English

Español

Français

Aerospace

Automotive

Base metals

Chemical, pharmaceutical and bio-science

Energy

Glass, cement, ceramic and associated industries

ICT, electrical and electronics

Mechanical Engineering

Mining and DGOJP

Pulp and paper

Rubber

Shipbuilding and shipbreaking

Textile, garment, shoes, leather and textile services

Sectors

Action Plan 2025-2029

Action on textile and garment industry

Clean up shipbreaking

Ratify ILO C176

United for a just future - time to pay up!

Disinvest from Myanmar

Campaigns

Global Framework Agreements

Union building

White-collar workers

Health & safety

Industry 4.0

Women

Youth

LGBTQI+

Gender, equality, diversity and inclusion (GEDI)

Just Transition

Organizing with industriALL

What we do

Affiliates

Statutes

Elected Officials

Executive Committee

Geneva head office

South East Asia

Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Caucasus

Latin America and the Caribbean

Middle East and North Africa

South Asia

Sub-Saharan Africa

Regional offices

About us

Global worker No1 2022

Global worker No2 2022

Publications

Resources

Press

<img alt="" src="" style="width: 100px;height: 39px" width="390" />The Colombian subsidiary of US-based glass company Ross International, Moldes Medellin, is attempting to dismiss the majority of its employees at the Sabaneta and Estrella Antioquia plants, despite social bargaining agreements protecting the workers&rsquo; rights to their jobs.The workers are members of ICEM-affiliated Sintravidricol and the union is leading the campaign against the dismissals. So far 20 employees have been forced out either through unilateral decisions of management or under the pretence of a &ldquo;voluntary agreement&rdquo; which has no other possible alternative than the worker losing their job.The fear now is that Moldes Medellin will cut its workforce by half, condemning 60 workers and their families to unemployment. Management is accused of targeting the unionised workers in the cuts, punishing the exercising of freedom to organise.<img alt="" height="174" src="" width="232" />If the mass dismissal is not stopped, Moldes Medellin will effectively crush the Sintravidricol plant-level unions. Sintravidricol then calls for solidarity and support in this conflict for labour rights and job stability.Write in protest to the company&rsquo;s legal representative Doctor Carlos Daniel Posada DuqueSolicitamos a todos pronunciarse, enviando notas de protesta y exigiendo el respeto por el derecho al trabajo y la estabilidad laboral, al representante legal de la empresa, <a href="mailto:Daniel.posada@moldesmedellin.com.co">Doctor CARLOS DANIEL POSADA DUQUE</a>, and to the Colombian Minister of Labour, <a href="mailto:dtantioquia@mintrabajo.gov.co">Doctor Gustavo Alberto Areiza</a>. Send copies to the union addresses: <a href="mailto:icemcol@hotmail.com">icemcol@hotmail.com</a>, <a href="mailto:sintravidestrella@gmail.com">sintravidestrella@gmail.com</a>, <a href="mailto:sintravidsab@une.net.co">sintravidsab@une.net.co</a>.Sintravidricol organised Ross International subsidiaries through a hard fought victory in December 2007, achieving recognition and a collective agreement following a 23-day strike, and a three-year struggle that garnered international support through the ICEM, with key support from the United Steelworkers (USW). The agreement made all 240 workers at the three plants full-time employees, whereas the majority were previously on fixed-term contracts.Those hard-won advances are now at serious risk.

Support Colombian Glass Workers Facing Mass Dismissal

<img alt="" src="" style="width: 100px;height: 39px" width="390" />

	With an 80% approval vote last week, 105 members of Canadian Auto Workers Local 551 in Camrose, Alberta, ratified a four-year labour agreement, ending a near three-week by Evraz North America, a subsidiary of the multinational steel and mining company, Evraz Group.

	The union won wage and pension increases, and agreed to a modified pension plan for new hires, the main issue in the dispute. (See <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/5020-Evraz-Pipe-Shamefully-Locks-Out-Members-of-Canadian-Auto-Workers">ICEM report</a> from 16 May.) CAW Local 551 preserved a hybrid blend of a defined benefit and defined contribution pension scheme that will be fully paid by the company.

	&ldquo;The overriding factor in agreeing to the settlement wasn&rsquo;t anything to do with money,&rdquo; said CAW National Representative Todd Romanow, &ldquo;but rather the company agreeing to keep the defined pension plan in the agreement for new hires and the company agreeing to limit supervisors and foremen working outside the bargaining agreement to hold their seniority rights for one a one-year time frame, while previously it was open ended.&rdquo;

	&nbsp;<img alt="" src="" style="width: 120px;height: 157px" width="390" />&nbsp;

	Todd Romanow&nbsp;

	The Evraz Camtose facilities include two pipe-making plants, one making up to 16-inch electric-resistance piping and casing for oil drilling and transport of oil and natural gas, the other producing larger tubular piping for transmission lines.

	CAW Local 551 won a 4.5% wage increase over the four years, as well as C$3 in increases on the pension scheme for current workers over the term of the contract. The first year 1.5% wage increase is retroactive to 1 February 2012 &ndash; the date a prior labour agreement expired &ndash; and further 1.5% increases in 2013, 2014, and 2015. Workers also receive a C$1,000 ratification bonus.

	The deciding factor in workers ratifying the agreement, said Romanow was the limitation of one year for supervisors and foremen to return to the bargaining unit with full seniority.&nbsp;

	Evraz North America is based in Chicago, USA, and Luxembourg-based Evraz Group is controlled by holding companies primarily owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, also owner of UK&rsquo;s Chelsea football club of the English Premier League.

CAW Local Branch Fends Off Pension Cuts, Ending Evraz Pipe Lockout in Canada

<img alt="" src="" style="width: 100px;height: 39px" width="390" />

	A third industrial strike by UK dockworkers concluded last night, 29 May, just as members of the Swedish Dockworkers&#039; Union began a sympathy blockade in their support against paper manufacturer Stora Enso. The 45 dockers &ndash; members of Unite the Union &ndash; are resisting unilateral and unfair changes to their work shifts by Enterprise Distribution Centre, a Port of Tilbury employer that exclusively handles parent paper rolls shipped to the UK by Stora Enso.

	On 1 March, Enterprise Distribution abrogated the dockers&rsquo; collective agreement by changing working hours to a &ldquo;follow the ship&rdquo; policy, meaning dockers are only paid from the time ships are ready to unload rather than normal daily shift schedules. The 45 Unite members employed at Stora Enso&rsquo;s portside warehouse stand to lose from &pound;2,500 to &pound;5,000 annually with the change.

	<img alt="" src="" style="width: 265px;height: 160px" width="390" />

	The company, with the consent of Stora Enso, did this without consultation or negotiations with Unite. The ICEM joined the fray yesterday by sending <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/42.ICEM%20UK%20Enterprise%20Distribution.29May.pdf">a letter</a> in support of the dockworkers and sending a circular inviting other trade unionists to lend solidarity. Join that campaign by clicking on the <a href="/en/19-Pulp-Paper/5032-UK-Dockworkers-Handling-Stora-Enso-Parent-Rolls-Need-Immediate-Support">ICEM link</a> here.

	Yesterday&rsquo;s conclusion of a second 48-hour strike at the Essex port &ndash; a 24-hour once was held 8 May &ndash; saw dockworkers&rsquo; in G&ouml;teborg, Sweden, begin the first of two similar 24-hour strikes in support of the Tilbury dockers. Stora Enso operates two ships between G&ouml;teborg and the Port of Tilbury, owning one outright and leasing the other from the Danish shipper DFDS.

	Due to the lawful industrial strikes in May, the first formal negotiations over the shift changes between Enterprise Distribution Centre and Unite will be held today, nearly three months after the company imposed the changes without consultation. A spokesman for the dockworkers said the union will wait to see how those talks go before determining whether or not to serve another seven-day intent to strike notice.

	The Port of Tilbury employs 3,500 workers through several stevedoring and shipping companies.

Support Widens for Dockworkers Victimised by Stora Enso at UK’s Port Tilbury

<img alt="" src="" style="width: 100px;height: 39px" width="390" />

	Under the banner, &ldquo;30 Years of Unbroken Revolutionary Trade Union Struggle,&rdquo; delegates to the 14th Congress of ICEM South African affiliate National Union Mineworkers&rsquo; (NUM), held in Kempton Park near Johannesburg from 23-27 May, gave renewed three-year terms to President Senzeni Zokwana and General Secretary Frans Baleni in contested elections.

	Zokwana, also the ICEM President, topped challenger Joe Montisetse with a 641 to 458 vote count, while Baleni, an ICEM Executive Committee member, bested Deputy General Secretary Oupa Komane 637 to 461.

	A total of 1,200 delegates participated in the 320,000-member NUM&rsquo;s triennial Congress, timed to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the founding of South Africa&rsquo;s preeminent trade union. Some 80 international delegates took part, including ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda and Director of Industry and Corporate Affairs Kemal &Ouml;zkan, International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation General Secretary Jyrki Raina, and Building and Wood Workers&rsquo; International (BWI) General Secretary Ambet Yuson.

	<img alt="" src="" style="width: 219px;height: 159px" width="390" />

	President Senzeni Zokwana

	In his opening remarks, Zokwana said: &ldquo;Our union will mobilize membership and remain active and vigilant.&rdquo; He said NUM&rsquo;s primary task will continue to recruit and unify new members, to improve condition of services, to develop class consciousness and to defend the rights of the working class at all workplaces.

	The Congress heard keynote speaker Jacob Zuma, President South Africa, praise the historic role that NUM played in liberating the country from the wrath of apartheid. He also urged NUM members not to become &ldquo;paper revolutionaries,&rdquo; a reference to non-involvement in ruling party African National Congress (ANC) deliberations.

	<img alt="" src="" style="width: 212px;height: 159px" width="390" />

	President Zuma

	&ldquo;I feel very strongly that your participation as workers in the ANC is vital,&rdquo; said Zuma. &ldquo;You cannot make the issue of your ANC membership a casual one.&rdquo;

	In his address to the Congress, Warda recounted the contributions made by the NUM in working-class struggles throughout the world. &ldquo;The ICEM is extremely grateful to the NUM for providing great leadership to our Global Union Federation in making us more progressive, more active and more relevant in the world&rsquo;s trade union movement.&rdquo;

	Warda, on behalf of the ICEM, closed his address by announcing the ICEM&rsquo;s contribution to a memorial fund set up by the NUM for the family of Pinky Mosiane.

	<img alt="" src="" style="width: 238px;height: 159px" width="390" />

	Manfred Warda and NUM&rsquo;s Pinky Mosiane Monetary Contribution

	She was brutally raped and murdered by a co-worker or co-workers on 6 February inside a mine owned by American Platinum (Amplats) in Rustenburg, North West Province. The ICEM announcement spurred other unions in attendance, including BWI, United Steelworkers (USW), Mining and Energy Division of Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), to also pledge contributions.

	Baleni presented both an organizational report and an international report, the latter outlining the important role the NUM plays inside global labour, particularly in mining sector trade unionism and within the ICEM spectrum.

	<img alt="" src="" style="width: 261px;height: 160px" width="390" />

	Delegates Displaying Revolutionary Spirit

	Delegates passed resolutions calling for amnesty on black-listing South Africans faced with debts up to R200,000, a call to the nation&rsquo;s mining companies to stop exports to Israel, the decriminalization of sex work, and a ban on labour brokers.

	The Congress also rejected wholesale nationalization of most industries, calling such moves non-strategic and something that would result in nationalizing mining debt and providing bail-outs to mine investors. <a href="http://lolitaoutfits.com/Lolita-Corset_l166">corset tops</a>&nbsp;Following the close of Congress late in the evening of 26 May, the NUM held a report-back rally the next day with rank-and-file miners in nearby Carletonville.

	&nbsp;

	Also elected to NUM leadership positions were: David Macatha, National Treasurer; Tshimane Montoedi, Deputy General Secretary; Piet Matosa, Deputy President; Peter Bailey, National Chair for Health and Safety; Eric Gcilitshana, National Secretary for Health and Safety; Ecliff Tantsi, National Secretary for Education; and Helen Diatile, National Chair for Education.

NUM Re-Elects President Zokwana, General Secretary Baleni at South African Congress

After seven years and over 310 consecutive editions of ICEM InBrief, this is the final issue. A new weekly newsletter will debut upon the founding of IndustriALL in June.

Discontinuation of ICEM InBrief

<img alt="" src="" style="width: 40px;height: 40px;cursor: default" width="390" /><div>In this last issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we cover aspects of the ongoing HIV/AIDS project, which comes to an end in December 2012.&nbsp;A new project proposal for sub-Saharan IndustriALL affiliates is being developed. Since 2005, the ICEM HIV/AIDS project has covered much ground. But without question, there is still much work left to be done.<img alt="" src="" style="width: 40px;height: 40px;cursor: default" width="390" />Dear Readers, Friends, ComradesAs announced in the May issue, this is the last issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin. We thank all readers for their interest and hope that we have succeeded in making a contribution to the dissemination of useful information over almost seven years.Next week, the ICEM, the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF) and the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITGLWF) will hold their dissolution congresses in Copenhagen. Immediately after that the Founding Congress of the new Global Union Federation, IndustriALL, will take place. </div>Editor: Hans J Schwass, ICEM HIV/AIDS Consultant<img alt="" src="" style="width: 40px;height: 40px;cursor: default" width="390" />HIV/AIDS is a Workplace Issue; Unions Have Central Roles to PlayThis has been the leading message of the ongoing HIV/AIDS project, which has been running since 2005. The first phase of the project was sponsored by LO/TCO Biståndsnämnd, Sweden, and FNV Mondiaal, Netherlands, and ran from 2005 to 2008, with an additional project year in 2009. After a thorough internal assessment in 2008, a new project was approved, running from 2010 to 2012, sponsored by SASK of Finland and FNV Mondiaal. ICEM affiliates in these countries gave strong support and contributed financially to the project.Throughout the project periods, national HIV/AIDS coordinators were trained in regional workshops. At national level, activities started off with peer education and awareness and prevention campaigns. Increasingly, however, VCT campaigns were organised and thousands of workers, their families and members of the community queued up to know their status.Some progress has also been made on the adoption of workplace policies and the insertion of HIV/AIDS clauses in collective bargaining agreements. Despite a sometimes adverse relationship over conventional bargaining issues, companies must be seen as partners in the fight against the epidemic since an effective HIV/AIDS policy cannot be implemented without the participation of employers.HIV/AIDS workplace policies should also draw on the resources of companies for skills training, awareness and prevention campaigns and for VCT and ART services. Cost-benefit analyses have shown that even small expenses by companies for HIV/AIDS activities result in reduced costs for medical schemes, higher productivity, and reduced expenditure for training. Unions must continue to convince employers that it makes business sense to invest in the fight against HIV/AIDS.At the heart of the ongoing HIV/AIDS project are annually-approved national HIV/AIDS programmes that run in each of the 11 project countries. These &ldquo;projects-within-a-project&rdquo; are applied for by the national coordinators to the Sub-Saharan HIV/AIDS project coordinator, who discusses, approves and monitors all these individual national plans for action.Women issues in relation to HIV and AIDS also received a boost with two women-only sub-regional workshops in 2010 and 2011. Women&rsquo;s empowerment in taking control of their reproductive rights and dealing with issues such as violence at home and sexual harassment at the workplace were at the heart of these workshops. The use of female condoms was also promoted. The sub-regional workshops in turn led to women activities organised at national level. Several of these were not only relevant with respect to HIV/AIDS, but also strengthened unions by integrating more women in their union work and by recruiting more female members.Fighting HIV and AIDS is a national policy matter. All target countries have national policies to fight the pandemic and a National AIDS Commission, which coordinates the efforts of all stakeholders. It is important that trade union activities fit into this general framework. For this to happen, unions must be recognised as partners in national policy implementation and, subsequently, they have to actively seek contacts with national HIV/AIDS bodies.As part of the fight against the pandemic, trade unions should also seek the participation of NGOs in their activities and build alliances with them. NGOs often have more expertise and experience as they concentrate on one issue. Of utmost importance is the involvement of organisations of People Living with HIV/AIDS to reduce stigma and to demonstrate that HIV and AIDS should be treated like any other condition or disease.From its adoption by the International Labour Conference of the ILO in June 2010, ILO Recommendation 200 concerning HIV and AIDS and the World of Work, was promoted at in regional and national ICEM HIV/AIDS events. This is the first international human rights instrument to focus on HIV and AIDS and the world of work. All workers are protected by the new labour standard, including those in informal economies. As Recommendation 200 becomes more widely known and accepted, it has the potential to develop into a tool for unions to use.The Global Action Plan for the implementation of R200, as adopted by the ILO Governing Body in March 2011, seeks three outcomes for the period 2011 to 2015: reduction of stigma and discrimination, increased access to services, and scaled-up action by world of work actors.In our work, we also made a link to the broader ILO Decent Work Agenda, which is central in efforts to reduce poverty and to make occupational health and safety an integral part of the Decent Work Agenda. Important in this, as far as HIV/AIDS is concerned, is often not so much the job itself, but the conditions around it that can lead to behaviour that puts workers and their dependents at risk of acquiring HIV, such as working and living conditions of workers in remote mining areas, which contribute to an increasing infection rate.At global level, good cooperation was established with ILO/AIDS. Technical cooperation was not only extended by the ILO Head Office in Geneva but also by country offices where activities were organised. Special mention must be made of the cooperation with the ILO Delhi office, which greatly contributed to the success of the HIV/AIDS project in India, and of the collaboration with the ILO Pretoria office, which gave a boost to work on the ILO Decent Work Agenda and Recommendation 200.Work was initiated with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the World Bank (WB AIDS Campaign Team for Africa) and the World Bank&rsquo;s International Finance Corporation (IFC against AIDS) with the objective to promote the concept of public/private partnership and co-investment with the involvement of unions. The dictum has been that the private sector is business and organised labour, i.e. trade unions. When skills training, knowledge transfer and other assistance are extended to management, it should also be offered to unions. No HIV and AIDS interventions at the workplace are effective if workers and their representatives are not included. Unfortunately, these organisations have not been responsive to such legitimate demands.An HIV/AIDS e-bulletin has been published monthly since October 2005. A dedicated HIV/AIDS website provided access to useful materials and links to other websites. Materials have included a leaflet, a manual for collective bargaining on HIV and AIDS issues, and a guide for resources and finance for HIV/AIDS activities. Very important for union work at the national level, a model union policy and a workplace policy on HIV/AIDS were developed.Another element of the work at global level has been the successful acquisition of additional funding to expand the project beyond Africa. Corporate partnership and solidarity contributions from affiliates made it possible to run HIV/AIDS projects in India, Trinidad &amp; Tobago, Mongolia, and Colombia. Supplementary funding was also obtained for Sub-Saharan Africa, mainly earmarked for VCT campaigns in Tanzania and Nigeria. The Danish LO/FTF supported a three-year project (2009-2011) in the mining sector in Ethiopia.While a lot has been achieved in the past years, much more still needs to be done. It was therefore decided to seek a continuation of the HIV/AIDS project and look at developing a new project proposal for sub-Saharan African IndustriALL affiliates for the years 2013-2015. Discussions are ongoing with the donor community on this.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 81, June 2012

IndustriALL Global Union will be founded on 19 June in Copenhagen, Denmark.&nbsp;Uniting 50 million workers along global supply chains, uniting the history, expertise, and passion of three proud international organisations, IndustriALL will fight for workers everywhere.<div class="rte">Over&nbsp;1,200 trade union delegates from every corner of the globe are meeting in Copenhagen&nbsp;18-20 June, 2012 to form IndustriALL Global Union, representing workers in 140 countries in the mining, energy and manufacturing sectors.&nbsp;&quot;Among the delegates are heroes who have been on the front-line of the fight for democracy and workers&#039; rights,&quot; stated Jyrki Raina, the in-coming general secretary of IndustriALL Global Union.<img alt="" src="" style="width: 280px;height: 292px" width="390" />&quot;Workers and their unions, members of IndustriALL, have been at the forefront of the Arab Spring fight for democracy, the struggle against despots.&quot;In Copenhagen we will form a new union family of heroes, with strong bonds, ready to stick together through thick and thin - a new force in global solidarity taking up the fight for better working conditions and trade union rights around the world.&quot;IndustriALL will challenge the power of multinational companies like Rio Tinto and BHP,&quot; Jyrki Raina said. &quot;We will negotiate on a global level with the global giants.&quot;IndustriALL will fight for a new model of globalization, a new economic and social model that puts people first, based on democracy and social justice.&quot;IndustriALL will be founded in Copenhagen on 19 June 2012. The new organisation will bring together affiliates of the former global union federations: International Metalworkers&#039; Federation (IMF), International Federation of Chemical,&nbsp;Energy, Mine and General Workers&#039; Unions (ICEM) and International Textiles Garment and Leather Workers&#039; Federation (ITGLWF).IndustriALL Global Union will represent workers in a wide range of sectors from extraction of oil and gas, mining, generation and distribution of electric power, to manufacturing of metals and metal products, shipbuilding, automotive, aerospace, mechanical engineering, electronics, chemicals, rubber, pulp and paper, building materials, textiles, garments,&nbsp;leather and footwear and environmental services.The new website, <a href="http://www.industriall-union.org/">http://www.industriall-union.org/</a>, will go live at 14:00 on 19 June 2012.</div>&nbsp;

IndustriALL Global Union to be New Force

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
From the IMF website
ICEM, IMF and ITGLWF will hold the joint event &ldquo;Cutting emissions - transforming jobs&rdquo; at the UN climate change conference in Durban (COP17) to discuss a sustainable foundation for Just Transition and develop a common industrial strategy for the future of industrial workers. 
 
GLOBAL: The 17th conference of the parties (COP17) to the UN framework convention on climate change will be held in Durban, South Africa, from November 28 to December 9, 2011. The international trade union movement led by ITUC will urge the governments to agree on a legally-binding climate regime and a concrete climate finance scheme, including provisions for a Just Transition. 
 
To support ITUC's contribution, ICEM, IMF and ITGLWF will hold a joint event, &quot;Cutting Emissions - Transforming Jobs&quot; on November 30 at 14.30-16.00 in the COP17 World of Work Pavilion, at the Civil Society Space - University of KwaZulu, Howard College Campus, King George Av., Berea, Durban. 
<img alt="" src="" width="110" height="134" />
The event will promote a common industrial workers' position to ensure the &quot;greening&quot; of existing jobs, the creation of new, sustainable jobs, and a Just Transition, with concrete policies for green technology innovation and a sustainability fund securing the future for both today's and tomorrow's workers. 
 
The discussions will focus on: 
 
&bull;Post Kyoto framework: Could a second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol be a solution to avoid a gap in emission reduction commitments and to re-build the legally-binding framework covering all countries in the future negotiation process? 
&bull;Building a Foundation-Climate Finance: How should the funding be designed/realized to achieve sustainable jobs and a Just Transition? What are the components of a strong financing scheme e.g. mandatory contributions from governments, the Financial Transaction Tax (FTT), levy on maritime transportation &amp; aviation, or? 
&bull;Just Transition: What kinds of programme are needed for industrial workers who are most dramatically affected by the climate change issues? How can both today's and tomorrow's workers benefit from the transformation to a sustainable economy? What support will be needed? 
&bull;Developing Industrial Strategy: Industrial strategies which aim towards sustainable production, the transformation and enhancement of existing jobs, and the creation of new, greener jobs are needed at local, national, regional and international levels. How could developed and developing countries be engaged to harmonize/develop respective industrial policies. 
&bull;Union&rsquo;s role for the future: How should unions get involved to transform industry and create new, greener jobs be designed and implemented with the full participation? 
 
For more information on the ICEM, IMF and ITGLWF event, contact Brian Kohler, ICEM Health, Safety and Sustainability officer (<a href="mailto:Brian.Kohler@icem.org">Brian.Kohler@icem.org</a>) or Kan Matsuzaki, IMF Director of Shipbuilding-shipbreaking, Non-Manual Workers and climate change (<a href="mailto:kmatsuzaki@imfmetal.org">kmatsuzaki@imfmetal.org</a>). 
 
See also ITUC's contribution to COP17 at <a href="http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/ituc_durbancontribution.pdf">http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/ituc_durbancontribution.pdf</a>. 
 
More information on COP17 WoW will be posted at 
ITUC: <a href="http://www.ituc-csi.org/climate-change-and-green-economy.html">http://www.ituc-csi.org/climate-change-and-green-economy.html</a>.

Industrial strategy on climate change to be discussed

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The threat of a walkout last week by union members of the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) served to force German tyre and auto-parts manufacturer Continental AG to back away from a concession-ridden labour contract at a research and development center in Chatham, Ontario. 
 
Members of CAW Local 35 voted by 83% for a three-year renewal agreement at strike deadline 15 November in an accord that preserved full rights for new hires, including inclusion in a defined benefit pension plan, all other post-retirement benefits, and the same level of work benefits as existing staff. 
<img alt="" src="" width="150" height="75" />
The CAW branch union also won annual wage increases totaling over 9% for the three years, improved retirement incentives, and a signing bonus. The union represents 37 highly skilled workers employed at a research and development for engine management systems. 
 
&ldquo;We fought hard to preserve the rights of new hires and to prevent the creation of two tiers of workers in this workplace,&rdquo; said CAW National Representative Richard Laverty. &ldquo;This small group of workers stood together and pushed back numerous concession demands from this profitable and huge multinational corporation.&rdquo; 
 
The union agreed to take contract concessions in 2008 during the onset of the financial crisis and subsequent collapse of North American manufacturing segments. This came a year after Continental bought this and other automotive parts operations from Siemens VDO. Then, the Chatham plant made parts for emission control systems but with the sale to Continental, the German company cut the workforce and turned the operation into a R&amp;D centre.

CAW Preserves Benefits for New Hires at Continental AG in Canada

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The PT Freeport Indonesia Workers&rsquo; Union of the Chemical, Energy, Mine Workers Union (CEMWU), or SP KEP SPSI, resumed wage negotiations this morning with Freeport-McMoRan&rsquo;s Indonesian subsidiary tomorrow in hopes of getting the 93% owner of the world&rsquo;s largest recoverable gold and copper deposits to increase its pay offer. 
 
A strike that has crippled all production at the 175,000-ton-per-day mine is now in its ninth week. 
 
From 14-18 November, the union covering 10,000 miners at US-based Freeport-McMoRan&rsquo;s Grasberg mining complex in Papua province did engage in give-and-take negotiations and although some progress was made on wage differences, the two sides remain far apart. 
 
Earlier, the union had given PT Freeport Indonesia, the Indonesian government, and local government leaders official notification that the strike would be extended another 30 days to 15 December. The ICEM, which has been directly involved in the dispute, responded to the extension by putting a call out to trade unions to assist the union in feeding striking families. 
<img alt="" src="" width="288" height="160" />
That call can be found in this <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/134.ICEM.Indonesia%20Mine%20Request.10November.pdf ">10 November ICEM letter</a> and trade unions and others are encouraged to send contributions to the union&rsquo;s official name in Papua province, the SPSI Freeport Indonesia Dana Perjuangan, at the bank numbers listed in this letter. 
 
The union has been feeding 10,000 workers and their families from five open-air kitchens in southern Papua province near the port city of Timika. The ICEM was informed by the branch&rsquo;s parent union in Jakarta, as well as by ICEM Indonesian Affiliates&rsquo; Chairman D. Patombong Sjaiful, that food staples are running low and a Solidarity Fund is short of money. Several ICEM affiliates immediately responded to the call, and more financial assistance is needed now. 
 
The union and management also met two weeks ago for four days, from 7-10 November, with management increasing its two-year wage offer to 35% from 30%. The company is offering 24% in 2011 and 11% next year. 
<img alt="" src="" width="170" height="78" />
Prior to the start of the 15 September strike, Grasberg miners earned a wage of between US$2.13 per hour and US$3.54. The union recently lowered its demands from US$7.50 to US$4 for lower-paid workers in 2011-2012, and proposed a US$3.50 wage increase on 1 October 2012. 
 
There are also a number of other issues still in dispute, including a metal bonus, a production bonus, and housing, education and vacation benefits. The major difference in all these issues is the company&rsquo;s insistence that they be based on variable costs, while the union wants them set at fixed costs. 
 
The PT Freeport Indonesia Workers&rsquo; Union continues to enforce a road blockade at Mile 28 that has hampered Freeport-McMoRan&rsquo;s ability to produce and caused the company to declare force majeure on 22 October. A ruptured set of pipelines that carry gold and copper concentrate 114 kilometres from Grasberg to Timika, again site of this week bargaining, is now being repaired, with the company using helicopters to ferry construction crews and materials to the damaged portions of the lines. 
 
In late October and early November, police threatened to break the blockade with force. But that threat &ndash; which was certain to have been met by resistance and bloodshed &ndash; is no longer there and police are no longer present at Mile 28. But rather, strikers and their families are forced onto reduced food rations as union funds have dried up. 
 
The ICEM continues to advocate for the union&rsquo;s wage and other demands to be met. Miners work 12-hour shifts some 4,200 metres high in the Sudirman Range and most spend another four unpaid hours each day getting to and from the Grasberg site via buses. Workers of the PT Freeport Indonesia Workers&rsquo; Union also undergo an excruciating roster schedule in which they work five days on, two days off, followed by six days of work and one day off, and then four days on, three days off.

Indonesian Miners Resume Talks Again Today with Freeport-McMoRan

Archive