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The ICEM is backing seven Turkish road transport workers who have been imprisoned since November 2007, and who will have their first court hearing on 6 June. The seven, as well as eight others &ndash; all connected with the Labour Union of Turkish Motor Vehicles&rsquo; Workers (T&Uuml;MTIS) &ndash; will be in an Ankara courtroom, charged with &ldquo;setting up a criminal organization.&rdquo; 
 
In fact, the road transport workers were organizing other transport workers in two separate recruitment drives for T&Uuml;MTIS around Ankara. The ICEM has joined the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF), as well as affiliate Petrol-Is, in seeking justice for the trade unionists. 
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The ITF has established an online campaign (which can be found&nbsp;<a href="http://www.itfglobal.org/solidarity/TUMTIS.cfm">here</a>). It has also filed protest letters with Turkish Prime Minister Re&ccedil;ep Tayyip Erdoğan, and taken the matter before the European Parliament&rsquo;s Human Rights Department. 
 
&ldquo;These kinds of attacks on trade union organizations directly violate the internationally established conventions protecting trade union rights, which Turkey has ratified,&rdquo; said the ITF. If found guilty, the workers face further prison terms, as well as a court order shutting down their union. 
 
On 20 November 2007, 17 transport workers were detained for exercising their legitimate trade union rights. Three days later, seven trade unionists were formally arrested &ndash; along with eight others &ndash; and the seven have been held in Sincon prison near Ankara since. 
 
The ICEM encourages affiliates to visit the ITF site, and to lodge protests with Turkey&rsquo;s government. Protest letters can be sent to <a href="mailto:bilgi@basbakanlik.gov.tr">bilgi@basbakanlik.gov.tr</a>, or faxed to&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;+90&nbsp;312&nbsp;417&nbsp;0476&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;,&nbsp;or&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;+90&nbsp;312&nbsp;418&nbsp;0476&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Case of Turkish Transport Workers Organising Union Goes to Ankara Court on 6 June

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Two ICEM affiliates in Turkey, Kristal-İş and Lastik-İş, are bracing for industry-wide strikes in the coming weeks due to break-downs in negotiations. The unions have been negotiating with employers&rsquo; associations since autumn 2007, but without achieving final resolves. 
 
Salary issues are the main stumbling blocks in both sets of talks.
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Kristal-İş, representing glass workers, is now in its twenty-first term of industry negotiations with the Turkish Glass, Cement, and Soil Industry Employers&rsquo; Association. The bargaining covers 6,000 workers at 11 plant sites operated by glassware companies Paşabah&ccedil;e, Trakya Cam, Anadolu Cam, and Cam Elyaf. 
 
All are entities of the Siscam Group, the fast-growing glasswares multinational that has factories in Turkey, Bulgaria, Russia, and Georgia. 
 
After months of stalled negotiations, on 5 May, the last session, the glass association made a miniscule offer covering social bonuses, while failing to put any offer forward regarding salary increases. With no further progress in talks since that date, the Kristal- İş Executive Committee decided on 9 May to pursue strike action. 
 
In the tyre industry, Lastik-İş has been negotiating with three rubber multinationals &ndash; Bridgestone Brisa Sabanci, Pirelli Lastikleri, and Goodyear Lastikleri. The talks cover 4,000 workers at four factories in the cities of Izmit and Adapazari.
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Some 29 agenda items out of 59 have been concluded in the industry-wide collective talks, but the remainder are at impasse. A recent mediation session did not produce results. The main disagreements cover salaries for new hires, annual paid holidays, the use of temporary workers, and work hours. 
 
Lastik İş is demanding a wage increase of 12% for the first six-month period of a two-year contract, and the Turkish rate of inflation for each six-month period over the remaining 18 months. 
 
The union is also adamant in retaining rights gained in the past 50-year history of collective negotiations, and seeks to exclude industry-proposed rules regarding work flexibility. 
 
The rubber employers&rsquo; association has not put forward proposals concerning salaries or social bonuses. The Executive Committee of Lastik-İş, on 8 May, decided to endorse strike action.
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While Kristal- İş has not announced a date for it strike to begin, Lastik İş President Abdullah Karacan told the Anatolia News Service that a rubber strike has been set for 31 May. Under Turkey&rsquo;s Collective Agreements, Strikes, and Lock-outs Law, work stoppages must now occur within a two-month period from the time a petition was submitted. In the past, however, strikes called by both unions were banned by the government because of so-called &ldquo;national security&rdquo; issues. 
 
In tyre talks in 2004, a government decree prohibiting an industry-wide strike was overturned by Turkey&rsquo;s Supreme Court. That fact brought the rubber association to agreeable terms with Lastik- İş. 
 
The ICEM will continue to follow developments and lend unequivocal support to its two affiliates in their respective industry-wide collective talks. 
 
Meanwhile, Petrol- İş, another Turkish affiliate of the ICEM, has taken strike action at Nese Plastics, a company operating in the city of Gebze. Some 141 union members are striking. Negotiations began on 5 December 2007, but management of Nese Plastics has not made a wage offer, insisting on paying current salaries despite high inflation rates in Turkey.

ICEM’s Turkish Glass, Tyre Unions Readied for Strike Action

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The ICEM affiliate Mineworkers&rsquo; Union of Namibia (MUN) and management of Skorpion Zinc, owned by AngloAmerican, are expected to conclude negotiations today, ending a paralyzing 11-day strike that has affected global zinc markets. 
 
According to MUN President Andries Eiseb, the two sides exchanged proposals over the weekend, and spent the entire day on Sunday, 18 May, analysing the proposals. Further review is expected today, and the agreement is expected to be submitted to striking miners either late today or tomorrow.
<img height="66" alt="" src="" width="100" />
&ldquo;There is the intent by both parties now to amicably settle the dispute and we expect conclusion today,&rdquo; said Eiseb, who helped present the union&rsquo;s proposal to management at the mine and smelting operation near Rosh Pinah in southwestern Namibia. 
 
Salary agreement came late last week, when the union and management agreed on a 12% wage increase for all 680 miners. The major stumbling block in weekend negotiations was related to the company&rsquo;s desire for continuous operations, and the needed Labour Ministry exemption for that to occur. The issue of continuous operations also included the matter of adequate compensation. 
 
MUN agreed to support application for the exemption, and Skorpion must now compensate workers at time-and-a-half for all overtime, pending outcome of a court case. In a 2004 labour agreement, MUN won double-time for Sunday and public holiday work and that will remain intact. The overtime issue became complicated in negotiations due to the pending court case. 
 
Other issues that were resolved to the benefit of workers include housing allowances and company transport. The housing allowance was increased to N$1,700 per month, while MUN won a guarantee that the company will provide transport to the capital city of Windhoek, some 650 kilometres from the mine. Previously, transport was only granted to Keetmanshoop, a distance of 200 kilometres. 
 
Miners at Skorpion work seven-day on, seven-day off rotations.
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The ICEM affiliate Mineworkers&rsquo; Union of Namibia (MUN) and management of Skorpion Zinc, owned by AngloAmerican, are expected to conclude negotiations today, ending a paralyzing 11-day strike that has affected global zinc markets. 
 
According to MUN President Andries Eiseb, the two sides exchanged proposals over the weekend, and spent the entire day on Sunday, 18 May, analysing the proposals. Further review is expected today, and the agreement is expected to be submitted to striking miners either late today or tomorrow. 
 
&ldquo;There is the intent by both parties now to amicably settle the dispute and we expect conclusion today,&rdquo; said Eiseb, who helped present the union&rsquo;s proposal to management at the mine and smelting operation near Rosh Pinah in southwestern Namibia. 
 
Salary agreement came late last week, when the union and management agreed on a 12% wage increase for all 680 miners. The major stumbling block in weekend negotiations was related to the company&rsquo;s desire for continuous operations, and the needed Labour Ministry exemption for that to occur. The issue of continuous operations also included the matter of adequate compensation. 
 
MUN agreed to support application for the exemption, and Skorpion must now compensate workers at time-and-a-half for all overtime, pending outcome of a court case. In a 2004 labour agreement, MUN won double-time for Sunday and public holiday work and that will remain intact. The overtime issue became complicated in negotiations due to the pending court case. 
 
Other issues that were resolved to the benefit of workers include housing allowances and company transport. The housing allowance was increased to N$1,700 per month, while MUN won a guarantee that the company will provide transport to the capital city of Windhoek, some 650 kilometres from the mine. Previously, transport was only granted to Keetmanshoop, a distance of 200 kilometres. 
 
Miners at Skorpion work seven-day on, seven-day off rotations. 
 
The strike started on 9 May, and immediately drove zinc prices up on the London Metals Exchange. Skorpion, one of the world&rsquo;s leading zinc mining and processing firms, produces 150,000 tonnes of special high-grade zinc annually. Management attempted to leverage its bargaining position last week by bringing in contract workers in efforts to continue production. 
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The Skorpion mining and smelting operation, wholly owned by Irish-based Anglo Base Metals, a subsidiary of AngloAmerican, began operations in Namibia in 2003. It became fully operational in mid-2005, and it produced 56,300 tonnes for the first six months of that year when the price of zinc was at US$660-per-tonne. The MUN strike pushed zinc prices up a full 5%, with it trading at US$2,285-per-tonne late last week. 
The strike started on 9 May, and immediately drove zinc prices up on the London Metals Exchange. Skorpion, one of the world&rsquo;s leading zinc mining and processing firms, produces 150,000 tonnes of special high-grade zinc annually. Management attempted to leverage its bargaining position last week by bringing in contract workers in efforts to continue production. 
 
The Skorpion mining and smelting operation, wholly owned by Irish-based Anglo Base Metals, a subsidiary of AngloAmerican, began operations in Namibia in 2003. It became fully operational in mid-2005, and it produced 56,300 tonnes for the first six months of that year when the price of zinc was at US$660-per-tonne. The MUN strike pushed zinc prices up a full 5%, with it trading at US$2,285-per-tonne late last week.

Skorpion Zinc Strike in Namibia Expected to Conclude Today

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A critical multi-union trade union conference was held in Basra, Iraq, last week, 14 May, under the scope of the Executive Committee of the General Federation of Iraqi Workers (GFIW). Chaired in part by Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein, president of the ICEM affiliate, General Union of Iraq Electricity Workers and Technicians (GUEWT), the conference produced a unified response to the Iraqi government&rsquo;s call for union elections between June and August of this year.
<img height="225" src="" width="300" alt="" />
&nbsp; 
At left, ICEM&nbsp;Executive Committee Member Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein&nbsp; 

The demand called on the government to abolish 1987&rsquo;s Public Law No. 150, a Saddam-era decree forbidding workers employed in the public sector from forming or joining a union. A statement issued to the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki that followed the meeting also called on it to abolish Decree No. 8750, the draconian instrument put in place in 2005 by the occupational forces. That measure effectively confiscated all trade union funds, and prohibited unions from collecting dues or maintaining assets. 
 
In addition, the 15 trade unions present issued a demand for revival of Article 22, Paragraph 3 of the Iraqi Constitution, which would guarantee Iraqi unions the right to form or join free and democratic trade unions. 
 
Early this year, the al-Maliki government decreed that trade unions inside Iraq must conduct several rounds of elections in order to choose leaders. But under Public Law 150 &ndash; and of equal significance, the occupation&rsquo;s Decree No. 8750, which al-Maliki continues to uphold &ndash; most of the unions at last week&rsquo;s GFIW Basra event could not participate in such elections. 
 
The GUEWT, for example, as well as workers in the oil, railway, transport, ports, and health care sectors, are excluded because these sectors all are part of Iraq&rsquo;s public sector. &ldquo;We agree with the format for union elections, but with reservations,&rdquo; said Abdullah Muhsin, GFIW International Representative. &ldquo;Full freedom of association and common recognition of free and democratic trade unions inside Iraq must come first.&rdquo; 
 
In the letter to Prime Minister al-Maliki, that went as well as to Iraq&rsquo;s President and the President of Parliament, the GFIW states: &ldquo;Five years have passed since the fall of the hated regime. Iraqi workers, instead of receiving the support they deserve, must realize their potential and thus employ this potential to help reconstruction of Iraq&rsquo;s devastated economy.
<img height="101" src="" width="220" alt="" />
&ldquo;In the name of Basra workers, our federation, the GFIW in Basra, appeals to your Excellencies to recognize the sacrifices endured by Iraqi workers in their defiance of extremist onslaughts, and allow workers the right to conduct free and open elections across Iraq&rsquo;s public, private, and cooperative industries.&rdquo; 
 
Besides the GUEWT, the letter was signed by the GFIW Basra Head, Hussein Fadel Hassan; the Mechanic Workers&rsquo; Union of Basra; the Transport Workers&rsquo; Union of Basra; the Service Workers&rsquo; Union of Basra; the Construction and Wood Workers&rsquo; Union; the Municipality Workers&rsquo; Union of Basra; the Iraqi All Ports Workers&rsquo; Union, based in Basra; the Railway Workers&rsquo; Union; the Health Workers&rsquo; Union of Basra; the Engineering and Professional Workers&rsquo; Union of Basra; the Agricultural Workers&rsquo; Union; and the Society for Development and Reconstruction.

Iraqi Trade Union Conference Demands Repeal of Draconian Labour Decrees

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ICEM&rsquo;s Central European Regional Council was held in Katowice, Poland, on 29 April, and leaders of affiliates from eight Central European countries discussed trends and developments within the ICEM region, as well as global matters. 
 
The problems mentioned by ICEM&rsquo;s trade union leaders of the region often mirrored those from neighbouring countries. Workers in most countries face problems with stagnant wages &ndash; and extremely low minimum wages &ndash; as well as high inflation rates. In Croatia, many workers do not earn more than &euro;8 per day.
<img width="160" height="85" src="" alt="" />
The ICEM Central European Regional meeting was hosted by Polish trade union sentre Solidarnosc
Unions in Croatia are calling for a minimum wage to be set at the level of 50% of the average wage. Unions in other countries are setting that bar at 60%. In several Central European nations, the current minimum wage is often lower &ndash; 40% of the average wage, or even lower.
<img width="120" height="60" src="" alt="" />
Croatia&nbsp;
Progress is slow on that front, but it is being made. In Slovakia, for example, union and employers are now jointly negotiating a new minimum wage through social dialogue. In Romania, the minimum wage was raised last year from &euro;100 to &euro;150 per month. 
 
Standard wages do differ between countries. An average wage in Bosnia stands at around &euro;300, whereas the average salary in Poland, before taxes, is around &euro;800. The wage differences between sectors inside some countries are oftentimes wide. Some Polish workers barely earn &euro;300 per month, while others make &euro;1,700.
<img width="120" height="60" src="" alt="" />
&nbsp;Bosnia-Herzegovina
Overall, unions in Central Europe are generally reporting progress. One such area that is progressing is negotiations with multinational companies. In nearly all countries, privatisation exercises continue and that does cause serious hardship for many trade union members. Unions do report that fair dismissal packages are now being won, a welcome change from previous years. Another positive aspect is that relations with incoming multinational companies are improving. 
 
Engagement in social dialogue is a key priority for most unions, including with several non-European multinational investors. This phenomenon has grown rapidly over the last few years. Multinational companies from Russia, Turkey, India, and South Korea are no longer the exception. Regrettably, industrial relations with some of these firms (for example, Korean Hankook Tire in Hungary) are acrimonious, since some of these newly-arrived companies lack relevant experience with the European social dialogue system. 
 
Nearly all trade union leaders attending the regional meeting also mentioned the positive, and growing, international cooperation between unions in the region. Trade unions and their members are increasingly attending each other&rsquo;s demonstrations, across borders, and are sharing more and more information. 
 
Also reported was the vastly improved trade union cooperation inside countries. This is occurring between unions that often belong to different national confederations. One clear example came from Poland, where a joint ICEM-EMCEF office is being set up, allowing six industrial unions to speak with one voice. 
 
As a result of this increased cooperation, there also appears to be a growing political will to do away with the problem of having too many unions inside one country. Leaders spoke of the need for consolidation and mergers, in order to avoid situations where unions compete with each other. 
 
Unions in Serbia, for example, spoke of improvements in their own operations, as they manage, frequently after changing internal structures, to halt the drop in union membership and boost affiliation fees.
<img width="120" height="71" src="" alt="" />
Serbia
Related to these efforts was an overview by Mato Lalic on the South-East European Education Project for ICEM and IUF affiliates. He reported on a number of successes from this project, which is expected to enter its last two-year cycle this year. For over ten years, Lalic has organised over 300 seminars, workshops, and seminars, with over 6,000 trade unionists attending. And some 30-to- 40% of these participants have been women. 
 
Some problems, however, remain country-specific, such as the after-war issue of the non-payment of pensions in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Also, austerity measures were cited as a measure to offset the GDP deficit in Hungary. 
 
Other problems appear simultaneously in all countries. Many spoke, for example, of anticipated difficulties &ndash; and possible long and hard struggles &ndash; in relation to the expected increases of the statutory pension age in their respective country. The issue of green jobs, and the need to have an ecological balance, but also the possible difficulties that industries may face as a result of a more stringent emissions rights system, were equally mentioned by many.

Reports from Central Europe Regional Meeting Point to Cautious Optimism

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Rather than negotiate in good faith with print shop members of UK union Unite, a book producer did the unthinkable: it suddenly sacked 287 workers and took the company into liquidation. 
 
Butler and Tanner, a 170-year-old printer in Frome, Somerset, that was bought last year by Media and Print Investments (MPI), had informed UK&rsquo;s Advisory, Conciliation, and Mediation Service (ACAS) that it was prepared for further talks with Unite over the weekend of 25-27 April in order to avert a planned 30 April industrial action.
<img width="120" height="60" alt="" src="" />
Instead, Butler and Tanner&rsquo;s chairman issued a terse letter to all 287 union members, received on 26 April, that the prestigious colour book printer was closing immediately. Unite then learned that the company had deployed labour agency staff to continue operations. 
 
Union members last Tuesday, 29 April, voted to take legal action to recover &pound;12,000 per worker in lost wages and &pound;44,000 in total pension contributions for the workforce. The union also organised a mass rally at the locked plant gates on 2 May. 
 
United National Officer Ann Field called it a &ldquo;despicable act,&rdquo; and said the union will demand full recompense. The union&rsquo;s Assistant General Secretary, Tony Burke, said staff had given their working lives to make Butler and Tanner one of UK&rsquo;s quality book printers, &ldquo;but they decided enough was enough when the goalposts for an agreement were constantly moved.&rdquo; 
 
Print workers had conceded pay cuts and other economic items when private equity company MPI took over in August 2007. The company was currently seeking another &pound;1 million in cost reductions, including radical shift changes, as well as a clause in a proposed new contract that would restrict Unite&rsquo;s ability to negotiate for workers.

Book Printer Suddenly Closes in UK, Leaving 287 Jobless

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Further industrial action at the Grangemouth petrochemicals complex in Scotland by Unite is not likely, following negotiations last week between the union and Ineos owner Jim Ratcliffe. 
 
Reports surfaced over the weekend that Ratcliffe has agreed to maintain the final pension scheme for all workers. Ineos had proposed that, effective in August, the final pension plan would be closed off for new hires, and that full pension benefits would not be awarded to staff choosing to retire at age 60. The company had proposed full pension benefits only at age 65.
<img height="239" alt="" src="" width="220" />
&nbsp;Unite Joint General Secretaries Tony Woodley and Derek Simpson&nbsp; 
 

Ineos has agreed to withdraw the letter to staff announcing the pension changes. The union reportedly has agreed to make efficiency changes in order to achieve cost savings, efficiencies that will not include redundancies. Unite is expected to poll union members on the revised proposal soon. 
 
A two-day strike on 27-28 April by 1,200 Unite members gained global attention when it crimped fuel supplies in Scotland and caused a ripple effect on nearby energy installations, including the shipment of gas from BP&rsquo;s Forbes Field in the North Sea. Grangemouth is a refiner of polyolefins and oil derivatives used for various fuel sources. 
 
On 29 April, Ratcliffe and Tom Crotty of Ineos began the first of a set of constructive and meaningful discussions with Unite Joint General Secretaries Derek Simpson and Tony Woodley to resolve the dispute. Ineos is a fast-growing energy concern that was created in 1998. In late 2005, it bought Grangemouth from BP&rsquo;s Innovene chemicals division.

Accord Near to Protect Final Pension Scheme for All Workers at Grangemouth

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Babatunde Ogun, a 17-year member of Nigeria&rsquo;s senior staff association PENGASSAN, was elected president of the union on 30 April for a three-year term. His election and the elections of several others occurred at the white-collar union&rsquo;s Second Triennial Delegates&rsquo; Conference in Abuja that was attended by 470 branch and zonal leaders. 
 
The two-day conference featured a sharp exchange on the opening day, 29 April, between Minister of Labour and Productivity Dr Hassan Lawal and fiery Adams Oshiomhole, the former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress, who is governor-in-waiting in Edo State.
<img height="146" src="" width="220" alt="" />
&nbsp;PENGASSAN members at May Day rally in Abuja 
 

Oshiomhole, who was duly elected a year ago but awaits taking office in Edo due to a legal challenge by the former incumbent governor, called on PENGASSAN to extract no more crude oil at US$120-per-barrel &ldquo;if the proceeds are to be shared by irresponsible political leadership. That will not be patriotic,&rdquo; he said. Oshiomhole was referring to alleged corrupt practices of former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo. 
 
Following the reading of a prepared text from current President Umaru MusaYar&rsquo;Adua by Lawal, the Labour Minister took exception with Oshiomhole&rsquo;s comments. He stated that such a call &ldquo;was out of place, especially since Comrade Oshiomhole has acknowledged the good works President Yar&rsquo;Adua is doing, especially trying to right some of the wrongs of the immediate past government.&rdquo; 
 
Lawal added that if the country&rsquo;s oil workers stopped drilling, the government would take it upon itself to contract such drilling with outside providers. Labour Minister Lawal also remarked on the PENGASSAN upstream strike against Mobil Producing Nigeria, and his efforts to resolve the strike by 1,400 trade union members. He called Mobil&rsquo;s two-year wage offer of 10% &ldquo;totally unfair and unacceptable.&rdquo; 
 
PENGASSAN did present a series of constitutional amendments to delegates, including a new fees formula between the National Secretariat and branches, but due to a logistical glitch, the amendments were not acted upon. Delegates also heard from Dr Muhammad Auwal Umar of Bayero University in Kano, who delivered a stirring address on why labour unions must reposition themselves for a greater role in civil society. 
 
Babatunde Ogun won election to the union&rsquo;s top over two other candidates, including incumbent Peter Esele. A mechanical engineer who has been employed by Mobil Producing at the Qua Iboe crude export terminal in Eket, Ogun state, for the past 12 years, Comrade Ogun was Deputy President three years ago when he challenged Uche Okoro for the presidency. He lost in that election, held early in 2005, and Esele, elected then as Deputy Vice President, became PENGASSAN&rsquo;s president when Comrade Okoro was killed in an airplane crash on 10 December 2005 near Port Harcourt.
<img height="147" src="" width="140" alt="" />
&ldquo;Our oil and gas policies have to have input in the marketplace,&rdquo; said the 42-year-old Ogun, following his election. &ldquo;We must close the gap between government and business on the one hand, and labour on the other. We must also close the gap globally in order that multinationals utilise Nigerians and local content in their operations.&rdquo; 
 
Re-elected Deputy Vice President was Mustapha Nuhu Wali. The union also elected its first Woman in PENGASSAN, which now is an elected position on the Central Works Committee. That post was won by Orji I. Rose of Chevron Nigeria Ltd. Elected Treasurer was O. Uka Ethelbert, and elected Industrial Relations Officer was Steve Ereyukomhen. 
 
PENGASSAN, an ICEM affiliate numbering 6,000 members, is composed of four zonal offices and some 80 branches, each representing a company segment of Nigeria&rsquo;s oil and gas industry.

PENGASSAN Elects New Leader in Babatunde Ogun

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Three major Turkish trade union confederations, T&Uuml;RK-İŞ (the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions), DİSK (the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions), and KESK (the Confederation of Public Employees&rsquo; Trade Unions) &ndash; all affiliates to both the ITUC and the ETUC &ndash; defied the government&rsquo;s ban on May Day activities last week, and jointly celebrated International Workers&rsquo; Day across Istanbul.
The celebration was scheduled to occur at Taksim Square in Istanbul, but heavy police force prevented trade unionists from reaching that point.
Taksim Square is symbolically important to the Turkish trade union movement, because it was there on May Day, 1977, that 37 workers were killed during celebrations. This year&rsquo;s programme was scheduled to see participants meeting at Şişli at 10h00 with a march to Taksim. At 11h00, they were to lay laid flowers at Taksim Square in a democratic and peaceful way.
<img height="135" alt="" src="" width="200" />
Turkish police gassing the headquarters of DİSK in the early morning hours of 1 May
Prior to last Thursday&rsquo;s event, the presidents of three confederations met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to facilitate the demonstrations. But he rejected the peaceful demonstration, and the governor of Istanbul ordered the trade unions not to march to Taksim, with threat of force to prevent the commemoration. But unions carried out street demonstrations across Istanbul instead. 

At 06h15 on 1 May, police attacked the headquarters of DİSK, where 1,500 demonstrators were spending the night. Police used pepper spray and red-dye water cannons to disperse the demonstrators. The red-dye water served as a burning agent when combined with the pepper spray. 

Trade unionists were hosed with this burning agent, and they soon felt burns and rashes on their skin. Many of them were hospitalised. Later, police were indiscriminate in their beatings of persons on the streets of Istanbul. They also attacked journalists and beat a photo-journalist, breaking his camera which had captured the barbaric brutality of the police. 

Nonetheless, thousands of Turkey&rsquo;s citizens clashed with police in order to enter the historic site of May Day celebrations. Workers, their unions, and the left, turned the entire city of Istanbul into Taksim Square, and the popular slogan became &ldquo;Each Square in Turkey Becomes Taksim Square.&rdquo; 

Some did manage to get into the square, but not by their own free will. They were moved there through arrests because police &ldquo;arrest vehicles&rdquo; were parked in the square. Those arrested were beaten unmercifully. Reports cited that over 530 were arrested, but because many of those detained were not processed, the numbers were many times higher.
<img height="115" alt="" src="" width="250" />
May Day 2008 in Turkey has come and gone, but the events of that day in Istanbul lead us to think seriously about trade union rights and freedom of association in Turkey. This is crucial, as the country prepares for membership negotiations with the European Union. 

In his protest message over last week&rsquo;s government repression of workers to Turkish Prime Minister Erdoğan, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda said, &ldquo;Turkey does not deserve such a picture. On the eve of integration with the EU, your policy and the behaviour of your government and security forces is not acceptable. We vehemently protest and urge you to take the necessary steps in order to adhere to freedom of association and basic trade union rights that in line with the fundamental ILO conventions.&rdquo;

Turkish Police, Government Take Extreme Measures to Halt May Day Demonstration

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An eight-day strike by 1,400 upstream workers of Mobil Producing Nigeria ended on 1 May, following mediation over wages, benefits, and alternative forms of payment for a two-year period. The talks were concluded in the capital of Abuja after mediation by both the Nigeria National Petroleum Corp. (NNPC) and the Ministry of Labour and Productivity. 
 
The strike by PENGASSAN, ICEM&rsquo;s white-collar oil and gas workers&rsquo; affiliated trade union in Nigeria, had shut in 860,000-barrels-per-day of oil production. The settlement is expected to establish the upstream pattern for major oil and gas producers in Nigeria for 2008 and 2009. Only Total&rsquo;s upstream workers had reached agreement earlier.
<img height="160" src="" width="240" alt="" />
&nbsp;PENGASSAN's Mobil Producing Bargaining Committee 
 
The strike settlement, however, has no bearing on a dispute between PENGASSAN and Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc. in the downstream sector. That dispute has to do with discrepancies on compensation regarding redundancies. 
 
The strike in the upstream sector was brought on by Mobil Producing&rsquo;s intransigence in reaching a new deal following the 31 December 2007 expiration of a prior agreement. The company refused to budge from a total compensation offer of 10% over a new two-year period. NNPC and the Labour Ministry intervened in mediation efforts once the strike began on 24 April. 
 
Mobil Producing is jointly owned by NNPC and US-based ExxonMobil, with ExxonMobil serving as the operating partner in what is currently Nigeria&rsquo;s largest crude exporter, as well as lowest operating cost producer. 
 
PENGASSAN&rsquo;s Mobil Producing Branch Chairman Olusola George-Olumoroti said four of the five major points on the union&rsquo;s agenda were resolved in marathon talks on 30 April, but it took the two Nigerian parties &ndash; NNPC and Labour Ministry &ndash; to move the multinational company from its low 10% offer.
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&nbsp;Branch Chairman Olusola George-Olumoroti 
 

On 1 May, the union&rsquo;s branch committee accepted a 20% total pay package, which is retroactive to 1 January and includes benefits and other remuneration items. PENGASSAN&rsquo;s Mobil upstream branch committee also included members of the Mobil Producing Contract Staff Branch, since a major point on the union&rsquo;s agenda was casualisation. 
 
The union charged Mobil Producing with over-extending service professionals in work that could be more efficiently done by full-time staff. George-Olumoroti casual staff work under two-year contracts, and some worked in such status for as along as 19 years. In negotiations on 30 April, the two sides agreed to set up a joint committee to review contract staffing, and then compare Mobil&rsquo;s record with that of other companies in the industry. 
 
Another major concern was the inconsistency of Mobil&rsquo;s defined benefit plan to Nigeria&rsquo;s Pension Reform Act of 2004. That issue met resolve by the two sides agreeing to a team of independent actuaries to examine the company&rsquo;s current pension plan. 
 
Other issues included the rapid influx of expatriates that violate the government&rsquo;s quota regulations, and hazardous equipment and facility deterioration, particularly in the company&rsquo;s western area of operations along the Niger Delta. The PENGASSAN branch cited leakages at two offshore oil pipelines of the company &ndash; Idoho and Edop &ndash; in February. 
 
The Nigerian government has agreed to conduct an audit regarding expatriate quotas, while a joint committee will be put in place immediately to develop a charter and recommendations on facility deficiencies. That committee will be on a stringent time frame, with reporting on or before 30 June.
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In the downstream sector, Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc., also jointly owned by NNPC and ExxonMobil, and the PENGASSAN branch there are in dispute over terms of a redundancy package negotiated late in 2007. The company made 67 of 170 senior staff members redundant, and intentionally targeted PENGASSAN members and activists for sackings. 
 
At question is a miscalculation in the redundancy package. In implementing a new information technology programme, ExxonMobil has eliminated jobs in Nigeria and moved them to Egypt, Taiwan, and Hungary. All the workers made redundant are to be paid their full salaries until 31 May, at which time the severance package is scheduled to take effect. The ICEM has demanded that the American company rectify its error.

Mobil Nigeria Upstream Strike Settled; Downstream Dispute Still Festers

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