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The Executive Committee of the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM) Federation, meeting today 26 May in Geneva, passed three key resolutions. Firstly, the Executive drew sharp attention on the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and its role to improve safety conditions in the world&rsquo;s mines. 
 
The ICEM also passed resolutions reiterating its strong support to the United Steelworkers in Canada in its 11-month strike against Brazilian-based Vale, and support to the National Miners&rsquo; and Metalworkers&rsquo; Union of Mexico (SNTMMSRM), also known as Los Mineros, in its lengthy struggle against Grupo Mexico and the government of Mexico. 
 
The adopted statement on mine safety called on the ILO to do more to press member states to ratify Convention 176, the Safety and Health in Mines Convention. Recent mining tragedies in Turkey and Russia served as a backdrop for the Executive issuing strong rhetoric for immediate action by the ILO. 
 
&ldquo;Our statutory body strongly feels that the ILO must become more pro-active in investigating causes of safety negligence, and insist on a greater trade union role in promoting safe work conditions,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. 
 
In Turkey, the ICEM endorsed today&rsquo;s three one-hour work stoppages by 10,000 miners, strikes that were led by ICEM affiliate Genel Maden-Is. The strikes across the coal-mining region of Zonguldak follow the deadly 17 May methane explosion in the Karadon mine, which killed 30 non-union and short-term contract workers. The strikes were meant as a message to the Turkish government, demanding safe work conditions inside mines, as well as ratification of Convention 176.
The ICEM Executive also condemned faulty pay schemes in mining in several countries, including Russia where monthly salaries are kept extremely low, with miners expected to achieve high production quotas to supplement their pay. This likely was the case at the Raspadskaya mine in the Kemerovo region, where 90 workers died due to methane gas explosions in early May. 
 
The safety statement also addressed a rash of accidents in both the upstream and downstream oil and gas industries, including a refinery explosion in the US state of Washington that killed seven and the Gulf of Mexico disaster. &ldquo;While much is made of the environmental destruction along the United States Gulf coast brought about by the oil rig explosion, which indeed merits attention, little is made of the fact that 11 offshore workers died and 15 others were seriously injured,&rdquo; read the statement. See full resolution <a href="/index.php?id=97&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3794">here</a>. 
 
The resolution regarding the USW strike at three locations of Vale in Canada called attention to the company&rsquo;s ongoing aversion to negotiate in good faith with the union. The global campaign for justice at Vale, by the ICEM, the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF), and affiliates from around the world has improved conditions for workers, said the resolution. See full document <a href="/index.php?id=5&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3796">here</a>. 
 
The third resolution, on Los Mineros&rsquo; struggle against Grupo Mexico and the government of Felipe Calderon, condemns the recent brutal and unprovoked attacks by the Mexican Federal Police on members of the union. The attack is seen as a direct attack on the autonomy of Los Mineros. Police fired on, detained, and physically attacked the workers in the city of L&aacute;zaro C&aacute;rdenas, Michoac&aacute;n. Among those attacked was Mario Garc&iacute;a Ort&iacute;z, Los Mineros&rsquo; special delegate for the State of Michoac&aacute;n, also the Alternative General Secretary of the union and President of the recent Convention of the union. 
 
The ICEM statement calls on the Mexican government to acknowledge the result of the democratic election of the Los Mineros Congress, in which Napoleon Gomez Urrutia was elected. See the full document <a href="/index.php?id=5&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3795">here</a>. 
 
The ICEM is a Global Union Federation consisting of 467 trade unions in 132 countries, representing in total 20 million workers. 
 
For further information, contact ICEM Information Officer, Dick Blin, <a href="mailto:dick.blin@icem.org">dick.blin@icem.org</a>, or +41 79 734 8994 (mobile), or Tom Grinter, ICEM Communications and Campaigns, <a href="mailto:tom.grinter@icem.org">tom.grinter@icem.org</a>, +41 79 693 4499 (mobile).

ICEM Executive Demands ILO Action on Mine Safety, Justice in Canada and Mexico

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Codelco, the state-owned mining company of Chile and world&rsquo;s largest copper producer, reached early terms with three of its five mining unions at El Teniente in Region VI ten days ago. The 40-month agreement will take effect on 1 July 2011 and will cover 2,500 of El Teniente&rsquo;s 4,000 miners. 
 
The branches of Federaci&oacute;n de Trabajadores del Cobre (FTC) that agreed to terms were Sindicato No. 5, Sindicato No. 7, and Sindicato de Trabajadores Caletones. One of the two other branches rejected the proposal, while the other was not included in bargaining. 
 
The package is expected to be considered by those mineworker trade union branches in the coming days. 
 
The collective agreement includes a 3.85% wage increase on 1 July and a CLP 12.3 million (&euro;17,680, US$25,324) bonus, which matches the bonus paid miners at other Codelco divisions in 2010. It also includes an optional loan of CLP 3 million, and a 10% increase in the annual bonus that comes on Chile&rsquo;s national day, 18 September.
<img alt="" src="" width="250" height="115" />
El Teniente is an underground mine that includes some 2,400 kilometres of shafts. It includes an ore processing operation producing molybdenum, and its output of copper lingots and copper anodes is 404,000 tonnes per year. In 2010, it accounted for 27.2% of Codelco&rsquo;s US$5.8 billion profit. 
 
At another Codelco copper operation, Chuquicamata, part of the El Norte division, FTC branches and management met 12 April to discuss staffing requirements. The Chuquicamata mine recently shed a number of jobs due to union-negotiated early retirements as the operation prepares for a conversion from an open-cast mine to an underground one. 
 
FTC Sindicato No. 1 Vice President H&eacute;ctor Roco said the union, and three other FTC branches at Chuquicamata, want workers to be given the opportunity to transfer to areas where retirements have lowered job rolls, and they also want a say in the planning of the transition to underground mining. 
 
Codelco employs 17,000 miners in Chile at five divisions: El Norte, Salvador, Andina, El Teniente, and Ventaras.

Early Accord Comes to One of Codelco’s Copper Mines in Chile

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Metalliliitto, Finland&rsquo;s Metalworkers&rsquo; Union, has reached a tentative agreement with KMW Engineering, preventing for now a blockade on construction of the nuclear power reactor Olkiluoto III. On 13 April, the Polish air-conditioning subcontractor agreed to compensate workers for shortfalls in pay required under Finnish labour standards. 
 
Under the agreement, KMW Engineering did give an accounting that showed arrears in Sunday and overtime pay. It agreed to compensate back wages and pledged to uphold Finnish terms of employment in the future. It also agreed to correct its deficient safety and health standards on the 1.6 gigawatt (1,600 megawatt) nuclear plant.
<img alt="" src="" width="337" height="190" />
Construction of Olkiluoto III 
Photo: YLE/Termonen Tapio&nbsp; 
&nbsp;
Metalliliitto had given the subcontractor until 15 April to comply with Finnish social standards, or face a construction-wide blockade that would have halted all work on Finland&rsquo;s fifth nuclear reactor. (See <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4343-Finland’s-Metalworkers-close-in-on-Blockade-of-Nuclear-Plant-Work">ICEM report</a> from 28 March.) A Metalworkers&rsquo; blockade had endorsement and would have been honoured by Finland&rsquo;s Construction Trades Union, the Electrical Workers&rsquo; Union, and Proliitto, the union for salaried workers of Finland. 
 
A regional state labour agency of Finland&rsquo;s South-West found in late March that KMW did not keep overtime records as required under the working hours act. It also determined that payment of wages for Sunday and overtime work varied. Failure to comply could have brought state sanctions to the nuclear construction site, which would have affected other contractors. 
 
Metalliliitto Compliance Officer Jyrki Virtanen said the union will now fully monitor future social conduct by KMW Engineering. The Olkiluoto III nuclear power station is owned by private-sector energy concern Teollisuuden Voima Oy (TVO), and has as general contractor Areva of France. Olkiluoto III, a &euro;3.95 billion project that is now &euro;1.5 billion over budget, is the biggest investment in the history of Finnish industry.

Finnish Metalworkers, Polish Firm Agree on Backpay at Nuclear Plant

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The ICEM has joined the Swiss union Unia in a community campaign to save 550 paper mill jobs. Sappi, a global leader in the manufacture of coated papers, announced on 31 March that it intends to close its Biberist graphic papers mill, an asset it purchased late in 2008 along with three other European printing and writing papers mills from M-real. 
Unia, with membership numbering only one-tenth of the total Biberist workforce, has taken the lead to preserve jobs. Workers, managers, mill suppliers, and area businesses of Canton Soleure have joined the effort. Sappi&rsquo;s European Works Council (EWC) also has argued for retaining production. A <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/Sappi%20Fine%20Paper%20Europe.pdf">Sappi EWC resolution</a>&nbsp;can be found here.
<img alt="" src="" width="265" height="149" />
&nbsp;Biberist: A Community United to Save Jobs
Unia held a manifestation in Biberist on 16 March that was attended by hundreds of area residents. The ICEM generated some 15 letters from pulp and paper trade unions around the globe supporting Biberist workers and managers who are in the fight to keep the mill open. Those letters were read at the rally. 
Workers also placed a vivid reminder, namely heavy paper rolls, at a round-about in Biberist to remind the public of what&rsquo;s at stake. A German-language <a href="http://www.papierfabrik-biberist.ch">special website for the workers&rsquo; campaign</a> can be found here.
<img alt="" src="" width="234" height="152" />
20,000 Motorists Daily Will Get a Stark Reminder
Unia&rsquo;s campaign asks Sappi to do one of three things, with a priority being the first: maintain operations because production, productivity and sales have been buoyant since Sappi bought the mill; re-think the decision to shutter the mill completely, and sell it to an enterprise that will operate it; if layoffs occur, ensure that superior severance is paid, and job re-training and other social criteria are met to the fullest. 
Sappi will begin consultations with workers&rsquo; representatives in mid-May, with the company scheduling a first set of layoffs as early as late May. The mill could close by late summer. 
In a 14 April letter to Unia Co-Presidents Renzo Ambrosetti and Andreas Rieger, General Secretary Manfred Warda said: ICEM finds it &ldquo;disgraceful that barely two years after Sappi bought four European graphical paper mills of M-real, they intend to close down the second one. To buy enterprises with the intent to shutter them in order to limit competition and maintain high pricing on a product grade is truly despicable.&rdquo;
<img alt="" src="" width="268" height="151" />
Unia Manifestation on 16 April&nbsp;in Biberist
The Global Union Federation also intervened at a Sappi EWC meeting on 20 April that was held in Maastricht, Netherlands, and that <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/ICEMletters/33.ICEM.SAPPI.UNIA.18April.pdf">ICEM message</a> can be found in English here. At that meeting, Biberist was the main topic of discussion, with the EWC expressing dismay over Sappi&rsquo;s decision. 
The EWC argued that Sappi must try to find other paper product grades for manufacture from Biberist, or find a buyer for the mill. Sappi Europe CEO Berry Wiersum said if a good solution can be found, the company might re-consider. 
The EWC also stressed the importance of a substantial redundancy package for workers and if one is not presented, another special meeting of the EWC would be convened. The company responded that such a plan would be done in accord with Swiss law.

ICEM Joins Swiss Workers’ Campaign to Keep Sappi Paper Mill Open

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Six weeks after an earthquake and tsunami decimated the six nuclear reactors inside the Fukushima power plant in northeastern Japan, union members and staff of Denryoku Soren, the ICEM-affiliated Federation of Electric Power Related Industry Workers&rsquo; Union of Japan, work voluntary week-long shifts to contain radiation leakage. They work inside a 20-kilometre zone in which Japanese rescue teams searching for the dead are prohibited from entering due to radiation levels. 
 
Few know it, but inside the offices of Denryoku Soren in Tokyo most work stations are empty. The reason is most union staff workers have volunteered to fill the shortage of workers needed at Fukushima. 
They sleep on concrete floors at Fukushima and consume only bottled water and biscuits for fear that food sources are contaminated. <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/Japanese%20Nuke%20Measures.pdf">Denryoku Soren&rsquo;s letter</a> to the ICEM describing what it is up against can be found here. 
<img alt="" src="" width="170" height="172" />
Last week, ICEM Asia-Pacific Contact Person Phee Jungsun visited Denryoku Soren offices in Tokyo and filed this report: 
 
&ldquo;It is&nbsp;painful to see union officers here in Tokyo, who are exhausted and worried about their fellow workers at the Fukushima site. Those who have returned after their one-week voluntary shifts are calm and doing paperwork, but signs of fatigue show on their faces. 
 
&ldquo;President Seiichi Taneoka, who himself has been to the site, is working hard every minute, organising volunteer shift teams and talking to TEPCO control centre officials on a dedicated telephone line. He is also trying to get assistance from local units of government and local police to locate and reach those union members and their families who are missing and haven&rsquo;t been heard from.&rdquo; 
 
Although the exact total death count is impossible to know, some ICEM affiliates in Japan have started to make assessments. JEC Rengo, the Japanese Federation of Energy and Chemical Workers&rsquo; Unions, confirms that well over 100 of its members are missing, with destruction of members&rsquo; homes totaling over 1,000 in the northeastern Prefecture. The same number is estimated by Zenkoku, the Federation of Gas Workers&rsquo; Unions in Japan. 
 
Other ICEM affiliates in Japan have registered plants and workplaces that have been affected. The Japanese Pulp and Paper Workers&rsquo; Federation has reported mills of Nippon Paper, Mitsubishi Paper Mills, and Oji mills closed or running on limited production. The same is reported at Sumitoma Rubber by Gomu-Rengo, the Rubber Workers&rsquo; Union. UI Zensen, the Textile, Chemical, Food and Commercial Union, also has reported damages and vast devastation to workers, their homes, and places of employment. 
 
Six days after the disaster, the ICEM put a call out to affiliates to provide funds to the ICEM Japanese Affiliates&rsquo; Federation (JAF) for disaster relief. The response was unprecedented, with over US$1 million sent to date to JAF. ICEM Asia-Pacific Region Vice President Kiyoshi Ochiai and JAF General-Secretary Yoshio Sato, through the ICEM, expressed gratitude for the solidarity and generosity: &ldquo;We got heartfelt sympathy and encouragement from all over the world. We deeply appreciate the solidarity and fraternity of ICEM affiliates. We really feel that ICEM is one big family.
<img alt="" src="" width="177" height="156" />
&nbsp;Kiyoshi Ochiai
&ldquo;Our brave members of Denryoku Soren are working hard to speed up recovery efforts in a very difficult situation. The Japanese people are working together to overcome numerous hardships and to get things back to normal with effort and patience. And ICEM JAF keeps engaging in the reconstruction effort.&rdquo; 
 
In typical Japanese fashion, on 28 March, Denryoku Soren withdrew its wage demands on TEPCO that was part of the spring offensive &ldquo;shunto.&rdquo; The union&rsquo;s decision reflects the belief that it cannot continue negotiations for now because of the ongoing tragedies of human life and the devastation in the electric power sector at Fukushima.
Due to a misunderstanding of information that ICEM received there was an incorrect description of events in this article, for which ICEM apologised. See the <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/ICEMletters/37.ICEM.IMFJC.Japan.27April.pdf">letter to IMF-JC</a> here.

Workers of Denryoku Soren Face Dire Plight at Fukushima Nuclear Site

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The General Secretary of the Ghana Mine Workers&rsquo; Union (GMWU), Prince William Ankrah, was elected regional chairman of ICEM&rsquo;s Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Organisation (SSARO) at mid-month. Over 100 delegates from nearly all sub-Saharan African countries attended SSARO&rsquo;s 14-15 April regional conference and meeting in Accra, Ghana. 
 
Comrade Ankrah replaces Rayford Mbulu of the Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ) as the ICEM Vice President for the region. Mbulu resigned the position at the meeting. 
 
The meeting also adopted three resolutions and put forth an action plan based on those resolutions. One resolution called for political stability and sustainable development for creation of jobs, especially for the youth of Africa. Noting the political upheaval and suppression of citizens by despotic rulers in several countries, the resolution condemns military and police repression on people who peacefully advocate for a political system based on economic and social justice. 
<img alt="" src="" width="200" height="150" />
The resolution also condemns &ldquo;the role of the United Nations and the international community which seek to influence the African political landscape to the benefit of the West at the expense of the African people.&rdquo; 
 
A second resolution calls on governments to create an environment for economic growth and job creation, including a realization that 10% of national budgets be allocated to agriculture for food security. It also states that MNCs be allowed to invest in Africa on terms favourable to improving economic growth, preventing environment degradation, creating employment, and improving working conditions. 
 
The third resolution noted African trade unions being weak in membership, collection of fess, and other union-provided services, and calls for continuation of trade union organizational building to reverse those stigmas. It also signaled the proposed integration of the ICEM, International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF), and the International Textile, Garment, and Leather Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITGLWF) as &ldquo;a progressive move that unites workers and builds international solidarity.&rdquo; 
 
The body pledged to continue current campaigns, including HIV/AIDS awareness and testing processes, decent work and decent pay, continued safety training on radiation in mining, shop steward and other interchanges between unions of different countries, promotion of the ILO&rsquo;s Maternity Protection Convention 183, and pressing countries to ratify the Mine Safety and Health Convention, ILO No. 176, a campaign in which the GMWU is charged with heading. 
 
The African Regional Organisation Secretary-General of the International Trade Union Confederation, Kwasi Adu-Amankwah of Ghana, addressed delegates. 
<img alt="" src="" width="118" height="132" />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<img alt="" src="" width="114" height="132" />
Christine Olivier&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kwasi Adu-Amankwah
Christine Olivier, Second Vice President of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), was elected as SSARO Women&rsquo;s Chairperson, replacing Jane Ragoo of Mauritius, while Frans Baleni of South Africa, Achese Igwe of Nigeria, and Paul Felex Bayiha of Cameroon were confirmed as ICEM Executive Committee members for three of SSARO&rsquo;s seats on the governing body.

ICEM’s African Region Elects Prince William Ankrah as Chairman

The ICEM&rsquo;s Japanese Affiliates Federation (JAF) has been using many of its own resources, and nearly all of its time and energy to deal with the horrible after effects of last Friday&rsquo;s earthquake and tsunami. The ICEM has been in contact with JAF several times daily in order to determine the federation&rsquo;s needs. What follows is a Circular Letter from General Secretary Manfred Warda to all ICEM affiliates alerting them on how they can help:
Please Contribute: Japanese Earthquake/Tsunami Relief 

Dear ICEM Affiliated Unions, 
 
Many of you have inquired over the past several days the best means to contribute to Relief Funds handling the horrible disaster in Japan. You should know that we have been in constant touch with JAF, the ICEM&rsquo;s Japanese Affiliates Federation, and they have been doing the very best they can, under unimaginable circumstances, to come to the assistance of their electric energy, oil and gas, and other union members in North-east Japan, as well as in other areas. 
 
As is ICEM policy in such natural disasters, we ask that you consider contributions to your local or national Red Cross or UNICEF agencies, with the earmark of Japanese Earthquake/Tsunami Fund. 
 
But we also have been informed by JAF General Secretary Yoshio Sato that JAF has set up an account in its Tokyo Bank to handle relief efforts undertaken by the unions. The bank transfer coordinates there: 
 
Bank Name: Mizuho Bank, Ltd. 
Swift Code: MHBKJPJT 
Branch name: Shiba Branch 
Branch Address: 5-34-7, Shiba, Minato-Ku, Tokyo 108-0014, Japan 
Account Name: Nihon Kagaku Enerugi-Kouzan Roudoukumiai Kyougikai 
Account Number: 054-3316103 
 
Please state in the transfer &ldquo;Earthquake.&rdquo; 
 
Obviously, ICEM and ICEM JAF are very grateful for any and all contributions. And messages of Support and Solidarity can still be sent, addressed to <a href="mailto:icemjaf@blue.ocn.ne.jaf">Yoshio Sato</a>.
Lastly, please take a moment to reflect on the safety and health of the courageous workers, members of JAF affiliate Denryoku Soren, who are working non-stop on the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. These and other JAF members who are working around the clock on Japanese security, relief efforts, and tending in so many ways to abate this disaster are the real heroes in the world today. They deserve our Support and Solidarity. 
 
Again, thank you for your efforts. 
 
In Solidarity, 
 
Manfred Warda 
General Secretary

ICEM’s Japanese Affiliates Identify Earthquake Relief

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
A wage strike broke out last week in Argentina&rsquo;s Zarate-Campana petrochemical complex when members of the Zarate branch of the Federation of Chemical and Petrochemical Workers&rsquo; Unions (FESTIQyPRA) walked out at six companies. Workers and their unions are seeking 2011 wage hikes over a series of instalments that will keep pace with the country&rsquo;s high inflation rate. 
 
The companies affected include Petrobras, Bunge, Rohm and Haas, Lanxess, Atanor, and Dow. At the Petrobras petrochemical plant, production stopped on 5 March due to the company seeking a safe and orderly shutdown. FESTIQyPRA Zarate is negotiating with the Chamber of the Chemical and Petrochemical Industry (CIQyP), and the sides are now in mediation that is being conducted by the Argentina&rsquo;s Ministry of Work. 
<img alt="" src="" width="120" height="117" />
FESTIQyPRA&rsquo;s Nelson Palacios said workers are justified in asking for a general 25% pay rise, with minimum wage workers expected to gain more. FESTIQyPRA Zarate also seeks a fixed remuneration sum of ARS 2,463 (&euro;437, US$611) added to the base wage between May 2011 and February 2012. 
 
Palacios said the union&rsquo;s proposal calls for 30% of the total to be awarded in May 2011, with other increments to follow in October, December, and in February 2012. Several collective agreements in Argentina are on the brink of dispute, including ones in metals, oil and gas, and in service industries. CGT General Secretary Hugo Moyano has stated that a 2011 increase of 28% is in line for workers to meet the rampant run-up in Argentina&rsquo;s inflation rate. 
 
FESTIQyPRA is affiliated to CGT. The Zarate-Campana petrochemical plants are in northeast Argentina, in Buenos Aires province and situated on the Paran&aacute; River.

FESTIQyPRA Zarate Branch in Argentina Strikes 6 Chemical Companies

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
Trade unions organizing employees at the German-based industrial gas company Linde in ICEM&rsquo;s Asia-Pacific Region creates a workers&rsquo; network at a first-ever meeting, held in Singapore on 13-14 December 2010. The meeting was realized with political and financial support provided by ICEM&rsquo;s long-standing project partner Friedrich-Ebert-Foundation (FES) 
 
Union representatives from Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea, and Vietnam attended the meeting while Michael Wolters, International Secretary of ICEM German affiliate IGBCE, Kemal &Ouml;zkan, ICEM&rsquo;s Chemical and Rubber Industries Officer, Dr. Stefanie Elies, FES Office for Regional Cooperation in Asia, Andr&eacute; Edelhoff, FES Office Singapore, Yoon Hyo-Won, ICEM Asia-Pacific Project Coordinator, and Indah Saptori, ICEM Indonesian Project Coordinator, also participated. 
<img src="" width="320" height="206" alt="" />
The objective of this regional network meeting was defined as a first exchange of experiences in order to build a foundation for a steady network of unions representing workers at the Linde&rsquo;s regional locations. It was pointed out that it would not be possible to solve individual or local problems by this network meeting. 
 
ICEM&rsquo;s &Ouml;zkan presented information on the gas industry in general, while IGBCE&rsquo;s Wolters told of Linde&rsquo;s industrial structure in Germany and Europe. Specifically, Wolters defined the work of the Works Council system in Germany and the work of the European Works Council of the company. 
 
The participating union representatives gave information about the situation in their home countries, which varies from country to country. In Indonesia, labour relations for unions follow a high standard of regulations, and stable situations also exist at Linde plants in Singapore and Vietnam. But in Thailand, there are big problems and conflicts with the management, while the situation of the union in South Korea is extremely difficult. 
<img src="" width="221" height="186" alt="" />
&Ouml;zkan gave a perspective on the issue of Contract and Agency Labour, or &ldquo;precarious work.&rdquo; This was then discussed by participants regarding use of non-regular or short-term contract workers at Linde plants in Asia. At all of the locations have some variations of precarious work, such as broad outsourcing of work, use of temporary agency workers, or non-regular casual workers. In Thailand, logistics will be completely outsourced until 2012 with the effect of a wage reduction for workers affected. Global Framework Agreements and union networks were also discussed at the meeting. 
 
The participants of the meeting agreed to set up a regular e-mail communication system among them. Kelvin Tang from Singapore was given responsibility for forming the communication network. The participants committed to inform their local and national unions about the results of the meeting, and will as well address their local managements. One result of the December meeting is to organise a special meeting regarding the situation in Thailand.

Linde Industrial Gas Workers’ Network Created in Asia-Pacific

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The ICEM&rsquo;s affiliate in Pakistan, the Pakistan Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers (PCEM), is fighting against severe breaches of workers&rsquo; rights to organise and bargain collectively at the Swiss-based agri-chemicals multinational, Syngenta. 
 
On 23 December, members of the Syngenta Employees Union Pakistan, belonging to PCEM, arrived at work to find announcement in the company newspaper that their union&rsquo;s General Secretary had his employment terminated as of 22 December, with no justified reason given. Brother Imran Ali, who is also the President of the national union PCEM, had no warning prior to learning the news in the &ldquo;Daily Jang&rdquo; newspaper. 
 
In a letter to the Chairman and CEO of the global pesticide producer Syngenta, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda condemned the flagrant breach of conduct of local management as a clear attempt to dismantle the union. Warda highlighted the commitments of Sygenta in the company&rsquo;s Code of Conduct, and also in their signatory status to the Global Compact. See the full letter <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/158%20Letter%20to%20Syngenta%20management.pdf">here</a>. 
<img alt="" src="" width="190" height="188" />
ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda
Prior to Mr. Imran&rsquo;s sacking, he was summoned to the human resources department, where he was told by Mushir Ahmed Jaffery, personnel manager, Syed Saad Khalil, manager for Information Services, Col. Jalal, head of Security, and Rizwana Mujeeb, head of human resources, to sign a blank paper. When İmran refused, he was threatened with bad consequences if he refused to withdraw from his trade union activities. 
 
Imran, as labor union president, was about to submit a draft collective agreement which would have been effective as of 1 January 2011. 
 
Later in the same day that he was sacked, 23 December, the head of Syngenta&rsquo;s security in Pakistan, Jalal, a retired military officer in Pakistan, met with 50 union members who had worked at the company on temporary contracts and filed cases at the Labour Court for permanent employee status. Jalal threatened and intimidated the workers to withdraw their legal petitions and resign from Syngenta. One of those workers, Muhammad Nadeem, a diabetic and heart patient, suddenly died of a heart attack on 24 December, as a direct result of this pressure from management. 
 
Those workers had received the support of the Labour Court on 18 December, which declared in favour of their grievance petitions, entitling them to permanent employment immediately. Syngenta Pakistan management refused to acknowledge the judgement of the Labour Court. 
<img alt="" src="" width="120" height="54" />
The company management&rsquo;s refusal to consider the collective bargaining agreement, continued on 28 December as Jalal called in paramilitary forces to the Syngenta plant and threatened workers not to support the agreement or the union. Instead, he told them to join a yellow union, otherwise management would outsource the production unit and sack all current employees. The workers refused. 
 
The company responded to ICEM allegations saying that they had acted within the law and without regret. Brother Imran Ali is still awaiting reinstatement in his job, but with no indication from management that this will happen. 
 
The ICEM demands the full reinstatement of Imran, with full back pay and benefits, as well as the lawful recognition of the 50 workers who won their case in the Labour Court for rights to permanent employment at Syngenta.

ICEM Fights for Reinstatement of Union Leader in Pakistan

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