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

Regional offices

About us

Global worker No1 2022

Global worker No2 2022

Publications

Resources

Press

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The German social-democratic organisation, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES), released a briefing paper entitled &ldquo;Comeback of Global Governance,&rdquo; outlining the need for reform of mechanisms for global political and monetary governance. The current financial crisis is seen by many as the opportunity to reform global financial bodies, which fail both in terms of representation and of effectiveness. 
 
The past year has seen a list of failures in terms of global governance, from the Doha round of world trade talks to follow-up of the Monterrey Financing for Development Conference. Even the preliminary rounds of discussion at Posnan, Poland, environment and sustainability forums have illustrated significant obstacles in commitments over combating climate change. 
 
Arguably the most vital changes needed are inside the International Monetary Fund (IMF), whose failings have become all too apparent during this current global recession. The current financial crisis is a clear indication of how urgently an effective global regulatory framework is needed in order to come to grips with the present crisis and to contain future excesses. The days of the World Bank and IMF governing the world on a neo-liberal agenda now must end. 
 
The IMF&rsquo;s system of quotas and voting rights gives European countries an imbalanced amount of power that is no longer justified by their order in the world economy. Despite the limited voting-rights reform carried out in March 2008, the Benelux countries, for example, continue to have a higher quota than China. The reforms to the IMF that are on the agenda will go some way towards creating a fairer system, although they do not go far enough in &lsquo;giving a voice to the voiceless.&rsquo; 
 
The current economic climate offers many alternatives for change. US President Barack Obama seeks to establish a new disarmament and non-proliferation treaty. German Chancellor Angela Merkel calls for a world economic council. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown advocate an international banking oversight commission. Germany and France, together with Russia and Brazil, promote a new global economic and financial architecture that has a special focus on regulating financial markets. 
 
Find the FES briefing paper <a href="http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/global/06319.pdf ">here</a>.

International Labour Calls for Reform of the Structures of Global Governance

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
Following the release of the English and Arabic versions of the &ldquo;ICEM Guide on Contact and Agency Labour (CAL),&rdquo; the ICEM has now also released French, Spanish, and Russian versions of this important tool to assist unions around the world with their efforts in this growing area of work. 
 
The French version can be found <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/icem%20manual%20frans%2026032009def.pdf ">here</a>. 
The Spanish version can be found <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/icem%20manual%20spaans%20070420092.pdf ">here</a>. 
The Russian version can be found <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/icemmanualrussiandef.pdf ">here</a>. 
 
The English and Arabic versions of the manual, as well as the ICEM&rsquo;s CAL campaign website can be found <a href="http://cal.icem.org">here</a>. 
 
The ICEM CAL Guide describes numerous problems faced by short-term contract workers, and by workers employed through temporary work agencies, containing a number of best - as well as worst - practices from around the world. 
 
The guide also provides an overview of some of the most recent changes in national and international labour laws and standards. It further deals with combating the phenomenon at company level through collective negotiations. Useful and encouraging examples, together with union strategies and ideas to counter the many abuses in this field, are also provided.

ICEM Releases Contract and Agency Manual in French, Spanish, Russian

<img height="39" alt="" src="" width="100" />
Bir hafta kadar sonra b&uuml;t&uuml;n d&uuml;nyada sendikalar 1 Mayıs'ı kutlayacak. Ama T&uuml;rkiye'de ge&ccedil;en yıl 1 Mayıs'ta h&uuml;k&uuml;metin baskısına polis zorbalığı eşlik etti. 
 
T&uuml;rkiye'de sendikalar, 1980 askeri darbesinden &ouml;nce olduğu gibi, h&uuml;k&uuml;metin 1 Mayıs'ı resmi tatil g&uuml;n&uuml; olarak kabul etmesini istiyorlar. 1 Mayıs kutlamaları 1980 askeri darbesinden 1990'ların başlarına kadar yasaklandı, bu tarihten sonra da ancak belli sınırlar i&ccedil;inde kutlanmasına izin verildi. 
 
T&uuml;rkiye'de sendikaların 1 Mayıs'la ilgili herhangi bir kutlama eylemine girişmesi başının derde girmesi anlamına geliyor. Ge&ccedil;en yılki kutlamalarda, g&uuml;venlik g&uuml;&ccedil;leri sendikaların taksim Meydanı'na girmesini &ouml;nlemek i&ccedil;in şiddete başvurdular; g&ouml;z yaşartıcı gaz kullandılar, g&ouml;stericilere basın&ccedil;lı su sıktılar, insanları &ouml;zel sopalarla d&ouml;vd&uuml;ler. 
 

<img height="135" alt="" src="" width="200" />
Ge&ccedil;en yılın 1 Mayıs'ında sabah saatlerinde polis DİSK genel merkezine g&ouml;z yaşartıcı gaz sıkıyor 
Son olarak, h&uuml;k&uuml;met 1 Mayıs'ın resmi tatil olmasını &ouml;ng&ouml;ren bir yasa tasarısını Meclis'e sundu. Meclis İ&ccedil;işleri Komisyonu'nun hi&ccedil;bir itirazda bulunmadığı tasarı 22 Nisan'da Meclis'te g&ouml;r&uuml;ş&uuml;lecekti. 
 
T&uuml;rk-İş, DİSK ve KESK 1 Mayıs 2009'u tarihi Taksim Meydanı'nda kutlamaya kararlı olduklarını a&ccedil;ıkladılar. Taksim Meydanı T&uuml;rkiye'deki sendikalar i&ccedil;in b&uuml;y&uuml;k anlam taşıyor. &Ccedil;&uuml;nk&uuml; 1 Mayıs 1977'de 36 insan o meydanda &ouml;ld&uuml;r&uuml;ld&uuml;. 
 
H&uuml;k&uuml;met 1 Mayıs'ın Taksim'de kutlanmasını yasaklarken bu gerek&ccedil;eyi kullanıyor. 
 
1977'deki Kanlı 1 Mayıs'ın 30. yıld&ouml;n&uuml;m&uuml;nde, 2007'de, T&uuml;rkiye'deki sendikalar bu konuda bir girişim başlattılar. 2007 ve 2008 yıllarında binlerce g&ouml;sterici 1 Mayıs'ı Taksim'de kutlamaya giriştiği i&ccedil;in g&ouml;zaltına alındı. 
 
T&uuml;rkiye'de sendikalar sekiz saatlik işg&uuml;n&uuml;, insana yakışır &uuml;cret ve &ccedil;alışma koşullarının iyileştirilmesi m&uuml;cadelesinde Taksim Meydanı'nı bir sembol olarak g&ouml;r&uuml;yorlar. Ama İstanbul Valiliği kutlamalara Taksim Meydanı dışında her meydanın a&ccedil;ık olduğunu a&ccedil;ıkladı. 
<img height="151" alt="" src="" width="110" />
ICEM Genel Sekreteri Manfred Warda 
ICEM Genel Sekreteri Manfred Warda T&uuml;rkiye'de 1 Mayıs'la ilgili olarak şu a&ccedil;ıklamayı yaptı: &ldquo;H&uuml;k&uuml;metin 1 Mayıs'ın resmi tatil yapılması yolunda Meclis'e sunduğu teklifi ileriye atılmış bir adım olarak g&ouml;r&uuml;yoruz. Bunun T&uuml;rkiye'de demokrasinin ve sendikal hakların gelişmesi a&ccedil;ısından &ouml;nemli olduğu kanısındayım. 
 
&ldquo;Ne var ki bu yargının ge&ccedil;erli olması ancak Taksim Meydanı'nın 1 Mayıs'ta barış&ccedil;ıl g&ouml;sterilere a&ccedil;ılmasıyla m&uuml;mk&uuml;n olacaktır. Taksim Meydanı demokrasi ve sendikal haklar m&uuml;cadelesinin sembol&uuml;d&uuml;r. ICEM bu yıl 1 Mayıs kutlamalarını izlemek &uuml;zere T&uuml;rkiye'de olacaktır. &Ouml;n&uuml;m&uuml;zdeki Haziran'da toplanacak ILO Konferansı'nın iş yasalarını değiştirmesi gereken T&uuml;rk h&uuml;k&uuml;metini incelemeye alacağını biliyoruz. T&uuml;rkiye'nin &ouml;rg&uuml;tlenme &ouml;zg&uuml;rl&uuml;ğ&uuml;, toplu pazarlık ve grev hakkı konusunda ciddi değişiklikler yapması gerekiyor. Bu değişikliklerin temel ILO s&ouml;zleşmelerine ve T&uuml;rkiye'nin onayladığı standartlara uygun olması gerekiyor. Gelişmeleri izleyeceğiz ve bu m&uuml;cadelede T&uuml;rkiye'deki &uuml;yelerimizle dayanışmaya devam edeceğiz.&rdquo;

ICEM ile Üye Sendikaları, Türkiye’de 1 Mayıs’ın Tatil Olmasını ve Taksim’de Kutlanmasını İstiyor

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
Arjantin'e giden bir ICEM heyeti k&uuml;resel krizin &uuml;lke &uuml;zerindeki etkilerini inceledi, ayrıca ICEM'in 2011'de Buenos Aires'de yapılacak kongresi i&ccedil;in &ouml;n incelemelerde bulundu. ICEM Genel Sekreteri Manfred Warda federasyonun Arjantin'deki &uuml;yeleri ile 29 Nisan'da bir araya gelerek ekonomik kriz konusunda g&ouml;r&uuml;ş alışverişinde bulundu. Ayrıca, ekonomik kriz konusunda ICEM &uuml;yesi olmayan sendikaların da g&ouml;r&uuml;şlerini aldı ve onlarla ICEM'e &uuml;yelikleri konusunu g&ouml;r&uuml;şt&uuml;. 
 
ICEM'in Cenevre'de 23-24 Haziran g&uuml;nlerinde yapılacak Y&ouml;netim Kurulu'nda Beşinci D&uuml;nya Kongresi'nin yapılacağı yer konusunda karar alınacak. Arjantin sendikaları Kongre'ye evsahipliği yapmak istiyorlar. 

<img alt="" src="" width="264" height="198" />
Warda, ICEM'in Latin Amerika İrtibat Sorumlusu Carol Bruce ile birlikte, Arjantin Kau&ccedil;uk İş&ccedil;ileri Sendikası SUTNA, Enerji ve Petrol İş&ccedil;ileri Sendikası FeTERA ve &ouml;zel sekt&ouml;rdeki Petrol ve Gaz İş&ccedil;ileri Sendikası FASPyGP ile g&ouml;r&uuml;şt&uuml;. ICEM heyeti, n&uuml;kleer enerji iş&ccedil;ilerini temsilen ICEM'e katılmak isteyen Uni&oacute;n Obrero Metal&uacute;rgical (UOM) sendikasının yanı sıra, Arjantin ulusal sendikal merkezine (CTA) bağlı sendikalarla da ICEM'e katılım konusunu g&ouml;r&uuml;şt&uuml;. 
 
Carol Bruce Arjantin'de iki g&ouml;steri y&uuml;r&uuml;y&uuml;ş&uuml;ne katıldı. 22 Nisan'daki g&ouml;steri y&uuml;r&uuml;y&uuml;ş&uuml;n&uuml; d&uuml;zenleyen ulusal sendikal merkez CTA, Arjantin'de işten &ccedil;ıkarmalar konusunda 180 g&uuml;nl&uuml;k bir moratoryum ilanını ve iş&ccedil;ilerin &uuml;cret kayıplarını karşılamak &uuml;zere devletin bir acil durum &ouml;demesi yapmasını talep ediyor. 
 
30 Nisan'da ise, Bruce, &ouml;b&uuml;r b&uuml;y&uuml;k ulusal sendikal merkez CGT'nin, krizin ve işsizliğin sorumlusu neoliberal politikalara karşı d&uuml;zenlediği g&ouml;steri y&uuml;r&uuml;y&uuml;ş&uuml;ne katıldı.

ICEM Heyeti Arjantin&#039;deki Krizi İnceledi

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
ICEM, 15-16 Nisan g&uuml;nlerinde Singapur'da, Asya/Pasifik b&ouml;lgesinde taşeron iş&ccedil;iliği &uuml;zerine bir konferans d&uuml;zenledi. Konferansa sendikalardan 50 temsilci katıldı. 
 
Katılımcıların aktardıkları deneyimler taşeron iş&ccedil;iliğinin b&ouml;lgede yaygınlaştığını ve &ccedil;alışma ilişkilerine zarar verdiğini ortaya koydu. ICEM ve Friedrich Ebert Vakfı'nın yanı sıra, Singapur, Tayland, Filipinler, Malezya, Hindistan, Endonezya, Nepal ve Kore sendikaları ile İsve&ccedil;, Danimarka ve Almanya sendikalarının temsilcileri g&ouml;r&uuml;ş ve deneyimlerini sundular. 
 
D&uuml;zenli, s&uuml;rekli ve doğrudan istihdam edilen iş&ccedil;ilerin yerine daha d&uuml;ş&uuml;k &uuml;cretli taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerinin getirilmesi aşağı yukarı her Asya &uuml;lkesinde yaygın bir sorun. 

<img alt="" src="" width="240" height="155" />
B&uuml;t&uuml;n katılımcılar ortak bir sorun olan korku fakt&ouml;r&uuml; &uuml;zerinde durdular. Taşeron iş&ccedil;ileri, işlerini kaybetme kaygısıyla, sendikalaşmak bir yana, sendikal konuları konuşmaktan bile korkuyorlar. 
 
Bu alandaki sorunlardan biri de, &ouml;zellikle Filipinler'de, Hindistan'da ve Endonezya'da olduğu gibi, yasalara uyulmamasıdır. Katılımcıların dile getirdiği bir başka sorun ise bazı &uuml;lkelerde sendika sayısının &ccedil;okluğunun işbirliğini zorlaştırmasıdır. 
 
Bu alandaki olumlu gelişme ise, sendikaların ICEM k&uuml;resel kampanyasının hedeflediği şu &uuml;&ccedil; d&uuml;zeyde ağır ama emin adımlarla ilerlemeye başlamasıdır: yasa değişiklikleri (Filipinler'de bir yasa tasarısı hazırlanıyor); şirket d&uuml;zeyinde &ccedil;alışmalar (sorunu toplu s&ouml;zleşme g&ouml;r&uuml;şmelerinin ve &ouml;rg&uuml;tlenmenin ana ve &ouml;ncelikli konusu haline getirmek); taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerinin sendikalara katılabilmesini sağlayacak sendika i&ccedil;i yapılar oluşturmak. Tayland, Malezya, Hindistan, Singapur ve Kore'de bu ger&ccedil;ekleşti. 
 
Bu bağlamda herkesin kabul ettiği &ouml;nemli bir sorun, sendikal &ccedil;alışmayı şirket d&uuml;zeyiyle sınırlı tutmayıp işkolu ya da sekt&ouml;r d&uuml;zeyinde &ouml;rg&uuml;tleme ihtiyacıdır. &Ccedil;&uuml;nk&uuml; işverenlerin şirket d&uuml;zeyinde iki iş&ccedil;i grubunu (taşeron iş&ccedil;ileri ile s&uuml;rekli iş&ccedil;ileri) &ldquo;b&ouml;l&uuml;p y&ouml;netmesi&rdquo; genellikle daha kolaydır. 
 
Ne var ki şu sıralar başarı hik&acirc;yelerinden ziyade sorunlar ağır basmaktadır. Bunun somut &ouml;rneklerinden biri, Tayland'da bir sanayi gazı şirketi olan Linde'de istihdam edilen taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerinin sayısındaki artışın &ouml;n&uuml;n&uuml;n alınması ve taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerine tamg&uuml;n ve s&uuml;rekli istihdam olanaklarının sağlanmasıdır. 
 
Asya'da &ldquo;taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerinin istihdam teknikleri&rdquo; ile ilgili olumsuz &ouml;rneklerden bazıları şunlardır: 17 aylık standart s&ouml;zleşmelerin bitiminden itibaren, toplu s&ouml;zleşmeler, iş&ccedil;ilerin haklarının artırılmasını &ouml;ng&ouml;rmektedir. Bir diğer &ouml;rnek ise, denet&ccedil;ilerin taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerine sendikal &ouml;rg&uuml;tlenme konusunda a&ccedil;ık&ccedil;a ayırımcılık uygulamasıdır. Filipinlerde, şirketler, işe başlamadan &ouml;nce taşeron iş&ccedil;ilerine istifa mektupları imzalatmaktadır. Bir kısım iş&ccedil;iden ise &ccedil;alıştıkları işe başka bir adla yeniden girmeleri istenmektedir. B&ouml;ylece iş&ccedil;ilerin s&uuml;rekli iş&ccedil;i sayılması &ouml;nlenmektedir.

ICEM&#039;in Singapur Konferansı Bölgedeki Taşeron İşçilerinin Sorunlarını Ele Aldı

<img height="39" alt="" src="" width="100" />
With over 70 confirmed participants, the ICEM&rsquo;s quadrennial World Conference for the Rubber Industries will take place in Nashville, Tennessee, USA next week, on 12-13 May 2009. The conference, to be hosted be the United Steelworkers (USW), will be presided over by USW President Leo Gerard, Chairman of the ICEM Rubber Industry Sector. 

<img height="140" alt="" src="" width="120" />
Leo Gerard, Chairman of ICEM Rubber Industry Section &amp; USW President
The venue is the Sheraton Music City Hotel, Nashville. 
 
Kemal &Ouml;zkan, ICEM Chemicals and Rubber Industries Officer, will make a presentation on &ldquo;Global Industry Trends and Challenges.&rdquo; 
 
The Conference&nbsp;will also feature five panel discussions: &ldquo;Effects of Global Crisis on the Industry and Trade Union Challenges,&rdquo; &ldquo;Rising Hardships and Distortion in Work Relationships,&rdquo; &ldquo;Global Agreements, Global/Regional Company and Sector Networks and Campaigns,&rdquo; &ldquo;How to Improve Health and Safety for Workers: What Kind of Industrial Policy for a Greener Environment for Securing Jobs,&rdquo; and &ldquo;How to Better Coordinate Global Union Solidarity, Support and Cooperation.&rdquo; 

Other presentations on the agenda will include: &ldquo;Collective Bargaining in the Rubber Industry,&rdquo; &ldquo;Global Trade Union Response Against Challenges,&rdquo; and &ldquo;Healthy and Safe Work, Environment and Sustainable Development.&rdquo; The conference will conclude in the afternoon of 13 May with &ldquo;Development of an Action Plan&rdquo; for trade unions of the global rubber sector.&nbsp; 
 
ICEM Health, Safety, and Sustainability Officer Brian Kohler will make&nbsp;the health, safety, and sustainable development presentations. 
 
The Report for the Conference will be up on the ICEM website (<a href="http://www.icem.org">www.icem.org</a>) under ICEM Sectors: Rubber by late this week, as will the agenda and other background documents.

ICEM’s World Rubber Conference Set for Next Week in Nashville USA

<img height="39" src="" width="100" alt="" />
The announced 5.5% wage cut for 15,000 employees of Czech mining company OKD will not occur and instead, through negotiations with mining unions, a compromise has been reached. That compromise, occurring on 30 April, calls for a decrease in the number of agency workers used, and a partial reduction in the number of employees from supplier companies. 
 
The demand for cuts is due to the impact of the world&rsquo;s financial crisis. 

<img height="122" src="" width="120" alt="" />
The company originally proposed an across-the-board decrease in salaries of 5.5%, cancellation of some bonuses, and a reduction in staff of 2,600 regular employees and 900 workers employed by supplier companies. The negotiated compromise preserves all full-time jobs, with job reductions coming from among the 3,000 agency workers that OKD used and from staff of some suppliers. 
 
A mining union spokesman called the compromise the lesser of two evils. 
 
OKD, the Czech Republic&rsquo;s largest hard coal producer, is wholly owned by New World Resources of the Netherlands, an investment company focusing on assets in Central Europe. In 2008, OKD produced 12.7 million tonnes of coal, of which 7.4 million tonnes was coking coal.

Czech Mining Unions Preserve Pay; OKD to Cut Agency Staff, Suppliers’ Staff

<img height="39" src="" width="100" alt="" />
On 15-16 April, the ICEM organised an Asia/Pacific-wide conference on Contract and Agency Labour (CAL) in Singapore. The conference, attended by 50 trade unionists, was held with the support of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) of Germany. 
 
Participants spoke candidly on the ongoing problems of short-term contract and agency work, and other forms of precarious work, and how it affects their daily lives. The experiences expressed made it abundantly clear that the phenomenon is wide-spread, still on the rise, and detrimental to labour relations in Asia-Pacific countries. Such contributions, in addition to those from the ICEM and the FES, came from Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Nepal and Korea, as well as from Sweden, Denmark, and Germany. 
 
An omnipresent problem is that, in almost every Asian country, regular, permanent, and direct-employed workers are being replaced by CAL workers, who are often paid less than permanent workers. They never get the same benefits, nor do they have much of a job future. In Malaysia, for example, it was said that CAL in the past used to be almost uniquely a problem for migrant workers. This is no longer so. In Pakistan, trade unionists note a sharp increase in the use of &ldquo;piece-rate workers.&rdquo; 

<img height="155" src="" width="240" alt="" />
A concurrent issue expressed by all participants is the fear factor. Contract and agency workers are afraid even to discuss union issues, let alone join a union, since this often translates to an end to their fixed-term contracts. It appears to be a simple matter for companies operating in Asia to remove workers from their workforce, or to shift them to less secure jobs. 
 
Among the numerous other problems mentioned was the lack of respect for law where there is some semblance of existing legal protections, such as in the Philippines, India, or Indonesia. Another problem voiced is that oftentimes there are too many unions in some countries, making cooperation difficult. 
 
The positive news is that unions, slowly but surely, are starting to deal with the problem at all three levels that the global ICEM campaign on CAL is aimed at: legislative changes that not only protect workers from abuses, but also leading to more direct and permanent employment (a promising bill is being readied in the Philippines); work at company level, including making the issue key in collective bargaining as well as an organising priority; and evaluating internal union structures to ensure that CAL workers can effectively join trade unions. This has occurred in Thailand, Malaysia, India, Singapore, and Korea. 
 
An important concern on this latter point, as acknowledged by all, is the need to organise more trade union work at industry or sector level, steering away from company-unionism, where it is often easy for employers to &ldquo;divide and conquer&rdquo; the two sets of workers. 
 
Unfortunately, there are currently still many more problems than success stories. One specific example is the continuing problem in stemming the number of CAL workers at Linde in Thailand, an industrial gases company, and granting full-time, permanent employment to such workers. 
 
Adverse examples given of &ldquo;CAL employment techniques&rdquo; in Asia include the use of standard 17-month contracts, in which the collective agreement calls for more rights and benefits for workers after 18 months. Another is supervisors who openly discriminate against CAL workers linked to a union. In the Philippines, companies have used blank resignation letters, asking CAL workers to sign before they even start work. Other workers have been asked to re-enter their current job, but under another name, thus preventing them from gaining increased benefits, or becoming part of the permanent workforce.

ICEM Singapore Conference Illuminates Problems for Contract, Agency Workers in Region

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
Seven sit-ins at rural offices of three MPs and four Ministers &ndash; including Canada&rsquo;s Finance, Treasury, and Inter-Governmental Affairs Ministries &ndash; got Stephen Harper&rsquo;s attention and the question now is will his government listen. Tomorrow, Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union will stage another manifestation on the crisis facing the forest sector, this time a protest and march that will lead to direct face-to-face talks with the Harper team in Ottawa. 
The sit-ins were carried out early last week in an escalating strategy by the CEP to spotlight the mass job and social loss that has overtaken forest-based communities across Canada. CEP is adamant that it is Harper&rsquo;s responsibility to find the answers. And CEP is ready to work with government to ensure the correct measures are found. 
<img src="" width="200" height="148" alt="" />
March and Rally 
Tuesday, June 2
The sit-ins follow mid-May strategy meetings and a protest at AbitibiBowater&rsquo;s headquarters in Montr&eacute;al. That protest was directed more at the Harper government than at the bankrupt newsprint company. Last week&rsquo;s sit-ins at the rural offices of key lawmakers mean this issue will stay focused on rural Canada&rsquo;s very survival and way-of-life. 
Tomorrow, 2 June, at 11h30 in Ottawa, the CEP will rally first at the offices of Natural Resources Minister Lisa Riatt and then march to Prime Minister Stephen Harper&rsquo;s building. They then will meet with Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, whose Ontario offices in Whitby-Oshawa were the only CEP-occupied offices not in a rural area. 
Six of the seven sit-ins across four of Canada&rsquo;s provinces produced immediate results. Three sit-ins occurred in rural government offices in Qu&eacute;bec, two in British Colombia, and one each in New Brunswick and Ontario. In British Colombia, an MP, Jay Hill, a lead Tory whip in Ottawa from Prince George/Peace River riding, was the only legislator refusing CEP&rsquo;s invitation to discuss the crisis. At the other occupation in British Colombia, inside the offices of John Duncan, Vancouver Island North riding, the CEP spokesman for the occupying team, promised, &ldquo;We plan to keep on making noise and do whatever we have to do&rdquo; to move this government to action. 
<img src="" width="180" height="109" alt="" />
The CEP is demanding financial support for the industry at the federal level. The union is also demanding iron-clad protections on pensions, something that will not be compromised. And CEP will insist tomorrow that the Harper government must enact industry tax relief for companies&rsquo; converting black-liquor from the wood-pulp process to energy. That set of tax breaks exists for pulp and paper firms in the US and the CEP insists on a level playing field. 
The CEP is also demanding a national summit on the forestry crisis in which key stakeholders will decide on strict guidelines aimed at employment stabilisation and forest regeneration measures. The sit-ins made one targeted politician jump on that idea quickly. In Qu&eacute;bec, the Minister for Inter-Governmental Affairs, said she will convene such a summit. 
ICEM affiliate CEP calculates that 55,000 jobs in the forestry sector have been lost over the past two years alone. Far more were lost in earlier years. The impact of these good-paying jobs on others in rural communities &ndash; when those jobs disappear &ndash; is immense and the ripple effects must be multiplied to get the real economic picture.

Canadian Ministry Sit-ins Awaken Stephen Harper to Jobs Crisis

<img height="39" alt="" src="" width="100" />
Australian trade unions have won a first round by stomping on a Rudd government plan to raise the pension age to 67 by the year 2023. This story serves as a global reminder that Australian trade unions will not let down their guard and will prevent a labour government from rolling back into the Howard era. 
 
The plan came inside a Treasury budget proposal to gradually increase the pension age beginning in 2017. Construction, Forestry, Mining, and Energy Union (CFMEU) and the Australian Manufacturing Workers&rsquo; Union (AMWU), and other unions, including the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), posted immediate challenges and Kevin Rudd backed down. 

<img height="93" alt="" src="" width="90" />
But the plan will likely re-surface in coming years, and trade unions now are well placed for full engagement. CFMEU, AMWU, and others correctly label the measure, &ldquo;a path to the false economy&rdquo; and point out that the proposed retirement system unfairly affects low-paid, blue-collar workers, particularly those doing physical labour in construction and industrial sectors. The government&rsquo;s plan disregards future health-care disabilities and the needed funds to maintain an effective and inclusive medical social net. 

<img height="132" alt="" src="" width="100" />
ACTU President Sharon Burrow
ACTU President Sharon Burrow aptly stated that workers&rsquo; bodies are &ldquo;broken way before&rdquo; they reach age 67. Research polling showed that 72% of Australians think the Rudd government plan is unfair to labourers, while 61% think it is unfair to trades and crafts workers. 
 
Separately and a fairer proposal,&nbsp;in a joint letter to Rudd by CFMEU National Secretary John Sutton and AMWU National Secretary Dave Oliver, they&nbsp;said&nbsp;roll-backs of&nbsp;tax concessions on superannuation accounts should be a priority&nbsp;in order to raise revenue. By raising the eligibility threshold at which tax relief is granted on superannuations, the unions maintain, Australia creates equality and fairness for all. 
 
The ICEM commends the CFMEU and AMWU, and all Australian unions, for leading a rapid vanguard over this issue and supports future efforts of trade unions to block similar regressive and anti-people policies.

Australian Unions Push Back Over Pension Age Issue

Archive

International Labour Calls for Reform of the Structures of Global Governance

ICEM Releases Contract and Agency Manual in French, Spanish, Russian

ICEM ile Üye Sendikaları, Türkiye’de 1 Mayıs’ın Tatil Olmasını ve Taksim’de Kutlanmasını İstiyor

ICEM Heyeti Arjantin'deki Krizi İnceledi

ICEM'in Singapur Konferansı Bölgedeki Taşeron İşçilerinin Sorunlarını Ele Aldı

ICEM’s World Rubber Conference Set for Next Week in Nashville USA

Czech Mining Unions Preserve Pay; OKD to Cut Agency Staff, Suppliers’ Staff

ICEM Singapore Conference Illuminates Problems for Contract, Agency Workers in Region

Canadian Ministry Sit-ins Awaken Stephen Harper to Jobs Crisis

Australian Unions Push Back Over Pension Age Issue

About IndustriALL

Follow us

Contact us