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The ICEM North American affiliate International Longshore &amp; Warehouse Union (ILWU) won a new collective agreement with Bayer AG after several months of struggle. ILWU Local 6 in Berkeley, California, mounted an aggressive campaign for its 420 pharmaceutical workers at a Bayer HealthCare plant in blocking the company from imposing from higher employee health care costs, and winning job security in a new collective agreement. 
 
The new four-year contract is expected to be ratified by union members on Wednesday, 12 October. 
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The ILWU used intervention by IGBCE of Germany, and established a Bayer Workers&rsquo; Council in America involving other unions that represent workers at the German company&rsquo;s US operations. On 24 August, the day a prior labour agreement expired, workers at the other US plants wore stickers and conducted informational picketing on behalf of Berkeley workers. 
 
Those unions include the United Steelworkers (USW), the International Association of Machinists (IAM), and the International Chemical Workers Union (ICWU), part of the United Food &amp; Commercial Workers (UFCW). 
 
The agreement freezes workers&rsquo; share of health care premiums at 18% and it contains new provisions against outsourcing, in essence giving workers enhanced job security. In 2009, Bayer threatened to move jobs away from the Berkeley plant, but reversed that decision when the ILWU marshaled political support in gaining tax subsidies for the company. The union used that same political support to remind Bayer of its duty to keep family-sustaining jobs in the plant. 
 
The new agreement, if ratified this week, will give workers a 3.1% wage increase in each of the first three years, and a 3.2% increase in year four, or 2014. The Berkeley plant manufactures Bayer&rsquo;s profitable drug Kogenate, a hemophilia or blood-clotting medicine.

Pressure Campaign Wins ILWU New Bayer Pact in US State of California

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The day prior to the opening of ICEM&rsquo;s Fifth Statutory Congress on 24 November in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a day-long conference on the lessons, best practices, and future strategies of the Global Union Federation&rsquo;s Contract and Agency Labour (CAL) campaign will take place at the Congress&rsquo;s venue. 
 
Sponsored by the German Freidrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), the conference will cover legal and national legislative efforts around CAL, company level initiatives, and strategies undertaken at the trade union level. ICEM project coordinators will present their findings on this, and J&oslash;rgen Juul Rasmussen of Dansk El F&ouml;rbund of Denmark will give an overview on the temporary and fixed-term employment situation in Europe, as well as progress on implementing the European Union directive on temporary work. 
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An afternoon session will review specific initiatives on combating the rampant growth of temporary and short-term employment in four countries, while the concluding session will be a panel discussion on future strategies under a new integrated International. General Secretaries from the ICEM (Manfred Warda), the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (Jyrki Raina), and the International Textile, Garment, and Leather Workers&rsquo; Federation (Klaus Priegnitz) will comprise that panel. 
 
ICEM Latin America and Caribbean Regional Chairman Sergio Novais will chair the day-long session.

CAL Conference Takes Shape at ICEM’s 5th Congress

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In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we report on the ICEM Women&rsquo;s Workshop in West Africa, the selection of the abstract written for ICASA, and the report of the High Level Panel on Global Fund reforms. 
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Women and HIV and AIDS, Sub-regional Workshop in Accra 
 
The West African Sub-regional Women&rsquo;s Workshop, which was held in Accra, Ghana, brought together 17 women from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, and Guinea. 
 
The workshop identified specific challenges facing women at the workplace and in communities with respect to HIV and AIDS. It addressed violence arising from HIV status and women&rsquo;s health and HIV and AIDS and dealt with the issue of the use of female condoms. 
 
The workshop started with a presentation by Akua Asumadu, the ILO HIV/AIDS Focal Point in Accra on &ldquo;Gender in the World of Work and mainstreaming gender in workplace response to HIV and AIDS.&rdquo; 
 
The workshop dealt with the issue of the importance of women structures especially in a male dominated industry such as the mining sector. Participants felt strongly that despite existing challenges, women structures play an important role in uplifting women and suggested that women structures should begin to be relevant to women by addressing specific women health and societal issues in order to improve active participation of women. 
 
Dr. Fred Nana Poku from the Ghana AIDS Commission made a presentation on &ldquo;The existing progress in the fight against HIV and AIDS, gender related issues that hinder access to care and the strategies in place to encourage the use of the female condoms.&rdquo; 
 
His presentation was followed by a presentation on the female condoms as a well as a demonstration on its proper use by Paule France Ndessomin, the ICEM HIV and AIDS coordinator. It became clear that the majority of women had never come across a female condom and were ignorant of its existence. The efforts through the ICEM HIV/AIDS project not only familiarise women with female condoms but also demonstrate the potential of their empowerment. 
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International AIDS Conference in Addis Ababa 
 
The 16th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA 2011) will be held in Addis Ababa 4-8 December. The theme of the Conference is &ldquo;Own, Scale-up and Sustain.&rdquo; 
 
In the context of the project, sponsored by the Danish LO/FTF and in cooperation with the ICEM affiliate NIFECM, an abstract was written for the Conference proceedings. <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/ICEM%20Abstract-ICASA2011-a.pdf">The abstract</a>, entitled &ldquo;HIV and the Workplace, Awareness and Prevention in the Mining Sector in Ethiopia, Trade Unions Take their Responsibility,&rdquo; was selected for presentation at an oral abstract session at the Conference. 
 
High Level Panel Recommends Major Changes to the Global Fund 
 
A High Level Panel led by former President Mogae of Botswana and former US Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt has recommended in its report, released on 19 September, that the Global Fund make some major changes in its structure and working methods. The Panel was established six months ago by the Board of the Global Fund after widespread media publicity about corruption among some grant implementers. 
 
The Panel was given a broad remit to look into the Global Fund's problems and what should be done about them. Much is riding on the report; several donors have delayed making, or implementing, their funding commitments for 2011 and later until they see how the Panel reports and how the Fund responds. 
 
It would go beyond the scope of this e-bulletin to summarise the 149-page report (which is done in the GFO Issue 158 quoted below). However, some of the major recommendations stand out. 
 
Firstly, the GF Board should specify the maximum available funding for each type of country. It is further recommended that the GF introduces a two-stage grant application process with a relatively brief concept paper first and a full proposal after &ldquo;approval in principle.&rdquo; With respect to staffing, it is recommended that the overall ratio of Country Program Staff (mainly Fund Portfolio Managers) within the Secretariat should increase. 
 
The report was subsequently adopted by the Global Fund Board. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, Issue 158 of 20 September. GFO is a free service of Aidspan <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>; to receive GFO send an email to <a href="mailto:receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org">receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org</a>) 
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HIV and the Neglect of Older African Adults 
 
While the focus of HIV and AIDS interventions has always been on the 20-40-year-olds most likely to be infected, African democracy institute Idasa warns that health workers and social planners have neglected to take into account the elderly who have contracted the virus &ndash; and their numbers are growing. 
 
Successful ARV treatment is just one factor that has created a new group of HIV and AIDS patients &ndash; the over 50s who face their own distinctive needs and challenges. A IDASA study, HIV and AIDS and the Older Adult, points out that old age could disguise the symptoms of HIV and AIDS, leaving it undetected and untreated as health workers and social services focus their attention on the younger population. This could have serious consequences as older adults may fall through the treatment net. 
 
Greater awareness of the prevalence of HIV and AIDS in the older cohort is urgent. The study suggests that older people may be more sensitive to antiretroviral drug toxicity and therefore the body&rsquo;s reaction to antiretroviral agents may be different in the older person. The authors also warn that older people may be suffering from age-related conditions and using other non-HIV medications, which could introduce complications in the use of antiretrovirals. 
 
The stigma and discrimination experienced by older people suffering from HIV and AIDS is also greater. Furthermore, many of South Africa&rsquo;s older generation have been left to care for AIDS orphans. They have become the sole breadwinners and sources of income in many households. but a growing numbers of these senior citizens are HIV-positive or suffering from AIDS themselves. 
 
(Source: IDASA press release, 25 August) 
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Swaziland: HIV Prevalence among Factory Workers 50% 
 
A new study has found that more than half of workers in Swaziland&rsquo;s garment industry are living with HIV, and officials are realizing that the once-hailed promise of manufacturing employment has become a financial and medical nightmare for tens of thousands of Swazi women. 
 
About 30,000 Swazis, mostly women, are employed in garment factories financed by Taiwanese investors and operated by managers from mainland China. The survey also found that most factory workers were well informed about HIV/AIDS, and 90 percent of workers interviewed were aware of the female condom and other methods of preventing HIV. 
 
The prevalence rate for textile industry employees is significantly higher than the 26% rate among sexually active adult Swazis, which is already the highest in the world. Although most of the workers knew how to prevent HIV, their circumstances did not allow them to practice this. Wages for part-time workers can be as low as US$56 a month, and rarely top US$223 a month for factory-floor workers. This forces a lot of factory workers into prostitution where unprotected sex is often demanded. 
 
(Source: IRIN/PlusNews, Matsapha, 11 August) 
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Nigeria: Changing Attitudes to Contraception 
 
Traditional leaders&rsquo; support has been vital to reproductive health education efforts. Health workers say an apparent rise in contraceptive use in Nigeria stems largely from a willingness by traditional and religious leaders in some regions to use their influence in promoting reproductive health. 
 
In the predominantly Muslim north, where contraceptive use has historically been far lower than the national average, the support of traditional leaders has helped change attitudes in communities where contraception was long regarded as taboo. 
 
Even in rural areas condoms are being used. People now know the negative consequences of not using condoms - HIV and pregnancy. Culturally relevant performances in villages are used to promote messages about family planning, reproductive health and safe sex. 
 
(Source: IRIN News, 27 July) 
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News from Global Unions 
 
The International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF &ndash; <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>) in its latest HIV/AIDS update 113 of 1 October, reports on its participation in the Inter-Agency Task Team to scale up HIV workplace policies and programmes and to mobilise the private sector. 
 
The September Newsletter of PSUFASA (Public Sector Unions Fighting AIDS in Southern Africa &ndash; <a href="http://www.psufasa.org">www.psufasa.org</a>) gives guidelines for trade union participation in the proposal process for the Global Fund and reports on meetings of PSI affiliates in Zimbabwe to explore the possibilities to include a workplace component in the country proposal. The newsletter also describes the anti-stigma and discrimination programmes which were launched in several southern African countries. 
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Five Years Ago: From the October 2006 (Issue No. 13) 
 
The first issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin was published in October 2005. In current issues, we refer to an article from the same month five years ago and reflect on developments. 
 
In the HIV/AIDS e-bulletin of October 2006, we reported on the 3rd Regional Workshop for national coordinators. It will be recalled that the first cycle of the ICEM HIV/AIDS project, which ran from 2005 to 2006, included a series of regional training workshops for national coordinators. This third workshop focussed on peer education and laid the foundation for successful national activities in the coming years. The fourth and final workshop in that cycle dealt with accessing resources at national level and the writing of project proposals. Without knowledge of funds which may be available at national level and skills to access them, long-term sustainability cannot be achieved. Only a limited number of affiliates, however, succeeded in mobilising additional resources. 
 
In that issue, we also reported on the difficulties the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria had in financing grants for approved Round 6 proposals. Although only 43% of eligible proposals were approved, a funding gap of US$300 million emerged and project funding had to be postponed until additional pledges were received. 
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This ICEM HIV-AIDS Newsletter &ndash; How to Subscribe 
 
To subscribe to the e-bulletin, send an email to <a href="mailto:press@icem.org">press@icem.org</a>. Please put &ldquo;subscribe ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin&rdquo; in the subject line.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 73, October 2011

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Loyal to the organisation&rsquo;s motto &ldquo;an injury to one is an injury to all,&rdquo; 10,000 members of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) marched to the Chamber of Mines in Johannesburg in early October demanding safer working conditions. 
 
Deadly mine accidents continue to take the lives of some around 100 South African miners each year. The 4 October demonstrators also used the occasion to remember comrades killed at work. 
 
Several thousand mine, construction and energy sector employees downed their tools to mark the day of mourning and protest. The central business district of Johannesburg was brought to a standstill by the march to state-run electricity provider Eskom, the South African Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors, and the government departments of labour and mineral resources. 
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The Marchers were addressed by the Leadership of the National Union of Mineworkers, The President of the NUM and the ICEM, The General Secretary of the ICEM and the Chairman of the ICEM Mining and DGJOP Sector. 
 
The Chamber of Mines, incidentally, joined the strike to improve national awareness over mine health and safety. 
 
The NUM showed its might in July with a widely celebrated victory, blocking Brazilian mining group Vale&rsquo;s efforts to invest in the country and to operate in the region. Vale&rsquo;s anti-union behaviour throughout the world, most notably against the United Steelworkers (USW) in Canada, led NUM General Secretary Frans Baleni to describe the company as &ldquo;one of the world&rsquo;s leading labour exploiters&rdquo; and an employer not welcome in South Africa. 
 
Vale had long targeted base-metals mining company Metorex for its extensive copper and cobalt mining operations, and prospective growth projects, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in Zambia. But strong NUM opposition forced Vale to withdraw their bid for Metorex on 12 July.

NUM Strikes for South African Mine Safety Improvements

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A tripartite regional workshop on improving safety and health in mining was held in Lima, Peru on 26-27 September, with participation from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Mexico. The well-attended meeting studied ILO Convention 176 in detail, with near consensus on the importance of ratification and proper implementation. ICEM Mining Officer Glen Mpufane and Health, Safety and Sustainability Officer Brian Kohler, were speakers. 
 
Peru is rich in natural resources, and is one of 25 countries to have ratified the important convention. Peruvians have the right, outlined in the country&rsquo;s Constitution, to protect their health, including at work. Addressing the meeting, Peru's Deputy Minister of Labour Pablo Checa reiterated the importance of ILO Convention 176. However Peru is a strong example of the importance of effective implementation of Convention 176 and Recommendation 183 subsequent to ratification. The latest studies show a continuing lack of health and safety in mines, and there is much work needed to build a culture of prevention in Peru. 
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The meeting clearly illustrated problems facing precarious workers and workers in informal mining who are exposed to many health and safety risks; concerns about diseases, not just accidents. Precarious workers were shown to strongly need clear governmental authority and regular inspections, to be safe at work. 
 
Martin Hahn of the ILO, chairing the meeting, and others, attempted to bring the meeting to a conclusion with consensus on a text of recommendations from the participants. The adoption of a meeting resolution calling for ratification of ILO Convention 176 was blocked by a handful of participants, led by employer representatives. ICEM's Glen Mpufane and Brian Kohler objected strongly to the lack of a strong outcome. Employer representatives would not agree to a statement calling for ratification of ILO 176. 
 
As any tangible result from the meeting was blocked by the group of employer representatives, the mining unions drafted a declaration and presented it to the ILO Regional Director. The unions declared the following: 
<ul>
 <li>
 <div align="justify">In the context of strengthening the global trade unions, our organizations will be working hard to build trade union unity of the mining unions in our region</div>
 </li>
 <li>Promoting the signing and ratification in all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, of ILO Convention 176 on safety and health in mines.</li>
 <li>Ending outsourcing in our industry, and declare that it is a mechanism of job insecurity.</li>
 <li>Reducing working hours in mining occupations.</li>
 <li>Supporting the development of regulated small-scale mining.</li>
 <li>Actively participating in the bills in each of our countries.</li>
 <li>Promoting sustainable production methods, allowing sustainable development friendly to environment and communities.</li>
 <li>Finally, declaring freedom of association as a fundamental right.</li>
</ul>

ILO Convention 176 Meeting in Peru, Importance of Implementation Underlined

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International pressure &ndash; both inside and out of Georgia &ndash; caused a change of course last week by police and political authorities in the aftermath of the belligerent 15 September strike-breaking at Euroasian Steels in Kutaisi. Not only were over 30 sacked workers offered their jobs back, but police questioned the Indian managing director and two aides at Euroasian, also known as Hercules Steel, on 29 September. 
 
The next day the top boss was sacked. An ongoing police investigation is underway over his conduct inside the steel mill. 
 
In the midst of this positive reversal, the ICEM, however, took deep exception to remarks made last week by the Georgian business ombudsman, George Pertaia. On 6 October, Pertaia said the September strike by workers was manipulated and instigated by ICEM affiliate Metallurgical, Mining, and Chemical Workers&rsquo; Trade Union &ldquo;to justify its existence.&rdquo; 
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Polish Solidarnoş&ccedil; Union Members and ICEM Meet with Hercules Steel Workers, 28 September
Pertaia said that workers at Hercules have individual contracts and had no right to strike. &ldquo;If the contract is signed, and you have already agreed with certain conditions, then you have no right to refuse those conditions,&rdquo; he said. 
 
The ICEM reminds Pertaia that global labour standards do exist, including the right to join a union and to bargain collectively. Considering that Euroasian Steels, or Hercules, has no wage schedule in place, no health and safety plan, it pays no overtime, and workers are forced to work mandatory and long work days, industrial action was justified. 
 
The ICEM also invites Mr. Pertaia to examine the working conditions of 130 Indian workers employed at Hercules. They live eight to a room in a dormitory adjacent to the mill, their passports were being head by the managing director, Raji Kumar Sureika, their salaries are sent back to India, and they are given a miniscule stipend to support themselves off the job. 
 
In fact, it is believed that the managing director was sacked and is under police investigation because of treatment of the Indian workers. 
 
On 18 September, three strike leaders &ndash; Emilo Gumberidze, Irakli Iobidze, and Malkhaz Gogiava &ndash; were rounded up and jailed by police on bogus charges. They were given ten day jail sentences. (A <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4673-Georgian-Trade-Union-Leaders-Jailed-for-Passing-Drug-Test">prior ICEM article</a> is here.)&nbsp; 
 
Upon release from the Kutaisi jail on 28 September, the three immediately called Metallurgical, Mining, and Chemical Workers&rsquo; Union President Tamazi Dolaberidze and pledged their continued support to the union. On 30 September, the new acting managing director of Hercules personally called each of the three to offer them their jobs back. The reversal gave Hercules metalworkers renewed momentum following the strike&rsquo;s crushing and that registered both with Georgian workers and with Indian workers. 
 
Several points of global and internal civil pressure caused deep embarrassment to the Georgian government. There was high-level diplomatic pressure involved, especially after an international delegation that included the ICEM and top leaders from Poland&rsquo;s Solidarnoş&ccedil; union exposed the fact that the Indian workers at Hercules might just be treated worse than Georgian workers. 
 
The strike last month by 200 Hercules metalworkers was sparked after the Metallurgical, Mining, Chemical Union gained written support from a majority of the Georgian workers and then requested labour-management dialogue. After several weeks, the request was ignored and the strike started, including hunger strikes by four workers in front of the mill.

ICEM Rebuts Georgian Business Ombudsman for Remarks over Steel Mill Dispute

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Broad strike activity accelerated a positive wage agreement in the Austrian metal sector. In the early morning hours today, 18 October, Austrian trade unions PRO-GE and GPA djp, the Salaried Employees, Print, Journalism, Paper Union, emerged from bargaining on behalf on 170,000 metal and industrial workers with positive results. 
The 2011 pay awards will range from 4.2% to 4.4%, with the minimum wage in the sector increasing by &euro;80-per-month, or a sizeable 5.3%. The ICEM commends these wage gains as a sterling European example in creating consumer power to offset the dire financial climate of the Eurozone. PRO-GE and GPA djp are to be congratulated for negotiating &euro;300 million into the Austrian economy in this single set of talks. 
<img src="" width="180" height="120" alt="" />
This was made possible by strategic and early strikes last week that moved third-round bargaining up to yesterday, and forced the employers&rsquo; hand in raising their wage offers to above 4%. (See <a href="/en/5-Mining-DGOJP/4719-Wage-Shame-Drives-Austrian-Metalworkers-into-Warning-Strikes">ICEM report</a> on Austrian coordinated strikes last week here.) 
&ldquo;We have met our main demands of sustainable wage and salary increases, particularly for the lowest paid workers,&rdquo; said Rainer Wimmer, PRO-GE&rsquo;s chief negotiator. &ldquo;I thank the stewards, members, and supporters who made this deal possible. Without the 800 workplace actions and the pressure generated by the strikes, this would not have been possible.&rdquo; 
Those strikes happened last Thursday and Friday, and were about to carry into Monday, 17 October, except that employers recognised the growing momentum among workers for fair wage gains and they reached settlement on union terms. That recognition came in hastily called exploratory talks held on Sunday, 16 October, that included &Ouml;GB national labour centre President Erich Foglar and the leader of the chief employers&rsquo; association, the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber (WK&Ouml;). 
<img alt="" src="" width="105" height="160" />
Rainer Wimmer
Third-round bargaining was moved up from 20 October to yesterday to avoid further work stoppages, and the two sides reached accord early today after a 14-hour bargaining session. 
The agreement grants a 1 November pay rise of 4.4% to bottom rung workers, 4.3 to mid-level, 4.2% to senior staff, and 4% to top level people. In addition, pay for apprentices increases by 4.3% and all benefit indemnifications increase by the same amount. 
Perhaps the crowning achievement was hiking the minimum wage by 5.3%, or up to &euro;1,584-per-month. The wage agreement positively affects the buying power for 25,000 autoworkers, 16,000 who work in basic steel and iron, 5,000 in non-ferrous metals, 5,000 in utility work, and tens of thousands more in machinery, metal goods, and other industrial production. 
Austria&rsquo;s metal sector agreement now sets a template for 450,000 retail sector workers. Unions representing those workers and retail employers begin talks on 19 October.

Austria Metalworkers Negotiate Exemplary 2011 Wage Terms

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Members of the International Association of Machinists &amp; Aerospace Workers (IAM) began strike action Honeywell on 10 October at a nuclear parts manufacturing facility in Kansas City, Missouri. The 940 members of IAM Lodge 778 begin their third week today on picket lines at a US government-owned site following a 79% contract rejection on 9 October. 
 
Union members followed that ballot with an 85% strike vote the same day. US federal mediation a week ago failed to resolve differences, but did produce a hand-shake agreement on 18 October in which both sides agreed to refrain from airing the dispute in the local press. Two days later, a manager for Honeywell Federal Manufacturing &amp; Technologies LLC. told a television broadcast that IAM members are overpaid and should be satisfied with the company&rsquo;s &ldquo;last and final&rdquo; offer.
<img src="" width="215" height="161" alt="" />
That offer is a six-year proposal that does contain minimal pay gains in each year, but it also creates a two-tier wage scheme. That pay grid would see all employees hired in 2012 receive less hourly pay and come under a slower pay progression. Such a pay schedule would take new hires five years to reach only 90% of what current workers earn. 
 
Honeywell&rsquo;s proposal also attacks workers&rsquo; health care coverage, making it more costly for union members to have adequate health insurance. IAM Lodge 778 has proposed a four-year contract without the concessions. 
 
The union awaits a decision from the US National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) declaring the work stoppage an unfair labour practice strike. In the days prior to the 9 October rejection vote, Honeywell management circumvented the union&rsquo;s bargaining committee by express mailing a letter to all workers, misrepresenting the company&rsquo;s proposal and urging them to accept the offer. 
 
Such bad-faith bargaining runs counter to US labour statute and if the NLRB does issue a complaint, the strike takes on new meaning. Honeywell operates the US government facility called Bannister Federal Complex and produces non-nuclear components for America&rsquo;s nuclear weapons industry. 
 
The IAM strike comes a short two months after Honeywell ended a 13-month lockout against members of the United Steelworkers (USW) at a uranium conversion site in Metropolis, Illinois. ICEM reports on that can be found <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4618-USW-Local-7-669-Honeywell-Accord-Takes-Effect-Today-Ending-US-Lockout ">here</a> and <a href="/en/27-North-America/4527-Steelworkers-Mark-Year-long-Honeywell-Lockout-in-US ">here</a>.

US Machinists Strike Honeywell Nuclear Parts Plant in Missouri

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A subsidiary of the Swiss-based trading house Glencore International is refusing to consider modest improvements for its employees in the municipality of La Jagua de Ibirico, Cesar Province in Northern Colombia. CI Prodeco is Colombia&rsquo;s third largest coal producer and disgracefully only 4.91% of the company&rsquo;s expenditures is used for labour costs. 
 
Workers at Prodeco, organised under the municipality branch of ICEM coal-mining affiliate Sintracarb&oacute;n, presented management with a list of just demands on 21 September. The company negotiators initiated the direct settlement stage of bargaining on 3 October in the city of Barranquilla. Under Colombian law, the direct settlement stage of bargaining lasts two weeks but despite this, management has refused to bargain in good faith and shows no willingness to reach a collective agreement with workers, thus provoking strike action. 
<img alt="" src="" width="232" height="174" />
Instead of seeking a collective agreement, management announced its intention to renew a unilateral work rules document for a five-year period. The proposed document includes worker conditions below the legal minimum standards. 
 
Prodeco has run a sophisticated propaganda campaign attempting to convince workers that a collective agreement as proposed by the union would not be legal, and that workers stand to lose all benefits previously achieved through bargaining. They then offered the unilateral work rules document. The company campaign is clearly aimed at turning workers against the union and the bargaining process, in blatant breach of international labour standards that have been ratified by Colombia. 
 
The union is standing firm on its demands regarding labour-management relations, safety, occupational health, and on wages, benefits, promotions, education, housing, health, job stability, and use of external contractors. 
 
As pressure from supervisors increases, the ICEM stands in full support of Sintracarb&oacute;n members at Prodeco as they seek settlement for a collective agreement, or if they are forced to strike in the coming days. 
 
ICEM affiliates and supporters are urged to write to the <a href="mailto:Gary.nagle@prodeco.com.co; miguel.montoya@prodeco.com.co; emerito.benjumea@prodeco.com.co; carlos.martelo@prodeco.com.co; olga.charris@prodeco.com.co">company management</a>: Gary Nagle, Prodeco President; Miguel Montoya, human resources manager; and negotiators Charles Emeritus and Olga Lucia.&nbsp;

Sintracarbón Fights Glencore Subsidiary in Colombia

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Today in Geneva, representatives from trade unions, governments, and businesses start deliberating on employment restructuring and social dialogue in the chemicals and pharmaceutical industries as part of an ILO sectoral meeting. &ldquo;Promoting Social Dialogue on Restructuring and its Effects on Employment in the Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industries&rdquo; is the name of the four-day meeting (24-27 October) in which 90 representatives from 40 countries will participate. 
 
The meeting&rsquo;s aim is to unleash sustainable ways through positive industrial relations to meet restructuring processes. Social partners will explore the best practices of social dialogue in seeking constructive and conducive climates during corporate structural change, including mergers and acquisitions. The ICEM and affiliated trade unions will fully participate in the conference. 
 
The centerpiece of the meeting will be an <a href="http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/@ed_dialogue/@sector/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_164943.pdf ">ILO report</a> entitled &ldquo;Restructuring Employment and Social Dialogue in the Chemicals and Pharmaceutical Industries&rdquo; that details, among other things, the effects of the global economic crisis on these sectors. The ILO says, for example, that the 27 European Union Member States saw employment drop from three million workers in 2005 to 2.8 million in 2008, but that the job level has increased since to 3.1 million in the first quarter 2010. 
 
In the US, ILO places the 2008-2009 drop in chemicals and pharmaceutical employment at 70,000 jobs, or 5.1% of the total workforce for these sectors. ILO estimates that 20 million workers are now employed in the sectors worldwide, with the 27 EU states, Brazil, China, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, and the US accounting for 60% of that figure. 
 
The report also takes note of longer working hours in certain countries, and identifies a shortage of skilled workers such as scientists and others that present poignant challenges to the sectors. It also notes the relative low number of women working across the sector, particularly at the executive level where the percentage is far less than the average of Fortune 500 companies. The report also covers the effects of outsourcing and contract labour in the sectors.

ILO Tripartite Chemicals, Pharmaceutical Meeting Opens in Geneva

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