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A month-long strike by 660 chromium miners in Albania escalated eight days ago as 30 of the striking miners began a hunger strike. Last Thursday, 26 June, five of them were hospitalised due to dehydration. Another four were brought to hospital yesterday, Sunday July 1st, with doctors describing their condition as critical. 
 
The strike at the Italian-based Darfo SRL's&nbsp;mine and one of two ferrochrome smelters at Bulqiza, in north-eastern Albania, where a massive protest was also organised yesterday, is backed by ICEM affiliate Trade Union Federation of Industrial Workers of Albania, as well as by the region's citizens and civil society, in particular the NGO Mjaft. 
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Also yesterday, the leader of the strikers&rsquo; committee, Mr. Dilaver Perkoxha, was arrested. According to the latest information, he remains in the Police Commissariat. A meeting on Saturday between the Minister of Economy, Mr. Genc Ruli, and representatives of the miners failed. 
 
The strike is over safety -- two miners were killed deep in a mine shaft on 11 June -- pay, life insurance, and a bettering of general working conditions. The miners and KSSH placed the demands before&nbsp;Darfo a full six years ago, but neither the mine and smelter management nor the Albanian government officials acted on the pay request or on the abhorrent safety conditions. 
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&quot;We are seeking more information on this dispute,&quot; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda, &quot;but what we have learned is that in tripartite negotiations, both the government and Bulqiza mine management have been indifferent. 
 
The striking miners and the Federation of Industrial Workers deserve and will get our full support and solidarity.&quot; 
 
The ongoing health and safety deficiencies were manifested when two mineworkers, Hysni Lezni and Avni Duri&ccedil;i were killed 1,000 metres underground in Darfo's chromium mine. The pay dispute is over the fact that mine and smelting workers receive sub-standard monthly salaries compared to other industrial workers in the central European country.

Albanian Chrome Miners Strike over Safety, Pay, and Work Conditions

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ICEM Workshop on HIV/AIDS and women workers in Latin America and the Caribbean
A workshop to plan activities on HIV/AIDS with special focus on gender issues was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on 30-31 May 2007. The meeting opened by identifying the prejudices in connection with HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS has to be taken out of the private sphere. It is easier to tackle if it is discussed in public and in the unions. Women have to stop being victims. 
 
In the Caribbean, the region which is currently most affected by HIV after Africa, the Oil Workers Trade Union (OWTU) of Trinidad and Tobago has been working with the ILO. There is still a stigma about HIV and fear of disclosure and discrimination. The OWTU is currently negotiating a policy with the state-owned oil company Petrotrin. It is more difficult to negotiate with small employers 
 
Two important observations are that deaths have gone down since anti-retroviral drugs have become more affordable and that, still, more women are getting sick than men. 
 
A presentation was made on the correct use of condoms, with special emphasis on the female condom. The suggestion was made that ICEM should campaign with governments and international organisations for female condoms to be made available at more reasonable cost. In addition, Maria Luisa from FEQUIMFAR, Brazil talked about her experiences of being HIV positive in a very moving speech. 
 
The conclusions for unions to take the work forward varied greatly. In Costa Rica, for example, where work has not started, the union proposed creating awareness and called for a conference to be scheduled in October, where men and women should be invited. World AIDS Day, 1 December, should be a good day for union-company campaigns. Similar suggestions came from Uruguay and Colombia. 
 
CNQ-CUT, Brazil, proposed developing new clauses in collective bargaining agreements to eliminate discrimination and victimisation and guarantee medicines for those at work. 
 
HIV/AIDS should be included in health courses and the FORMAQUIMULHER women&rsquo;s training courses. The gender and health committees should work in partnership and &lsquo;train the trainers&rsquo; programs should include collective bargaining on HIV/AIDS. 
 
The SNQ-FS union, Brazil, suggested continuing the Summer Without AIDS program all year. This programme has been successful since 1995. The programme seeks to check where testing is done and includes HIV tests in preventive treatment. The use of the female condom is also encouraged. 
 
In Chile, women want to check all clauses in collective agreements to see if HIV/AIDS is adequate covered. They want to consult the company&rsquo;s medical services to find out what the company has been doing. And the women unionists would also analyse the company&rsquo;s position and propose common platforms on HIV/AIDS. 
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Women&rsquo;s Rights Key to Africa&rsquo;s AIDS Crisis
Improving women&rsquo;s rights could boost the battle against HIV/AIDS in southern African countries, where women are often forced into risky sexual behaviour by male partners or economic desperation. 
 
Physicians for Human Rights said its study of 2,000 women in Botswana and Swaziland showed that inequality and gender discrimination were major factors behind the pandemic in these countries. 
 
The impact of women&rsquo;s lack of power cannot be underestimated. In Africa, women make up almost 60 percent of HIV-positive people; in the age group 15-25 years, this soars to 75 percent. 
 
Economic dependency on men meant that women often lose control of their sexual choices, including whether or not to use a condom. Social inequality meant that men and women are held to different standards of behaviour when it comes to multiple sexual partners. The report can be accessed at 
<a href="http://physiciansforhumanrights.org/library/documents/reports/botswana-swaziland-report.pdf">http://physiciansforhumanrights.org/library/documents/ 
reports/botswana-swaziland-report.pdf</a>
(Source: Reuters World Report, 25 May) 
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China: Infection Rate among Women Increases by 43%
In China, more and more women are infected with the HIV virus. Between 2000 and 2006, their proportion increased from 19.4 percent to 27.8 percent of all infected, an increase of 43 percent. 
 
(Source: NZZ, Switzerland, 6 June &ndash; from Xinhua News Agency) 
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G8 Summit: Unions Condemn Backsliding on AIDS
Trade unions joined HIV/AIDS activists in condemning the Summit in Germany for backsliding on its promise for universal access to prevention, treatment and care by 2010. In the final communiqu&eacute;, the G8 had almost halved its goal by targeting only 5 million in Africa with life-saving antiretroviral drugs. 
 
On the other hand, progress was made towards better G8 monitoring. This year, a first-ever monitoring exercise was undertaken. The Global Union AIDS Programme has lobbied for this provision over the last two years. It must now become an enduring and effective working tool for the G8. 
 
The G8 Summit in Gleneagles in 2005 committed to reaching universal access, which is defined by UNAIDS as 80% coverage. Between 10 and 12 million people will need treatment by 2010, yet the same leaders now have only set a target of 5 million in the &ldquo;next few years&rdquo;. 
 
The G8 has vaguely promised to spend USD 60 billion on AIDS, TB, malaria (for all three diseases, not just for AIDS) as well as to strengthen health systems, without clarifying aims or timelines, specifying only that it will be spent &ldquo;over the coming years&rdquo;. UNAIDS estimates show that, by 2010, USD 23 billion will be needed for AIDS alone, each year. The G8 fair share of this figure would be almost USD 16 billion. 
 
&ldquo;Africa will suffer greatly if the commitment is scaled back&rdquo;, said Elizabeth Mataka, the UN Special Envoy for AIDS in Africa who is also the Executive Director of the Zambia National AIDS Network and the representative for non-governmental organisations from developing countries on the Board of the Global Fund, where she currently serves as Vice-Chair. 
 
(Source: Global Union AIDS Programme Press Release, 8 June; TUAC Press Release, 8 June; World AIDS Campaign Press Release, 7 June and PR Newswire, Lusaka, 5 June)
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Global Fund Releases Report on Participation of Civil Society
Civil society (CS) has played a key role in the design and development of the Global Fund, and in the response to AIDS, TB and malaria, but some challenges remain if the contribution of CS is to be maximised. This is the main message of a new report released by the Global Fund, &ldquo;An Evolving Partnership: The Global Fund and Civil Society in the Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.&rdquo; 
 
The 49-page report describes the participation of CS in four main areas: advocacy and resource mobilisation; the Board and governance of the Fund; CCMs; and the implementation of Global Fund grants. The report also describes how the Global Fund Secretariat works with CS. The report summarizes the history of CS involvement in the response to pandemics, and describes the comparative advantages of CS. 
 
The report says that, throughout the development and evolution of the Global Fund, CS has encouraged governments to commit more resources; that CS representatives have played a valuable role on the Fund&rsquo;s Board, on CCMs and in programme implementation; and that CS has proven effective in targeting and delivering services to hard-to-reach communities. 
 
Supporting this view on CS involvement, a recent statistical analysis published in The Lancet found that Global Fund grants where the Principal Recipient (PR) is not a government entity are somewhat more likely to perform well. Grants in which the PR is from civil society, private sector, or a UN agency were 17% more likely to receive an &quot;A&quot; performance rating than grants for which the PR is from government. 
 
The authors note that this is probably because government agencies often have problems with bureaucracy and capacity. This, in turn, helps validate the GF Board's recent decision that countries should be encouraged to assign non-government PRs to operate alongside government ones. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer Issue 76, 15 June 2007. 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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The World Bank&rsquo;s Multi-country HIV/AIDS Programme in Africa
In a report on the activities of the Multi-country HIV/AIDS Programme in Africa (MAP) from 2000 to 2006, released on 14 June, the World Bank notes that &ldquo;mobilisation of empowered grassroots communities, along with delivering condoms and life-saving treatments, are beginning to slow the pace of the continent&rsquo;s epidemic.&rdquo; 
 
At its inception, MAP was the most important source of funds for HIV/AIDS work in Africa, but funding from other sources, notably the Global Fund, has since increased considerably. Almost USD 1.3 billion was invested over six years. 
 
MAP funds were disbursed to around 41,000 different organisations. MAP has also helped to establish 1,512 new Voluntary Counselling and Testing sites in 17 countries. 
 
The full report is available on the World Bank&rsquo;s website <a href="http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:21370918~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html">here</a>. 
 
(Source: allAfrica.com News, 18 June) 
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Zimbabwe: HIV/AIDS Policy for the Mining Sector 
The recent launch of an HIV/AIDS policy for the mining sector in Zimbabwe is an important step in the fight against the pandemic, which is wrecking havoc in one of the country&rsquo;s major economic sectors. 
 
The policy, which was formulated after extensive consultations between tripartite partners, aims to guide and direct the process of dealing with HIV and AIDS in the workplace at all levels of the mining sector. 
 
Government departments, the Chamber of Mines and the Associated Mine Workers&rsquo; Union of Zimbabwe, an ICEM affiliate, worked together with the ILO to produce the mining policy. 
 
Key principles of the policy include the recognition that HIV/AIDS is a workplace issue, non-discrimination, non-victimisation and confidentiality. 
 
Implementation strategies require enterprises to put in place their own programmes and allocate time, human and financial resources. Workers must be involved in programme formulation, implantation, monitoring and evaluation. 
 
(Source: The Herald, Harare, 7June 2007) 
 
(Note by the editor of the e-bulletin: The Herald is a newspaper controlled by the Mugabe regime. While the conclusion of an HIV/AIDS policy for the mining sector is very good news, it is difficult to understand how in a country with some 80% unemployment, the collapse of the health system, an ever-increasing inflation rate that has reached more than 4,000% recently and the complete depletion of foreign exchange reserves, effective follow-up measures in prevention, treatment and care can be taken.) 
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News from ILOAIDS 
 
At a meeting in Geneva during the International Labour Conference, Labour ministers from the member countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) resolved to establish a SAARC Forum on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. 
 
The National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW) launched its HIV/AIDS Workplace Programme in collaboration with the Namibia Development Foundation. This programme will encourage and support integrated HIV/AIDS interventions including behaviour change, measures for care, support and treatment and the elimination of stigma and discrimination. 
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News from the Global Union Programme and Global Union Federations
The Global Unions AIDS Programme organised a sub-regional HIV/AIDS workshop for Burkina Faso and C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire in Abidjan, 6-8 June. 27 unionists participated in this workshop; the ICEM was represented by the national HIV/AIDS Coordinator in C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire, Charlotte Nguessan. 
 
In its most recent HIV/AIDS updates (no. 22 and 23 of 1 and 15 June) the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF - <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>) reports, among other things, on its workshop on HIV/AIDS in the Arab world; on the HIV/AIDS situation in the Caribbean; on the Jamaican Senate passing a motion to prohibit HIV screening of prospective workers and on the ITF Regional Workshop for the Caribbean in Georgetown, Guyana. 
 
In its most recent newsletter on EFA and HIV/AIDS Prevention at Schools, the Education International (EI) has published, among other, articles on a new television programme in Botswana aired in schools across the country and on the meeting of the Inter Agency Task Team on Education and HIV/AIDS - <a href="http://www.ei-ie.org/efaids">www.ei-ie.org/efaids</a>.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 21

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A second methane gas blast in Russia&rsquo;s Kuznetsk Basin region of southern Siberia on 24 May has killed 39 coal miners. The workers were affiliated with ICEM&rsquo;s Russian Independent Coal Miners&rsquo; Union (ROSUGLEPROF), as were 110 miners who died 19 March at the Ulyanovskaya mine, Russia&rsquo;s worst mining disaster in 60 years. 
 
Both mines are operated by Yuzhkuzbassugol, the mining subsidiary of the Evraz Group, Russia&rsquo;s second largest steel and metals company.
<img height="162" src="" width="160" alt="" />
The tragedy 12 days ago occurred at Yuzhkuzbassogol&rsquo;s Yubilienaya mine. An immense methane build-up had formed, and the explosion occurred due to a spark from a faulty electrical cable that apparently had been switched off. The ICEM mourns the loss of the miners and in the wake of this recent disaster, and calls on mining companies to implement all modern safeguards to protect the lives of miners in this era of high prices and high output of natural resources. 
 
Russia&rsquo;s federal environmental, engineering, and nuclear worksite regulatory agency, Rostekhnadzor, had repeatedly cited the Yubilienaya mine with safety deficiencies. The agency had attempted to halt work at the mine until all safety measures were put in place. But managers of Yuzhbuzbassugol had fought those orders in local courts and won reprieves for work to continue. 
 
In fact, the shafts inside Yubilienaya where the explosion occurred had been temporarily shut for a brief period only weeks before. 
 
ROSUGLEPROF President Ivan Mokhnachuk faulted the Russian pay system for bringing unsafe conditions in mines. Since nearly all Russian coal mines have been privatised, the flat-rate monthly wage has been set at a bare minimum, while the vast share of all mining salaries are based on production. &ldquo;While volume, productivity, and profits have risen since the coal industry has been privatised, individual workers are worse off,&rdquo; he told the New York Times.
<img height="164" src="" width="140" alt="" />
&nbsp;ROSUGLEPROF President Ivan Mokhnachuk
The 19 March Ulyanovskaya mine disaster in the Kemerovo region is a case in point. Evidence indicates that managers had tampered with sophisticated methane gas detection equipment in order that production would continue even with high build-up levels of the gas. 
 
The death toll of 159 from the two Yuzhkuzbassugol mine tragedies just 66 days apart more than doubles the 68 deaths that occurred in all of Russia&rsquo;s coal mines in 2006.

Another Coal Mine Blast in Russia’s Kuzbass Kills 39 Miners

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The ICEM has demanded that the Turkish parent company of Trakia Glass in Bulgaria intervene to settle a two-week strike at factories in Turgovishte, in the northeast of Bulgaria. Hundreds of glass workers, members of ICEM affiliate National Federation of Chemical Workers &ndash; CL Podkrepa, began a strike on 19 May over the company&rsquo;s failure to keep pace with minimum salary levels, as set by Bulgarian labour code. 
 
Trakia is wholly-owned by Turkish glass and chemicals groups, Şişecam Group. In a letter dated 1 June, ICEM called on Şişecam&rsquo;s General Director Doğan Arıkan to resolve the dispute immediately in a manner that protects the company&rsquo;s reputation, as well as respects Bulgaria&rsquo;s status as a member of the European Union.
<img height="117" alt="" src="" width="120" />
&ldquo;Bulgaria&rsquo;s membership in the EU assures that its citizens have certain rights and entitlements, and your company&rsquo;s recent behaviour in Targovishte reflects disdain and disrespect for these rights and entitlements,&rdquo; wrote ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda to Arikan. &ldquo;A company headquartered in Turkey, which is now on a course of negotiations toward EU entry, must and should do better in pursuit of such entry.&rdquo; 
 
Workers of Trakia are seeking increases in overtime work and night-shift work, increases which were mandated by the country&rsquo;s minimum monthly salary which took effect 1 May.
<img height="115" alt="" src="" width="250" />
Because of the union&rsquo;s salary demands, during the week of 7 May, Şişecam has suspended a &euro;221.6 million investment at the glass factories, an investment that was to include a second flat glass factory, a second factory for glassware, and additions to processed glass works already operating. The Bulgarian government had made incentives available to the Turkish company, which included road construction and associated infrastructure needs. 
 
Trakia Glass Chief Executive Gulsum Azeri openly states that the investment was suspended until Bulgaria make regressive revisions to its labour legislation, social conduct which the ICEM termed &ldquo;unacceptable.&rdquo; 
The ICEM Regional Conference for Central Europe, meeting in Hungary on 5 and 6 June 2007, adopted a resolution in support of the striking workers in Bulgaria. To read the resolution, click <a href="/index.php?id=21&amp;doc=2286&amp;la=EN">here</a>.

Turkish Glass Firm Şişecam Prompts Strike In Bulgaria

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ILO Starts Process to Establish HIV/AIDS Guidelines for the Mining Sector 
The ICEM has been invited by the ILO to participate in the formulation of HIV/AIDS Guidelines for the mining sector. 
 
In 2000, when the ILO established a programme on HIV/AIDS, the Director General called HIV/AIDS &ldquo;a workplace issue and a development challenge&rdquo;. 
 
&ldquo;The workplace&rdquo; is not a simple idea: it covers the informal &ndash; a small repair shop, a market stall &ndash; to the formal: a government office, a hotel, a gold mine. Similarly, the workforce may be one family or thousands of workers in plants across the world. The different nature of work in different sectors means that the working conditions and needs of workforces differ greatly. 
 
At the same time, workplaces have points in common, including a common interest in recognising and responding to the threat of HIV and AIDS. For this reason, the ILO developed the Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. 
 
To complement the Code, assist in its implementation and recognise the different situations, needs and interests in different sectors, ILOAIDS has worked on more targeted guidelines. HIV/AIDS guidelines exist for the transport sector, education and for health services, the latter elaborated jointly with the WHO. 
 
With a clear timetable, draft HIV/AIDS guidelines for the mining sector should be ready by autumn this year and tested in a tripartite workshop before the end of 2007.
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
VCT Counsellors&rsquo; Training Begins in Five African Countries
Training of VCT (Voluntary Counselling and Testing) counsellors from ICEM affiliates in five countries (Botswana, Ghana, Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania) has started with a financial contribution from Pfizer, the US based pharmaceutical company. 
 
The ICEM &ldquo;5 by 5&rdquo; project (five counsellors each in five countries) aims at up-scaling voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) at the workplace. 
 
The current reach of HIV testing services remains poor. The low level of VCT is an issue. HIV testing and counselling services are the entry point to HIV prevention, care and treatment. Without the knowledge of an individual&rsquo;s HIV status no timely access to care, treatment and support can be undertaken and no protection of unborn children (PMTCT) can be affected. For the community a wider knowledge of the HIV status and its links to interventions can lead to a reduction in denial, stigma and discrimination and to collective responsibility and action. 
 
The ICEM is convinced that counsellors coming from unions and being the peers of employees can better convince them to take an HIV test than medical staff employed by companies or public servants. They can reach out to families of workers and often have standing in the community to increase uptake outside the workplace. They also give a better guarantee that such testing of individuals is confidential, will be accompanied by counselling and is only to be conducted with informed consent. 
 
The training is done in line with certified curricula and ends in recognised accreditation of the VCT Counsellors.
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Canadian CEP Humanity Fund in Solidarity Action
The Communications, Energy and Paperworkers&rsquo; Union of Canada (CEP/SCEP), affiliated to the ICEM, has for the last 15 years assisted partners in the global South. Among the current projects supported by the Humanity Fund are two directly related to the response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic: fighting HIV/AIDS in the petroleum sector in Chad and HIV/AIDS education and training in Nigeria. 
 
The CEP Humanity Fund raises money with a 1-cent an hour contribution negotiated through the collective bargaining process. The Humanity Fund is building partnerships with workers&rsquo;, community and women&rsquo;s organisations, which are involved in improving living and working conditions, organising workers, defending human rights and organising health and safety courses. 
 
For more information go to <a href="http://www.cep.ca">www.cep.ca</a>. CEP is also affiliated to UNI and IFJ. 
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Brazil and Thailand Defy Big Pharmaceutical Companies
Brazil will bypass the commercial patent on a crucial anti-AIDS drug manufactured by Merck in order to ensure that those who desperately need treatment can get a cheaper, generic Indian-made version. 
 
The country will import a generic version of Efavirenz for the price of USD 0.45, less than half of the price of USD 1.10 offered by Merck. Brazil offers free AIDS treatment and Efavirenz is taken by about 75,000 of a total of 180,000 who are on antiretroviral drugs. 
 
Thailand approved generic production of two anti-AIDS drugs in November 2006. It recently announced a decision to adopt compulsory licensing for two more antiretroviral drugs. Abbot Laboratories, the licence holder of one of the drugs, Kaletra, then took a decision to withhold new drugs from Thailand in retaliation. 
 
In Canada and other countries, AIDS Action Now and churches took protest action on 26 April, on the eve of Abbott&rsquo;s annual general meeting. 
 
Under the rules of the World Trade Organisation, a compulsory licence can be granted in a health emergency or if the pharmaceutical industry abuses its pricing. 
 
In a related development, the Clinton Foundation AIDS Initiative concluded an agreement with Indian generic manufacturers Cibla and Matrix Laboratories for the procurement of second line antiretrovirals, which are very expensive and used when AIDS sufferers have developed resistance to first line drugs. The deal is financed by UNITAID. 
 
(Source: NZZ am Sonntag, Switzerland, 6 May 2007 and Newsweek, International Edition, 9 April. For further reading on compulsory licensing, go to <a href="http://www.twnside.org"></a><a href="http://www.twnside.org.sg">www.twnside.org.sg</a> for Martin Khor&rsquo;s article &ldquo;Patents, Compulsory Licensing and Access to Medicines&rdquo;) 
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
South Africa: Delayed State AIDS-Fighting Body going at last
The newly constituted South African National AIDS Council (Sanac), which will be the lead agency in the fight against HIV/AIDS, was officially launched on 1 May after years of delays by the government. 
 
The council, which is chaired by Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, has endorsed the five-year national strategic plan for HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). 
 
Last year saw increased pressure from opposition parties, anti-AIDS groups and the Congress of South African Trade Unions on the government for it to be more effective in the fight against the epidemic. 
 
The main goal of the five-year plan is to reduce the rate of new HIV infections and mitigate the effect of AIDS on individuals, families and communities. Targets of the plan to be reached by 2011 include: providing treatment to 80% of adults who need it; reducing the proportion of adults starting antiretroviral treatment in hospital to 30%; increasing the number of HIV patients on treatment overseen by nurses to 70%; and reducing the rate of new infections by 50%. 
 
Sanac&rsquo;s membership includes the government at a ministerial level and leaders of business, labour and civil society. 
 
(Source: Business Day, Johannesburg, posted on the website 2 May 2007) 
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Nigeria: Federal Government Approves Workplace Policy on HIV/Aids 
Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr Hassan Lawal, announced the approval of the workplace policy on HIV/AIDS when he launched a new ILO report on discrimination in the world of work. 
 
Lawal said the policy provided guidelines to facilitate the establishment of workplace responses to HIV/AIDS in both the formal and informal sectors. He said the policy would also protect the rights of infected and affected people, while also sensitising them on options of redress. 
 
The minister stated that the policy would build the capacity of management and workers in handling HIV/AIDS issues in the workplace. 
 
(Source: This Day, Lagos, 13 May 2007) 
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
News from ILOAIDS: ILO constituents renew commitment to act on AIDS
In 2001, governments, employers and workers agreed the ground-breaking Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. Translated into over 40 languages, a reference point for laws and policies in over 70 countries, the Code of Practice will now be complemented by a Recommendation on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. 
 
To take forward the workplace response to AIDS, the March 2007 session of the ILO Governing Body decided to place HIV/AIDS on the agenda of the International Labour Conference in 2009. 
 
This means that the ILO has now begun work towards the adoption of a Recommendation. A first discussion will be held during the International Labour Conference in June 2009, and the new standard is expected to be adopted as the outcome of a second discussion in June 2010. 
 
Recommendations provide guidance for states and for employers' and workers' organisations, among others, and form a basis for ILO promotional and assistance measures. 
 
(Note by the Editor: Agreement was not reached on a Convention which is the stronger instrument and which the workers&rsquo; representatives would have preferred). 
 
(Source: ILOAIDS Website)
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
News from the Global Union Programme and Global Union Federations
The German Government has agreed to raise the issue of a regular HIV/AIDS review at the upcoming G8 Summit in Heiligendamm, Germany, 6 &ndash; 8 June. The German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul said, in a letter to the Chair of the Global Unions AIDS Programme, Alan Leather, that the German Government would present the findings of its own review to the G8 and discuss the need for additional monitoring exercises. Global Union leaders also raised the issue during a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on 7 May. 
 
The Global AIDS Alliance, the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance and numerous other organisations have joined the call for universal access and the need for accountability by monitoring progress through a high-level permanent working group. 
 
The Global Unions representative also lobbied ministers and government delegations at the WHO World Health Assembly in Geneva in May for a G8 high-level, permanent working group, which will ensure that responding to and reporting on the epidemic takes place regularly at the G8 summits. 
 
In its most recent HIV/AIDS updates (no. 20 and 21 of 1 and 15 May) the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF) reports, among others, on its work with the World Bank in the Transport Forum where workers&rsquo; rights and HIV prevention were key issues, on the HIV/AIDS situation in Kazakhstan and on a meeting in Berlin on European Employers&rsquo; and Trade Unions&rsquo; response to HIV/AIDS (see: <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>). 
 
In its most recent newsletter on EFA and HIV/AIDS Prevention at Schools, the Education International (EI) has published, among others, an article on the ban of sex education in schools in Maharashtra state, India. The Indian teachers&rsquo; union AIFTO condemned this ban, which is also in force in a number of other Indian states <a href="http://www.ei-ie.org/efaids">www.ei-ie.org/efaids</a>.

<img height="40" alt="" src="" width="100" />
ICEM affiliate IGBCE and German paper industry employers reached a new collective agreement on 16 May, covering 44,000 workers. The 17-month labour accord calls for wage increase of 3.2%, retroactive to 1 May 2007, with a further increase of 2% to take effect on 1 May 2008. 
 
The contract runs until 30 September 2008. 
Effective next month, a single payment for each worker was won, totalling &euro;95. Apprentices will receive &euro;35. Another achievement, reached in arbitration, was an add-on to the long-term savings plan for each worker. In addition to the &euro;478.57 each year paid per worker by an employer, an extra &euro;13 will be allotted for each &euro;100 contributed by the worker to this supplemental retirement plan. 
<img height="242" alt="" src="" width="150" />
IGBCE Chief Negotiator Holger Nieden commended workers&rsquo; solidarity in achieving the contract. &ldquo;We obtained a fair and equitable amount after substantial pressure was applied,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The proportional increases are appropriate, they correspond with the situation of the industry, and they fit the overall economic framework.&rdquo;

Wage Pact Reached in Germany’s Paper Industry

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Anglo Coal is the target of coal strikes in central Queensland, Australia, by two unions, the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) and the Construction, Forestry, Mining &amp; Energy Union (CFMEU). The unions took strike action again last week over concessionary terms that the subsidiary of Anglo American Group is attempting to impose at its massive Dawson mining complex near Moura, Queensland.
In the wake of an A$1.3 billion expansion that will lift coal output from 11 million tonnes annually to 16 million tonnes, Anglo Coal is seeking to extend 12-hour work shifts with another 45 minutes, as well as instituting further disciplinary and dispute procedures in the enterprise agreements. 
<img height="90" alt="" src="" width="90" />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img height="93" alt="" src="" width="90" />
Miners are allotted only two 30-minute breaks at the sprawling open cast set of mines, which would lead to obvious safety hazards. They also reject the company&rsquo;s plan to conduct random and compulsory health and fitness exams. 
 
Some 700 AMWU members staged a 24-hour strike on 14 May, and plan another one today. The union did four-hour stop-work actions on 27 and 30 April. At the Dawson Central mine on 13 May, 360 CFMEU miners took strike action. They had previously conducted a warning strike in mid-March. 
 
Anglo Coal is connecting three large open pit mines, spanning some 120 kilometres across central Queensland, with its minority partner, Mitsui of Japan. Miners also seek a bigger pay package from Anglo Coal in the face of huge company profits and escalating housing costs in this booming coal-export region of Australia.

Australian Miners Strike Anglo Coal in Queensland

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The Communications, Energy, and Paperworkers (CEP) Union of Canada has filed a petition with the country&rsquo;s National Energy Board (NEB) to block construction of TransCanada&rsquo;s 2,970-kilometre Keystone Pipeline into the US. The union, together with the Alberta Provincial Federation of Labour, the Parkland Institute, and academics, filed the motion on 15 May with Canada&rsquo;s federal energy regulatory body. 
 
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re shipping our natural resources down to the US so they can create upgraded oil products,&rdquo; said CEP President Dave Coles. &ldquo;Meanwhile, we&rsquo;re missing out on the creation of 18,000 good Canadian jobs, and putting our gas supply at risk in the process.&rdquo; 
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CEP President Dave Coles
In its filing, CEP cites a study by an independent research firm, Informetrica, showing that 18,000 jobs could be lost by the export of unprocessed bitumen to the US. 
 
The CEP seeks bitumen from the tar sands to be made into refined petroleum products inside Canada. The Alberta oil sands are currently producing millions of barrels of diluted but unprocessed bitumen each day. 
 
The CEP charges that the NEB, and federal and provincial governments in Canada, have done too little to protect the environment and the social well-being of the public interest in the booming oil sands industry of western Canada. &ldquo;Hundreds of workers in refineries and petrochemical plants have already lost their jobs because the priority of the NEB has too often been fixed on serving the needs of the US rather than Canadian consumers,&rdquo; said Coles. 
 
The US$2.1 billion Keystone Pipeline is expected to be complete in 2009, and would transport 435,000 barrels-per-day of crude oil from the province of Alberta to the US state of Illinois.

Crude Oil Pipeline Will Mean Loss of Energy Jobs in Canada, CEP Warns

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At a spirited rally at the Rotterdam portion of Unilever&rsquo;s AGM on 15 May, ICEM Dutch affiliate FNV Bondgenoten issued a stern warning to the giant food and chemicals concern: focus more on long term stability and the concerns of all stakeholders, rather than on a current call by investors to restructure for quick profits. 
 
Union members and their allies, namely the 40,000-member Association of Shareholders, a collection of institutional and individual shareholders, called on the company to resist the break-up, the closure of certain businesses, or the selling-off to private equity funds, or other market capital funds. 
<img height="199" alt="" src="" width="300" />
ICEM's presence at Rotterdam rally, including&nbsp;Chemical officer Kemal Ozkan and ICEM Vice-President Ben Roodhuizen (centre)
The rally preceded Unilever&rsquo;s general meeting at Rotterdam&rsquo;s World Trade Centre. The following day, 16 May, the company held the London portion of its annual meeting, at which time Mike Treschow was installed as Unilever chairman. Treschow is a noted master of retrenchments, having previously maximized quick profits at the expense of jobs at Ericsson telecom and Electrolux. 
 
FNV Bondgenoten warned that the strategy of creating excessive shareholder value at Unilever is now playing too large a role. &ldquo;I fear that in the short term, Unilever will become prey to activist hedge funds,&rdquo; stated Bondgenoten President Henk van der Kolk. &ldquo;In the eyes of these funds, Unilever is a company from which more profit can be squeezed.&rdquo; 
 
&ldquo;Unilever has always been a company with a good name, a company that has looked out for the interests of its workers,&rdquo; van der Kolk added. &ldquo;Now workers are only seen as a cost factor. The less you have, the better. That now appears to be the thinking at Unilever.&rdquo; 
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FNV Bondgenoten President Henk van der Kolk
On 1 June, the union will submit a work plan to senior management of Unilever. FNV Bondgenoten is asking shareholders to support that plan, which couples social responsibility with curtailment of the power of shareholders. Jobs and job security are high on its agenda, as is upcoming collective bargaining in The Netherlands. Bondgenoten said that the first part of the work plan applies to Dutch operations of the multinational, but that the plan could also be applied more broadly to the company&rsquo;s 200,000 workers worldwide. 
 
Also speaking at the rally were a member of parliament and workers from Mumbai, India, which are members of the Hindustan Lever Employees Union. Their situation depicts Unilever at its worst. In order to avoid social dialogue with that union, which is an affiliate of the International Union of Food &amp; Allied Workers&rsquo; Association (IUF), management sold the operation to a shell company in order to avoid its lawful social obligations.

FNV Bondgenoten Warns of Unilever Break Up

In the name of God the most merciful and graceful 
From: Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions&nbsp; 
 
 
His Excellency The Oil Minister, 
Subject: Entitlements 

Sincere Salutations,
It was our hope, after the fall of that statue, to witness the dawn of a new era marked by the recognition of the legitimate rights of our members in the oil sector. This sector that for so long has suffered injustice and been denied equity. 
Since the advent of this new era, we focused our efforts into effectively thwarting all attempts to exploit this sector and tamper with our resources. You have been informed of how we stalled foreign companies in their attempts to control our oil fields and refineries, and how we forced them to leave. 
In addition, we worked hand in hand with the ministries and agencies to accelerate the pace of oil production, and to safeguard the means of production, and raise awareness amongst workers of investing to boost the chances of success for the new era. 
Unfortunately, our demands for entitlements were ignored, despite four years of continued promises by ministry and government officials. In fact, we took our demands to the highest levels of the government. We kept the prime minister apprized of our demands, but were disappointed when we came to realize that our demands fell on deaf ears. 
Throughout this period we worked to defuse anger and resentment and address criticism leveled by our members who mistakenly thought of us as the ones failing to put forth their legitimate demands. Henceforth: 
 
After extensive deliberations, and based on the resolutions that came out of an Executive Board meeting with broad member representation on Thursday 26 April, 2007 at the Gas Corporation's premises in Basra, a strike was unanimously adopted, scheduled for May 10, 2007 in all the company's branches in the south and in the following provinces Basra/Missan Dhi Kar/Al Mouthnana. 
The strike will go ahead, should the following demands not be completely met: 
1. Make a determination on land allotment in the Shiite Province 52 and land distribution owned by oil companies, and the parcel in the Tannouma area, a property of the Southern Oil Company.
2.&nbsp;Make a determination on oil companies' profits margins on the basis of the amendments to which you agreed and to determine those margins according to the certification/attestation from the south region financial/tax jurisdictions, not according to the formula adopted by the Minister that has been deemed detrimental to our membership. 
3. Approval of accumulated ordinary unused vacations, and all vacations outstanding for more than 180 days. There is no justification for withholding any of these vacations. We also believe that the resolution issued by the State Advisory Council is not binding, for lack of legal foundation. We empathically insist that there be no salary deductions over the next few years for granted vacations days. 
4. Granting full time status to temporary workers, notwithstanding the length of service but rather apply a more humanistic approach with those workers who are Iraqi nationals and who deserve a life in this country. 
5. To hire new graduates of the last two classes.
6. Rescind the new unified payment schedule which benefits only a very small number in the sector.
7. Promote holders of elementary certificates to the next grade on par to their dismissed colleagues (for political reasons) and address the issue of stalled promotions for workers and others. 
8. Rescind the 20% deduction from profits paid to the army and recovery of previous years' deductions.
9. We ask that those premises become employee-run, similar to other state-owned agencies. We deem the wait and see policy inappropriate, and we are wondering why the oil sector is treated so unfairly. 
 
As we are stating the legitimate demands of our membership, it is our hope to obtain the support of those on whom we rely, and whom we supported with our blood in making the political process succeed. 
It is our hope to reinstate the rights of those who were aggrieved by Iraqi government officials, and eliminate the injustices bestowed on the southern region. 
We feel, up to the moment of this statement's drafting, that discrimination is continuing, and that the south is treated as the cash cow of Iraq. 
Our region gave so much to Iraq, but gained little in return. We would like to draw your attention to the fact that pollution in oil facilities has reached a peak, and the incidence of cancer has topped exceeded predictions. We also note, that the ministry pays little to no attention to these incidences that primarily impact the inhabitants in the southern area. 
We feel as if they are predestined to such a fate - to always give in vain. We are cautioning, that there is a limit to our tolerance. 
We ask that our demands be met. We feel that enough is enough. 

Peace and grace be upon you. 
Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions 
4/27/2007 
To: Top executives of oil companies 
CC: all media

Letter by the IFOU to Iraqi Oil Minister

Archive

Albanian Chrome Miners Strike over Safety, Pay, and Work Conditions

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 21

Another Coal Mine Blast in Russia’s Kuzbass Kills 39 Miners

Turkish Glass Firm Şişecam Prompts Strike In Bulgaria

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 21

Wage Pact Reached in Germany’s Paper Industry

Australian Miners Strike Anglo Coal in Queensland

Crude Oil Pipeline Will Mean Loss of Energy Jobs in Canada, CEP Warns

FNV Bondgenoten Warns of Unilever Break Up

Letter by the IFOU to Iraqi Oil Minister

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