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<img height="39" alt="" src="" width="100" />
ITF&rsquo;s (International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation) Turkish affiliate TUMTIS&rsquo; (the union of road transport workers) ongoing dispute with UPS, was the centre of a global day of action, attracting solidarity and support from throughout the world, on 1 September. Those participating in the day of action called upon UPS in unison to &ldquo;Deliver Justice not Abuse&rdquo;. 
 
Local management of UPS, the global messenger company based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, has reacted disgracefully to an organising drive of its workers by TUMTIS. While management have used physical intimidation on workers not to join the union, 157 employees of UPS and its contractors in Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir have been sacked since April 2010 when the drive began, because of their support for TUMTIS. 
<img height="195" alt="" src="" width="137" />
(Photos: ITF)
Out of the 157 total, 126 were sacked at 3 UPS facilities in Istanbul, and 27 in Izmir. In Izmir one manager fired gunshots near the TUMTIS picket line, while other protesting workers were attacked by riot police. This is in direct breach of Turkish labour legislation, and certainly not in line with the company&rsquo;s pledges on corporate social responsibility, in which UPS promises to never obstruct its employees from joining a union. 
 
The day was organised following a unanimously adopted emergency resolution at the ITF Congress in Mexico City 5-12 August, reported InBrief No. 163 <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/3970-42nd-ITF-Congress-in-Mexico-City-Elects-MUA's-Paddy-Crumlin-President">here</a>. 
 
The global day of action saw trade unionists protesting in front of national UPS offices in Australia, Japan, Jordan, Korea, Hong Kong and Malaysia, among others. See more about the day of action <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org/campaigns/ups-justice.cfm">here</a>. 
<img height="113" alt="" src="" width="170" />
TUMTIS&rsquo; national labour centre, TURK-IS has supported the union&rsquo;s daily picket since the start of the conflict. 
 
The ITF urges supporters around the world to contact their local UPS management and transfer this <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/Model_letter_UPS_CEO.doc">model letter</a> condemning the union busting in Turkey. Locate your nearest UPS office <a href="http://www.ups.com/content/corp/worldwide/index.html?WT.svl=SubNav">here</a>.&nbsp; 
 
Workers at the 80% UPS-owned subsidiary &lsquo;Unsped Global Logistic Ticaret AS&rsquo; receive a monthly wage of 382 euros, while contract and agency (CAL) workers earn far less. The vast majority of UPS&rsquo; 5,000 employees in Turkey are CAL workers, often working over 70 hours per week. 
 
The ICEM supports demands of the ITF that all 150 sacked UPS employees are reinstated unconditionally, and that anti-union harassment is stopped immediately and fully at UPS and its subcontractors in Turkey. 
 
There will be a second global day of action on 15 September if the workers are not reinstated. 
 
Support the LabourStart campaign <a href="http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=750">here</a>.&nbsp;

Day of Action for UPS Workers in Turkey

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Successful bargaining between the ICEM affiliated Argentine Trade Union of Tyre Workers (SUTNA), Argentina&rsquo;s Chamber of Commerce, and the Ministry of Labour culminated in agreement on 23 August, in Buenos Aires. A new collective agreement for the sector, covering the period July 2010 to June 2011, provides a salary increase of 27.5 percent, plus improved conditions and a lump sum for members. 
 
The agreement lays out a reclassification of jobs in the sector which improves social benefits by an average of 12 percent. All workers will also receive a lump sum of 1,000 pesos (US$250) and a further payment of 500 pesos in January. 
<img alt="" src="" width="149" height="164" />
SUTNA General Secretary Pedro Wasiejko
Of the 27.5 percent pay rise, 22.2 percent will be retroactive to 1 July 2010, with the remaining 5.3 percent increase coming on 1 January 2011. SUTNA General Secretary Pedro Wasiejko commended the corporate commitment to negotiate in good faith, with talks to reopen in the first half of 2011, &ldquo;there will be further improvements to these gains&rdquo; stated Wasiejko. 
 
The collective agreement was accepted by 75.5 percent of workers balloted, with a turnout of over 80 percent. 
 
The ICEM salutes SUTNA and its General Secretary Pedro Wasiejko for achieving such significant advances for its members. 
 
Argentina was hard hit by the global economic crisis.

Argentina’s Rubber Workers Achieve Significant Wage Gains

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Meeting under the banner Med Dig, F&ouml;r Dig, N&auml;ra Dig (With You, For You, Close to You), Pappers, Sweden&rsquo;s Paperworkers Union, held its 23rd Congress from 3-5 September in Norrk&ouml;pping. The weekend Congress came two weeks before national elections in Sweden, elections that quite likely will determine whether or not the modern Swedish social model will survive. 
 
That point was driven home by Pappers President Jan-Henrik Sandberg, Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO) President Wanja Lundby-Wedin, and Mona Sahlin, the leader of the Social Democrats and the desired Prime Minister-to-be in the 19 September elections. 
<img alt="" src="" width="205" height="154" />
Pappers President Jan-Henrik Sandberg
Sandberg told delegates in his opening remarks that the socialistic and democratic ideals of the party of Olof Palme had traditionally prioritized and delivered policies good for all people, not just a few people. He also reminded delegates that after four years of a conservative governing alliance masquerading as a party of the people, all that has occurred is a shredded social safety net, a spike in unemployment, and fewer opportunities for the young people of Sweden. 
 
Sandberg also endorsed the platform of the red-green alliance that was put forward on 31 August. The alliance of the Social Democrats with the Left Party and the Green Party stands as the best chance, he said, for return to fair taxation and security of income. Improvement to the platform could occur, Sandberg added, if it were to include an energy policy that prioritized replacement of outdated nuclear reactors. 
 
Lundby-Wedin said that four years of a right-wing government has not destroyed Sweden&rsquo;s social model, but cautioned regional and section leaders of the 18,000-member union that four more years of conservative rule will indeed destroy the model. 
<img alt="" src="" width="168" height="146" />
The leader of Sweden&rsquo;s Social Democrats, Mona Sahlin 
Sahlin, speaking on day two of the Congress, said she was &ldquo;provoked and angry&rdquo; that the right-wing alliance of four parties has defined itself as the new workers&rsquo; party. She said a true workers&rsquo; party does not eliminate welfare schemes for those sick and disabled; it does not disqualify 500,000 from an unemployment fund; and it does not allow one in four young people to go without jobs. 
 
She also outlined six policy initiatives in which the red-green alliance will prioritise job creation, including keeping the energy provider Vattenfall a state-owned company, an entity the &ldquo;arrogance alliance&rdquo; seeks to fully privatize over the next four years if it remains in power. 
<img alt="" src="" width="193" height="124" />
The Congress featured a series of break-outs, as well as an interesting pair of workshops involving managing directors from three Swedish forest products companies (Holmen, SCA, and S&ouml;dra) speaking frankly on future sustainability initiatives inside the paper industry. The other workshop produced frank discussion on whether or not a small union can survive in the new industrial age, or if a merger might become a matter of necessity. That issue likely will be revisited by Pappers after its new four-year Congress period. 
 
Sandberg was re-elected President, while Bengt Sj&ouml;holm was re-elected Secretary and Henry Heini&ouml; was re-elected Treasurer. The six other members of Pappers&rsquo; nine-member governing board also won re-election. They include Lars-Olof Pettersson, Carina Magnusson-Fernlund, Lars-G&ouml;ran Johansson, Pelle Eriksson, Mikael Lilja, and Nils-Erik Andersson. 
 
A total of 149 delegates from the union&rsquo;s 60 sections attended the Congress.

Pappers Conducts Congress at Crucial Political Juncture in Sweden

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A lockout of 230 steelworkers by the American-based electronics firm Honeywell continues into month four at the company&rsquo;s uranium hexaflouride (UF6) plant in the state of Illinois. Honeywell locked out members of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 7-669 on 28 June over workers&rsquo; refusal to accept steep out-of-pocket increases to their health care plan, as well as complete elimination of retiree health care coverage. 
 
The company&rsquo;s demands are a slap in the face to workers who must toil inside an industry rife with hazards and long-term health risks. The plant in Metropolis, Illinois, on the Ohio River, is America&rsquo;s only facility that mills &ldquo;yellow cake&rdquo; uranium into frozen fluid UF6 for enrichment use in nuclear reactors. 
 
The health risks to the community have become even more pronounced because Honeywell seeks to regain lost production by using temporary replacement workers, a draconian American management practice used in employer-imposed lockouts. Although the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has not as yet authorized untrained scab workers to operate the Metropolis facility, Honeywell has retained a nuclear contracting firm called the Shaw Group to supply replacement workers. 
<img alt="" src="" width="128" height="192" />
The mayor of Metropolis, Billy McDaniel, expressed concern over community safety in a report in the St. Louis (Missouri) Post-Dispatch newspaper last month. With trained union workers represented by the former Oil, Chemical, Atomic Workers Union (OCAW) operating the facility dating back 46 years before that union&rsquo;s 2005 merger with the USW, McDaniel said, &ldquo;I never went to bed at night worried about the men being trained and capable of doing their jobs. I want to do that every night.&rdquo; 
 
Added Chief Sheriff&rsquo;s Department Deputy Ted Holder of Massac County, the governmental unit responsible for evacuation and emergency response in the event of a disaster, the use of non-regular employees to restart the facility is &ldquo;a little concerning.&rdquo; 
 
USW Local 7-669 offered to continue working under a prior three-year labour agreement that expired on 21 June 2010. The union is seeking no salary adjustments, but seeks to retain current health coverage. When the USW did not concede to granting management a 24-hour strike notice prior to any potential strike, Honeywell locked workers off their jobs. 
 
Under Honeywell&rsquo;s proposal, out-of-pocket health coverage will increase to US$8,500 per worker each year. And besides eliminating company-paid health coverage for current retirees, Honeywell&rsquo;s regressive proposals include establishing a two-tier pension scheme with future hires relegated to an inferior plan. 
<img alt="" src="" width="123" height="148" />
On 7 August, 3,000 union supporters traveled from across the American Midwest to Metropolis to lend support to Local 7-669. Earlier, and directly in front of the uranium enrichment facility, the Steelworker local branch erected 42 Christian crosses in memory of former workers who have died over the years from cancer. They erected another 27 smaller crosses as symbols of workers currently diagnosed with cancer. 
 
&ldquo;What we do is a very, very dangerous job,&rdquo; stated Local 7-669 President Darrell Lillie. &ldquo;We deal with the worse acids known to man.&rdquo;

Lockout of USW-represented Uranium Processing Plant in US Continues

More Sappi Activity in South Africa 

Sappi: Health &amp; Safety is Sacred &hellip; Respond to this Call 

Sappi management at the Enstra mill in South Africa refuses to accept responsibility for a chain of events that happened at the pulp and paper mill 50 days ago. The matter involves safety, or more specifically, a worker who refused to perform unsafe work. 
 
Because CEPPWAWU shop stewards took up his case, 19 are now suspended and face discipline following spirited safety strikes. Now, Sappi refuses to do what is right and just and fair &hellip; to reinstate the trade unionists. 23 other workers face disciplinary panels. They are still on the job, but with no legitimate, duly-elected union representation. 
 
ICEM is urgently calling for further, decisive action. Write to Sappi and tell the company to drop this ugly dispute and correct the wrongs that have gotten out of hand at Enstra. Write Sappi CEO Ralph J. Bo&euml;ttger at <a href="mailto:Ralph.Boettger@sappi.com">Ralph.Boettger@sappi.com</a> and <a href="mailto:Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com">Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com</a> and <a href="mailto:Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com">Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com</a> with the message below, or one from your own hand. 
 
The ICEM considers the Sappi/Enstra situation at present a serious violation of basic trade union rights. Consider only part of the chain of events sequence: CEPPWAWU branch union and Sappi get bridge-building tools to forge a new relationship. A worker refuses unsafe work and the dispute escalates. But the issue is still safety. And that is borne out when the manager who ordered the unsafe work, supposedly apologizes inside a joint and subsequent report. The probe was done to get at the causes and effects of the work disruptions. But the report, presumable containing a different set of conclusions than what Sappi is now pursuing, has not been circulated. 
 
 
Take the message below and send it to Sappi executives above, with the simple heading Enstra: 
 
Sappi is displaying malicious, anti-democratic, anti-people conduct at the Enstra Pulp &amp; Paper Mill in South Africa. It is wrong to target union stewards and others because they have taken a stand on safety. It is wrong to deny workers at Enstra &ndash; CEPPWAWU members &ndash; no shop-floor protection because Sappi has suspended all 19 CEPPWAWU shop stewards at Enstra. 
 
First and foremost, safety; Sappi cannot afford this kind of reputation. Drop the disciplinary cases, Sappi, and get on with making paper at Enstra. 
 
(Signed) 
&nbsp;
<hr />
&nbsp;
<img height="81" alt="" src="" width="300" />
&nbsp;
<hr />
&nbsp;
Poursuite de l&rsquo;action &agrave; Sappi, Afrique du Sud 
 
Sappi : la sant&eacute; et la s&eacute;curit&eacute; sont sacr&eacute;es &hellip; Merci de r&eacute;pondre &agrave; cet appel 
 
La Direction de Sappi r&eacute;cuse sa responsabilit&eacute; dans un encha&icirc;nement d&rsquo;&eacute;v&eacute;nements survenus il y a 50 jours dans la papeterie sud-africaine d&rsquo;Enstra. Cette affaire concerne la s&eacute;curit&eacute;, ou plus pr&eacute;cis&eacute;ment le refus par un ouvrier d&rsquo;effectuer des travaux dangereux. 
 
Pour s&rsquo;&ecirc;tre empar&eacute;s de cette affaire et avoir r&eacute;solument cess&eacute; le travail pour leur s&eacute;curit&eacute;, 19 employ&eacute;s affili&eacute;s au CEPPWAWU (Syndicat des travailleurs de la chimie, de l&rsquo;&eacute;nergie, du papier, de l&rsquo;impression et du bois) ont &eacute;t&eacute; mis &agrave; pied et risquent des mesures disciplinaires. Or Sappi refuse de rendre la plus &eacute;l&eacute;mentaire des justices &agrave; ces syndicalistes, c. &agrave; d. de les r&eacute;embaucher. Et 23 autres travailleurs sont expos&eacute;s &agrave; des proc&eacute;dures disciplinaires. Ils sont encore &agrave; leurs postes, mais sans repr&eacute;sentation syndicale l&eacute;gitime et d&ucirc;ment &eacute;lue. 
 
L&rsquo;ICEM appelle urgemment &agrave; poursuivre des actions r&eacute;solues. &Eacute;crivez &agrave; la soci&eacute;t&eacute; Sappi, exigez qu&rsquo;elle mette un terme &agrave; ce conflit indigne et qu&rsquo;elle redresse les torts qui n&rsquo;ont cess&eacute; de s&rsquo;aggraver &agrave; l&rsquo;usine d&rsquo;Enstra. &Eacute;crivez au PDG de Sappi, Ralph J. Bo&euml;ttger, <a href="mailto:Ralph.Boettger@sappi.com">Ralph.Boettger@sappi.com</a>, &agrave; <a href="mailto:Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com">Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com</a> et &agrave; <a href="mailto:Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com">Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com</a> en joignant le texte ci-dessous ou un message &eacute;crit de votre propre plume. 
 
L&rsquo;ICEM voit dans l&rsquo;actuelle situation &agrave; Sappi/Enstra une grave violation des droits syndicaux fondamentaux. Il suffit de se rem&eacute;morer quelques &eacute;v&eacute;nements de cette escalade : le syndicat de branche CEPPWAWU et Sappi tentent de se rapprocher et de forger de nouvelles relations. Mais un travailleur refuse d&rsquo;effectuer des travaux dangereux, le conflit s&rsquo;envenime et la s&eacute;curit&eacute; reste le probl&egrave;me. D&rsquo;autant plus que le dirigeant ayant ordonn&eacute; ces travaux dangereux se serait par la suite excus&eacute; dans un compte rendu conjoint. Une enqu&ecirc;te a &eacute;t&eacute; men&eacute;e pour conna&icirc;tre les causes et les effets de ces interruptions du travail. Or ce compte rendu, qui contient vraisemblablement des conclusions diff&eacute;rentes de celles que Sappi avance maintenant, n&rsquo;a pas &eacute;t&eacute; publi&eacute;. 
 
Envoyez aux dirigeants de Sappi le message ci-dessous assorti du simple intitul&eacute; Enstra : 
 
Sappi montre une attitude malveillante, antid&eacute;mocratique et hostile aux gens dans son usine Enstra de p&acirc;te et de papier en Afrique du Sud. Il est injuste de s&rsquo;en prendre aux d&eacute;l&eacute;gu&eacute;s syndicaux et &agrave; d&rsquo;autres sous pr&eacute;texte qu&rsquo;ils ont pris position en mati&egrave;re de s&eacute;curit&eacute;. Il est injuste de contester aux travailleurs d&rsquo;Enstra &ndash; et membres du CEPPWAWU &ndash; toute protection sur le lieu de travail, alors que Sappi a mis &agrave; pied les 19 d&eacute;l&eacute;gu&eacute;s syndicaux du CEPPWAWU &agrave; Enstra. 
 
La s&eacute;curit&eacute; est la premi&egrave;re des priorit&eacute;s ; Sappi ne peut pas se permettre ce genre de r&eacute;putation. Sappi, mettez un terme aux proc&eacute;dures disciplinaires et continuez &agrave; produire du papier &agrave; Enstra. 
 
(Signature) 
 

&nbsp;
<hr />
&nbsp;
<img height="81" alt="" src="" width="300" />
&nbsp;
<hr />
 
 
Se intensifica actividad de Sappi en Sud&aacute;frica 
 
Sappi: la salud y seguridad son sagradas&hellip; es importante que respondan a este llamado 
 
La administraci&oacute;n de Sappi en la planta de Enstra en Sud&aacute;frica se niega a aceptar la responsabilidad por una serie de hechos que se produjeron hace 50 d&iacute;as en la planta de pulpa y papel que se indica. El asunto es una cuesti&oacute;n de seguridad, o, m&aacute;s espec&iacute;ficamente, de un trabajador que se neg&oacute; a realizar trabajo inseguro. 
 
Debido a que los enlaces sindicales de CEPPWAWU defendieron el caso de este trabajador, actualmente se ha suspendido a 19 personas, que enfrentan medidas disciplinarias despu&eacute;s de haber realizado algunos paros de protestas sin claudicar, reclamando soluciones a los problemas de seguridad. Ahora, Sappi se niega a hacer lo que ser&iacute;a justo y equitativo&hellip; la reincorporaci&oacute;n de los sindicalistas. Otros 23 trabajadores enfrentan paneles disciplinarios. Siguen trabajando, pero carecen de representaci&oacute;n sindical leg&iacute;tima y debidamente elegida. 
 
La ICEM est&aacute; iniciando una campa&ntilde;a con un llamado urgente para que se tomen nuevas y decisivas medidas. Rogamos escribir a Sappi, dici&eacute;ndole a la empresa que abandone su peligrosa actitud conflictiva y remedie los excesos cometidos en Enstra. Se debe escribir al Director General de Sappi, Ralph J. Bo&euml;ttger, en <a href="mailto:Ralph.Boettger@sappi.com">Ralph.Boettger@sappi.com</a>, a <a href="mailto:Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com">Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com</a>, y a <a href="mailto:Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com">Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com</a>, con el mensaje que se se&ntilde;ala m&aacute;s abajo, u otro que redacten Uds. mismos. 
 
La ICEM considera que la situaci&oacute;n actual en Sappi/Enstra constituye una grave violaci&oacute;n de los derechos sindicales fundamentales. Veamos una parte solamente de la secuencia de los hechos ocurridos: el ramo sindical de CEPPWAWU y Sappi obtienen herramientas para &ldquo;construir puentes&rdquo;, con el fin de crear una nueva relaci&oacute;n entre la empresa y los sindicalistas. Un trabajador se niega a realizar trabajos inseguros, y se intensifica el conflicto. El problema sigue siendo la inseguridad, lo cual se comprob&oacute; cuando el gerente que mand&oacute; a realizar el trabajo inseguro aparentemente pidi&oacute; disculpas en un informe conjunto posterior. Se realiz&oacute; una investigaci&oacute;n para averiguar las causas y consecuencias de la interrupci&oacute;n del trabajo. Sin embargo, todav&iacute;a no se ha hecho circular el informe, que presumiblemente contiene conclusiones diferentes de las que Sappi est&aacute; se&ntilde;alando actualmente. 
 
 
Rogamos enviar a los ejecutivos mencionados de Sappi el mensaje que se se&ntilde;ala a continuaci&oacute;n, con un encabezamiento que diga simplemente &ldquo;Enstra&rdquo;: 
 
Sappi demuestra conducta maliciosa, antidemocr&aacute;tica e inhumana en la planta de pulpa y papel de Enstra en Sud&aacute;frica. Est&aacute; mal el aplicar castigos a los enlaces sindicales y otros porque han adoptado una actitud firme, reclamando mayores medidas de seguridad en el trabajo. Est&aacute; mal que a los trabajadores de Enstra, que son miembros de CEPPWAWU, se les niegue protecci&oacute;n en el lugar de trabajo, porque Sappi ha suspendido a los 19 enlaces sindicales que laboran en Enstra. 
 
Antes que nada, est&aacute; la seguridad. A Sappi no le conviene esta mala fama. Deje los casos disciplinarios, Sappi, y ded&iacute;quense a producir papel en Enstra. 
 
(Firmado)
&nbsp;

ICEM pulp &amp; paper/pâte et de papier/pulp y papel : Sappi

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
Including Report VI at the ILO&rsquo;s 98th session, International Labour Conference, the ILO Gender Equality Committee finished its work on 10 June with conclusions on the global economic crisis, gender and decent work, export processing zones, occupational safety and health, unequal pay, maternity protection, and social dialogue. In spite of the fact that women are often achieving better results in education than men, the gender pay gap still exists. Women are disproportionately present in low-paying jobs with poor working conditions. Gender-based violence is rampant, and HIV/AIDS affect more women, and the poor in particular. 
 
Men have a role to play in gender equality. In some countries men are taking parental leave. This leads to a change in mentalities and stereotypes. Awareness of paternity as a social value is now taking hold. 
 
Globalization has often created jobs for women that have low pay, little or no access to social security, no access to benefits of collective bargaining, and or to protection of workers&rsquo; rights. Rather, efforts must continue to ensure that gender equality is at the heart of decent work. This is a central tenet at this year&rsquo;s ILO Conference. 

<img src="" width="320" height="119" alt="" />
The current financial crisis should not be used to undermine women&rsquo;s rights and achievements. The Global Employment Agenda has to be monitored to promote gender equality as a core element. 
 
Occupational safety and health once only focused on dangerous jobs done by men, but more work must be done on work-related hazards and how they affect women and men differently. Reproductive health is equally an issue that affects both women and men. 
 
The conclusions at the ILO include wording to eliminate job segregation. That alone will be a large step to equal pay. Women can only fully participate in working life if they are assured of measures to provide for their children. The sharing of parental responsibilities is key to breaking down barriers. 
 
Social dialogue is an essential tool for achieving gender equality at work. But in order for it to effective, more women must be involved in it at all levels.

Gender Equity, Decent Work Linked at Current ILO Session

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
The 20th Congress of the Finnish Paperworkers&rsquo; Union, Paperiliitto, was held in Helsinki last week, and leaders of local branches together with national leadership forged a concise agenda in order to gain a wage adjustment in pay talks this October. 
Although the current agreement with Finland&rsquo;s Forest Industries Federation expires at the end of March 2010, a wage reopener occurs in October, and there is little doubt that if accord is not met, the contract will be terminated. 
 
The Congress took up 260 resolutions from local branches, and probed future opportunities for cooperation and joint actions with other Finnish trade unions in the wake of the Finnish Metalworkers&rsquo; Union abandoning the multi-union Finnish merger that was to be called TEAM. 

<img src="" width="230" height="136" alt="" />
Paperiliitto Executive Committee
The over 200 Paperiliitto participants, together with 18 international trade union guests, convened in Helsinki from 10-12 June at a time when all of Finland hopes the worst effects of a period of job redundancies and mill and machine shutdowns in the forest sector are over. 
 
Union President Jouko Ahonen called attention to the questionable risks, mistaken acquisitions, and mis-directed financial investment by pulp and paper companies that has brought social upheaval to Finnish communities. 

<img alt="" src="" width="180" height="151" />
President Jouko Ahonen
He predicted that employers will attempt to demand concessions, reductions to benefits, and erosion of rights in this autumn&rsquo;s negotiations. In assuring delegates that paperworkers of Finland have earned wage increases because of better productivity with fewer staff, Ahonen stated, &ldquo;If there are no pay raises, there will be no agreement.&rdquo; 
 
Paperiliitto delegates discussed the possibility that TEAM, as a single Finnish industrial union, might not occur triggered new opportunities for cohesion and cooperation for 22,000-member Paperiliitto. Three years ago, Paperiliitto declined to take part in the industrial union merger. Although delegates were quick to rule out entering any revised merger plan, they recognize that several industrial unions have upcoming wage talks, and the demand for cooperation and joint actions are evident. 
 
Lauri Lyly, President of SAK, the Finnish Central Labour Organization, stated that traditions and emotions played a key role in stopping the TEAM merger, but that its dissolution might present other openings. He was also critical of the government for having no plan or facility to match the shrinking purchasing power of Finnish citizens with reality. 
 
Finland&rsquo;s Labour Minister, Tarja Cronberg, chronicled the plight of the Finnish forestry sector and said even with recovery, previous levels of jobs and pulp and paper tonnage would not be reached. She called for reform from the inside and said social partners in collective bargaining must come to flexible arrangements and a competitive response. 
 
Also speaking at the Congress at the opening session, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda stated that the global financial collapse is due to a &ldquo;neo-liberal model that has come broken.&rdquo; He pledged that the ICEM &ldquo;will not help to revive what we consider a dying horse.&rdquo; 
 
Warda also addressed the ICEM&rsquo;s ever-increasing work in the global pulp, paper, and packaging sectors, and the progress made in the Global Union Federation&rsquo;s &ldquo;North Meets South&rdquo; work plan. 

<img src="" width="200" height="164" alt="" />
Paperiliitto Congress, forefront Gen. Sec. Petri Vanhala and Financial Manager Seija Minervue 
With six years of hardened experience as President of Paperiliitto, Ahonen was unanimously elected to another four-year term. Elected as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Union Council were Ilkka Nokelelainen and Jouko Suomalainen, respectively. 
 
Besides Ahonen, those elected to Paperiliitto&rsquo;s Executive Committee were: Timo Virtanen, Branch 5, M&auml;ntt&auml;; Jouko Aitonurmi, Branch 42, Rauma; Pertti Susi, Branch 7, Kauttua; Mirja K&auml;ki, Branch 66, H&auml;meenlinna; Juhani Haapala, Branch 19, Kuusankoski; Ari Kujapa, Branch 17, Kotka; and 
 
Veijo Ruotsalainen, Branch 52, Pietarsaari; Jarmo Kinnunen, Branch 44, Lauritsala; Jorma Paajanen, Branch 77, &Auml;&auml;nekoski; Jari Heikkil&auml;, Branch 4, Tampere, Kai P&auml;rn&auml;nen, Branch 14, Verkaus, Timo Byman, Branch 35, Myllykoski; and Lauri Santaniemi, Branch 43, Oulu. 
 
In accepting another term, Ahonen said he is &ldquo;one and only one&rdquo; member of a unified union team that will shape the better times to come for Finland&rsquo;s pulp, paper, and forestry sector. &ldquo;I do feel optimistic that better times avail for the future,&rdquo; he said, adding the union&rsquo;s newly-named Executive Committee and the Union Council, in concert with Paperiliitto&rsquo;s 34 branch unions, will play a major role in recovery of the Nordic nation&rsquo;s most important industry.

Paperiliitto Elects Leaders, Prepares for Hard Talks in Finnish Pulp, Paper Sector

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Both ICEM affiliate National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) have condemned Harmony Gold for lax security at its Eland Mine in Welkom, Free State province, following the deaths of 82 illegal miners. Reportedly, an underground fire that started on 18 May caused the deaths, with the first bodies brought to the surface on 30 May. 
 
A total of 294 illegal miners who lived and worked inside Harmony&rsquo;s abandoned mine were brought safely to the surface, along with the dead bodies starting two weeks ago. 
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Mines Minister Susan Shabangu
COSATU is supporting NUM&rsquo;s call that a full government investigation must occur. The NUM charged Harmony with failure to properly invest in security systems. South African Mines Minister Susan Shabangu, who spoke at a press conference at the mine site following the removal of 25 bodies on 2 June, said the deaths come at the hands of organized crime.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
At the same press conference with Shabangu, Harmony&rsquo;s CEO Graham Briggs said the &ldquo;criminal miners&rdquo; had requested of Harmony to provide body bags &ldquo;and we have been doing such and they have been bringing the bodies to the shaft stations.&rdquo; 
<img alt="" src="" width="83" height="90" />&nbsp;&nbsp; <img alt="" src="" width="90" height="93" />
The NUM points to a system of corrupt managers and others who lure workers into the shuttered gold mines of South Africa. With major redundancies occurring in many mining sectors in South Africa, coupled with continued high gold prices, profiteering through illegal gold mining is again rampant. Gold prices in South Africa have increased 51% from March 2008 to March 2009. In March of this year, 20 illegal miners died from a fire inside shafts of Pan African Resources&rsquo; New Consort Mine in Mpumalanga province.
The illegal miners are referred to as &ldquo;zama-zamas&rdquo; who live underground and survive by another corrupt practice, individuals delivering them food and supplies in exchange for money. The NUM believes the miners themselves are the victims and calls on the South Africa government to earnestly eradicate illegal mining.

82 Illegal Miners Dead at Harmony Gold in South Africa

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The ICEM, United Steelworkers (USW) of the US, and the International Metalworkers Federation (IMF) are coordinating a trade union and parliamentary/ congressional delegation to Mexico in support of the National Miners&rsquo; and Metalworkers&rsquo; Union (SNTMMSRM) and their fight for free and independent unionism in the Latin country. 
 
The delegation, rescheduled due to the outbreak of swine flu in Mexico, will go ahead July 8&ndash;12 and the destination is Mexico City. The delegation will meet with the Congressional Commission on Cananea, with ambassadors of delegation countries, hold an International Solidarity Conference, and a Solidarity visit to Juan Linares, a political prisoner in Reclusorio Norte prison. Delegates will then hold a public meeting to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of Los Mineros in L&aacute;zaro C&aacute;rdenas. On 13 July, delegates will visit the Pasta de Conchos mine site in Sabinas, to pay tribute to the victims, widows, and families of the deadly 2006 mine explosion in which 65 miners perished. 

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Participating unions in the solidarity mission will come from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, India, Peru, South Africa, Sweden, UK, and the US, alongside leaders of the ICEM and IMF. 
 
Participating members&rsquo; of parliaments and members of congresses that are expected to join the delegation are from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Peru, South Africa, and UK. 
 
The Mexican government has been largely successful in reaching its goal of destroying trade unionism in Mexico. Los Mineros is one of the very few unions in the country to resist government control and to continue fighting for improved wages and labour laws. Following the union&rsquo;s denouncement of the multinational mining corporation Grupo Mexico, as well as the national government, over the explosion at Pasta de Conchos, the government cooperated with Grupo Mexico in efforts to destroy the union. 
 
Mexican security forces have repeatedly been involved in beatings, death threats, and illegal arrests in the union busting campaign. Last week, a striking worker was killed by police. The courageous strike at major Grupo Mexico locations has been in place for 22 months, even though Grupo Mexico gained a decree halting it.

Solidarity Delegation to Miners’ of Mexico Slated Next Month

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The threats of strikes are now on in mining in South Africa, following the latest rounds of talks in several mining sectors. The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) filed for dispute resolution last week with the country&rsquo;s Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA) in gold talks with the Chamber of Mines. 
 
In coal talks on Friday, some progress was noted on benefits and working conditions, although the NUM and other unions remain far apart on wages. Employers, through the Chamber, are offering 7.5% for lower-paid colliery workers and 6.5% for others. 
 
The talks in the gold sector, covering 150,000 miners, went to government intervention following the Chamber&rsquo;s refusal to offer more than 7%, a few percentage points less that South Africa&rsquo;s current consumer price index. In 2008, that inflation index hit 11.5%, while the current food index is at 14.9%. The NUM is seeking 15% and the possibility of a strike in the gold sector is likely. 

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NUM General Secretary Frans Beleni
&ldquo;It has always been our intention to bargain in good faith, to try to reach a settlement through negotiations,&rdquo; said NUM General Secretary Frans Baleni. This year, he added, he NUM may have &ldquo;to use a different tool in strike action.&rdquo; The NUM is standing behind a 12th Congress mandate from late May that calls for significant wage increases across the mining sector. 
 
At that Congress, NUM President Senzeni Zokwana said, &ldquo;Let no union leader believe we are going to settle for low wages. We will demand a living wage for mine workers, construction workers, and energy workers.&rdquo; Talks in all NUM sectors are now in critical stages. 
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Senzeni Zokwana
In platinum mining negotiations, Anglo Platinum&rsquo;s wage offer of 6% was rejected by the NUM and further talks are scheduled for 25-26 June. The union is seeking 15% with AngloPlats, while it has a 20% wage proposal tabled before Impala Platinum. It also seeks a moratorium on hiring and promotions of white women at Implats, the world&rsquo;s second larger platinum producer, as well as a pension fund increase from 16.5% to 25%. Talks there are to resume on 17 June. 
In coal talks, progress was made on establishing employee stock ownership plans at companies which offer no such plans, and some progress was noted over language on sub-contracting. Talks in coal will resume on 18 June. 
In all South African mining sector talks, the NUM is pressing for full work rights and guarantees for contract workers, and an end to the use of labour brokers. The union is also seeking a six-month paid maternity leave in several sets of negotiations. 
 
The biannual wage talks are being conducted with the Chamber of Mines on behalf of several mining houses, as well as directly and bi-laterally with some major mining companies, most specifically the platinum producers and Harmony Gold. 
 
In an unrelated matter, the NUM scored a decisive Labour Court victory over diamond miners DeBeers. The court ruled that DeBeers violated the labour Relations Act when it bypassed dialogue with the NUM over severance payments for miners made redundant. The court decision, ordering payment for 1,467 displaced diamond miners, was a victory for the NUM, which argued successfully that due process under Section 189A of the labour statute, was violated.

Wage Talks Stall Across South Africa Mining Sector

Archive

Day of Action for UPS Workers in Turkey

Argentina’s Rubber Workers Achieve Significant Wage Gains

Pappers Conducts Congress at Crucial Political Juncture in Sweden

Lockout of USW-represented Uranium Processing Plant in US Continues

ICEM pulp & paper/pâte et de papier/pulp y papel : Sappi

Gender Equity, Decent Work Linked at Current ILO Session

Paperiliitto Elects Leaders, Prepares for Hard Talks in Finnish Pulp, Paper Sector

82 Illegal Miners Dead at Harmony Gold in South Africa

Solidarity Delegation to Miners’ of Mexico Slated Next Month

Wage Talks Stall Across South Africa Mining Sector

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