8 March, 2011As women and unions around the world celebrate the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day 2011, the International Metalworkers' Federation calls for greater inclusion and involvement of women in all trade union structures. This year IMF regional meetings will include half day meetings to discuss issues surrounding women, culminating in an IMF women's conference in December.
8 March, 2011The Gerdau Workers' World Council is calling on unions in all Gerdau plants to send letters to plant managers demanding an end to anti-union activities at the Gerdau plant in Tocancipá, Colombia.
4 March, 2011EMF and IMF representatives meet with Cortes Lastra, Member of European Parliament and chair of the Delegation to the EU-Mexico Joint Parliamentary Committee, seeking support for improved labour rights in Mexico.
4 March, 2011Participants from all major GM/Opel sites meet in Rüsselsheim, Germany to discuss the revival of the GM Network, the need for an IFA and demand the expansion of the European Works Council (EWC) to a World Employee committee (WEC)
14 March, 2011IMF sends message of condolence and solidarity to its Japanese affiliate, union members and their families, following the massive earthquake and tsunamis that caused untold devastation and damage to the eastern part of Japan.
15 February, 2011Unions from IMF, ICEM, ITF, UNI and ITUC kick off rallies and embassy visits in some 30 countries as part of the Global Days of Action campaign.
14 February, 2011IMF German affiliate IG Metall reaches an agreement on a wage increase for Volkswagen workers, bolstering their participation in the fair share of profit.
3 March, 2011According to the European Metalworkers' Federation, the Netherlands is Belarus' second biggest trade partner after Russia. Its share in total Belarus exports is 11.1 per cent. EMF calls for the introduction of economic sanctions against Belarus. Stopping the oil transit to the Netherlands would be the most effective form of pressure on the regime.
21 April, 2011April 12 marks the day that Swaziland declared a state of emergency in 1973, which is still ongoing 38 years later, making it one of the world's longest running state of emergencies. It has been used to suspend the human rights and political freedom of the Swazi people and includes a ban on political parties. April 12, 2011 was chosen by pro-democracy campaigners for mass protests. Yet the protests planned for three days from the April 12 faced brutal crackdown by Swaziland security forces on anti-government protestors.
21 April, 2011The international labour movement marked the 5th anniversary of the deaths of Mario Alberto Castillo Rodríguez and Héctor Álvarez Gómez with a march in Lázaro Cárdenas, Mexico and the submission of new evidence to the ILO highlighting the issue of violence against members of the SNTMMSRM. The murders of Rodríguez and Gómez, named in the ILO complaint (no. 2478), remain unsolved.
