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Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s Labour Ministry will convene another conciliation meeting tomorrow, 8 August, in order to avert further job actions by trade unionists of ICEM affiliate Oilfield Workers&rsquo; Trade Union (OWTU). Hundreds of OWTU members shut down the country&rsquo;s only oil refinery at Point-a-Pierre from 23 July to 27 July in protest to state-run oil company Petrotrin&rsquo;s insufficient three-year contract offer.
OWTU has been attempting to reach an accord with Petrotrin for 1,500 refinery, exploration and production workers since last year. The labour dispute centers on wages and general work terms and conditions. All five labour agreements &ndash; covering 5,000 workers &ndash; between OWTU and the company have now expired, and the union is seeking a fair and just settlement for renewal agreements dating from 2005 to 2008. 
 
On 24 July, Petrotrin requested government mediation. Refinery workers, frustrated by management&rsquo;s bargaining table intransigence in a time of booming oil and gas profits, began job actions a day earlier. The two parties met with Labour Ministry officials on 27 July and again on 3 August in attempts to resolve issues, and tomorrow&rsquo;s meeting is termed pivotal in terms of future actions. 
 
&ldquo;The demonstration by workers recently was a show of disgust over the company&rsquo;s meagre offer,&rdquo; said OWTU President Errol McLeod. &ldquo;The situation is not stable enough now to assure anybody that more demonstrations will not occur.&rdquo; 
 
OWTU members at the former Texaco refinery in Point-a-Pierre did strike on 5-6 June over stalled talks, in addition to safety issues. Other Petrotrin workers, including offshore workers, struck a month earlier due to lack of progress in negotiations. In March, refinery workers began the job actions by waging two separate strikes. 
 
The Point-a-Pierre refinery produces 160,000 barrels-per-day of petrol, diesel and oil for domestic consumption and export to other Caribbean nations and the US. The refinery is expanding to include a US$150 million methanol plant for gas to liquids conversion. Petrotrin will have 49% ownership in the new enterprise, with the 2,250 barrel-per-day plant led by New York-based start-up company World GTL

Trinidad’s Oil Workers Take Action for Fair Contract

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The selective strike by ICEM Norwegian oil workers&rsquo; union NOPEF ended late on 24 July following a mediated session by the government. The 34-day strike against oil service companies operating on Norway&rsquo;s Continental Shelf proved highly effective, and produced a new two-year agreement that fulfils NOPEF&rsquo;s demands toward normalising the national oil services agreement with other collective agreements in the country&rsquo;s energy sector. 
 
The accord also matches the other agreements in the sector with the first-year wage increase, and provides an even better salary pay-out for 2007. Effective 1 July 2006, oil service workers in Norway, numbering some 2,650, receive a 5.9% wage increase. In 2007, a lump sum bonus of NOK 17,000 (US$2,800) was won. 
 
But more significantly, the 2006-2006 agreement sets forth a protocol that will begin moving oil service companies to the standard rotation schedule of two-weeks on, four-weeks off. Local discussions toward that work schedule will now occur, with NOPEF and the employers&rsquo; federation, Oil Industry Association (OLF), meeting in February 2007 to review the progress. 
 
NOPEF also achieved an increase in night work, added pay for holidays, and increases in food and travel pay and arrangements. The union did not achieve pay for waiting time, but that issue will be prioritised for talks in future renewal contracts. Workers will now vote on the new contract, with the vote to be completed by 1 September. 
 
NOPEF&rsquo;s strike against oil service contractors began on 21 June. The union called but 87 workers out on strike against just a handful of employers, knowing that such a strategy would place pressure on the oil majors in their drilling and development projects. The main employers targeted were Halliburton, Baker Hughes, Schlumberger, Weatherford and Oceaneering. 
 
The ICEM salutes NOPEF for carrying out a tactical and effective strike in achieving a national oil services agreement that has proven to be the most difficult in the Norwegian energy sector. The will and discipline from a set of highly-skilled workers and trade unionists has now brought major employers providing oil services closer to the work rules and terms of other companies operating inside Norway&rsquo;s oil patch.

NOPEF Wins Oil Services Strike in Norway

Probes into deadly coal mine disasters in the Americas earlier this year are now coming into focus. And at two of the worst &ndash; the Sago mine blast in the US state of West Virginia on 2 January and the 19 February explosion at Grupo Mexico&rsquo;s Pasta de Conchos No. 8 mine in Mexico&rsquo;s Coahuila state &ndash; inadequate government safety monitoring and a reckless company safety culture are just part of the causes.
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
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&nbsp; 
In Mexico, a report issued last week by the government&rsquo;s National Human Rights Commission said, in 2004, safety officials of Mexico&rsquo;s Labour Department identified 48 major problems in Grupo Mexico&rsquo;s Minera Mexicana mine. The report added, however, that nothing was done to correct the deficiencies until just 12 days before the explosion. Sixty-five miners were killed in the February 2006 mine blast, the majority of them contract workers who were given no training and inadequate oxygen supply devices. Some 25 of the miners killed were members of Mexico&rsquo;s Miners &amp; Metalworkers Union (SNTMMSRM). 
 
The Human Rights Commission stated that Labour Department officials tolerated carelessness and neglect on behalf of company safety representatives, and that they &ldquo;had full knowledge of the working conditions of the mine where the catastrophe occurred (that) infringed on security standards,&rdquo; said a statement from the agency. The government knew of problems with lighting and underground signal systems, as well as gas and oil leaks and a faulty smoke-release system. 
 
In the US, a joint state and federal investigation into the Sago disaster that killed 12 miners has found that company officials had workers falsify documents. Testimony saw workers admitting they had signed documentation brought to them by bosses that they had attended safety classes and training, when, if fact, they had not. Sago is owned by the Wolf Run Mining Co., one of many coal mines in the eastern United States bought in bankruptcy proceedings by US-based investment house International Coal Group (IGC).
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&nbsp;An in-depth investigation done by a Pennsylvania newspaper, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also found that seals inside the non-union Sago mine&rsquo;s safety chambers were poorly constructed, using materials unable to withstand the force of a methane explosion. 
 
IGC attempted to bar safety officials from ICEM affiliate United Mineworkers of America (UMWA) from playing a role in the Sago disaster&rsquo;s investigation, even though miners and family members of victims sought such help. Under mine safety regulations in the US, such union assistance in non-union worksites is permissible if so requested. IGC had private security forces physically stop UMWA safety officials from entering the mine property following the explosion, and the US government had to sue the company in order that the mine safety law was honoured. A US District Court ruled in favour of UMWA involvement late in January, but IGC appealed that ruling to a higher court. Last month, the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the district court&rsquo;s verdict.

Mine Safety Probes in the Americas Progress

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UK paperworkers, members of the Graphical, Paper and Media Division of Amicus, voted by nearly a two-to-one margin to approve a new pay package for 2007. The agreement covers some 3,500 workers in paper mills represented by the employers association, the Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI). 
 
Year 2007 pay gains will total 3%, similar to the wage increases achieved by Amicus with CPI for the corrugated packaging sector late last year. Paper mill workers voting for the 2007 wage increase numbered 1,351, while those voting against, 777. 
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This set of wage talks follows detailed negotiations over an 18-month period between the Amicus and CPI for a new national collective agreement for the UK&rsquo;s papermaking sector. The industry has been hard hit by rising energy costs and higher raw material costs, resulting in mill and paper machine shutdowns. The latest example is M-Real&rsquo;s closure of its 350-worker Sittingbourne mill in Kent. 
 
British paperworkers are due to ballot on a joint partnership plan with CPI, called &ldquo;Work Together, Grow Together, Stay Together.&rdquo; The programme will emphasize learning and skills, work-life balances, and better safety at work practices, as well as workplace improvement methods with employee information and consultation processes.

Paperworkers of Amicus Ratify 2007 Pay Gains in UK

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Two short strikes in Zambia&rsquo;s copper belt ended early in March with assurances from managers that miners&rsquo; grievances would be addressed. On 7 March, a seven-day strike by 1,000 miners at Luanshya Copper Mines ended with the company pledging to ICEM affiliate Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ) that it would rescind its threat to sack strike leaders, and engage in earnest wage talks with the union. 
 
Another strike at the Mufulira and Nkana mines of Mopani Copper, owned by Swiss Glencore International and First Quantum Minerals of Canada, started on 1 March and ended two days later when Mopani&rsquo;s 7,000 miners began returning to work. MUZ entered bargaining there with the company and secured an 18% wage increase for miners. 
At Luanshya, owned by J&amp;W Investment Group Ltd., miners marched to the offices of the company on 1 March after they received their February salaries. MUZ President Rayford Mbulo said management had threatened to dismiss strike leaders and other miners. He asserted that Luanshya managers had stated on five occasions that they were not willing to accept miners&rsquo; demands, despite workers meeting all the companies set production goals. 
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&ldquo;Management should not just be issuing threats of dismissing workers, but should take time to reflect on (workers&rsquo;) actions,&rdquo; said Mbulo to the Times of Zambia on the first day of the strike. He said the position of MUZ is that since copper prices have doubled over the past two years and the Luanshya mine was at peak production, it was only fair that miners were appropriately rewarded.
Workers at Luanshya earn as little as US$200 per month. They are seeking a fair wage increase, in part, because they now pay for basic services, including water and electricity. Previously, the Zambian state mining company paid such expenses. 
 
At Mopani, miners began returning to work on 3 March as an act of good faith that negotiations would succeed. The strike did force the company to increase its wage offer from 16% to 18%.

Two Copper Strikes in Zambia End with Assurances, Pay Gains for Miners

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While women across the globe celebrated work/life accomplishments on 8 March 2007, women in Iran had to cancel a planned demonstration for women&rsquo;s rights because of certain arrests. Only four days earlier, over 30 women were arrested while protesting and detained at Evin Prison in Tehran. 
 
In Palestine, different from Iran in that a vibrant trade union movement is underway, women celebrated through their union, ICEM affiliate Petroleum, Mining, and Chemicals Workers of Palestine (GUPMCWP). The union marked the day in a moving statement by paying tribute to the hard-won efforts of women everywhere, and then letting women leaders of the union speak for themselves. 
 
GUPMCWP Head Mohammed Jadallah said the day must be held up as one in which women have &ldquo;crossed the border&rdquo; between balancing family life with work in all walks of life. He said country after country began recognising International Women&rsquo;s Day in the early 20th Century when &ldquo;women started pushing the wheel of the economy in the west.&rdquo; 
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The head of the union&rsquo;s women&rsquo;s committee as well as the union&rsquo;s International Officer, Dr. Nuzha Mohammed Jadallah, said the participation of women in all trade unions must strengthen, and that mass participation by women must occur in all &ldquo;activities and organisations of civil society.&rdquo; 
The GUPMCWP&rsquo;s Nabeela Mahmmoud said the ability of women to take different courses regarding trade union issues is paramount to building strong women leaders. She said that &ldquo;educating the unionist women&rdquo; to the key roles they can play inside the union is the surest way to a strong union. 
 
The GUPMCWP concluded the statement by declaring their solidarity with the women strikers of Turkish ICEM affiliate, Petrol-İş, at Fresenius Medical Care. The Palestinian union said it was proudly supporting the strikers &ldquo;until they achieve their demands of dignity and justice, on and off the job, and our union in Palestine stands firmly with them to achieve their just demands. The working women in Palestine congratulate them on this International Women&rsquo;s Day, and the victory that is to follow for their and their union, Petrol-İş.&rdquo;

Women in Iran Try to Celebrate Women’s Day, Palestinian Women Share Thanks on 8 March

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Union members of Lastik-İş, ICEM&rsquo;s Turkish trade union affiliate in chemicals and rubber, returned to their jobs at a pharmaceutical factory in Istanbul, following a six-day plant occupation that ended on 6 March by police force. 
 
Workers became angry when the Turkish arm of the Menarini Group, an Italian-based pharmaceutical firm, sacked ten union leaders after it became evident that the company, İbrahim Etham İla&ccedil;lari A.Ş., would not abide by a Supreme Court of Appeals decree recognising Lastik-İş as the workers&rsquo; bargaining representative. 
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Armoured police, together with security personnel and company management, forcefully ended the workers&rsquo; occupation on 6 March. Workers then gathered at plant gates, but police physically dispersed the assembled. Managers fired seven more Lastik-İş leaders in the final days of the occupation, bringing to 17 the number of sackings in this blatant abuse of trade union rights. 
 
During the six-day occupation, managers locked the gates to the plant cafeteria as a prelude to the stronger force that was to come. Workers improvised by bringing food from the outside past management&rsquo;s security team. Management has now agreed to meet with workers&rsquo; representatives, but not with Lastik-İş officials. 
 
Lastik-İş General President Abdullah Karacan spoke to family members, supporters and other workers outside the factory each day of the occupation. DISK President S&uuml;leyman Celebi spoke as well. Lastik-İş is part of this national labour centre. 
<img height="188" alt="" src="" width="250" /> 
 
Lastik-İş President Abdullah Karacan meeting outside the plant on 28 February
In mid-February, following the Supreme Court&rsquo;s decree, Lastik-İş called a workers&rsquo; meeting to discuss the decree and a future course of action. Menarini bosses countered by scheduling overtime work in efforts to prevent the meeting. Workers responded by occupying the plant, for the first time, on 21-22 February. On 28 February, the company fired five union activists. It repeated that illegal action on 2 March by sacking five more. 
 
In the days leading up to the second plant occupation, Lastik-İş did force one meeting with management, which included representatives from KIPLAS, the chemical employers&rsquo; association. İbrahim Etham İla&ccedil;lari managers promised to take the global labour standards issue to Italian headquarters of Menarini in Florence. At that point, workers and their union, Lastik-İş, promised to stop the job actions. 
 
But the truce was short-lived. Plant managers claim they are following corporate guidelines from Menarini by staying within the bounds of Turkish national law, even though such appeals have come to mean staunch union-avoidance by employers in Turkey through endless legal delays. 
 
In an 8 March letter to Menarini Chairman Alberto Aleotti, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda said the company&rsquo;s anti-worker behaviour is &ldquo;flagrantly violating accepted trade union and human rights laid down in the core Conventions of the International Labour Organisation.&rdquo; 
<img height="174" alt="" src="" width="223" />
The ICEM letter added: &ldquo;For the last two years, your company has cynically abused the present Turkish legislation to make, what we are reliably informed, are spurious appeals, to the court system, and in this intervening period mounted major attacks on the right to freedom of association of your workforce in an attempt to pressure workers to resign their union membership.&rdquo; 
 
The ICEM is demanding that Menarini immediately intervene &ldquo;in what now has become a very volatile labour dispute to resolve the differences between the workers legally and lawfully represented by Lastik-İş and &hellip; this subsidiary company.&rdquo; 
 
Menarini is a privately-held, 121-year-old company priding itself on research and internationalisation. It is Europe&rsquo;s twenty-fourth largest chemicals company and does business in therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular, gastro-intestinal, antibiotics respiratory, anti-diabetics, and anti-inflammatory analgesics.

Tension Eases at Turkish Plant as Pharma Workers End Occupation

<a href="https://conventionsplusrfpdb.staralliance.com/jsp/DelegateLogin.jsp"></a>


<a href="www.staralliance.com/conventionsplus"><img height="94" alt="" src="" width="300" border="0" /></a>
The ICEM has signed a Star Alliance Conventions Plus, enabling delegations to obtain reduced prices for air travel to the ICEM World Congress in Thailand.

 
Get up to 20% discount with the Star Alliance network
The Star Alliance&trade; member airlines are pleased to be appointed as the Official Airline Network for the 4th ICEM World Congress. 
 
Simply call the reservation office of any participating Star Alliance member airline and quote the event code TG004S7. Registered participants plus one accompanying person travelling to the event are automatically granted a discount of up to 20%, depending on the class of travel. 
 
Participating airlines for this event are: Thai Airways International, Air Canada, ANA, Asian Airlines, Austrian Airlines, LOT Airlines, Lufthansa, South African Airways, SAS, Swiss, Tap Portugal and&nbsp;United. 
 
Booking office information can be found at: <a href="http://www.staralliance.com/conventionsplus">www.staralliance.com/conventionsplus</a>. &nbsp; 
 
Discounts are offered on published business and economy class fares, excluding website/internet fares, senior and youth fares, group fares and Round the World fares. 
 
Please note: For travel from Japan and New Zealand, special fares or discounts are offered by the participating airlines on their own network.&nbsp;

Star Alliance special discount on airfare for delegates to the ICEM World Congress

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&nbsp;1. Finland &ndash; Study on Working Conditions Reveals Gaps in Male and Female Employment 
2. ITUC: Message on 8th of March 
3. Japan &ndash; Number of Part-time Workers Declines 
4. Malta &ndash; Malta has one of the Lowest Gender Pay Gaps 
5. Mexico &ndash; New Law Passed on Violence against Women 
6. Nepal &ndash; GEFONT Organises Domestic Workers 
7. Spain &ndash; CCOO and UGT Issue Joint Statement on International Women&rsquo;s Day 
8. Thailand &ndash; Thailand Women&rsquo;s Forum Held 
9. Turkey &ndash; Petrol-Iş Sponsors Women Writers 
10. United Kingdom &ndash; Single Women Do less Housework 
11. United States &ndash; 3-Day &lsquo;Sisters on the Frontline&rsquo; Seminar in NYC in late March 
12. Resources
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1. Finland &ndash; Study on Working Conditions Reveals Gaps in Male and Female Employment 
A recent study on employment in Europe indicates the differences in employment between women and men. Sweden and Finland are the countries with the lowest gaps. In Finland, the low gap is due to the fact that the rate of female employment is very high and the rate of male employment is low. 
Working conditions in Europe have remained relatively stable over the past few years in spite of the increases in part-time and temporary work and the greater number of women working. 
 
The following figures indicate the levels of male and female employment in 31 countries in Europe and refer to 2004:
<img height="740" alt="" src="" width="379" />
For more information, see: Fourth European Working Conditions Surveys 
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2. ITUC: Message on 8th of March 
This year, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) is launching a campaign on maternity protection for 8 March. The aim is to promote governments ratifying ILO Convention 183. The ITUC has resources and tools available for this purpose, including a new video on the informal economy. To find out more, see: <a href="http://www.ituc-csi.org/">www.ituc-csi.org</a>. 
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3. Japan &ndash; Number of Part-time Workers Declines 
In the midst of an economic recovery in Japan, employers are hiring more full-time workers, after the number of part-timers reached a record high in 2005. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare presented figures to the government, which indicate that the level has reached a five-year low. 
Part-timers are defined as those who work less than 35 hours a week. They make up 22.5% of total employment, which is a 1.5% decline. Over 8.6 million women work part-time, as opposed to 3.4 million men. 
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4. Malta &ndash; Malta has one of the Lowest Gender Pay Gaps
A new report from the European Commission details the gender-related differences in pay earned by women and men. These 2007 conclusions are very similar to those presented over the past few years. The biggest differences in pay, between 20 to 25%, are in Cyprus, Slovakia, Estonia, Germany, and the UK, while the lowest differences, under 5%, can be found in Malta and Portugal. 
 
Some countries have been forcing companies to provide detailed arguments for their pay discrepancies, and this pressure has contributed to some improvement. Public sector pay gaps are generally less striking than in the private sector, where the typical pay gap is 25%. 
 
The EU Commission argues for more and better childcare facilities to enable women to pursue careers, because women often have no choice but to work part-time in order to continue looking after their families. All over Europe, 32.9% of women work part-time as opposed to 7.7% of men. The highest number of part-timers is in the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, UK, and Germany. However, very few women work part-time in the new member states. 
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5. Mexico &ndash; New Law Passed on Violence against Women
A new law was passed in February in Mexico to provide tools for fighting violence against women. The law ensures involvement by the police at all levels, the courts, media and schools. 
 
By law, the Ministry of the Interior can call an emergency due to an outbreak of gender violence to enable the response to be coordinated by the federal and local police and the courts. Measures to protect women must be taken, such as removing the aggressor from home. 
 
A national education campaign is now running, and a national data base is being created to document cases of violence against women. Studies are being done to diagnose the extent of the violence, and more women&rsquo;s shelters are being promoted. 
 
The law orders gender training for police, prosecutors and other relevant officials. The government has been sponsoring ads on radio and television to warn perpetrators of violence that they will be punished. 
 
It is hoped that the law will improve the situation in a country where the murder rate of women due to violence is high. Seventy-five percent of these women are murdered by their husbands. Impunity has perpetuated these crimes, and means that the many murders in Ciudad Juarez, on the border with the US, have gone unpunished up to now. But now the law will hopefully provide some justice. 
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6. Nepal &ndash; GEFONT Organises Domestic Workers 
GEFONT organised a meeting of domestic workers on 2 February which culminated in the formation of the Nepal Independent Domestic Workers&rsquo; Union with a 13-member coordinating committee. The union will be registered as a national federation. This year, a national convention will be held. More than 200 domestic workers from the Katmandu Valley participated in the event. 
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7. Spain &ndash; CCOO and UGT Issue Joint Statement on International Women&rsquo;s Day 
The 8 March Manifesto, issued by the two Spanish confederations, CCOO and UGT, passes in review the highs and lows of the past year. One of the highs was the new Spanish equal opportunities law, which provides for the negotiation of equality plans in companies with more than 250 employees, 13 days of paternity leave, and more flexible requirements for maternity pay and subsidies. 
 
Not all has been rosy, however, especially outside of Spain &ndash; where hundreds of women are murdered in Mexico and Guatemala, connivance by the police in rapes in Nigeria, and women stoned to death in Iran. CCOO and UGT have been involved in the fight to achieve the millennium development goals. 
 
Spanish women still lag behind other women in Europe. While the average rate of women&rsquo;s employment in the rest of Europe is 57.4%, in Spain it is only 54.1%. Women&rsquo;s rate of unemployment in countries outside of Spain is 9%, whereas in Spain it is 12.2%. However, agreements have been reached in the framework of social dialogue which will hopefully improve this situation. 
 
Collective bargaining has also contributed to positive developments, with 52% of collective agreements containing clauses on non-discrimination or gender equality. 
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From our readers: 
Carol Fraser of the Communications, Energy, and Paperworkers (CEP) union of Canada sends greetings on International Women&rsquo;s Day, as well as links to two sites in Canada to celebrate the day: <a href="http://www.cfc-swc.gc.ca/dates/iwd/index_e.html">www.cfc-swc.gc.ca/dates/iwd/index_e.html</a>&nbsp;where it is a question of taking real action against violence against women and <a href="http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/womensday/index.asp">www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/womensday/index.asp</a> which indicates activities that can be done in schools.
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8. Thailand &ndash; Thailand Women&rsquo;s Forum Held
The Thailand Women&rsquo;s Forum was held in Bangkok on 3 and 4 March to celebrate Women&rsquo;s Day. The forum was intended to provide space for exchange and sharing between women, men, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, people living with HIV and civil organisations who work for democracy, protest unfair trade, protect their communities and fight for women&rsquo;s rights. 
 
Discussions focused on neo-liberalism and free trade agreements, health, gender roles, sexual relationships, oppression from customs and religion and building alternatives. The forum was organised by Thai Labour Campaign, among other sponsors. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
9. Turkey &ndash; Petrol-Iş Sponsors Women Writers 
In this month of March 2007, Petrol-Iş has launched a contest for women to write stories. All women home workers, factory workers, public workers, temporary workers, non-unionised, sub-contracted workers, women at home or outside the home are possible themes for the contest. 
 
The stories must not have been published before. Professional or non-professional writers are eligible to participate. Anyone can send in stories of between 3 and 10 pages, and the deadline is 25 March. A women&rsquo;s jury will be judging the entries, and First, Second, and Third Place given. 
 
Petrol-Iş will publish all stories. The results will be declared on 2 May and prizes awarded at Petrol-Iş headquarters. 
Please see also ICEM&rsquo;s InBrief of 26 February, or the ICEM Circular on the ICEM&rsquo;s home page for information on the Petrol-Iş strike against Fresenius. A remarkable group of women are on strike at this medical facility in Turkey, and they deserve whatever support we can generate. 
 
All are invited to take action on 8 March through <a href="/">www.icem.org</a>, where a model letter of support is available in different languages. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
10. United Kingdom &ndash; Single Women Do less Housework 
Single women do an average of ten hours of housework a week, while it increases to 15 hours when they live as a couple. Men, on the other hand, spend seven hours on housework when they are single, with it reduces to five when they live in a couple. 
 
The conclusion is that gender inequalities at home have a major influence on gender inequalities at work, and vice versa. 
 
What is needed is for women to gain equal employment opportunities and to start doing the same jobs as men and achieve pay parity. Nevertheless it will still take time for people to change cultures. 
 
The Print, Paper, Publishing and Media Section of ICEM affiliate Amicus has published a very interesting newsletter for Women&rsquo;s International Day. This timely and informative <a href="http://www.amicustheunion.org/pdf/AmicusWomen_final_lowres2.pdf">newsletter</a> promises to assure all women in this sector that they will be made aware of opportunities within UK&rsquo;s largest union to participate and be involved in the wider union and its democratic structures. 
 
The Equalities Department of Amicus also has an International Women&rsquo;s Day page, which encourages trade unionists to send messages of support to women across the world through the union&rsquo;s global trade union links. Throughout March, the Amicus page will be updated with information throughout the world. The page can be found at <a href="http://www.amicustheunion.org/Default.aspx?page=5797">http://www.amicustheunion.org/Default.aspx?page=5797</a>. 
 
In London on 8 March, a unique panel discussion and viewing of the short film &ldquo;In the Name of Honor&rdquo; by Reza Moradi, an Iranian free-speech advocate. The seminar, entitled &ldquo;Women&rsquo;s Rights, the Veil and Islamic and Religious Laws, is sponsored by the International Campaign in Defense of Women&rsquo;s Rights in Iran, the UK and National Secular Society, and the Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association. 
 
It will take place from 6 PM until 10 PM on 8 March, in Room 3D of the University of London Union, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HY. (The nearest Underground stops are Russell Street or Goodge Street.) 
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11. United States &ndash; 3-Day &lsquo;Sisters on the Frontline&rsquo; Seminar in NYC in late March 
Cornell University&rsquo;s Institute for Women and Work, the university&rsquo;s Labor Program, the New York State AFL-CIO, and City University of New York&rsquo;s (CUNY) Murphy Center for Labor, Community and Policy Studies will conduct a series of workshops on 30-31 March, and 1 April. 
 
Called &ldquo;Sisters on the Frontline: Organising Women and Building Power,&rdquo; the sponsors are billing it as the first women organisers&rsquo; conference in the US that will bring together women organisers, scholars, officials, and leaders of labour organisations. 
 
The conference&rsquo;s aims are to generate ideas and methodology to overcome the challenges for women in labour unions and community-based organisations; and to identify the challenges to recruit and retain women in such organisations. One session in the three-day set of workshops and panel discussions is called &ldquo;How to Rock the Boat without Getting Thrown Off.&rdquo; 
 
The conference will take place at CUNY&rsquo;s Murphy Center, 25 W. 43rd Street in Manhattan, and the conference&rsquo;s programme and agenda is at 
<a href="http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/iww/events/sistersFrontline.html">http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/iww/events/ 
sistersFrontline.html</a>. 
 
Registration fee is US$50.00, and scholarships are available. Contact Francine Moccio of Cornell at fam5@cornell.edu for further information. 
&nbsp;<img height="31" alt="" src="" width="25" />
12. Resources 
<a href="http://www.cimacnoticias.com/site">http://www.cimacnoticias.com/site</a> is a Mexican site with news from a gender perspective (in Spanish). 
 
<a href="http://www.unfpa.org/publications/detail.cfm?ID=322">http://www.unfpa.org/publications/detail.cfm?ID=322</a> 
includes a publication called Programming to Address Violence Against Women: Ten Case Studies.

ICEM WOMEN’S BULLETIN 20

8 March 2007 
 
Brother Mustafa Oztaskin 
President 
Petrol-Is Union 
Altunizade Mah. 
Kusbakisi Sok. No. 25 
81180 Altunizade Uskadar 
Turkey 
 
Via e-mail <a href="mailto:merkez@petrol-is.org.tr">merkez@petrol-is.org.tr</a> 
or Fax Number +90 216 4749870 
 
Dear Brother Oztaskin, 
We understand through our mutual affiliation with the ICEM that workers in the Antalya Free Trade Zone at Novamed GmbH, a subsidiary of Fresenius Medical Care, have been on strike since late September 2006. 
 
We also know from the ICEM that of 84 workers on strike, 82% of them are women. They are rightfully seeking dignity on the job, and their full trade union rights to collective bargaining. We applaud them in their very heroic efforts to defend these rights and their very basic fight for dignity. 
 
On this day, 8 March, International Women&rsquo;s Day, our Union commends Petrol-Is for standing strong with these women workers. We also ask you to pass our Solidarity and Unity to them in this most important fight against Fresenius Medical Care. Please convey to them that our Union stands firmly with them. 
 
Fraternally,&nbsp;

Model letter for International Women’s Day on Turkey

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