Bold New Targets Set at Board Retreat 
 
The Global Fund Board says that the Fund&rsquo;s new strategic plan should have &ldquo;bold, ambitious and measurable objectives,&rdquo; including tripling the number of lives saved and the number of infections averted between 2011 and 2016. This information is contained in a report prepared by Dr. Tedros A. Ghebreyesus of Ethiopia, Chair of the Board, on the board&rsquo;s recent retreat, which was held prior to its regular meeting in December 2010 in Sofia, Bulgaria. 
 
In addition to the objectives related to lives saved and infections averted, the board said that the Global Fund needs to do more to leverage the impact of its investments, particularly with respect to health gains for women and children; to increase efforts to maximise value for money; to increase efforts to ensure protection of human rights and access to prevention, treatment, care, and support for all, including the poorest and most marginalised populations; and to increase efforts to ensure the sustainability of programmes to which the Global Fund is currently contributing. 
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One area where the board failed to reach a consensus at the retreat concerns the mandate of the Global Fund. There were divergent perspectives on whether the objectives related to the number of lives saved and infections averted should be phrased in a way that will allow the Global Fund to progressively expand its mandate. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, Issue 140 of 3 February. GFO is a free service of Aidspan <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>; to receive GFO send an email to <a href="mailto:receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org">receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org</a>) 
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Decline in HIV Rates in Zimbabwe Driven by Fear of Infection 
 
The big drop in the numbers of people infected with HIV in Zimbabwe is because of mass social change, driven by fear of infection, according to an international study by the journal PLoS Medicine. 
 
A major investigation of the reasons why HIV prevalence in Zimbabwe has fallen from 29% in 1997 to 16% in 2007 was carried out by epidemiologists at Imperial College, London, and Harvard University School of Public Health, Boston, in partnership with the Ministry of Health, the UN Population Fund, and UNIADS. 
 
The research included extensive analysis of epidemiological data, together with focus groups and key informant interviews, to test the different explanations of the dramatic decline of prevalence. Although HIV prevalence remains high, the fall in HIV prevalence that has taken place in Zimbabwe is the largest see anywhere in sub-Saharan Africa. 
 
(Source: as reported by World AIDS Campaign, Cape Town, 16 February) 
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South Africa: Xstrata Coal Accused of Sacking HIV-positive Miners 
 
A dispute has arisen in South Africa between ICEM affiliate National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and Xstrata Coal over the apparent discharge of 12 HIV-positive miners. The miners were first sacked last fall from their jobs at the Tweefontein collieries in Mpumalanga province, but the NUM interceded on their behalf before the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA) and won reinstatement to their jobs. 
 
But in mid-February, Xstrata Coal South Africa informed the NUM that it would re-sack the 12 and appeal the CCMA&rsquo;s decision to a labour court. At issue is whether or not Xstrata knew of their HIV status through a joint NUM-Xstrata Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) programme that is strictly confidential. Hundreds of Tweefontein miners were tested through the programme in October and November 2010. 
<img src="" width="225" height="169" alt="" />
NUM Highveld Regional Secretary Paris Mashego, left&nbsp;
It is uncertain if Xstrata Coal gained access to results of the screenings, but the NUM alleges that the company does know the results. A private service provider was contracted to do the screenings and results are supposed to be shared only with the individual. 
 
NUM Highveld Regional Secretary Paris Mashego accused the company of dragging backward the campaign to test for the pandemic and said the NUM will continue to press for the real motive behind Xstrata&rsquo;s reversal. 
 
(Source: <a href="http://www.iol.co.za">www.iol.co.za</a>, 23 February and ICEM InBrief, 28 February)
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South African Labour Court Affirms Rights of HIV+ Workers, Citing ILO Recommendation No. 200 
 
On 16 February 2011, in the case of Gary Shane Allpass v. Mooikloof Estates (Pty.) Ltd., (Case No. JS178/09), the Johannesburg Labour Court awarded the complainant compensatory damages for unfair dismissal and discrimination on the grounds of his HIV status. The decision examines issues of discrimination in employment on the grounds of HIV status and unfair dismissal, as well as discriminatory screening and forced disclosure of HIV status. 
 
The complainant was employed by the respondent as a horse riding instructor and stable manager on 1 November 2008. At the time of his recruitment, he had been living with HIV for almost 20 years. Prior to being hired, the complainant underwent an interview, during which he informed the respondent that he was &ldquo;in good health.&rdquo; Shortly after his hiring, the complainant &mdash; along with other employees &mdash; was asked to complete a form requiring him to disclose whether he was taking any &ldquo;chronic medication.&rdquo; The complainant complied and disclosed that he was taking, among other things, daily medication to manage his HIV condition. Upon learning of his HIV-positive status, the respondent immediately terminated the complainant on the grounds that he had fraudulently misrepresented his condition and that he was, in fact, &ldquo;severely ill&rdquo;. 
 
The Labour Court found that the complainant had been discriminated against and unfairly dismissed due to his HIV status and awarded him twelve months&rsquo; remuneration in compensatory damages and costs. Apart from considering that the dismissal violated the South African Constitution, the Labour Relations Act, and the Employment Equity Act, the Labour Court also cited the ILO Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) and the Recommendation concerning HIV and AIDS and the World of Work, 2010 (No. 200). 
 
(Source: ILO/AIDS website) 
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International Cricketing Council Launches Campaign: &lsquo;Get the Facts, Protect Yourself&rsquo; 
 
The World Cup 2011, organised by the International Cricketing Council (ICC), is being held jointly in India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Before this event, the ICC in partnership with UNAIDS and UNICEF launched a new campaign, &ldquo;Get the Facts, Protect Yourself.&rdquo; A number of star players feature in a public service announcement which is available to all broadcasters across the globe that encourages young people to inform themselves about HIV, take appropriate action to prevent HIV infection, and stand together against HIV-related stigma and discrimination. 
 
They may be rivals on the field of play, but international cricketing stars Virender Sehwag and Kumar Sangakkara have joined together to support a new &ldquo;Think Wise&rdquo; campaign ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011. &ldquo;The ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 provides an opportunity to use our status as cricketers to deliver important social messages to the millions of supporters who will be watching the tournament across the world,&rdquo; said India&rsquo;s Virender Sehwag. &ldquo;I hope this public service announcement can encourage young people to get the facts and protect themselves from HIV.&rdquo; 
 
Other cricketing stars in the partnership include Graeme Smith (South Africa), Shakib-Al-Hasan (Bangladesh) and Ramnaresh Sarwan (West Indies). &ldquo;It is important that young people around the world have access to the right information to help them make informed decisions and break down stigma and discrimination,&rdquo; said Sri Lanka&rsquo;s Kumar Sangakkara. &ldquo;Through this public service announcement, I want to help stop the spread of HIV.&rdquo; 
 
(Source: ITF HIV/AIDS update 100, 1 February) 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
News from Global Unions 
 
The International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF &ndash; <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>) in its latest HIV/AIDS updates No. 99, 100, and 101 of 15 January, 1 February, and 15 February, respectively, reports on a training programme organised in cooperation with the Mongolian Transport, Communication, and Petroleum Workers&rsquo; Union; on a national campaign organised by the National Transport Workers&rsquo; Union of Columbia to raise awareness of HIV and to promote safer sex practices among bus workers, van, taxi, and truck drivers; and reports, as well, on passengers and on developing and implementing workplace programmes with its affiliates in Mexico. 
 
The February Newsletter of PSUFASA (Public Sector Unions Fighting AIDS in Southern Africa) reports on several in-country seminars, notably in South Africa and Swaziland, and on the ongoing evaluation of the project for which sponsorship from the UK Department for International Development (DFID) will come to an end in March 2011. 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
Five Years Ago: From the March 2006 Issue 
 
The first issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin was published in October 2005. In current issues, we refer to an article from the same month, five years ago, and reflect on developments. 
 
In the March 2006 issue of the e-bulletin, we reported on the integration of HIV/AIDS in the International Commemoration Day for Dead and Injured Workers. On 28 April, the trade union movement remembers over two million workers who die and millions more who are injured or who fall sick each year due to unsafe, unhealthy, or unsustainable work and workplaces. The slogan for 2006 was Union Workplaces &ndash; Safe Workplaces and the selected themes are: The Global Union Ban Asbestos Campaign, HIV/AIDS &ndash; workplace aspects and implementation of programme response and ILO Conventions and Instruments that relate to Occupational Health and Safety. 
 
We also reported on the Product Red initiative. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, U2 rock musician Bono announced Product RED, an economic initiative designed to deliver a sustainable flow of private sector money to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM). Leading brands made a commitment to channel a portion of profits from sales of specially-designed RED products to the GFATM to support AIDS programmes in Africa with a focus on women and children. The GFATM welcomed this new initiative. Through RED and other initiatives, it hoped to increase the private sector share of income from less than 1% in 2005 to 10% or more in the long term. 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
This ICEM HIV/AIDS Newsletter &ndash; How to Subscribe 
 
To subscribe to the e-bulletin, send an email to <a href="mailto:press@icem.org">press@icem.org</a>. Please put &ldquo;subscribe ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin&rdquo; in the subject line.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 66, March 2011

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Senior management of Statoil, responsible for the Global Framework Agreement (GFA) with the ICEM and Norwegian trade union affiliate, IndustriEnergi (IE), met at the ICEM on 16 December 16, 2010, together with Lars Myhre, chair of the ICEM Energy Industries Sector, and ICEM General Secretary, Manfred Warda, to sign the latest version of the GFA. 
 
The Statoil GFA was the first one that ICEM reached with any company in any sector in July 1998, and it is seen as a major benefit to both management and unions around the world. The Statoil delegation was led by Siv Oftedal, newly appointed Vice President of Human Resources, and also included Erling Brevik and Aksel Stenerud. 
 
The text of the agreement remains substantially unchanged, with all agreeing that in its present form, it has served all parties well. 
<img src="" width="220" height="144" alt="" />
After signing of the renewal, detailed discussions took place that focussed on the company&rsquo;s investments in Iraq, where it is junior partner with Russian-based Lukoil in the development of the West Querna 2 field. It was agreed that it would be useful to hold a future exchange of information on Iraq early in 2011, with a view to continued contact and the consideration of joint activities. 
 
Another focus was the company&rsquo;s increased activities in the Caspian Sea. Here it was agreed to consider the introduction of regional social dialog in the Caspian, building on both the work IE has done in Azerbaijan and the ICEM&rsquo;s Caspian Sea Workers&rsquo; Network. Two years ago, ICEM affiliates in the Caspian made a declaration on social rights and last year held a first meeting in which Statoil attended with the Azerbaijan national oil and gas company, SOCAR. 
 
Finally discussions covered offshore safety, particularly in the light of the BP-operated Deepwater Horizon disaster last year in the Gulf of Mexico.

ICEM Renews GFA with Statoil

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The cement workers&rsquo; union, Sintraincehsa, an affiliate of the Building and Wood Workers&rsquo; International (BWI), wrote to the chief labour inspector of the Ministry of Labour in Honduras, Selvin Ram&oacute;n Mart&iacute;nez, on 21 January to decry the union-busting tactics of local management. The union accused&nbsp;French-based Lafarge of&nbsp;breach of&nbsp;the collective agreement, national and international labour legislation, and the Global Framework Agreement signed by ICEM, BWI, and Lafarge. 
 
Local management of Lafarge Cementos in the city of Comayagua have arbitrarily begun&nbsp;alcohol and drug testing on employees as a means to sack union leaders. The tests are not observed by a third party and were initiated without consultation with the union.
<img alt="" src="" width="128" height="115" />
Sintraincehsa requests that inspectors from the Ministry of Labour&nbsp;oversee the testing. The union asked&nbsp;management in June 2010&nbsp;to work together with it&nbsp;in cases where workers were found to be breaking rules on alcohol and drugs. The union wants&nbsp;to&nbsp;rehabilitate and educate those failing drug or alcohol tests. 
 
However, since December 2010, management has increased its unilateral testing, without agreement or dialogue with the union. Sintraincehsa says that this is the latest tactic in the company&rsquo;s union-busting campaign, which has seen membership of the union decrease five-fold in recent years. Local management continues to outsource jobs, with 23 sub-contracting firms&nbsp;now operating on site, jobs Sintraincehsa says should be held by direct and permanently employed workers of Lafarge Cementos. 
 
Sintraincehsa and&nbsp;Lafarge Cementos&nbsp;have had a collective agreement in place since March 2005.

Cement Giant Lafarge in Breach of GFA in Honduras

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Some 1,600 American trade union and environmental leaders met in Washington, D.C., last week in a historic, three-day BlueGreen Alliance conference that concluded on 10 February with visits to US legislators urging a green industrial future for America. 
 
The BlueGreen Alliance Foundation, formed in 2006 between the United Steelworkers (USW) and the Sierra Club, has now grown to include eight US unions, several environmental organisations, and a handful of trade groups. 
 
The 2011 &ldquo;Good Jobs, Green Jobs National Conference&rdquo; featured US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson as keynote speaker, and consisted of many workshops, including one entitled &ldquo;11 Workers Killed and the Worst Environmental Disaster Ever; How Do We Respond to the Deepwater Horizon Explosion?&rdquo; 
<img src="" width="246" height="71" alt="" />
A familiar chord throughout the conference was how to compete against trading nations such as China and Germany that have developed better industrial policies concerning green technologies. Participants took that question, demanding legislative solutions, to lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington. 
 
USW President Leo Gerard opened the conference by urging delegates to push leaders of both US political parties to act in the long-term interests of the US. Another pair of themes weaved throughout the conference is that clean energy does create jobs, and good jobs and achievement of a safe environment are mutually inclusive. 
 
BlueGreen Alliance Executive Director Dave Foster said the participants at last week&rsquo;s conference, who represent 8.5 million American workers, &ldquo;are willing to answer President Obama's call to out-build, out-educate, and out-innovate to win the future. 
 
&ldquo;Congress,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;must (now) get moving on critical policies that build a healthy and prosperous America.&rdquo;

USW-led BlueGreen Alliance Champions Job Growth in America

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A group of union leaders from the energy sectors of Mexico, Canada, and the US, including several ICEM affiliates, met in Los Angeles, US, on 28-29 January and debated topics such as North American energy integration, energy policies and privatization, natural gas policies, and petroleum extraction &ndash; particularly offshore &ndash; and refining. 
 
The conference, hosted by ICEM affiliate Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA), also took up solidarity with the independent trade union movement of Mexico. 
 
Some of the conclusions drawn are that Canada and Mexico have become energy colonies of the US; privatization and deregulation have caused occupational health and safety to suffer; liberalisation of markets has basically seen environmental protection largely forgotten; and good jobs mean liveable, safe, secure, and unionized jobs. Anything less is unsustainable. 
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Conference participants also concluded that decent jobs are being lost while privatized oil and gas companies exploit and export wealth. Delegates also rejected the notion that new electrical capacity must be private and deregulated, and identified this area as the next round of attacks to come. 
 
The conference also said indigenous peoples' rights are being trampled on or bought off, and countries face greater handicaps in assuring that their energy resources help their own citizens. 
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The Tri-Nation Energy Workers&rsquo; Network in Los Angeles consisted of Canadian unions Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union, the Power Workers Union (PWU), Canadian Office &amp; Professional Employees&rsquo; Union (COPE 378), and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE); US unions included the UWUA, United Steelworkers (USW), and the International Longshore &amp; Warehouse Union (UWUA). 
 
And the Mexican unions included the Authentic Workers&rsquo; Front (FAT), the National Miners&rsquo; and Metalworkers&rsquo; Union (SNTMMSRM), the National Union of Technical and Professional Petroleum Workers (UNTyPP), the Mexican Union of Electrical Workers (SME), and SUTIN, a nuclear workers&rsquo; union, and CNEE, an energy union.

Tri-Nation Energy Workers’ Network Convenes in Los Angeles, US

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In Spain early this month, national union federations DGB of Germany and CC.OO and UGT of Spain were full social partners at the 23rd Spanish-German Summit. In common, they took the opportunity to issue a strong statement that government measures stemming from the economic crisis have benefited markets, but done nothing for social cohesion. 
 
The national trade union centers also took issue with German Chancellor Andrea Merkel&rsquo;s economic proposition heading into the summit to restrict wage growth by linking salaries to productivity and inflation. Leaders of the three federations &ndash; Michael Sommer of DGB, Ignacio Fern&aacute;ndez Toxo of CC.OO, and C&aacute;ndido M&eacute;ndez of UGT &ndash; were part of a tripartite event at the summit that also included CEOs from Telef&oacute;nica, Deutsche Telekom, Iberdrola, Siemens, Acciona, and other corporations. 
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In the statement, the federations said compliance with &ldquo;the agenda established at the G20 in London for new regulation of the international financial system&rdquo; must be a priority. They also gave full support to the European Trade Union Confederation&rsquo;s (ETUC) rejection of European Commission proposals for financial governance, and bluntly said, &ldquo;Today&rsquo;s European governments aim to lay the burden of the crisis on workers and pensions.&rdquo; 
 
Citing social inequality as a trigger to the economic collapse, the statement said structural reform and fiscal consolidation concerning pensions overhaul, welfare cut-backs, and weakening of collective bargaining laws &ldquo;will not lead to the recovery of the European economies. Quite the opposite. This erroneous conception is holding back a solution to the crisis and promoting social injustice.&rdquo; 
 
The statement also hit out at judgments from the European Court of Justice that wrongly regularize social and wage dumping, including the Vikking, Lava, R&uuml;ffert, and Luxembourg cases. 
 
The DGB, CC.OO, and UGT also said it agrees with analysts who say &ldquo;Europe is losing its values and its soul,&rdquo; and used as case example Tunisia and the fact that European governments held back until the very end condemnation of dictator Ben Ali and support for a people&rsquo;s democratic movement.

DGB, CC.OO, UGT Forge Common Ground on Euro Jobs, Economy

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