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Year 2005 has been an important year for the expansion of ICEM&rsquo;s activities in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The Global Union Federation&rsquo;s commitment has manifested itself in an up scaling of innovative projects and activities. Many of ICEM&rsquo;s 389 trade union affiliates in 122 countries have joined the fight to reverse the pandemic. 
<img height="122" alt="" src="" width="86" />
From the beginning of Year 2005, a Global HIV/AIDS Coordinator based in Geneva has been in place and a regional coordinator manages the African project from Johannesburg. Two training workshops were held in June and November for national coordinators from twelve sub-Saharan African countries. A manual on collective bargaining is being finalised. 
 
HIV/AIDS has been mainstreamed in ICEM global and regional meetings. A seminar for the Asian and Pacific region in Tokyo in October sponsored by ICEM-JAF laid the foundation for the expansion of ICEM work in that region. 
 
ICEM&rsquo;s global information policy has been carried forward. The new ICEM website includes <a href="/?id=72">web pages on HIV/AIDS</a> with links to important HIV/AIDS sites and materials of intergovernmental organisations, NGOs and other Global Union Federations, as well as the Global Unions Programme against HIV/AIDS in which the ICEM takes an active part. Power Point Presentations have been developed and posted on the web for the use by affiliates. An e-bulletin is being published monthly. The latest version, also released on December 1, can be read <a href="/index.php?id=72&amp;doc=1539">here</a>.
The leaflet &ldquo;ICEM Responds to HIV/AIDS&rdquo; is launched on World AIDS Day, and can be <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/0511AIDSleaflet.pdf">downloaded here</a>. 
 
A central part of ICEM strategy is the expansion of services of existing health clinics of major mining companies to the wider community. It is the logical progression of the valuable workplace education and awareness programmes, which have been in place. And it is here where the ICEM will have a real impact. Agreement in principle has been reached with two multinational mining companies to up scale voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) and the provision of antiretroviral treatment (ART). Substantial amounts of funding with a long-term perspective are required from sources not previously accessed by trade unions. The ICEM calls on the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) to support more co-financed workplace projects to provide VCT and ART in partnership with unions and companies. 
 
&ldquo;The ICEM is strategically positioned for such a direct role in the fight against HIV/AIDS,&rdquo; says General Secretary Fred Higgs. &ldquo;We represent workers in the mining industry, a sector disproportionately stricken by the virus due to living and working conditions. We also represent chemical workers in the major drug-producing companies of the world.&rdquo; The ICEM will continue to be engaged with pharmaceutical companies to provide affordable drugs to those living with HIV/AIDS in the least developed countries. 
 
The ICEM continues its advocacy for genuine poverty eradication policies and for an increased financial commitment to fight the pandemic, especially through the Global Fund. The establishment of a permanent G8 working group is central to this. The newly established partnership between the WHO and the Global Unions must result in concrete assistance for workplace VCT and ART programmes. 
 
The ICEM calls on all affiliates to use World AIDS Day to intensive their campaigns to reverse the pandemic.

ICEM reiterates strong commitment to combat HIV/AIDS

<img height="259" alt="" src="" width="200" />
25 November 2005 
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women 
 
Contents 
 
1. Belgium - Amnesty International 
2. Brazil 
3. Canada 
4. Costa Rica 
5. Guatemala 
6. Mexico 
7. Philippines 
8. Spain 
9. China - Worker Dies After 24-hour Shift 
10. European Union - Social Partners Agree Joint Text on Gender Equality 
11. Finland - Pay for women in Finnish industry is now 85 cents 
12. France - Equal Opportunities at TOTAL 
13. International Partnership for Microbicides 
14. ORIT - Women at the Summit of the Americas 
15. South Africa - ICEM Women&rsquo;s Strategy Meeting 
16. Switzerland - New Weapon to Combat Salary Discrimination 
17. United Kingdom - &ldquo;Women are less happy with their pay&rdquo; 
 
1. Belgium - Amnesty International 
 
&ldquo;If you beat your wife, you&rsquo;re not a man,&rdquo; is the theme of Amnesty International Belgium&rsquo;s year-end campaign which runs from 25 November to 10 December 2005, which is International Human Rights Day. 
The campaign is geared primarily to men and young people. At least one woman out of five is a victim of domestic violence in Belgium, and apparently it is men who are responsible for such abhorrent behavior that drives too many women to the hospital&hellip;or the morgue. 
 
According to the World Bank, one woman or adolescent out of five (hence many millions of women) worldwide have been battered, or are victims of sexual violence at least once in their lives. Violence against women at home knows no social, ethnic, geographical or economic bounds. Unfortunately, this violence seems to be more and more a trait of all societies. 
 
Likewise UNIFEM, which has launched its 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence to last until 10 December, is also symbolically linked against gender violence and the abusive onslaught against human rights, which such violence brings. 
 
2. Brazil 
 
On 25 November, the 36 local unions affiliated to the FETIESC Federation in Santa Catarina commemorated the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women by launching a campaign entitled &ldquo;What Example Are you Giving? What Future Are you Providing?&quot; 
In Brazil, approximately 15,000 rapes and other acts of sexual violence occur each year, but women in most cases do not denounce their aggressors for fear of future insecurity. Most are cases of aggression committed at home by husbands and partners, in many cases in the presence of children. 
In Latin America and the Caribbean, domestic violence costs nearly 15% of GNP; in Brazil it is 10.5%. FETIESC has created a group called Men for the End of Violence against Women. 
 
3. Canada 
 
Vigils start on 25 November and go to 10 December, because in Canada 6 December marks the anniversary of 14 women who were murdered at a polytechnic school in Montreal. On that day in 1989, the students were gunned down by a man motivated solely by his hatred of women. 
Maria Shupenia from affiliate CEP Women&rsquo;s Committee writes, &ldquo;Since this massacre, and every year since, we remember these women, and gather to denounce all acts of violence against women in Canada.&rdquo; 
4. Costa Rica 
 
SITRAPEQUIA&rsquo;s Women&rsquo;s Section had a debate on the draft legislation on the penalization of domestic violence together with the National Women&rsquo;s Institute, including a film and panelists. 
All SITRAPEQUIA members received a flyer against economic and job-related violence which affects women workers in the Americas. Their conclusion is that there is no such thing as a democratic society with violence on the job. 
Elena Guti&eacute;rrez from SITRAPEQUIA writes, &ldquo;The RECOPE refinery has many men and few women, there will always be more men&hellip;they were very impressed by the topic of the law to penalize violence against women. It is a draft that has been in discussion for three years. The women in the National Assembly are fighting for it.&rdquo; 
 
5. Guatemala 
 
A group of women from Guatemala traveled to Spain and then to Brussels from 22 to 26 November together with Comisiones Obreras and the Spanish Women&rsquo;s Institute to denounce the situation of extreme injustice of murders of women in Guatemala. 
This barbarism was influenced by armed conflict that went on for 36 years, during which rapes and sexual violence were part of the strategy of counterinsurgency. 
No one to date has been held accountable for these atrocious acts. Rather, since Guatemala is a patriarchal and macho society, women are penalized and no one recognizes their rights. They find themselves alone in fighting against the gangs of delinquents roaming the towns. The murders are not judged or condemned, which implies connivance on the part of the state. 
According to the Inter-American Human Rights Commission, 1,188 women were murdered between 2001 and August 2004 in Guatemala. 
 
6. Mexico 
 
Ciudad Juarez, Mexico&rsquo;s fourth largest city, is known as the capital of murdered women. At least 75 women, most of them factory workers, have been raped and murdered there since 1993. Scores more are missing. The city&rsquo;s law-enforcement authorities have been exposed as incompetent or corrupt. 
More than a dozen women&rsquo;s groups have arisen in the city, and these groups are composed of mothers and grandmothers and friends of the murdered and missing. The groups demand that more attention be paid to violence against women in a city where young women&rsquo;s lives do not count for much. 
Women work late into the night without security. Billboards and bus advertisements warn women to be careful and watch for their lives. Women&rsquo;s groups believe that the murders are the work of copycats who have discovered that they can rape and kill with impunity. 
In El Paso, Texas, just across the border, local lawmakers, trade unionists and students recently launched a Coalition on Violence Against Women and Families on the Border. Because of NAFTA, both countries must take the responsibility for the violence. 
 
7. Philippines 
 
The United Nations has adopted a Philippines-led resolution calling for global action against violence against migrant workers who are women. Among the key features of the resolution, nations are called upon to incorporate a gender perspective in all policies on international migration, including protection of women migrant workers from violence, discrimination, exploitation and abuse. 
The resolution also calls on criminalizing violence against women migrant workers, and protecting rights of women migrant workers, regardless of their immigration status. The Philippines has been forefront in advancing the safety of women migrant workers. 
 
8. Spain 
 
Comisiones Obreras condemned once again violence against women which is manifested at work by sexual harassment and bullying. In Spain, 60 women have died in 2005 of gender-related violence. 
This is a structural and globalized phenomenon due to unequal power relations between men and women. It is an expression of existing discrimination which is passed on by means of models and cultural patterns that see violence as acceptable. That is why education is necessary to raise awareness on prevention, detection and eradication of violence. 
Action is necessary to protect the most vulnerable such as the disabled, young girls, the elderly or migrant women who, because of their irregular situation, have little or no protection. What is even worse is the vulnerability of women and girls who are victims of trafficking and networks of sexual exploitation. 
Likewise, Comisiones Obreras denounces violence against women trade unionists, women and girls who are the victims of belligerent conflicts or fundamentalism and religious fanaticism. 
 
9. China - Worker Dies After 24-hour Shift 
 
A woman died of exhaustion after working a 24-hour shift at a Chinese handicraft factory, following weeks of 15-hour days, the Chinese state media reported on 3 November. 
The 30-year-old migrant worker, He Chunmei, fell into a coma and died after working for 24 hours at the Guangzhou Huaxin Handicraft Factory in southern Guangdong province. A co-worker said factory employees had been ordered to work 15 hours a day since 24 October to complete orders ahead of a planned move to a new location. 
 
10. European Union - Social Partners Agree on Text of Gender Equality 
 
The EU-level social partners agreed a new text to improve gender equality at the workplace in March 2005. The joint text is called &ldquo;Framework of Actions on Gender Equality,&rdquo; and was concluded by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and the employers&rsquo; side.
Both parties state that integrated strategies are needed to promote gender equality and tackle the remaining inequalities of the labor market. These strategies include actions to desegregate labour markets and to address gender roles in society. The parties do note that difficulties still persist such as the difficulty to reconcile work and family life, the reproduction of gender stereotypes in employment, gender segregation in the labour market, and the gender pay gap. 
Four priorities were set to tackle the problems in the years ahead. They are meant to address gender roles, to promote women in decision making, to support work-life balance, and to tackle the gender pay gap. 
 
11. Finland - Pay Deficit for Finnish women is now 85 cents to the Euro 
 
In second quarter 2005, women's pay for regular working hours in the Finnish industrial sector was, on average, &euro;11.42 per hour, with men earning &euro;13.46. This means that for every Euro paid to a man, a woman earns the equivalent of &euro;0.848 cents. 
In second quarter 2005, nominal wages for men were, on average, 1.4% above the second quarter 2004 level. In the same period, women's nominal wages rose by 2%. On average, real growth was 0.5%. The higher percentage for women reflects the lockout of the male-dominated paper industry in May and June. 
 
The biggest growth, 6.1%, took place in the rubber industry. 
 
12. France - Equal Opportunities at TOTAL 
 
The European Federation of Mine, Chemical and Energy Workers&rsquo; Unions (EMCEF), signed a European agreement on 21 November with TOTAL on equal opportunities. 
The agreement is based, on one hand, on a report on diversity and equal opportunities drawn up by the TOTAL European Works Council, and on the other the equal opportunities framework adopted by the ETUC and European employers in March 2005. 
An annual report will be presented which will enable the European Works Council to follow relevant developments. The report will be based on data on recruitment, career development, mobility, work-life balance, equal pay and training. The agreement lays down goals and objectives which will be negotiated together with the employer. 
 
13. International Partnership for Microbicides 
 
Women in developing countries will have easier access to future microbicides that will offer some protection against the HIV/AIDS virus. 
Two pharmaceuticals companies, Merck &amp; Co and Bristol-Myers Squibb, have agreed to donate the rights to develop, manufacture and distribute vaginal gels and creams that include experimental compounds to help prevent HIV infection. T
he nonprofit International Partnership for Microbicides will be permitted to develop the products without paying royalties. 
&ldquo;The search for an effective microbicide is crucial to providing women with more options to protect themselves against HIV infection,&rdquo; said Dr Peter Piot, executive director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. 
 
14. ORIT - Women at the Summit of the Americas 
 
Women trade unionists from the Americas met on 1 November in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in the framework of the Peoples&rsquo; Forum. The theme was to create work to overcome poverty. 
Unity and integration of the working class were also stressed as representatives from ICFTU/ORIT joined together with the trade union federation CLAT from the WCL. 
Decent work is the key to creating more democratic societies. Civil society needs space to participate, including activities promoted by the Organization of American States. 
 
15. South Africa - ICEM Women&rsquo;s Strategy Meeting 
 
The Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) sponsored a meeting of ICEM&rsquo;s African Women&rsquo;s Committee to develop strategy. 
The shop-steward development project also has women&rsquo;s facilitators who are building up women&rsquo;s leadership on the shop floor. This work can be linked to the broader work of the women&rsquo;s committee. The group worked on equal pay criteria and decided to investigate the pay situation in 14 different jobs done by women and men. 
In addition, Shirley Miller, ICEM&rsquo;s African HIV/AIDS coordinator, presented ICEM&rsquo;s fight against HIV/AIDS programme with an emphasis on gender-related challenges to the fight against HIV/AIDS. The women attending discovered how they can become more actively involved in ICEM&rsquo;s project on HIV/AIDS. 
 
16. Switzerland - New Weapon to Combat Salary Discrimination 
 
Swiss trade unions say a new method of calculating salary differences between the sexes shows women are paid up to one-fifth less for performing the same work. Despite equal pay for equal work being enshrined in the Swiss Constitution, the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions said there had been little progress over the past 25 years. 
As part of a new campaign for higher pay for women, the unions unveiled an on-line pay calculator. The tool takes into account qualifications, including work experience and level of education to evaluate salaries between men and women doing the same job. The unions said making the calculation tool available on the internet promotes transparency and empowers women to demand equal pay. 
See <a href="http://www.lohngleichheit.ch">www.lohngleichheit.ch</a>&nbsp;(available in German, French and Italian). 
 
17. United Kingdom - &ldquo;Women are less happy with their pay&rdquo; 
 
Women are less likely to be satisfied with their take-home pay than men, a survey in the UK has revealed. Over one in four female employees said they are unhappy with their pay, compared to one in five male workers. 
However, in spite of this, women were found to be less likely to complain about pay. Only 39% of female respondents said that they had discussed their pay with their manager. Workers can check their salary against that of people doing similar jobs across the UK on the following website: <a href="http://www.paywizard.co.uk">www.paywizard.co.uk</a>.
<hr />

 
&bull; For a free automated (non-ICEM) translation of this bulletin into other languages, you may want to try <a href="http://babelfish.altavista.com/tr">http://babelfish.altavista.com/tr</a>&nbsp;or <a href="http://www.google.com/language_tools">http://www.google.com/language_tools</a>&nbsp;and insert the following URL into the window &ldquo;Translate a Web page&ldquo;: <a href="/index.php?id=71&amp;doc=1536">www.icem.org/index.php?id=71&amp;doc=1536</a> 
 
&bull; To add a colleague or a friend to this distribution list, send her or his e-mail address to <a href="mailto:carol.bruce@icem.org">carol.bruce@icem.org</a>, mentioning &quot;Add to ICEM women's news list&quot; in the subject line. 
 
&bull; To unsubscribe from the ICEM news list, send an e-mail to <a href="mailto:carol.bruce@icem.org">carol.bruce@icem.org</a>, mentioning &quot;Unsubscribe ICEM women's news list&quot; in the subject line.

ICEM Women’s bulletin No. 7 – December 2005

<img height="101" src="" width="100" alt="" />
US-based Halliburton, the giant construction and oil services company so closely linked to the Bush government, is intent on supplanting a national union at its Indonesian operations in oil-rich Balikpapan, East Kalimantan. 
The company is challenging the certification of Chemical Energy, Mines, Oil &amp; Gas and General Workers&rsquo; Union (FSP KEP) at a regional labour agency, claiming a plant union is in place. FSP KEP has been the registered union at Halliburton&rsquo;s energy services base in Balikpapan since 2001. 
Even prior to last month&rsquo;s challenge favouring a company union, Halliburton systematically has attempted to weaken FSP KEP&rsquo;s representation status by refusing to recognise the union&rsquo;s shop-floor leaders, and then threatening to discharge FSP KEP leaders who step forward in the course of their union responsibilities. 
Halliburton got a foothold in Indonesia&rsquo;s oil and energy industries some 30 years ago under the Suharto regime.

Halliburton Out to Break Energy Union in Indonesia

<img height="55" alt="" src="" width="138" />
Works Councils in Europe of chemical/foods conglomerate Unilever will handbill company plants in Germany and The Netherlands on the first of December. 
The actions, along with press attention and mass meetings, are in protest to Unilever&rsquo;s decision to outsource 2,500 finance and shared services jobs to outside companies. 
The December date was chosen because it is then that the company will announce to workers outsourcing of human resource and shared services jobs to employment agency Accenture, and finance jobs to IBM. 
Unilever sites most heavily affected will be Rotterdam and Hamburg.

Workers at Unilever in Europe Take Protest Actions

<img height="55" src="" width="138" alt="" />
Canadian ICEM affiliate Power Workers&rsquo; Union (PWU), part of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), is calling on Ontario&rsquo;s provincial government to rethink its plans to close all coal-fuelled electric generation plants in Canada&rsquo;s largest province. 
Within the next few weeks, the Ontario Power Authority will release a report recommending the power source mix for the future and it is expected coal-fired plants&mdash;now 17% of Ontario&rsquo;s power supply&mdash;will be targeted for closure. 
PWU President Don MacKinnon said in a 24 November address that abandoning coal for generation will harm the industrial economy of the province. &ldquo;Given price and supply issues, it would be unwise to eliminate any one source of energy from our electrical generating mix,&rdquo; he said. PWU is urging the government to retrofit plants with clean-coal technology.

Power Workers Seek Retention of Coal-Fired Power Generation in Ontario

<img height="55" alt="" src="" width="138" />
China&rsquo;s second worst mine disaster of 2005 occurred yesterday when a gas explosion struck the Dongfeng Coal Mine in Qitaihe, Heilongjiang province. Some 250 miners were inside shafts of Heilongjiang Longme Group, a consortium of four state-owned coal businesses, when the explosion hit. The bodies of 51 miners were recovered, another 160 are still trapped, and 40 managed to escape. 
Year 2005&rsquo;s worst mine disaster in China occurred on 14 February when 214 coal miners perished when a gas explosion rocked a mine in Liaoning province. Last Thursday, 24 November, 17 miners drowned inside shafts after flooding at the Gaocun Coal Mine, Tuancheng Township, Hebei province.

Gas Blast in China on 27 November Kills Hundreds

A general strike last week by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) and a pro-labour panel of lawmakers working inside a plenary session of South Korea&rsquo;s National Assembly blocked three bills regarding non-regular workers from reaching final approval. 
<img width="120" height="80" src="" alt="" />
The strikes, in which 300,000 workers took part, occurred on Tuesday and Thursday, 28 February and 2 March. (1 March was an official Korean holiday.) The lawmakers, primarily from the progressive Democratic Labor Party, took over a parliamentary session on 2 March to temporarily derail passage. 
 
The bills were approved by the Assembly&rsquo;s Environment and Labor Committee on 27 February, but action in the streets and inside the plenary session prevented final approval prior to the Assembly closing its session on 2 March. The issue is certain to meet further review and more public protests when the Assembly reconvenes on 20 March in an extraordinary session. 
 
The proposed legislation would do little to improve conditions for temporary and agency workers, but instead would give employers&rsquo; the flexibility to use hundreds of thousands more non-permanent workers and laying them off prior to the end of a proposed two-year period after which they must be made permanent. 
 
The ICEM congratulated KCTU on its strike and mobilisation. In an ICEM letter to KCTU President Cho Jun Ho, General Secretary Fred Higgs said it is &ldquo;of immense importance that the main issue of your struggle is defending the basic rights of contract and agency workers. The substitution or limiting of permanent direct employment has clearly become a priority issue for countless workers and their trade unions, in every region of the world and every sector.&rdquo;

Korean Temp Worker Bills Blocked for Now

<img height="40" alt="" src="" width="100" />
Oil workers in southern Iraq conducted a one-day strike 21 February as grievance to the Oil Ministry&rsquo;s neglect for work conditions and the infrastructure of the company. The strike at the Oil Transport Company of Basra was brought by the General Union of Oil Employees (GUOE) in Basra. 
The strike took place due to the deliberate and targeted neglect of the transport company by the ministry and government; for improvements in workers&rsquo; living conditions; and as a demand to pay money promised to workers by the Oil Ministry but never paid.

Iraqi Oil Workers Strike Oil Ministry in Basra

Ron Beaton, President 
CEP Local 972 
323 Reeves Street 
Port Hawkesbury, NS B9A 2W2 
CANADA 
 
Transmitted by Fax Number +1 902.626.5943 
or E-Mail: <a href="mailto:cep.972@ns.sympatico.ca">cep.972@ns.sympatico.ca</a> 
 
 
Dear Brother Ron Beaton, 
 
We have learned from the ICEM of your courageous struggle to maintain the hard earned working conditions and job security provisions contained in the Paper Sector Pattern Bargaining Agreement for Eastern Canada. We also have been alerted that Stora Enso has locked out members of your local branch union in efforts to undermine the pattern. 
 
On the occasion of your union&rsquo;s rally and march in Port Hawkesbury on 18 March, we extend to Local 972 members our heartfelt Support and Solidarity in resisting Stora Enso&rsquo;s pattern weakening proposals. We stand with you in this dispute against Stora Enso, and urge Local 972 members to remain strong and unified in order to defeat these concessionary proposals. 
 
Your struggle is our struggle, and your determination and resolve to gain a fair and equitable labour agreement has our admiration and support. 
 
In Solidarity, 
 
(signed) 
 
(Name, 
Position, 
Name of the Union)

Model letter to the union in support of striking Canadian Stora Enso workers

ICEMの介入で 、タイのサンゴバンセクリットガラス工場争議、労組側勝利 
 
タイのサンゴバンガラス工場の争議にICEMが介入した結果、先週、同工場に働く７００人の労働者たちが勝利した。同工場の大半はタイ自動車労連に加盟している工場組合の組合員。組合に対し敵対的な現地マネージメントは１月６日以降、これらの労働者をロックアウトしていた。労働者たちがラヨング州にあるサンゴバンのタイ工場の前やバンコクの労働省前でデモ行進を行い、他方で、ICEMとフランスの労働組合はパリのサンゴバンの経営中枢と率直な対話の中で確実な事実やデータを伝えた。 
 
工場の門の前で実施した抗議行動を主導した４人の組合活動家の解雇の目的で、これらの労働者を告訴するなど、工場内で労働組合活動家に対する厳しい処遇の実態等が本社経営中枢に伝えられた。今回の労働争議は２００５年度のボーナスの支払い、日曜日時間外労働の手当ての減額案など多くの問題が争議点となっていた。労働者たちの半分をロックアウトし、４人の組合活動家を解雇した後、サンゴバン・セクリット側はボーナスの提示額を大幅に下げ、これまでの１年１回のボーナスを２年１回にするなど、厳しい協約案を団体交渉において提示した。 
 
ICEMは争議前線ニュースをF&eacute;d&eacute;ration Chimie Energie CFDT、 CGT Verre C&eacute;ramiqueおよび F&eacute;d&eacute;chimie CGT-FO に毎日のように伝え、フランスの３組合も毎日のようにパリのサンゴバン本社と連絡・接触活動を続け、経営中枢にプレッシャーをかけた。その結果、この争議は、タイのガラス工場の経営中枢は４人の解雇を取り消し、告訴状を撤回するに至った。また、タイの労使はボーナスを含め、すべての団体交渉事項について妥結した。ICEMはタイの労働者の公正な労働協約獲得に支援、貢献したフランスの諸労組にこの紙面で感謝の意を表したい。 
 
 
トルコ石油労組、裁判闘争で民営化を阻止 
 
トルコのICEM加盟組織、Petrol-Iş（石油労組）は、２月２日、国家評議会の裁定をえ、再び、国営石油精製企業Tuprasの民営化を阻止することに成功した。トルコの最高行政裁判所に当たる国家評議会はTuprasの経営権51％のトルコのKOC持ち株会社およびシェル石油からなる連合企業体（コンソーシアム）の売却を停止する裁定を下した。その前の週にコンソーシアムは51％の経営権買収のため、民営化行政評議会に41億1000万ドルに相当する金額を支払った。 
 
しかし、最高行政裁判所は、Petrol-Işの控訴に応えて、民営化法違反事項があるとの理由で、売却を無効にした。組合はTuprasの石油精製所4ヵ所と石油化学工場で24時間ストを実施するとともに、KOCとトルコ政府が経営権売却についての最終取り決めを急いでいた1月26日に、大規模な職場ストを行った。Petrol-Iş は「Tuprasは私たちの将来！だから、民営化できない。」とのスローガンを掲げて、ポスター、テレビの宣伝等、報道機関を通じてトルコの世論に民営化反対を訴えるキャンペーンを展開している。 
 
先週の裁定の後、Turpas並びにKOCのLPG部門の子会社AYGASの株がイスタンブールの株式市場でパニック売りとなる状況となった、とPlatt&rsquo;s Commodity Newsは報道した。 Petrol-Işは、裁判闘争と世論に向けたキャンペーンを背景に、 ガスおよび石油精製所の民営化問題で5件あまりの裁定を勝ち取った。 
 
 
ナイジェリア石油ガス労組、政府に安全改善を要求 
 
ICEM加盟の石油労組、NUPENG と PENGASSANは先週、政府と協議した後、ニジェールデルタの安全が改善されない場合には、2週間後にストライキに突入する、と通告した。1月30日、拉致から19日後にシェル石油の下請け労働者は解放された。しかし、石油資源が豊富な二ジェールデルタでの若者や武装集団による暴力・武力行為は引き続いて起きている。2週間前、武力集団はポートハーコートにあるイタリアのENIのAgip Mgboshimini社の事務所を襲撃した。この事件で、警察を含め11人の人が亡くなり、数人が負傷した。この襲撃の後、ENIは同市からすべての労働者を引き上げた。1月28日、20人の武装集団が現代エンジニア＆建設会社の事務所を襲撃し、現金30万ドルを強奪した。犯罪グループは外資系のすべての石油会社とその関連下請会社並びにタンカートラックの運転手まで脅迫している。 
 
労働組合は見境のない無法状態に終焉と遂げるよう呼びかけるとともに、政府に対して、ニジェールデルタ地域の貧困問題の解決に向けて対策を取るよう要請した。NUPENG のピーター・アクパタソン委員長は、Vangaurd誌のインタビューに答えて、「現政府の関係当局は若者たちの雇用創設の責務を適切に遂行していない。当該地域の危機、荒廃、貧困の問題は雇用創出なしには解決できない。しかし、石油事業施設への攻撃、特に労働者に対する武力行為については全面的に非難する。」と述べた。 
 
 
米国の地方裁判所、UMWAの立ち入り安全検査を認める 
 
米国の地方裁判所は、1月26日、独自路線を取る石炭会社、International Coal Group (ICG)に対し、全米鉱山労組（UMWA)の事故調査チームのウエストバージニア州にあるサゴ炭鉱への入坑拒否に対し、拒否撤回命令を出した。1月2日、12人の炭鉱労働者が炭鉱内で起きたガス爆発事故で亡くなった。UMWAは同炭鉱に働く150人の炭鉱労働者を組織していない。しかし、その多くが米国鉱業安全衛生法の下で実施される法的に拘束される事故調査チームに入るよう要請していた。ICG社は警備員を使ってUMWAの事故調査担当者らの入坑を阻んでいた。地方裁判所の裁定が出た後すぐ、ICG社は控訴したが、バージニア州リッチモンド地方裁判所は控訴を却下した。 
 
ICG社は現在、UMWAのチームが同社の安全対策とサゴ炭鉱の大変危険な安全対策について調査・査定することを認めている。エネルギーの需要増と石炭価格の高騰を背景に、東部で閉鎖炭鉱の採掘再開の動きが出て来た。このような状況の中で、サゴ炭鉱事故直後、ウエストバージニア州の他の炭鉱でも死亡事後が起きた。1月19日、メルビルのアラコマ石炭のアルマ炭鉱で火災事故が起こり、逃げ遅れた炭鉱労働者が2人死亡した。1月31日、2人の炭鉱労働者が亡くなった。1人はロングブランチエネルギーのワートン炭鉱で崩れた壁の下敷きになって死亡。もう一人はマッセイエネルギーのブラックキャッスルオープン炭鉱でブルドーザーの運転手がガスパイプに挟まれて死亡。2005年に炭鉱事故で亡くなった人の数は3名であったが、今年はすでに、1月2日以降、ウエストバージニアだけでもすでに16名亡くなっている。 
 
上記の死亡事故とは正反対に、同じ1月31日、1000マイル離れたイリノイ州ジャイレッドの近くにあるフリーマンユナイティッド石炭会社の炭鉱では炭鉱内に設置してあるUMWAのガス探知機が高いレベルの一酸化炭素を探知したため、UMWAの組合員の90人の炭鉱労働者とUMWAのチームは坑外に避難した。UMWAチームは坑内に閉じ込められた炭鉱労働者たちを安全に地上に上げた。現在、この炭鉱は調査のため閉鎖されている。 
 
 
カナダの労使合同救援チーム、72人の鉱山労働者を安全に救助 
 
カナダの労使合同救援チームはサスカチェワン州の石灰鉱山で1000メートルの地下の坑内に閉じこまれていた72人の鉱山労働者の救出に成功した。火災事故は1月29日に米国系企業モザイク社（食品巨大企業カーギルが経営権を支配）が所有する世界最大の石灰石鉱山で起きた。890支部と892支部の組合員で構成されたCEP鉱山救援チームは25時間坑内に閉じ込められている72人に労働者を救出するため、週出するため、斬新は方策を試みた。72人は火災が発生したため、シールドされた避難所に留まっていた。火災の原因はトーチが折れ、火がポリエチレンパイプに点火したため。 
 
労使合同救助チームは近くの組織炭鉱の救援チームの支援を受け、火災を消火し、注意深く有毒ガスと煙を排出し、閉じ込められていた72人鉱山労働者を地上に連れ出した。この鉱山は地下3000マイルの深さで、20マイル幅の地下道やトンネルが多数ある。ある米国の元鉱山会社部長は。「まるで教科書の中の手本のような救助であった。」と感想を述べた。しかし、閉じ込められていた鉱山労働者たちは避難所内に貯蔵されていた食糧については満足した様子ではなかった。 
 
 
IUOEのストライキ終わる 
 
ICEMに加盟する全米オペレーター労組 (IUOE)は、賃上げと給付金のレベルアップを求めて、カナダのノバスコティア州の米国系建材製造会社National Gypsum において2005年8月10日から実施していたストライキを中止した。1月末に同社のミルフォード採石場とバーンサイド積み込み施設に働く90人あまりのIUOE組合員が協約案を批准したためだ。ストライキは州政府が同社に対し6項目の安全基準違反の裁定を下し、IUOE721支部が同社の製品のボイコットキャンペーンを始め、これにノバスコティア州の労働総同盟と建設業業界が同調した後、協約は妥結した。National Gypsum 社は声明を発表し、労使関係の修復と労使信頼の基盤の構築に取り組む、と述べた。 
 
 
ExxonMobilがオーストラリアで直面するジレンマ 
 
エクソンモービルはモービルオーストラリアのポートスタンバック石油精製所の操業を再開するか、多額の環境浄化コストを支払うかの選択を、今、迫られている。モービルオーストラリアはエクソンモービル100％所有の会社。同石油精製所は2003年の半ばに閉鎖され、400人の労働者が失業した。同社はこの石油精製所の今後についての計画案を2006年7月までに発表しなければならないことになっている。最近、サウスオーストラリア州議会の審議会で、1970年代から1990年代にかけて、サウスアデレイドの近郊にあるこの石油精製所からアスベスト廃棄物やその他の有害化学物質を買って陸送、海上輸送していた、と同社の下請け業者が証言した。また、同石油精製所の安全衛生担当者は3000人の労働者がアスベストに暴露した、と述べた。また、「私は安全ではない状況を目撃したが、指摘すると、首になるので何も言えない状態だった。」と証言した。2003年にエクソンモービルが同石油精製所を閉鎖したため、オーストラリアは石油精製品の実質輸入国となった。 
 
 
EPMU、5％賃上げを要求 
 
ニュージーランドのエンジニアリング印刷および製造業労組(EPMU-ICEM加盟)は先週、紙パ会社Carter Holt Harvey (CHH)の事業所において5％賃上げキャンペーンを再開した。同労組はグレーム・ハートが持っているRank Investments がCHHの株式を買い始めた後、CHHとの賃上げ交渉を停止した。EPMUはCHHの３事業所との交渉では5％の賃上げを確保したが、残りの7事業所での交渉は昨年以来中止のままである。ハートは先週、一株あたり2.75ニュージーランドドルの価格で株式の買収を提案し、現在、彼はCHHの経営権86％を持っている。オークランド株式市場の上場を取り下げるためには、ハートはCHHの90％の経営権を持つ必要がある。 
 
 
突然ロックアウトされたEPMU組合員 
 
ニュージーランドの地方自治体が経営するTop Energyは、2月3日、通告なしに EPMU組合員58名をロックアウトした。架線作業に従事するこれらの労働者たちはEPMUが設定した標準 5%の賃上げを求めている。しかし、経営側は時間外なし週45時間労働という非現実的条件を求めている。「私たちは6ヶ月弱交渉を続け、労働協約を現状に合わせて改定することに合意したが、既存の賃金は比較的低いレベルにあり、深刻な要員不足の状態に当面している中で、賃下げには応じられない。」とEPMUのアンドリュー・リトル委員長はニュージーランドの報道機関に語った。同社はニュージーランドのノースアイランドの配電会社。 
 
 
FCE- CFDT、公約違反でソルベを非難 
 
ICEMのフランス加盟組織のFCEは400名の労働者を解雇すると発表したベルギーの化学会社、ソルベに抗議した。同社は2004年3月、フランスのフルニエファーマ社を買収した際、少なくとも、2006年7月までは雇用削減はしない、と公約していた。フランスでは400名あまりの職、イタリア、スペインおよびベルギーでも186名の職が失われることになる。FCE-CFDTは今回の雇用削減は社会的にも無責任であり、これらの職の保持に向けてもっと透明性ある再検討を求めている。 
 
 
セルビア・モンテネグロの加盟組合EPS労組のスト終わる 
 
EPS労組は国営電力公社内の電力および石炭事業の3企業で実施していたストを中止した。未払い賃金の支払いと2006年度の賃上げを求めて段階的スト行為を実施していたが、EPS労組と政府は、労働側が未払い分については1月、2月、3月に分割払いにし、賃上げについては1ヶ月後に交渉に入ることで暫定的に合意した。 EPS労組は1月10日から、労働者の未払い賃金の支払いを要求して、毎日ストやその他の抗議行動を続けていた。 
 
 
USWのCognisスト、1年経過 
 
2月7日、全米鉄鋼労連（USW）第4349支部はオハヨー州シンシナティにあるドイツの化学企業Cognisでスト実施中である。同支部労組は環境リスクと労働安全衛生対策の遅延が発覚している同工場の所有者であるCognisとそのジョイントベンチャーパートナーの動きに注目しながら、スト突入一周年記念を見守っている。 
労働者たちがストに入ったのは、CognisとMalaysian Golden Hope Plantations が同工場の油脂化学事業でジョイントベンチャー会社を設置した時にCognisが組合認知に関する継続認知条項を認めなかったため。現在、経営側はストが終わったとしても労働者の職場復帰を認めない、としている。これに対し、フレッド・ヒッグスICEM書記長はCognisのトルシ・オリバ代表取締役に出した書簡の中で、この行為は容認できない、とし、希望するUSWのすべての労働者が職場復帰することができるようになることが、スト終焉の条件である。従って、代表取締役としての新会社に対し影響力を行使してほしい、と強く要請した。 
 
 
2月3日付　ICEM 記者発表 
 
ICEMの2月3日付記者発表はベルギーの労働組合の法的地位についてコメントした。スウェーデン/フィンランド系の製紙会社、ストーラ・エンゾーはベルギーの労働組合の法的地位に関する論議で保守諸政党側に付いた。ゲント近郊のランガーブルッゲ工場では今、基本的労働組合権が問題化している。経営側は、嫌がらせや分断戦略を使って、意図的に工場に働く労働者の権利の低減を試みている。同社は工場の300人の労働者の内、70人の職責を下請けに出し、従来からの権利を放棄し、労働条件を低下してフレキシビリティを図ろうとしている。これに抗議して、労働組合は2月7日午後19時からゲントでデモ行進を計画している。ICEMの記者発表は次のリンクでお読みください。/?id=77&amp;doc=1638.

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